Poseidon Is In Serial Production.

As TASS reports (in Russian) the first set of combat ready Poseidons have been produced. All tests of Poseidon's systems and blocks have been completed successfully. Well, that surely changes the perspective, doesn't it? Something tells me that real combat Poseidons have been already deposited... who knows where. In related news, WOW!

BRUSSELS (AP) — The U.S. military's new, expanded combat training of Ukrainian forces began in Germany on Sunday, with a goal of getting a battalion of about 500 troops back on the battlefield to fight the Russians in the next five to eight weeks, said Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Milley, who plans to visit the Grafenwoehr training area on Monday to get a first-hand look at the program, said the troops being trained left Ukraine a few days ago. In Germany is a full set of weapons and equipment for them to use. Until now the Pentagon had declined to say exactly when the training would start. The so-called combined arms training is aimed at honing the skills of the Ukrainian forces so they will be better prepared to launch an offensive or counter any surge in Russian attacks. They will learn how to better move and coordinate their company- and battalion-size units in battle, using combined artillery, armor and ground forces.

I am sure Russian Army is shaking with fear anticipating the arrival of those 500 super-pooper warriors trained by the Army which is not exactly keen on real combined arms operations, and I mean real ones. Truth is, I am about to commit a blasphemy, if not for utter corruption and the loss of the best troops, Ukies could have written a few Field Manuals themselves and could teach the US Army a lesson or two on how to fight a real war. But I believe Pentagon's stellar performance in Iraq and Afghanistan is a track record of a supreme mastery of strategy, operational art and tactics which no military, especially those backward primitive Rooskies, can achieve. So, expect soon VSU strategic offensive operations, led by those 500. 

Now, Russia Is Finished...

Because mighty UK finally pulled the plug, LOL)) That will show those Roosskies. 

The UK has placed new sanctions on Russia, blocking its citizens and businesses from purchasing an array of services from British firms, over the Kremlin’s decision to annex four regions of Ukraine. The new sanctions seek to further damage Russia’s economy by hindering the country’s access to IT consultancy, architectural, engineering, accounting, and commercial legal services from UK firms. Russia currently imports more than two-thirds (67 percent) of its services from countries that have already sanctioned the Russian Federation over its invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Federation is particularly on the UK for audit and commercial legal services due to London’s position as one of the world’s leading professional services hubs. The new sanctions expand on the UK government’s May package that banned service firms including consultancies and PR agencies from working with Russia. However, the May package let lawyers continue working with Russia, despite criticism of the role law firms have played in enabling Russian oligarchs, particularly through the use of libel threats. The new package is set to ban lawyers from providing “transactional legal advisory services” to Russian businesses, but will let law firms continue providing other limited legal services to the country. Ross Denton, head of international trade at Ashurst, said the “prohibition is likely intended to relate to new M&A and commercial contracts.” However, Denton warned the new sanctions could “encourage some law firms to start supplying services to Russian persons as the UK will have set out what services are prohibited, thus establishing what services would be legal.

You could see the thunder clouds gathering over horizon for Russia when UK committed the atrocity against Russians a few years ago by banning London's gay version of famous Tchaikovsky's ballet  The Swan Lake to travel to Russia, many Moscow intellectuals ended up trying to commit suicide. But now this, good Lord, what have you done Foggy Albion to Russians. Kremlin is desperately trying to come up with Declaration of Unconditional Surrender but... they have no lawyers to properly write it. So, no cigar, I guess. 

It is not an accident that Maxim Sokolov of Ria wrote yesterday a piece which explains that combined West is experiencing an anthropological catastrophe (in Russian), which is a euphemism for primarily degenerates constituting Western "elites" and it is difficult not to agree with Sokolov. Have you listened to Mr. Petraeus lately? The guy doesn't understand simplest military-technological things, because he spews an amateurish crap even many gamers from mama's basement understand better than him. Can you reason with these people? Nope. But even these morons, while trying to project the tough image evidently have some sense of self-preservation, despite being pathological liars. 

Biden adviser: US in private talks with Russia over nuclear weapons to avoid public ‘tit for tat’ 

Sure, the problem, of course, is in the fact, as I already stated, that you cannot negotiate anything with these people--you just have to tell them what expects them and for the cretin Petraeus who wants to sink Russian ships, somebody has to show him this news, which, for some reason, created panic in Western media. 

A top-of-the-line Russian nuclear-powered submarine has gone missing from its harbor in the Arctic along with its rumored "doomsday weapon," according to multiple reports. NATO has reportedly warned members that Russia's Belgorod submarine no longer appeared to be operating out of its White Sea base, where it has been active since July. Officials warned that Russia may plan to test Belgorod's "Poseidon" weapons system, a drone equipped with a nuclear bomb that Russia has claimed is capable of creating a "radioactive tsunami," according to Italian media. The drone can be deployed from the submarine at any time and detonated at a depth of 1 kilometer near a coastal city. Russian state media has claimed the device can create a 1,600-ft. wave that smashes into the coast and irradiates it.

