But by the looks of it and by the yet another mess in your national security team still dominated by neocons and warmongers, you learned absolutely nothing in terms of foreign policy the first time around. Now, you are issuing risible "deadlines" being the head of a loser in this war and you are on your way of making this war yours.
Meanwhile, one of the greatest statesmen of our time responds:
You see, reality is a bitch and the only thing being discussed today, once all of the layers of diplomatic pigeon speak, pathos, protocols and PR are peeled off, is how much Moscow is willing to save whatever remains of the American face in this conflict which the US lost by a mile.
We live in the now, and no matter how we convulse--it is the COFM (Correlation of Forces and Means) which defines global dynamics. We better learn to live with this. Modern world is nothing but an entangled web of differential equations and probabilities thrown at us and we better grasp its complexity.
... if you follow a direct conversion of currencies. I know, I know, but still. In this case R 8.4 trillion issued for the Russian Navy to the end of this decade converts roughly to $100 billion. Take a look at this, as an example from 2016.
Project 11356 frigate at the signing of the acceptance documents came out at the prices of 2010-11 with R to $ rate then at 30 to 1 ...
... at roughly (let's round it up) R 14, 000, 000, 000 which when divided by 30 gives you a rough price of about $ 467, 000, 000 which is reasonable (more than reasonable) for the frigate of this class with the state-of-the-art AD complex and 3C14 VLS capable of launching all modern Russian cruise missiles, including 3M22 Zircon. Most likely the actual price for this type is somewhere around $400,000,000 and this is for the ship whose strike power in Surface Warfare makes ANY surface combatant in frigate class rather underwhelming.
Now comes the issue of the pr.885M SSGN of Yasen class (all of which are capable of launching hypersonic 3M22 Zircon) and here we have the price range of R 47,000,000,000, but again in prices of 2011-2014, give and take (in Russian).
To not complicate matters, let's assume that the newest (floated out a few days ago) Perm SSGN is around $1 billion give and take. For comparison, latest Virginia-class SSN-800 USS Arkansas (its latest class's Block) will cost already in excess of $4 billion. So, we are beginning to see this "magical" ratio of 1 to 4 or 6 whenever comparing Russian and American technology. Let's omit here venturing into qualitative characteristics.
Now, let's take a look at pr. 22350M ("improved" Gorshkov-class). For some reason WiKi gives the actual cost of the first hull of the class as $250 million. It is unrealistic, especially for the ship class armed with extremely advanced AD suite (Poliment-Redut) and being a carrier of all types of weapons, including Zircon. The likely cost of it is around $500 million, with much larger "Super" Gorshkov cost being around, give and take, $700 to 800 million. Comparison with the US Navy's mainstay Arleigh Burke-class DDGs (Flight III DDG-51) is also rather startling because the cost of a single hull will cost the US Navy in excess of $2.5 billion. Her we make qualitative comparison--DDG-51 is no competitor with ANY (earlier or "super" version) of Gorshkov-class in Surface Warfare. Simple as that, in ship-to-ship engagement DDG-51 will not know what struck it and will not be able defend against the salvo of super-sonic 1,000-kilometer range P-800 Onyx or 1,500-kilometer range hypersonic 3M22 Zircon. Here we arrive to the main point, not only Russian ships are much less expensive than any US main sub and surface combatant, but they are simply much better armed, while being highly competitive in terms of sensor and signal processing suites. In other words--Russian Navy gets much-much more bang for a proverbial buck.
Which brings us to a very rough shopping list through 2030-2032. The white elephant or proverbial 800-pound gorilla. Will Russian Navy get new aircraft carrier(s). No doubt, Admiral Kuznetsov which is now a completely new ship in propulsion, sensors and air wing, will return to the fleet probably this year. Russians are not in a hurry; they just want to do it right. But the question is--what about new ones? Something tells me that Russia may consider couple of the new carriers and those will be nothing like what combined West operates. Each of them will likely run into the $5 to 6 billion range, including proper basing, and that gets us immediately over $12 billion in costs: 100-12 = $88 billion. Still, a lot of dough left. And that is when it all becomes interesting.
