In Related News...

 ... BS primarily occupies the space in the brains of NATO military "leaders" where such things as sound military education, experience, logic and Sun Tzu's triviality about "knowing thy enemy et al" should reside instead of this substance of bovine excrement, but who am I kidding.  

WIESBADEN, Germany (Reuters) - NATO will not be cowed by Russian threats but keep up its strong support of Kyiv, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said on his first visit to the alliance's Ukraine mission in Wiesbaden, set to take over the coordination of military aid from the U.S. "The message (to Russian President Vladimir Putin) is that we will continue, that we will do what's necessary to make sure that he will not get his way, that Ukraine will prevail," he told Reuters in a joint interview with German public radio Hessischer Rundfunk on Monday. Rutte spoke at Clay Barracks, the U.S. base hosting the headquarters of the new mission, dubbed NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), which will gradually assume the coordination of Western military aid to Kyiv.

Yes, it is always a good idea of creating the commission on managing the previous commissions which have been created for the study of the issue on creating more commissions. 

Speaking in one of 12 green tents that house NSATU as it is built up, Rutte earlier on Monday addressed allied troops from more than a dozen nations already working on the mission that will, at a later stage, move into a nearby hangar and be complemented by Ukrainian troops. NSATU is expected to have a total strength of some 700 personnel, including troops stationed at NATO's military headquarters SHAPE in Belgium and at logistics hubs in Poland and Romania. The Wiesbaden base is also home to the U.S. unit in charge of long-range missiles that Washington will deploy to Germany temporarily from 2026, to counter what both countries describe as a threat posed by Russian missiles stationed as close as Kaliningrad, some 500 kilometres (311 miles) from Berlin.

Say what? How could they have allowed this thing to happen in the midst of... only 12 green tents. There should have been at least... three times more green tents. 

How can anyone plan aid and NATO operations for VSU in only 12 green tents is beyond me, plus--what kind of a joke is this? Why green tents? They should be pink or, at least, of some sort of light reddish hue. 

But, of course, the reality of the resources and scales is not known to such people as Rutte (look up his bio--the guy's background is... fabulous) who from the day one has a firm hand of Washington up his ass to assure that he doesn't deviate from the party line while NATO (a euphemism for the USA) is in desperate search of a solution to this conundrum. After all, in accordance to Pentagon and State Department "planning" Putin's "regime" was supposed to collapse some time late 2022--early 2023. Well, it is the end of 2024, and apart from demolishing best ever American proxy, the news are really bad. Like this:

МОСКВА, 15 окт — РИА Новости. Рубль по итогам августа впервые стал главной валютой для расчетов за импорт товаров и услуг из стран азиатского региона, следует из анализа РИА Новости данных Банка России. В конце лета его доля в платежах достигла рекордных 43,6% против 42,9% месяцем ранее. При этом удельный вес рубля превысил валюты дружественных стран в августе на 0,6 процентного пункта, что позволило российской валюте стать основной для оплаты поставок. Рекордную долю рубль также занял в расчетах за африканские товары, увеличившись на 0,5 процентного пункта — до 69,9%, а также за поставки из Океании, где им оплачивается 84,3%. В целом в августе российская валюта стала использоваться в импорте немного меньше — 44,7% против 45,9% в июле. Одновременно сократилась и доля дружественных валют — сразу на 2,2 процентного пункта, до 31,2%. А вот главными бенефициарами стали "токсичные" валюты, в которых стали оплачивать 24,1% российского импорта против 20,7% месяцем ранее. Главным образом это произошло за счет увеличения доли недружественных валют в расчетах за импорт из Азии (+1,1 процентного пункта, 13,3%), Америки (+8,3 процентного пункта, 71%) и Европы (+6,9 процентного пункта, 49,3%).

