Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Escalation to Direct Conflict - Vox Popoli

 

  • CIA chief Bill Burns reportedly made a secret visit to Ukraine in January 2022, a month before Russia’s offensive against Kiev started… The clandestine meeting between Burns and Zelensky came to light in a soon-to-be-released book by author Chris Whipple on Joe Biden’s presidency, Business Insider reported on Monday. The trip came at a time when the Ukrainian president was publicly dismissive of US claims that Russia was poised to attack Kiev and was arguing that the warnings were creating “panic.”
  • US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, the highest-ranking officer in the American armed forces, met with Ukrainian soldiers undergoing Pentagon training at a base in Germany, where Washington recently stepped up efforts to prepare foreign troops for combat. The general visited the US Army’s Grafenwoehr Training Area in the German state of Bavaria for just shy of two hours on Monday, overseeing training operations with Ukrainian soldiers and their American instructors.
  • The Biden administration this week announced that the U.S. would provide advanced Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine for use in its fight against Russia’s invasion, a move that experts said would make a significant though not decisive difference in the conflict. The Bradleys are being sent as part of a larger $2.85 billion aid package. The announcement came on the same day that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his country would provide Marder combat vehicles, similar to Bradleys, and a Patriot air defense system to Ukraine. The previous day, France announced that it would be providing AMX-10 RC armored fighting vehicles. The moves mark an escalation of the support for Ukraine by the U.S. and its allies, which had hesitated to send systems like the Bradley for fear of provoking Russian escalation.
  • Western officials increasingly fear that Ukraine has only a narrow window to prepare to repel an anticipated Russian springtime offensive, and are moving fast to give the Ukrainians sophisticated weapons they had earlier refused to send for fear of provoking Moscow. Over the last few weeks, one barrier after another has fallen, starting with an agreement by the United States in late December to send a Patriot air-defense system. That was followed by a German commitment last week to provide a Patriot missile battery, and in the span of hours, France, Germany and the United States each promised to send armored fighting vehicles to Ukraine’s battlefields for the first time. Now it looks likely that modern Western tanks will be added to the growing list of powerful weapons being sent Ukraine’s way.

With these actions, the US government and military has now provided Russia with no shortage of legitimate casus belli. It now appears the only question is when, not if, the Russians decide to strike back directly at the Clown Worlders who are responsible for the establishment, maintenance, and militarization of the Kiev regime.

And this observed movement toward direct conflict with Russia and China may explain why Clown Worlders like Soros, Schwab, and Gates are suddenly starting to keep a lower profile.

DISCUSS ON SG

https://voxday.net/2023/01/17/escalation-to-direct-conflict/