Russian Navy plans to procure first Husky (Laika) class subs sometime after 2030. We can only guess what those subs will be, but by the time Russian Navy will be ready to procure the first one, it will have continuation of the pr. 885M SSGNs and, highly likely, yet another "improved" Yasen-class, call it "super" Yasen if you wish and the fleet of these subs will be much larger than officially adopted run of 12 contracted hulls. Maybe 20? Take additional 8, which gives you roughly $8 billion and that gets us: 88-8=$80 billion. Still, a lot of dough. Laika (Husky) class is this unknown which may modify SSGNs construction. But no worries, Lada-class SSKs with AIP are already coming online and they are needed despite improved Kilo's (pr. 636) entering the fleet at a good pace. How many Ladas will be there? Again, the plan is for 12 but likely more. The guess for Lada's price is around $300-400 million.
Per Gorshkovs, the only thing I can say is--many. Especially 64 cell "super" Gorshkov and, eventually, turning into DDG territory. But a rough estimate for 10 "super' Gorshkovs--$8 billion, and don't torture me with all those "Lider" class DDGs--I don't know. And then we enter the territory of Poseidons, underwater drones, newest weapon systems (new hypersonics, new SLBMs et al), additional AD for naval bases, possibly new carrier combat aircraft, complete update of ASW/Patrol aviation and financing of the new R&D among many other things. Mind you, these $100 billion DO NOT include salaries and benefits, those are covered by other programs. But one thing is clear--it is a dramatic boost for Russian Navy which already shapes itself as a mighty alternative to carrier-centric navies of the past and we may only guess how it will look like even 5 years down the road.
In conclusion, again--Perm is NOT the first sub capable of launching 3M22 Zircon. All previous Yasens can also do that, but Perm is the first purposely built for using those hypersonic missiles, even all 32 of them))
... is possible only with victors--combined West is a loser in the war. Keith Kellogg's wet dreams about dividing 404 are directly from the WW II and Yalta 1.0 in which the US and GB were VICTORS. But then again--Kellogg is old, neocon and, most importantly, he is an American general which makes him not fit for any kind of real war activities. I make an excurse into wonderful London War Diaries of Mollie Panter-Downes to contrast attitudes in WW II and today. Recall famous Truman's inhuman remark: “If we see that Germany is winning, we ought to help Russia and if Russia is winning, we ought to help Germany, and that way let them kill as many as possible, although I don't want to see Hitler victorious under any circumstances.” This is how Anglo-Saxon "elites" think. And these are almost exactly the words of Minister Colonel Moore-Brabazon--it created a shitstorm among regular hard working and hard fighting British folks in 1941.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
... to start talking about American generals. They simply lie, all the time--is this a combination of malice, corruption, cowardice and ignorance. Likely, and this is a diagnosis. It is especially potent when it comes from US officers of courage, honor and integrity like Larry Johnson and Daniel Davis.
I also address American generals' delusions about war and peace in my today's video.
A Soviet soldier returns to a devastation of a bare land. Everything he owns is in his sacks, his son doesn't have shoes. In 16 years, Soviet people will conquer space. What matters in all this is that it was true ... Those who never saw Sevastopol or Stalingrad in 1944, there is nothing to talk with them about.
Translation:Lavrov said at the Antalya Diplomatic Forum that US President Donald Trump understands the need to eliminate the root causes of the conflict in Ukraine to resolve it, TASS reports.He stressed that eliminating the root causes is the only way to solve the problem and establish lasting peace.According to him, Trump was the first Western leader who repeatedly and convincingly noted that Ukraine's accession to NATO would be a huge mistake.Lavrov also noted that Russia and the US have the potential to improve relations."There is always potential," he said, answering a question about the possibility of more active actions to improve relations between Moscow and Washington.
So, the delicate dance continues. And Chinese have a field day with the whole thing:
Yep, that Baltic statelets for you, alright. Pretty astute description of the situation from Chinese. In related news, I am still in awe from allocation of R 8.4 trillion for Russian Navy. You all know that Russians do not sell to Ministry of Defense toilet seats for $600 or nails for $37 per one nail--you can end up in prison really fast for this type of business. Russian admirals are salivating now)) And do not forget the date today:
Yep, The Day of Cosmonautics in Russia. And Russians have plans which are in practical stage already for the nearest future:
As you know, Russians love themselves space stations.
There will be many ships and subs coming. British military cretinism is off the charts--that's what happens when you do not have real military education, military history which is falsified through and through, and The Times commits the media equivalent of the Charge of the Light Brigade by exposing sheer incompetence and malice of British top command. But then again, only in UK a humiliating defeat at Dunkirk, and only then with some Hitler's good will, or killing a Light Brigade by throwing it at Russian guns can be viewed as an achievement. This all defies logic and common sense--I guess mental breakdown from recognizing own nothingness in UK played a role.
