Tag: Shortages

Bombs for Bailouts: Pakistan Supplied Weapons to Ukraine in Return for U.S.-Brokered IMF Loan

Ms. Cat

The Biden administration helped Pakistan get a controversial new bailout from the International Monetary Fund after Pakistan agreed to secretly sell arms to the United States for the war in Ukraine, according to a new blockbuster report by The Intercept. The deal allows Pakistan to sell some $900 million in munitions while keeping IMF loans flowing to the government in Islamabad amid a spiraling economic crisis, which is driven at least partly by the austerity measures imposed by the IMF loan. Pakistan’s position on the war in Ukraine has shifted significantly since Russia’s invasion and the ouster of Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was removed from office in 2022 under pressure from U.S. diplomats who objected to his “aggressively neutral” stance on the war. Khan is now imprisoned in Pakistan on corruption charges. Meanwhile, the caretaker government backed by Pakistan’s powerful military has delayed planned elections, widely seen as an attempt to block Khan’s supporters from power. “When the United States has a primary foreign policy objective, in particular when it’s a war, everything else falls away. That’s what you’re seeing in Pakistan now,” says The Intercept’s Ryan Grim.

Bombs for Bailouts: Pakistan Supplied Weapons to Ukraine in Return for U.S.-Brokered IMF Loan

Related:

“U.S. Helped Pakistan Get IMF Bailout With Secret Arms Deal For Ukraine, Leaked Documents Reveal”

NBC Claims Former US Officials Held Secret Talks With Russians

Ms. Cat

Update: Russia‘s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman called the report “disinformation”

Report: Former Senior US Officials Held Secret Talks With Russians

Regarding OSCE, they’ve done that, before, and they don’t seem so neutral.

Related:

Former U.S. officials have held secret Ukraine talks with prominent Russians

“A neutral organization — either the UN or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe — would send in observers to monitor and enforce the cease-fire and pullback,” the former U.S. officials wrote. “Assuming a cease-fire holds, peace talks should follow.”

The West Needs a New Strategy in Ukraine

NBC ‘spreading disinfo’ on Ukraine talks – Moscow

Arms firm complains that cat videos threaten growth

Ms. Cat1 Comment

Battles over electricity will spread across Europe, the FT reported today. An arms firm enjoying a massive increase in business (for obvious reasons) says that some of the electricity in their area is being used by a TikTok data center, and could affect their future expansion.

Arms firm complains that cat videos threaten growth via Fridayeveryday

Must make more cat videos!!! 😹

Related:

Norwegian Defense Firm Nammo Blames TikTok For Power Shortages

“Authorities must choose between preserving cat videos or providing essential social functions,” the Nammo CEO said.

Bakhmut Update 3/25/2023: Beware of Reports Originating from British Intelligence

Ms. Cat

Bakhmut Update 3/25/2023: Beware of Reports Originating from British Intelligence

Of course if you believe propaganda allegedly originating from British intelligence you would think the Russians are losing and that Wagner forces will withdraw and redeploy to Africa. This sort of nonsense contributes nothing to understanding factually what is going on in Ukraine and is a disservice to concerned citizens. (See for example this story in Breitbart).

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If Ukraine does call off any offensive to relieve Bakhmut, then the US/NATO plan for an attack on Crimea remains credible. However, the risk of a very large scale Russian encirclement of Ukraine’s forces could force a change of plans.