#Hypersonic Missiles Russia Us

[compacflt]

I know you said that you aren't the pinnacle of military knowledge that people think you are but know a damsite more than I do about the US military than I do, so I have a question. Do you have any idea how long the Darkstar project would've been going on for in canon? It can't have been a few months but I also don't know if it would be years and years? I know Mav has an award for being a test pilot that I think is dated 2007 (I may have imagined that) but that doesn't mean the Darkstar project was going on for over ten years? I think the F-18A took 8 years from testing to being approved, so it can't be far off. Just wanted your opinion. Thanks :-)

awright here’s my opinion (not an expert)

the darkstar is canonically a Lockheed Martin “skunk works” (super duper secret) surveillance and reconnaissance (SR) spyplane, as evidenced by the skunk works logo on the vertical stabilizer (left is darkstar, right is me with the SW logo on the SR-71 blackbird at the udvar-hazy museum this summer).

we can look to see how long other SW projects have taken to develop in the past. the SR-71, for instance, was first suggested as an “undetectable spyplane” idea in 1957. the lockheed A-12 oxcart, which would provide the framework for the SR-71, had its first flight in 1962, five years later. the finished SR-71 was introduced into USAF and CIA service in 1966. so a 9-year development for the fastest-ever air-breathing jet, with 4-ish of those years being flight testing (ish because the A-12 had to be heavily adapted into the SR-71 which had its first flight in 1964).

Lockheed’s been teasing its blackbird successor, the unmanned aerial vehicle the SR-72 “son of blackbird,” on its socials recently. i saw someone say: “soft-launching its new death machine like an instagram influencer with a new boyfriend”

leading many to believe this is what happened

note however that the SR-72 son of blackbird is an UNMANNED aerial vehicle (UAV) which is why in my fic I specifically said this

note also that most of aircraft development is just that—development. Flight testing (i.e. where mav would get hands-on involved) doesn’t come until very very late in the development process. For the plot of my fic’s sake I had mav go out to NAWS china lake in 2003, but in TGM during the Hard Deck scene Penny says something to the effect of “you got sent out to the desert three years ago for pissing off that other admiral” and mav goes “that was three years ago? 😀” (cute!) so that’s the longest mav could’ve canonically been involved with the darkstar project. (For my own purposes i made it like a year, for those two sections of the story to neatly flow into each other—from 2015ish to 2016. I know TGM takes place in 2020 [i know but idfc] Maybe LockMart has had this tech [probably not high hypersonic like in the movie] for that long anyway and it’s just been so heavily classified that we didn’t know about it till very recently. Definitely possible.)

[sashanels]

[o-nexis]

мразоти.

одна ніч. 23 літака. 120 ракет. 90 шахедів.

On the night of November 17, 2024, the ruzzian occupiers carried out a massive combined attack on the energy sector facilities of Ukraine with various types of air-, land-, and sea-based missiles, as well as Shahed-type attack UAVs.

In total, according to preliminary data, the radio engineering troops of the Air Force of Ukraine detected and tracked 210 enemy air targets - 120 missiles and 90 UAVs.

By type:

- 1 hypersonic ship missile 3M22 "Zircon";

- 8 X-47M2 "Kinzhal" air-to-ground missiles;

- 101 cruise missiles X-101, "Kalibr";

- 1 Iskander-M ballistic missile;

- 4 X-22/X-31P cruise/anti-radar missiles;

- 5 X-59/X-69 guided missiles;

- 90 attack UAVs/drones of unspecified type.

The enemy used:

- 7 Tu-160 and 16 Tu-95MS strategic bombers;

- 2 Tu-22M3 long-range bombers;

- 5 Su-34 fighter-bombers;

- 4 Su-27 fighters;

- 10 MiG-31K fighters;

- 4 cruise missile carriers in the air attack.

Throughout the night, all available air defense forces and means were deployed along the route of the missiles and drones. Aviation, anti-aircraft missile units, electronic warfare assets, and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Air Force and Defense Forces were involved.

According to preliminary data, as of 12.00, 144 air targets were shot down - 102 missiles and 42 UAVs).