Well, my not so dear European "friends", I have news for you--whole US fighting doctrine is obsolete and is from WW II. US concept of air war is altogether from BEFORE WW II and is nothing but modified pre-WW II (1920s) Duhe's ideas dressed in advanced radar and high precision weapons. NATO air forces are a joke which wouldn't be able to compete with Russian VKS which are networked from ground up and make NATO's, let alone Euro NATO's, air defense look like expensive toys. This is the price NATO pays today by exposing itself as a corpse, which chocked on its own Kool Aid about "finest fighting force in history" and Top Gun: Maverick.
He carried the message from Trump. We can only speculate. British military and its highest officer corps are a joke, now we know this because The Times exposed it, while trying to put the lipstick on the pig. I speak about it in my today's video.
Well, I really appreciate this guy's (same guy together with H.I.Sutton) who bought 404 propaganda and photoshop about Rostov-on-Don SSK (allegedly "destroyed" by Stormshadow, remember?) getting into the business of trying to stay objective when talking about Soviet/Russian Navy. Good:
There is only one problem, naturally: 3M80 Moskit is "slightly" faster, let's go to the most authoritative in terms of data (not operational overview) legendary guide by Captains, PhDs in naval engineering Kuzin and Nikolsky:
As you can see yourself, 3M80 Moskit was from the get-go a M=2.5+ anti-shipping missile.
And in this case, Mr. Sub Brief misses one key point: in 1984 the radio horizon of the CG of Ticonderoga-class was around, let's be generous, AN-SPS at 20 meters, let's count with 3M80 20-meter elevation--about 32 kilometers. But here is what Mr. Sub Brief doesn't know, Moskit wasn't flying straight, because it also could see the target with its active radar homing head from 32 kilometers and instead of flying at 20 meters at terminal it was beginning to maneuver violently, including, but not limited to, conducting anti-AD "gorka" (hill) maneuver with insane g-loads and it was done at the speed of M=2.5+. If you think that Aegis and whatever was carried then in MK 41 VLS and Sea Sparrows could handle that, let alone a salvo of 4-6-8 of those--I have a bridge to sell you. You may say, nah, it is just M=0.3 he made a mistake here.
OK, here is this difference of M=0.3, it is almost 100 meters per second, it is also 358 kilometers per hour or 223 miles per hour which is exactly the cruise speed of B-29 Superfortress. No biggie, you see--the glorious tradition of presenting grossly reduced BS as a viable tactical-technical data on Russian weapons and platforms continues. Is there some psychological issue behind all that? You can bet your ass on that. It is called palliative therapy ... But then again, recall the "story" about Rostov-on-Don sub. I rest my case.
It is a good overview of the balance of REAL power today and also about a thing which I speak and write about ad nauseam--history. Especially nowadays, with 80th anniversary of defeat of Nazi Europe (yes, Europe) in WW II. Henseler gives a much-needed reminder of why Russians have issues with Hollywood and military history curriculum in the US military academies and war colleges. I surely do have.
Translation:KURSK, April 10. /TASS/.Russian servicemen are also evacuating the bodies of Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers from the border areas of Kursk Oblast; the number is in the tens of thousands.This was reported to TASS by Russian security agencies."The Kiev regime did not even try to evacuate the bodies of the killed Ukrainian servicemen. Moreover, many Ukrainian servicemen died from their wounds, abandoned by their "brothers." At present, Russian servicemen are also evacuating the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers. The number is in the tens of thousands," the agency's source said.He added that after the liberation of Guyev, Russian fighters still have to drive the Ukrainian Armed Forces out of the settlements of Oleshnya and Gornal in Kursk Oblast.
Here, in Kursk and now Sumy oblasts, the affair is entirely different, and it does not fit General Cavoli's numbers. Just doesn't. And we all should keep in mind that Russian MoD's modus operandi in terms of reporting 404 losses is extremely conservative, bordering on understatements. As I already stated--sometimes Russians simply do not (and often cannot) count those killed in all kinds of tanks, APCs and armored cars and they just leave it be, leaving to already tactical rear medics and funeral teams deal with sorting out mangled bones, burned flesh and whatever is left after the visit by artillery, Kornets or loitering munitions.