Translation: MOSCOW, 15 Oct — RIA Novosti. The ruble became the main currency for payments for imported goods and services from Asian countries for the first time in August, according to RIA Novosti’s analysis of Bank of Russia data. At the end of summer, its share in payments reached a record 43.6% against 42.9% a month earlier. At the same time, the share of the ruble exceeded the currencies of friendly countries in August by 0.6 percentage points, which allowed the Russian currency to become the main one for paying for deliveries. The ruble also took a record share in payments for African goods, increasing by 0.5 percentage points to 69.9%, as well as for deliveries from Oceania, where it is used to pay for 84.3%. Overall, the Russian currency began to be used slightly less in imports in August — 44.7% against 45.9% in July. At the same time, the share of friendly currencies also decreased — by 2.2 percentage points, to 31.2%. But the main beneficiaries were "toxic" currencies, which began to pay for 24.1% of Russian imports, compared to 20.7% a month earlier. This was mainly due to the increase in the share of unfriendly currencies in payments for imports from Asia (+1.1 percentage points, 13.3%), America (+8.3 percentage points, 71%) and Europe (+6.9 percentage points, 49.3%).

These numbers (with minor fluctuations) are the material manifestation of what real military power buys one, not just sovereignty but the ability to trade with your partners in whatever currency and on whatever conditions one wants. And Kazan is coming...  

Is There Any Chance...

 ... for us to get into this future (or afterlife--is this how the paradise looks like?). 

Reality, however, is this... it is still genius... 

...

Here Are Some Interesting Thoughts...

... on Russia's Ark. Charles who has his own channel explains in this video why he is in Russia (turn on the captions). 

He is a French traditional Catholic who stresses especially one thing which Europe lacks--safety for a family and not just the physical one. Remarkably, I want to do a quiz, a "competition" of sorts--who can identify the SECOND most important thing in Charles' story other than, of course, his life story? It is in the video. BTW--can totally relate, all my life, it seems, we were moving. Changing places, it seems, is the hallmark of our clan)). 

 

P.S. For those who will start questioning, again, my reasons for staying in the US and not moving back to Russia. I will repeat (again)--our home (not house, but home) is in the US and the US, unlike Europe, is still a different story. It is a complex story but our reasons are valid. Plus--I just need to get out of the house and see magnificent Cascades and breath the air of Pacific Ocean every morning. In related news, went to Sportsman's Warehouse and bought myself Beretta APX1 Compact. Just let it be...  Security, you know--we shoot first and ask questions later.

Kiel Report...

 ... and some numbers are shocking. Even when sourced from 404 and US "data". US Army Anti-UAV latest prototypes don't do that well in real war. Russian and Chinese navies seem to be in a non-stop combat training mode, obviously operating as a joint force. Kazan is coming, you know, and Washington knows what this is all about and trembles... That is why joint task groups are in the sea all the time. 

People Ask Me...

 ... why I insist that the SMO is effectively a closing salvo of WW II. My first book is largely about it without stating it like this. But with Kazan BRICS summit coming and new reports pouring in about atrocities committed by "mercenaries" from the West and about their (very low) combat qualities, one begins to understand why they hate Russia. This also explains why they cannot lose as in maintaining a degree of decency and honor when defeated. And they have been defeated. Now comes this sensitive issue of how much, in the end, Nazis influenced the US--a lot, but we knew that. The issue, however, is larger, it is metaphysical. The moment the West is defeated and enters "arrangement" phase...

ВАТИКАН, 14 окт – РИА Новости. Посланник папы Римского Франциска по урегулированию на Украине кардинал Маттео Дзуппи в понедельник прибыл в Россию для оценки усилий по содействию воссоединению семей и обмену пленными, сообщили РИА Новости в службе печати Святого престола. "Подтверждаю, что кардинал Маттео Дзуппи сегодня начал новый визит в Москву в рамках миссии, порученной ему папой Франциском в прошлом году, чтобы встретиться с властями и оценить дальнейшие усилия по содействию воссоединению украинских детей с семьями и обмену пленными", - сообщил представитель ватиканской пресс-службы. Ранее источник РИА Новости сообщил, что Дзуппи провел встречу с министром иностранных дел Сергеем Лавровым, эту информацию подтвердил МИД РФ. Другой источник не исключил встречи кардинала с патриархом Московским и всея Руки Кириллом. 