As a result of active counteraction by the Defense Forces, 41 enemy UAVs were lost in different regions of Ukraine, and two more UAVs flew towards Russia and the temporarily occupied territory.

Air defense was active in almost all regions of Ukraine - Kyiv, Cherkasy, Kirovohrad, Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Poltava, Odesa, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Rivne, Volyn and Lviv regions.

[darkmaga-returns]

Most of our readers are too young to remember the Vietnam War of a half-century ago, but those of us holding draft cards classifying us as 1A have a more personal perspective. In 1971, when I received my low draft number, all I could think was that perhaps I, too, would have to participate in the horror that was combat in that wicked war.

The Paris Peace Accords of January 1973—signed a month after I took my military physical—ended direct US involvement, although the US government continued to aid the South Vietnamese until their government and armed forces completely collapsed in April 1975. Today, Vietnam and the US are at peace with each other, but even today, unexploded US bombs continue to blow up and kill innocent people.

Samuel Johnson wrote in 1758:

Among the calamities of war may be jointly numbered the diminution of the love of truth, by the falsehoods which interest dictates and credulity encourages.

To put it another way, war breeds lies. Lies gave us Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, and now the Ukraine War. Like it has done with so many wars that have US involvement, the New York Times has first promoted the conflicts it later claims to abhor, and Ukraine is no exception. Popular columnist David French—who has never seen a US war he didn’t support—two years ago visited Ukraine and gushed about the “valor” he saw with the Ukraine people:

This is primarily a Ukrainian story, of course. We know from bitter experience that we can supply “allies” with billions of dollars of American weapons, only to watch them collapse in the face of a determined attack. But Ukrainian valor and resolve are breathtaking. Most Ukrainians I’ve talked to since arriving don’t say “after the war”; they say “after the victory.” But this is also an American story, and at the risk of sounding a bit corny, when I watched the air defenses we helped build intercept Russian hypersonic missiles above Kyiv, I felt proud to be an American.

[misfitwashere]

ROBERT REICH

MAR 21

Friends,

There are two huge national security questions at the heart of the Trump regime. 

The first is whether Elon Musk is working, at least in part, for China’s Xi Jinping. Consider:

(1) China is the location of Musk’s largest Tesla factory in the world in which China invested $2.8 billion. The state-of-the-art facility was built in Shanghai with special permission from the Chinese government, and now accounts for more than half of Tesla’s global deliveries. 

(2) China is the world’s biggest market for Teslas and is the only electronic vehicle market where Tesla sales are continuing to grow.

(3) Chinese investors have been funneling money into Musk’s other businesses.

(4) China is a hotbed of other technologies that Musk would like to get his hands on. 

(5) In 2022, Musk told The Financial Times that China should be given some control over Taiwan by making a “special administrative zone for Taiwan that is reasonably palatable.” 

(6) In 2023, at a tech conference, he called Taiwan “an integral part of China that is arbitrarily not part of China,” and compared the Taiwan-China situation to Hawaii and the United States.

(7) On X, the social platform he owns, Musk has long used his account to praise China, encouraging more people to visit the country.

(8) One of the Pentagon’s biggest worries is that China has developed a suite of weapons capable of attacking U.S. military and non-military satellites.

(9) The Pentagon now relies heavily on Musk’s SpaceX Starlink satellite communications network for military personnel to transmit data worldwide.

(10) SpaceX launches most of the Pentagon’s military satellites on its Falcon 9 rockets, which take off from launchpads SpaceX has set up at military bases in Florida and California.

(11) SpaceX has become so valuable to the Pentagon that the Chinese government has said it considers SpaceX to be an extension of the U.S. military.

(12) The Pentagon has hired Musk’s Space X to build it a new constellation of low-earth orbit satellites to spy on China, Russia and other threats.

(13) Perceived missile threats from China — nuclear weapons or hypersonic missiles or cruise missiles — have led Trump to sign an executive order instructing the Pentagon to start work on “Golden Dome,” a space-based missile defense system, in which Musk’s Space X would almost surely be involved for rocket launches, satellite structures, and space-based data communications systems.