Somebody has to explain to Petraeus and his ilk of "generals" who lost everything (wars) they ever fought, that Belgorod carries 6 Poseidon drones and those, having unlimited range and speeds in excess of 100 knots, are not interceptable by any existing ASW means and they carry not only nuclear ordnance, but also can carry a shitload of conventional explosives in lieu of nukes, and that means that a single Belgorod can sink 6 US Navy nuclear aircraft carriers. And I mean literally blow them out of the water by conventional explosives. Does he want to play this game? 

Somebody explain this to him, please. But don't hold your breath--the issue is anthropological. Plus, Belgorod is still in trials mode for weapon systems, wink, wink. 

"Belgorod" Is In.

So, the big news today, of course, is this:

"Севмаш" передал ВМФ РФ подлодку "Белгород", которая будет первым носителем "Посейдонов"

Translation: "Sevmash" handed over to the Russian Navy the submarine "Belgorod", which will be the first carrier of "Poseidons"  

Obviously, Poseidon, together with a number of other Russia's serial produced weapons such as Avangard or Zircon--you know, the ones Western media called cartoons in 2018--worry the United States and there have been several attempts to "limit" the development and now the procurement of such weapons under different pretexts, including arms limitations talks. Enough to recall this:

The international community must band together to ban the use of autonomous nuclear weapons before it's too late, argues a leading arms control group. Autonomous nukes could make mistakes humans would not, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists—a Chicago-based nonprofit made up of scientists and global security experts—says in a recent post. The artificial intelligence (AI) programs that guide these weapons are inexperienced in making even relatively simple decisions without humans. The solution, the Bulletin states, is to always keep nuclear weapons under total human control.

Well, I agree in principle with limiting the use of AI in nukes, but who said that Poseidon is fully "autonomous"? Even this article states that:

Meanwhile, Russia is developing an autonomous uninhabited undersea vehicle, Poseidon (pictured at the top of this story). The bus-sized vessel travels at 70 knots an hour, packs a two-megaton thermonuclear warhead, and is designed to be launched against aircraft carriers and coastal targets. The U.S. Navy describes Poseidon as autonomous, Kallenborn notes, but it's unclear how much autonomy it actually has. Regardless, an autonomous system delivering a weapon with the explosive power of two million tons of TNT should make everyone uneasy.

The first thing, of course, is the use of "70 knots per hour" which is cringe-worthy because a knot IS a measure of speed and it is a nautical mile per hour. Used in knots per hour is more a description of acceleration (and old way of saying it) than of speed. Secondly, nobody but Russians know the degree of autonomy of Poseidon and Russia is not the country which takes such issues lightly. 

No matter how such an event will be spun by Western "journos", one has to keep in mind that Poseidon, while capable of wiping out huge segments of the coast by creating a monstrous tsunami--some say up to 500 meters high--its existence has profound ramifications for any fleet which would decide to travel as a formation, a precise way Carrier Battle Groups travel, because they become merely sitting ducks for such a weapon. Obviously modern means of detection and targeting on Poseidon, most likely, allow to use this huge vehicle as a carrier of a huge conventional warhead capable to sink, by detonating under the keel, any type of ship, including US Navy's CVNs. And it cannot be intercepted by modern ASW weapons due to a huge speed and an extreme difficulty of detecting it, especially when traveling at the depth of 1+ kilometer and surfacing only for the strike. 

It is a terrifying thing, plus, of course, its carrier--the redesigned pr. 949A K-329 Belgorod--doesn't need to venture far away from Russia's shores in case of serious events and can launch Poseidons from a relative safety of areas patrolled by Russian Navy's multipurpose subs and covered by ASW/Patrol aviation. 

Here is Belgorod a year ago, going to its sea trials. More carriers of Poseidon are being built. H.I. Sutton wrote three months ago.

Poseidon is a completely new category of weapon. It will reshape naval planning in both Russia and the West, leading to new requirements and new counter-weapons. A weapon which cannot be nullified with anti-missile defenses. In future nuclear tensions, if we live through this one, it will be a strong factor. But we are not there yet. As of today none of the submarines to carry it are operational. One test submarine, Sarov which can carry a single round, is in service. Another boat, Belgorod, is not yet commissioned. It could be speculated that Russia could attempt a launch if desperate enough. But it is currently nowhere near the threat level of traditional submarine launched missiles. Poseidon’s day will come.

The Poseidon's day has come and, together with 3M22 Zircon and new AD systems being deployed to new Russian Navy's ships, world's navies as we know them will go the way of sail ships and dreadnoughts--into history. 