E.g. After this thing hits your position (RSZO Tornado) with thermobaric warheads (constantly used in SMO) --there is very little left of human (euphemism for VSU personnel) to even count or consider a "unit" of 200 (very few live as 300s after Tornado and it is not a good life). That is why not only Russians have to evacuate tens of thousands of VSU corpses and remains, but the uncovering of VSU's shallow mass graves will also only drive these statistics higher, much higher. And then--this is just ONE of many operational axes in SMO. That also partially explains the animal cruelty of VSU and NATO personnel (Poles and French are especially noted) towards POWs but especially towards Russian civilians--mass executions, especially of children, rapes, robberies et all--those are all hallmarks of European "civilization". Everything, every single instance is documented and attached, and (war) criminal cases are opened by Investigative Committee, among others.
This guy--he is safe now and should count his blessings being Russia's POW--talks about what kind of "training" British military provided him.
Even he admits--it was shit. Twice taken to range to shoot, the rest--theory. Yes, this is what British military is--all theory and no skills and understanding of modern war, The guy also complains how he was treated in British hospital after he fell sick. Of course, for British he is a Ukrainian subhuman, a cannon fodder to be used against hated Russians. Western "elites" lost all remnants of their humanity, and Russians MUST count their blessings when seeing what Europe is and why the way it exists the only thought in Russian mind today is: Europa delenda est. The US is a different game.
In related news, I am a virtual millionaire and this thing is called ... ahem, PR. It is also called "electronic launch" against mockups of the target, in other words--you allow your AD complex to electronically develop firing solution without launching anything. Here, this is how it looks like:
Sometimes it is better to keep silent than parade oneself desperate and, frankly, stupid.
In reality crypto asset of 404 who developed a following among some of the journos (euphemism for uneducated hacks) both in Russia and in the West and is defrauding public on "donations" for SMO. The guy is a coward (he lurks at this blog too) and he is the military interpreter, but unlike people the scale of Colonel Lester Grau who is a superb military professional, Mikhail Zvinchuk (aka Rybar) is a shyster with no serious military education. And here we are today ...
Translation:Mikhail Zvinchuk: All combat tactics need to be revised.- Now absolutely all combat tactics need to be revised.We really need earthmoving troops with some underground submarines that bury themselves with shields to lay tunnels, pass under enemy fortified areas and minefields and surface somewhere unexpectedly.This would really change the course of combat, but for now it is just fantasy.Because often the most important problem is to overcome the gray zone, the front line and a couple of lines of defense, because in conditions of dominance on both sides in certain areas of drones and the widespread mining of everything and everyone, it is often extremely difficult to do this.
Quote from a speech at the New Media Workshop
No, this is not April 1st joke. This is who and most of "military bloggers" from Russia are--military hacks in it for money. BS sells, this one, however, is on another level.
... one of those huge Hollywood figures. Just wanted to remember him ...
They talk about Iceman, but no--he became Jim Morrison in Doors. It was transformation rarely seen in cinematography. He sang the songs with Jim's voice. And, of course, we all have been as young and as reckless as him))
... because being Russian is not cool nowadays, but it is what it is. Russians found out who Wayne is. He is Russian in his grandfather's bloodline...
So, Gretskieys have been in Russian Empire from the get-go, so when Wayne says that his grandfather was Russian--yep, looks like)). And again, Wayne was nothing but a class act and truly The Great One.
... he is an illiterate shyster with zero background in anything. For Russians it is easy to understand who he is by referring to Gavriliada and Nikifor Lyapis-Trubetskoi from the immortal 12 Chairs. These types only know how to defraud already fraudulent media such as Forbes, and no--he is not my "nemesis". To be a nemesis you have to have a proper "weight" in the field, to be a competitor. My circle is the circle which this creep simply cannot grasp nor approach. My military background is beyond his grasp.
The idea that some imbecile with degree in "fiction" and the comic "author" knows anything about warfare is scandalous. I wonder why he wasn't thrown out to the dumpster, where he belongs, earlier. So, David Axe was axed. I am ready to discuss with him the realities of 21st century warfare anytime. Hey, nothing wrong with giving people a show once in a while. I am almost tempted to put here Gladiator's screenshot. Ah, hell with it ...
David Axe is a war criminal, who played a serious role in a catastrophe in 404 and he should be tried for his role in pushing 404 propaganda. Motherfucker cannot even grasp what he supported precisely due his ignorance and being a whore that he is ...
... which is the "source" for globalism and totalitarianism. That is why I am willing to give Trump the benefit of a doubt. Just that--a benefit--I don't know the endgame as it relates to Washington and London. Ah, yes--Wall Street has nothing to do with real economy, only with speculation which kills one.