(14) Musk and his SpaceX have repeatedly failed to comply with federal reporting protocols aimed at protecting U.S. secrets, including by not providing some details of his meetings with foreign leaders — leading to at least three federal reviews, including one by the Defense Department’s Office of Inspector General and another by the Air Force and the Pentagon’s Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security. 

So … is Musk working for Trump, for the United States, for China, or for himself — or for all of the above?

The question of Musk’s allegiance becomes more weighty by the day. 

This morning, for example, he met with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other Pentagon brass. According to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, the meeting had been arranged at Musk’s request to give Musk details about America’s preparations for war with China — the most sensitive and secret information anyone can receive. 

It appears that after the scheduled meeting and its subject matter were reported yesterday, the meeting mysteriously morphed into something more innocent. Apparently, Trump decided Musk shouldn’t be briefed on war preparations with China. 

Musk arrived shortly before 9 a.m. and left about 90 minutes later. When a reporter asked what Hegseth and Musk discussed, Musk shot back: “Why should I tell you?” Trump and Hegseth deny China was even mentioned. 

The underlying question is whether Musk can be trusted. 

Not even his position in the Trump regime is clear. Congress has not confirmed him for any role. He hasn’t been “vetted” by the FBI, as are all senior appointments. His finances haven’t been reviewed by anyone; they certainly haven’t been made public. He hasn’t even taken the oath of office, pledging his allegiance to the United States and the Constitution. 

I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention Musk’s connection to Putin. According to the Wall Street Journal, Musk has been in regular contact with the Russian President —a close partner of China, which has supported Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. 

Which raises the second huge national security concern at the heart of the Trump regime: Is Trump working for Putin? I don’t have to list all the evidence that prompts the question. That evidence also keeps mounting by the day. 

Trump and Musk: Manchurian heads of the United States?

[girlactionfigure]

🔴 ISRAEL PLANS ESCALATED MILITARY STRIKES IN YEMEN AFTER HOUTHI MISSILE ATTACK ON TEL AVIV; US APPROVES $5 BILLION ARMS DEAL WITH EGYPT, RAISING ISRAELI SECURITY CONCERNS

‼️ Israel is preparing to intensify its military strikes in Yemen following last night’s Houthi ballistic missile attack on Tel Aviv. The IDF are planning expanded operations against targets in western Yemen.

Israeli officials have reached out to the United States and other allies to form a coalition for major military action against the Houthis. The move comes as Israeli intelligence predicts an increase in Houthi attacks in the coming weeks.

The Houthi military spokesman confirmed responsibility for launching the "Palestine 2 hypersonic missile" aimed at Tel Aviv, signaling a new phase in the conflict.

🔹 The US State Department has approved a $5 billion military equipment deal with Egypt. The package includes $4.69 billion for upgrading 555 Abrams tanks and related equipment and $630 million for Hellfire missiles and precision-guided munitions. While Egypt cites counter-terror and border security as the rationale, Israeli observers warn the arsenal could be used in conventional warfare, potentially against Israel.

Egypt’s military expansion has raised concerns in Israel about the stability of the Egyptian regime, growing anti-Israeli sentiment, and potential regional shifts. Critics also point to Egypt’s deepening ties with Russia and China, suggesting these alliances may disrupt the strategic balance. Despite a formal peace treaty between Israel and Egypt, skepticism persists regarding Egypt’s long-term intentions.

🎗️Following a high-level meeting in Cairo, leaders of Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front expressed optimism about a potential ceasefire in Gaza. According to the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, the three movements believe an agreement is "closer than ever."

[mariacallous]

How do you solve a problem like the Houthis?

The U.S. Navy has certainly tried. It’s fired missiles at the militia’s facilities in Yemen. Together with the British Royal Navy, it has intercepted Houthi missiles being fired at ships in the Red Sea. All sorts of Western navies are conducting patrols in the troubled waters. But the Houthis are not relenting. On the contrary, they have asked the world’s most notorious arms dealer for more weapons. And the arrival of Russia’s Viktor Bout in the Red Sea is bad news for global shipping.