Translate: VATICAN CITY, October 14 – RIA Novosti. Pope Francis’ envoy for a settlement in Ukraine, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, arrived in Russia on Monday to assess efforts to facilitate family reunification and prisoner exchanges, the Holy See press service told RIA Novosti. “I confirm that Cardinal Matteo Zuppi began a new visit to Moscow today as part of the mission entrusted to him by Pope Francis last year to meet with the authorities and assess further efforts to facilitate the reunification of Ukrainian children with their families and the exchange of prisoners,” a Vatican press service spokesman said. Earlier, a RIA Novosti source reported that Zuppi had met with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov; this information was confirmed by the Russian Foreign Ministry. Another source did not rule out a meeting between the cardinal and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.
I don't doubt for a second that Vatican and its envoy have humanitarian aspirations and are genuine in that. But Pope's envoy is in Moscow not for that as a main item of discussion. They are not idiots in Vatican, they have been doing this for centuries, including assisting in saving remnants of Nazi big honchos in 1945. But this time Vatican knows that Russia has all economic, military, diplomatic, political and intellectual resources to finish the combined West off as a threat. The Western Europe in 1944 was "saved" from the Red Army marching in 1946 to France, thus obtaining a full control of Europe, not least through massive political power on the Communist and real left-wing parties in Italy, Greece, France etc. It was "saved" by Anglo-American Allies. But then, the USSR lay in ruins, courtesy of the unified European Nazi forces, today the picture is radically different--it is the combined West which is hollowed out economically, militarily and spiritually. So, Vatican needs to know what's next. They worry... and rightly so.

 

Next is the dismantling of the Western institutions which allowed morally bankrupt Western Europe, as an active enabler of Nazism economically and militarily, and as a tacit supporter of the Nazi vision in the East, to continue after the WW II and even prosper. This time is over--it is the combined West which must be denazified. I talk about it in my today's video and Kazan-2024. And Vatican knows that once Russia withdraws from European geopolitical project of the last 1,000 years, Europe and the West are over. Russia is the only country in the world which can obliterate the West physically, economically and morally and Russians, it seems, finally made up their mind. Stalin was explicit on May 9, 1945. 

The great sacrifices we made in the name of the freedom and independence of our Motherland, the incalculable privations and sufferings experienced by our people in the course of the war, the intense work in the rear and at the front, placed on the altar of the Motherland, have not been in vain, and have been crowned by complete victory over the enemy. The age-long struggle of the Slav peoples for their existence and their independence has ended in victory over the German invaders and German tyranny. Henceforth the great banner of the freedom of the peoples and peace among peoples will fly over Europe.

Europe doesn't deserve freedom and it is time to finish the job.

The Timing Of Kursk...

 ... operation was chosen by NATO planners with what you can see in this video--of which I explained at the very start of this "mission"--in mind. Correct--a presence of fairly thick forests which would have made (which they did) the work of Russian UAVs operators harder. Well, it still didn't decide the issue and UAVs still provided and continue to provide critical support for what now has become a mop-up operation or, rather, dig out operation in Kursk Oblast against VSU. It was one of the tactical and operational factors strongly considered by NATO, including the idea of digging in inside those forests for a PR effect. Reports of VSU "holding the ground" was a good propaganda fodder for the Western public but, as marine from the now legendary 810th Brigade explains and shows (in Russian but you do not really need an interpreter--everything is self-evident), they tried to pull this trick in a wrong country, against wrong armed forces and people.

But, but... as you can see yourself, Pacer (Inokhodets) has very little problem with finding valuable VSU (in reality NATO's) armor and dealing with it by means of a very nasty ATGM Vikhr.

As a result--most of the roads in the small pocket in Kursk Oblast are littered with NATO's armor. 

Not a good idea in both cases: either hiding in forests or, let alone, traveling in the open--it is death sentence in both cases, and as both Alexes correctly noted yesterday--Lavrov's "demand" to lift all sanctions off Russia is peremptory and... naturally designed to be refused by the US. Russians do it on purpose...

Russia can continue with SMO for as long as it wants, NATO... well, has lost and is out of resources, that includes the US. Meanwhile, Russians produced a horror for the West, officially--Excimer Lasers. First fully Russian lithography machines are going into series production early 2026. For now 350 nm, then, 90 and then... Mikron does produce 90 and 65 nm topology already, but this is done on Western technology. Now, however, a critical range for all military and most industrial applications is already being tested on Russian-made machines. So, I guess, no more cannibalizing those Western washing machines and... tanks to extract those precious microchips for Russian missiles, of which Russia ran out like... since ever. What a bummer, right?

Summary Of NATO's Kursk Planning...

 ... by Akhmat guys. It is an operational perfection itself))).