Now, to a more serious affair. As you might expect, sore losers from all kinds of military porn sources bad mouth 2S43 Malva self-propelled gun. What they do forget that modern Malva has a new barrel, can shoot at 70 km and has a very good accuracy. Against this background, somebody comes up with a larger picture.
I can tell you immediately (again)--not very effective at all. What has been sanctioned by the West Russia simply substitutes domestically. It is like explaining to all kinds of nanometer fanboys that the fact that Russia created own 350 nm lithography means only one thing--next year it is going to be (getting ready) --130 nm and 90 nm (overwhelming majority of the industrial and military applications) and then onto 65, 12 etc. It is akin to explaining to fanboys why serial production (ongoing as I type this) of MS-21 was delayed--Russians completely russified this plane. Many people still cannot grasp global (yes, global) significance of all that. And PD-35 is coming ...
... an intel professional to recognize that National Security Adviser Waltz is a neocon and not very good at national security advising. WSJ (this other neocon globalist central) laments:
It has to be noted that if there is a "yes-men" phenomenon in the so-called national security circles than it is certainly not people like this dude, who was removed among others.
US presstitudes blame those firings on the activity of the "far-right activist" Laura Loomer, and that even may be so, if not for, indeed, interesting background of Haugh who increasingly looks like a globalist (a euphemism for DNC) asset from his appointment by Mark Milley (a real yes-man for Biden) and then such details about this NSA guy as this quip from WaPo:
Ah, you see--he "fought" those proverbial Russian trolls, who, as we all know, are the "real threat" to the American democracy. Well, I guess if I were Trump, I also would have had serious questions to this cabal's (Sullivan's leftovers) loyalty and actual work in defending the US against real threats. The removal of DNC assets continues. Russian trolls exhale in relief.
... where the credit is due. Yes, he made some statements at the start of SMO which do not do him the honor, however, throughout the whole affair he was magnanimous and a class act. Nobody disputes Wayne's status as The Great One, he surely is, but for a moment--enjoy two legends being ... legends. In other news, Ovi did for Russian-American relations so much that I cannot even put it in words. Think about it--he is the Captain of the US Capital's team. He is also a vocal supporter of Putin--let it sink.
Here, Wayne speaks about his Russian ancestry. Verbatim.
... on Russian view on COFM (Correlation of Forces and Means) --it is not horrendously difficult to understand--and COFM has a good correlation with combat losses. Well, evidently Mr. Cavoli and US Army discovered a new math in which Russia is both winning and losing to NATO (and their 404 thugs) simultaneously. Great Alexander Svechin's truism that the plan should be based exclusively on reality is simply disposed of in favor of kindergarten level BS designed to cover up a catastrophic defeat of NATO.
I have news for those who read this. There was never any doubt that Russia outproduces a whole NATO combined, but Russia didn't lose "400 air defense systems" or "13, 000" artillery pieces. Combat math simply doesn't support these fictitious numbers. Russia surely did lose some AD systems and a number of artillery pieces, but those numbers are nowhere near this fantasy. Well, at least he admitted the other part. Numbers of tanks and armored vehicles are also extremely exaggerated. Especially when considering COFM.
Let's rewind a little bit. It is 1971 and Nixon jumps off the ship of the Gold Standard. Behind all "investment" and monetary psychobabble hiding the reason for that was, of course, Vietnam War, which towers as the main reason for Nixon Shock. The US of 1971 industry-wise would make modern US look like a third world country but even then, the US couldn't sustain it.
John Caine is correct, however, when pointing this out:
He added, however, that Beijing “still has deficiencies in commander proficiency, long-distance logistics, urban warfare, and… modern warfare experience writ large.”
What he forgets to say is that the US also lacks such an experience and in terms of combined arms of scale the US, largely self-proclaimed, "lead" is gone forever--continental warfare imposes a completely different set of conditions and requirements on the nation-state with which the US is simply unfamiliar. Not to be outdone, however, are these guys:
They are also not wrong when stating that the US nuclear arsenal is outdated. No, these are not physical nukes which are outdated, these are delivery systems which are nothing more than classic ballistic ICBMs which are facing their greatest challenge of preserving the credibility against the background of (primarily Russian) fast developing anti-ballistic and anti-hypersonic capabilities. But whenever the term "democracy" is used--I laugh. So, popcorn, popcorn ... bring it on))