The Houthis are unlike any other adversary that Western militaries have faced in the past few decades. They’re not traditional armed forces. They’re not a Taliban-like insurgency outfit whose only objective is to seize territorial power. And they’re definitely not a mere criminal gang, like Somalia’s pirates.

Instead, the group is a powerful militia that has discovered that it can attack ships to get global attention, and it uses weapons ordinarily reserved for official armed forces.

Not even Hezbollah has such capabilities—or at least, it doesn’t use them, perhaps because Lebanon depends on shipping for its survival. Since the Houthis launched their campaign against Western-linked vessels, they’ve certainly been getting the attention they crave, and they’ve been demonstrating that they have access to highly sophisticated weaponry.

On Oct. 10, for example, the Yemeni outfit struck a Liberian-flagged ship with drones and missiles, and less than a month before that, they fired a missile that reached central Israel before being disabled by an Israeli interceptor.

The Houthis claimed the missile they directed at Israel was hypersonic, which has not been confirmed and is unlikely, but they like to brag. Their attacks seem designed to keep the global public in a state of fear over what might come next. And now, the Wall Street Journal reports, the group is in talks with Viktor Bout over the delivery of additional weapons.

Bout, you may remember, is the world’s most notorious arms dealer. The Russian merchant—who is known as the ��merchant of death” and has also worked for Russia’s GRU intelligence service—spent nearly two decades selling weapons to armed groups around the world. Death and destruction followed wherever his weapons went.

But in 2008, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) managed to get him arrested in a sting operation in Thailand. He was subsequently extradited to the United States and sentenced to 25 years in prison on several counts, including conspiracy to kill Americans.

“He’s one of the most dangerous men on the face of the earth,” Michael Braun—the DEA’s chief of operations until 2008—told CBS’s 60 Minutes in 2010.

But two years ago, the United States decided to trade Bout for an American citizen imprisoned in Russia, basketballer Brittney Griner. Former DEA officials were aghast. So were U.S. military personnel, who had seen the immense harm that Bout’s weapons were doing.

Writing in Foreign Policy, Braun strongly advised against the exchange, noting that Bout remained close to the Kremlin: “Even after formally leaving the GRU, Bout enjoyed the backing of—and at times took assignments from—his former employer.” But the Biden administration believed, or wanted to believe, that the Bout of 2022 was much less dangerous than the Bout of 2008.

And now the Houthis have turned to the wily arms dealer. Before his arrest one-and-a-half decades ago, he specialized AK-47s and grenade launchers, but he seems to be able to deliver whatever his clients need.

In 2008, he offered two FARC guerrillas who’d arranged to meet him in Thailand 30,000 AK-47s, “10 million rounds of ammunition, or more, five tons of C-4 plastic explosives, ultralight airplanes outfitted with grenade launchers, mortars, unmanned aerial vehicles, Dragunov sniper rifles with night vision, vehicle-mounted anti-aircraft cannons that could take down an airliner,” not to mention some 700 to 800 MANPADs (man-portable air-defense systems), as Politico subsequently reported. (Alas for Bout, the guerillas had been turned by the DEA, and Bout was arrested.)

That means that Western navies and shipping companies have to prepare for the potential arrival of new weaponry in the Red Sea. The first two deliveries facilitated by Bout, expected as early as this month, “will be mostly AK-74s, an upgraded version of the AK-47 assault rifle,” the Wall Street Journal reported in early October. Bout and the Houthis have also discussed Kornet anti-tank missiles and anti-aircraft weapons.

The Houthis may well need automatic assault rifles in their armed conflict against Yemen’s official government, but it’s the larger weapons that Western countries should worry most about. If Bout’s relationship with the Houthis takes off, anti-ship weapons could well follow. Thanks to Iran, the Houthis already have access to drones and missiles, but Iran is weakened and may not be able to focus much on the Houthis. That’s where Bout could be useful.

And the arms dealer’s talks with the Houthis are hardly a freelance venture. Since his return from a U.S. prison, Bout—hailed as a hero by Russian state media—has entered the warm embrace of the Russian state, and in last year’s regional elections, he was elected a member of the Ulyanovsk state parliament. If he procures weapons for the Houthis, it will be with the knowledge or even assistance of the Kremlin.