In related news, VSU tried to mount some kind of "offensive" (a euphemism for couple of tactical level attacks) in Zaporozhie (in Russian). The result was easily predictable, pre-deployed VSU forces were promptly "Uraganized" and lost any desire to attack. Same goes for clowns who tried to "raise flag" at Snake Island couple of days ago and were immediately "decomposed" by Russian Air Force and those few who survived started to hide wherever they could at this island. Obviously, the solemn ceremony of raising Ukrainian flag had to be abandoned. But I am sure they will try it again some time later. They need all PR "victories" they can get. I am sure the Black Sea Fleet aviation will provide fireworks, if you know what I mean. 

Being Bombastic.

This is what Donald Trump is known for and, in fact, it is his defining feature. Recall his, now famous, "very smart missiles", or him touting his economic "achievements" non-stop. Exiting crucial arms limitation treaties is also a part of Trump's MO, such as ditching Open Skies Treaty and now promising to resume testing of nuclear weapons:

US authorities considered whether to carry out a "rapid" nuclear test – the first for almost three decades – to use as a bargaining chip in dealing with Russia and China, according to media reports.The proposal to cause a controlled nuclear explosion is "very much an ongoing conversation," a high-ranked official within the administration of Donald Trump told the Washington Post on Saturday. It was assumed that a "rapid test" could prove useful in making Moscow and Beijing negotiate a nuclear-weapons-related trilateral deal with Washington, the paper's sources said.

As is observed by many, often being bombastic is a cover for the lack of strength and substance. We have exactly this case here exacerbated with a very low level of understanding of modern geopolitics and international relations by US "authorities". They, those "authorities" want to abandon a 1996 Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty CTBT), evidently, based on this clause:

Each State Party has the right to withdraw from the CTBT if it decides that extraordinary events related to the subject matter of the Treaty have jeopardized the State Party's supreme national interests.    

One may ask, then, upon discounting totally delusional assumption of those "authorities" that Russia will tremble in horror and will offer an unconditional surrender upon US exploding some device, and what those "supreme national interests" might be? The answer, apart from Trump's propensity to do a lot of chest thumping, is simple enough:

1. Nuclear weapons are not war-fighting weapons but are primarily deterrents to avoid a war;

2. Nuclear weapons are considered the last resort weapons and by all metrics, as is a terrorism, are weapons of a weaker side. 

Recall what I wrote two years ago when speaking about China:

China is (relatively) weak militarily NOT because she doesn't have enough nuclear weapons—this could relatively fast, with Chinese financial wherewithal, be addressed. Chinese relative military weakness comes from a huge technological, cultural and organizational issues of her conventional capability, which, despite its polished outward appearance,is nowhere near with that of the United States or Russia. It is technology—always was, always will be. It is also an operational experience and the way conventional forces are deployed, which matters great deal—China has no real operational experience here. There are reasons to believe that some technological gaps will never be closed—China continues to struggle mightily in aviation, submarine, space technology and other key technological and operational concepts. 

This applies fully to the United States today who lost a conventional arms race finding herself a generation or two behind Russia in technologies which are in foundation of the Real Revolution In Military Affairs. It is preposterous to even contemplate the fate of US (NATO) forces in Europe, let alone in the immediate geographic vicinity of Russia, in case some "authorities" in the US decide to commit a suicide and attack Russia. NATO forces and their decision centers will be dramatically degraded and ultimately defeated without the use by Russia of any nuclear weapons. That is not me talking, even RAND's big honchos admit that. In this case abandoning CTBT is merely another manifestation of Trump Admin's bombastic style, designed to cover up for the fact of a loss of the conventional arms race. Luckily, not all "authorities" in D.C. are bat shit crazy and some real professionals made their voices heard:

“There are still some professionals in the room who told them this is a terrible idea, thank God,” an unnamed congressional aide told the Guardian.

But, the truth to be told, it doesn't matter. Already in late 1970s Soviet military thinkers considered Stand-off High Precision weapons approaching levels of operational and strategic impact close to nuclear weapons. Today, in the age of hypersonic missiles, combat networks, advanced electronic countermeasures and instant propagation of tactical, operational and strategic information, and instant decision-making, we are looking at the warfare of unprecedented precision and violence. In the end, who is to say that Poseidon is only for delivering a nuclear payload? With the internal volume capable to accommodate a monstrous payload of the conventional explosives, this system will have little trouble reaching and positioning itself underneath a keel of the aircraft carrier and literally blowing her out of the water without any nukes. So, resumption of nuclear testing may only create a sense of amusement in Moscow, whose nuclear and, especially, conventional war-making potential keeps the US from unleashing conflicts all over the globe. As per being bombastic--old news.

P.S. In related news:

The New and Improved Tomahawk Missile Now Runs on Corn

That, sure as hell, should make those nasty Russkie Ivans and Chinks tremble in horror. Did they try to build a new missile? No? Well, there you go....