The Kremlin has already shown a desire to help the Houthis. Iran is brokering talks between Russia and the militia that would see Russian P-800 Oniks anti-ship missiles delivered to the Houthis, Reuters reported in September.

The powerful missiles, which have a range of 300 kilometers (186 miles) and carry a 200-kilogram (440 pound) high-explosive warhead, would significantly increase the risk for merchant vessels in the Red Sea—and even for the Western naval vessels there to protect them. Indeed, the arrival of the nasty P-800 Oniks would trigger the departure of the remaining few shipping companies still sending their vessels through the Red Sea.

“The very notion of the high seas is now challenged, and once state and/or nonstate actors, especially proxies, discover a new approach that has strategic, operational, and tactical impact, it will only be mimicked by others,” retired Vice Adm. Duncan Potts, who commanded the European Union’s counter-piracy operation in the Indian Ocean at the height of the piracy resurgence there in the early 2010s, told Foreign Policy. “I fear this is a game-changer,” he added. “Defending against complex weapons needs complex weapons, and there are relatively few navies who have the capability, number of platforms, and will to do anything about it.”

It’s also about the dividing world. Ever since launching its campaign against shipping last November, the Yemeni militia has spared Russian and Chinese vessels. The two powers have shown their appreciation by not pressuring the Houthis to end their campaign and—unlike earlier operations against Red Sea pirates, where China participated���by not taking part in escort plans. (Western countries are conducting the escorts and fighting of Houthi attacks regardless of what flag ships fly and in which country they’re owned.)

The fact that Moscow appears so willing to fund an assault on Western vessels shows that global shipping is splitting in two—and a divided ocean will be a far riskier and more costly place.

[dertaglichedan]

France gives Ukraine licence to fire long-range missiles at Russia

Jean-Noël Barrot, the foreign minister, said it was vital for Europe’s security to supply weapons such as the Scalp, the French equivalent of Storm Shadow

France appears to have given Ukraine approval to fire French-made Scalp long-range missiles into Russia “in the logics of self-defence”, following similar moves by America and Britain — but has not revealed whether they have yet been used.

Jean-Noël Barrot, the foreign minister, said in an interview with the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg to be broadcast on Sunday that the West should not put limits on support for Ukraine against Russia and “not set and express red lines”.

President Putin has vowed to increase production of his country’s new hypersonic intermediate-range Oreshnik missile following its first use in an attack on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Thursday. Russian defence officials have pointed out that the weapon’s range would allow it to be used against European cities.

Nato and Ukraine are expected to hold emergency talks on Tuesday to discuss the escalation in the two-and-a-half-year conflict, which follows North Korea’s decision to send troops to fight alongside Russian forces. Some 10,000 of them are believed to be in Russia’s Kursk region, ready to enter combat in Ukraine “soon”, according to Lloyd Austin, the US defence secretary.

Barrot said: “We will support Ukraine as intensely and as long as necessary. Why? Because it is our security that is at stake. Each time the Russian army progresses by one square kilometre, the threat gets one square kilometre closer to Europe.”

***Oh sure, why not?

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

New SpaceTime out Monday

SpaceTime 20241202 Series 27 Episode 145

What lies beneath the worlds of Uranus and Neptune

A new study suggests the ice giants Uranus and Neptune feature layers of water, methane, and ammonia which like oil and water, don't mix.

Final Venus flyby for NASA's Parker Solar Probe

-NASA's Parker Solar Probe has completed its final Venus gravity assist flyby manoeuvre, passing within 376 kilometres of Venus's surface.

Making the most colourful map of the cosmos ever attempted

A new NASA mission slated for launch next year will make the most colourful map of the cosmos ever attempted.

The Science Report

Russia has commenced using a new nuclear-capable hypersonic missile to attack Ukraine.

A new study shows that almost half the world experienced extreme drought last year.

Discovery of what could be evidence of the oldest alphabetic writing in human history.

Skeptics guide to the Royal’s love of the paranormal

SpaceTime covers the latest news in astronomy & space sciences.

The show is available every Monday, Wednesday and Friday through Apple Podcasts (itunes), Stitcher, Google Podcast, Pocketcasts, SoundCloud, Bitez.com, YouTube, your favourite podcast download provider, and from www.spacetimewithstuartgary.com

SpaceTime is also broadcast through the National Science Foundation on Science Zone Radio and on both i-heart Radio and Tune-In Radio.

SpaceTime daily news blog: http://spacetimewithstuartgary.tumblr.com/

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SpaceTime YouTube: @SpaceTimewithStuartGary

SpaceTime -- A brief history

SpaceTime is Australia’s most popular and respected astronomy and space science news program – averaging over two million downloads every year. We’re also number five in the United States.  The show reports on the latest stories and discoveries making news in astronomy, space flight, and science.  SpaceTime features weekly interviews with leading Australian scientists about their research.  The show began life in 1995 as ‘StarStuff’ on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) NewsRadio network.  Award winning investigative reporter Stuart Gary created the program during more than fifteen years as NewsRadio’s evening anchor and Science Editor.  Gary’s always loved science. He studied astronomy at university and was invited to undertake a PHD in astrophysics, but instead focused on his career in journalism and radio broadcasting. Gary’s radio career stretches back some 34 years including 26 at the ABC. He worked as an announcer and music DJ in commercial radio, before becoming a journalist and eventually joining ABC News and Current Affairs. He was part of the team that set up ABC NewsRadio and became one of its first on air presenters. When asked to put his science background to use, Gary developed StarStuff which he wrote, produced and hosted, consistently achieving 9 per cent of the national Australian radio audience based on the ABC’s Nielsen ratings survey figures for the five major Australian metro markets: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth.  The StarStuff podcast was published on line by ABC Science -- achieving over 1.3 million downloads annually.  However, after some 20 years, the show finally wrapped up in December 2015 following ABC funding cuts, and a redirection of available finances to increase sports and horse racing coverage.  Rather than continue with the ABC, Gary resigned so that he could keep the show going independently.  StarStuff was rebranded as “SpaceTime”, with the first episode being broadcast in February 2016.  Over the years, SpaceTime has grown, more than doubling its former ABC audience numbers and expanding to include new segments such as the Science Report -- which provides a wrap of general science news, weekly skeptical science features, special reports looking at the latest computer and technology news, and Skywatch – which provides a monthly guide to the night skies. The show is published three times weekly (every Monday, Wednesday and Friday) and available from the United States National Science Foundation on Science Zone Radio, and through both i-heart Radio and Tune-In Radio.

[koncygystan]

Russia will ‘finish off’ Ukrainian forces – Putin

The Ukrainian people must realize they were duped by the Western dream of inflicting “strategic defeat” on Russia, the president has said

President Vladimir Putin has declared that Russian forces are gaining momentum across the entire line of contact and could soon “finish off” Kiev’s military, while commenting on attempts by its European backers to derail a diplomatic resolution of the conflict.

The Russian president made the remarks on Thursday during a meeting with the crew of the Arkhangelsk nuclear submarine, equipped with Zircon hypersonic missiles. Putin reiterated that Moscow has always sought to resolve the conflict through diplomatic means but was met with deception and obstruction from the West – first with the failed Minsk Agreements and then during the 2022 Istanbul peace talks.

“Their European handlers… convinced the Ukrainian leadership that they had to continue armed resistance, essentially to the last Ukrainian, with the goal of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia,” he said.

Putin accused Western leaders – specifically former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson – of underestimating Russia’s resolve, and warned that the country’s military capabilities should not be taken lightly.

“He must have forgotten that there are people like you – and weapons like your submarine,” Putin told the naval crew. “Apparently, he forgot, or maybe they simply do not understand what the Russian people are made of.”

The Russian president said the conflict is reaching a turning point and expressed confidence in the outcome, noting that “across the entire line of combat engagement, our troops hold the strategic initiative.”

Not long ago I said, ‘We’ll squeeze them.’ Now there’s reason to believe we’ll finish them off. Then, I think a moment of realization must come to the Ukrainian people themselves.

Despite his hardline tone, Putin reiterated that Russia remains open to peace negotiations – as long as the core causes of the conflict are addressed.

“We are in favor of resolving these issues by peaceful means… But the root causes must be eliminated. We must ensure Russia’s security for the long historical perspective,” he said.

Russia has repeatedly stated that it is open to peace talks, but insists that a true settlement of the conflict requires a permanent and legally-binding solution. Moscow opposes any NATO presence on Ukrainian soil and demands that Kiev demilitarize, denazify, adhere to a position of neutrality, and recognize the territorial “realities on the ground.”

On March 18, the Russian military was ordered to refrain from attacking Ukrainian energy infrastructure under a deal agreed upon by President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump. However, the Russian Ministry of Defense has since reported multiple Ukrainian violations, which it described as attempts to undermine Trump’s mediation efforts.

source

[frogblast-the-ventcore]

Footage of Russian 'Oreshnik' IRBM strike on Dnipro from 2 days ago. 6 warheads each with 6 submunitions, based on looking at the footage frame by frame. Likely a variant of the RS-26 'Rubezh'. It is an Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile, it is NOT an ICBM. Note that Russian claims of this missile being "hypersonic" are a misnomer, as ALL ballistic missiles are hypersonic by design.

There are no explosions in the footage, which to me indicates the missile was loaded with inert warheads and/or decoys, likely as a test/statement of "look what we can do" more than as a way to majorly damage anything.

It should also be noted that Russia notified the US of the launch, as they do with any launch of a long range ballistic missile, though the US was only given 30 minutes notice.

[acnewsworld]

Russia’s use of the Oreshnik hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile on the territory of Ukraine has forced London to take a more cautious approach regarding strikes with long-range weapons deep inside Russia, the country’s ambassador to the UK Andrey Kelin said.

“Not that they [London’s representatives] were scared, but overall they realized that a completely new factor had appeared on the scene – that’s the first thing. The second is that we have retaliated for the use of Storm Shadow [long-range missiles] deep inside Russian territory. That’s obvious as well. There is a sense that they are being a little more cautious, a little more balanced in their approach to this issue. And, in fact,

Read More

[dontforgetukraine]

"Colleagues, First and foremost, on behalf of Czechia, I wish to express my profound sorrow and sadness at the attacks on Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital as well as on several maternity hospitals in Kyiv and across Ukraine, resulting in many dead and wounded. What happened yesterday is unconscionable. It is beyond the pale. Czechia condemns in the strongest terms the devastating attacks perpetrated by the Russian Federation. The horrific spectacle of relentless death and destruction caused by Russia’s blatant aggression reached a new dark chapter yesterday. Targeting small, innocent and sick children with hypersonic missiles is utterly shocking. Directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects is a war crime, and any such attacks are unacceptable and must end immediately. Regrettably, Russia continues to completely disregard international law as well as claims for durable and just peace. It is more than obvious that arguments such as “mistaken strike” or “Ukrainian air defence caused it” do not hold any ground here. Russian military must have known perfectly well what civilian targets they aimed at and what damage these strikes would cause. Colleagues, No matter what lies the Russian propagandists continue to spread, the simple truth remains: Putin’s Russia is the aggressor. The launching of this war of territorial aggression is Russia’s choice. The gross violation of the UN Charter and international law is Russia’s choice. The bombing of schools and hospitals is Russia’s choice. The killing of children and civilians is Russia’s choice. Let that sink in. Those responsible for this war must be held to account. Colleagues, Ukraine needs our support. Ukraine is defending its territorial integrity and fighting for its survival. I want to use this opportunity to reaffirm that Czech support for Ukraine remains unwavering. The international community must take concrete steps to end the war and support Ukraine’s sovereignty within its internationally recognised borders. Czechia is determined to work with all those who genuinely uphold the key principles of the UN Charter to bring an end to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine once and for all. Thank you."

Czech Speech at the UN Security Council* July 9th, 2024 (Source) *Russia blocked the speech of the Czech ambassador at the UN. This is the transcript.

[darkmaga-returns]

By Paul Craig Roberts

PaulCraigRoberts.org

November 23, 2024

PCR On Target with Larry Sparano

This interview from two days ago explains the dangerous situation into which the Biden Regime has placed life on earth by Washington’s conscious decision to go to war with Russia.

The Russian government made it completely clear that a decision to fire missiles into Russia means the West is at war with Russia.  Nevertheless, the insane West fired missiles into Russia.

Putin responded with a demonstration of a new hypersonic missile that completely destroyed a Ukrainian armaments production facility.  The missile travels at speed that the West has no capability to intercept and was designed to carry nuclear warheads.  The message to the West is clear:  If you persist in your war with Russia, you can expect widespread destruction.

What will the insane West do?  Will it come to its senses, or is it more important to widen the war in order to lock Trump in and prevent him from reaching a peaceful end to the conflict? 

The Russian-hating Jew that Washington installed as its agent in Ukraine is demanding a “strong response” from the West.  In other words, Zelensky is demanding Europe and the US put themselves at risk of destruction simply because Russia responded to a missile attack by the West from Ukrainian soil with a 

[superdiscochino]

This article laying out the need for a colossal expenditure to shore up our deep-strike capability -- they only ever built like 20 B-2s, and the average age of the rest of the US bomber fleet is, no joke, between 40 and 60 years old -- is so funny because the argument it seems to be making is look, all of our other shit is completely fucked and broken:

The bomber was previously intended to be supported by unmanned ‘wingman’ aircraft, although work on their development was cancelled in July 2022. Serious deficiencies in submarine construction, and major cost overruns and development issues that leave the future of the Sentinel intercontinental range ballistic missile program uncertain, have led to greater importance being attributed to the B-21 program as a means of striking targets deep inside enemy territory. Critics of plans to increase procurement have, among other factors, highlighted the rapid improvements to Chinese radar technologies which create a significant possibility of Chinese forces being able to detect and neutralise B-21s at very long ranges either by the time the bomber enters service or not long afterwards. 

So like, this might not even work either, but man we definitely need 200 of them! Never mind that hypersonic missiles make all this shit obsolete anyway, we don't have those either. And these are the guys who all want to go to war with China and Russia! Oy vey

[kineticpenguin]

I'm a bit skeptical this is gonna work out. There's a reason Rolls-Royce pulled out of the supersonic startup: there really just aren't any viable supersonic commercial missions. Aside from the "inexpensive replacement for sounding rocket testing" angle, I don't really see any appearing for hypersonic aircraft, either. So of course, it's no surprise that all the money for this is coming from the Air Force.

I'm also a bit disappointed that Real Engineering seemed to buy the oldest defense industry bait in the book: the Missile Gap. The US hasn't invested in hypersonic missiles because it hasn't seen a need to, and for as scary as they're supposed to be... Ukraine has already shot down at least one with a Patriot battery.

If it weren't for the production demand, the war in Ukraine is probably one of the worst things to happen to the NATO defense industries: we now know beyond a reasonable doubt that Russia's still at least 30 years behind in every way that matters. The idea that they could succeed in a conventional war with the West is now outright laughable. So, without scary wunderwaffe like "hypersonic missiles" and "tsunami torpedoes" of dubious and unproven capability, there's really nothing left to justify the insane amount of money dumped on these guys for R&D beyond just staying on top.

A drone SR-71 is probably going to be DOA as well, unless they can make them super cheap and find a reason you really, really need one. After all, the Blackbird went the way of the dodo because spy satellites got too good. Way better value for your defense dollar.

Finally, I'm pretty confident in saying it'll be a cold day in Hell before you see a hypersonic Air Force One. There really isn't a scenario in which you need the POTUS on the other side of an ocean in 2-3 hours. The priorities for Air Force One are dependability, endurance, communications, survivability and comfort. It's why they always buy a mature airliner to convert for the job, not a bleeding edge racehorse that's liable to be the President Exploder 2000.