Why These Generals ...

 ... are a joke. It is mindboggling. 

NATO members should not shoot down Russian fighter jets that breach alliance airspace, the former head of one of NATO’s two strategic commands told Newsweek. Estonia, a Baltic NATO member on Russia’s border, said last month that three Russian fighter jets breached its airspace for 12 minutes in what its military described as the fourth violation of Estonian airspace by Russian aircraft this year. ... “The biggest challenge for NATO is to keep its nerve,” Jean-Paul Paloméros, a retired French Air Force general and former Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, told Newsweek. Russia would love for NATO nations to shoot down one of their aircraft, he said. “NATO shouldn’t do that.”

Just think about what you just read, especially what "Russia would love". They are imbeciles. As Larry nails it:

Although the generals and admirals assembled sat in stony silence throughout his rambling address, none of them had the courage to stand up, walk out and resign in protest. It was a bad bobble head convention… And a lot of bald heads to boot. They are more interested in securing a lucrative retirement package than they are in refusing to obey an illegal order — i.e., bombing a civilian boat that was allegedly carrying drugs that had not fired on US ships or personnel.

Yep, this is what has been demonstrated to the world--both on the battlefield and in public sphere--it is all about careers and careers only. 

Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin speaking at Valdai today:

Do I need to comment on that? Pretty self-explanatory. 

"Do Something" PR.

As I repeat ad nauseam since 2023--it is being done, and everything that follows is merely a PR designed for domestic consumption. They take a known fact and... recycle it over and over again. 

US President Joe Biden has given Kiev permission to use American weapons to hit targets in the part of Russia bordering Ukraine’s Kharkov Region, a US official told Politico on Thursday. Update: the White House later confirmed the decision in a written statement to multiple media outlets. “The president recently directed his team to ensure that Ukraine is able to use US weapons for counter-fire purposes in Kharkov so Ukraine can hit back at Russian forces hitting them or preparing to hit them,” the official said. According to Politico, this decision was “secretly” communicated to Kiev some time before its official confirmation.

These moves are needed to cover up an utter failure in 404. Plus, good for RT piece to at least point this out:

Moscow has dismissed the debate over such strikes in Western capitals. “American weapons are already being used against various targets outside the combat zone,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters last week. “We proceed from the fact that American and other Western weaponry strikes targets on the territory of Russia, primarily civilian infrastructure and residential areas.”

That is why this whole "escalation" is primarily a verbal one and when yet another illiterate boy from Valdai tries to wax strategic, having about zero background in anything related to military and modern warfare:

Dmitry Suslov: It’s time for Russia to think about a ‘demonstrative’ nuclear test. The US-led bloc has lost its fear of the mushroom cloud, but seeing one would perhaps focus some mind. 

You can dismiss it as an attempt from this pathetic Moscow copy of already pathetic CFR and their publication Foreign Affairs to signal own relevance. Needless to say, most of those "experts" from Valdai wouldn't be allowed to command a platoon, let alone express their opinions on matters of national security which are based on a serious intel whose knowledge requires the highest levels of clearance and even that may not be enough, but here we are. RT continues to provide tribune to these nincompoops--get a load of the C.V. of this Suslov guy--but, hey, they need to feed their families too, you know.

On Being A Tool...

 ... or a fool or why I stopped cooperating with RT, which is a tribune for Valdai boys with pedigrees like this:

Andrey Sushentsov

Russian Federation

Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club; Dean of the School of International Relations at MGIMO University. Mr. Sushentsov specializes in the US foreign policy in international conflicts, as well as in South Caucasus, Ukraine, and the Middle East. He has substantial experience of analytical work. He took part in applied researches on the United States’ foreign policy, conflict resolution in South Caucasus, Ukraine, and the Middle East. In his studies, he examines the spheres of conflicting interests of Russia and the United States in Europe, the Middle East and the post-Soviet space. He was a Visiting Professor and Research Fellow at Georgetown University, Johns Hopkins University, Guido Carli Free University of International Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Harvard University and Middlebury Institute for International Studies in Monterey. He is a member of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy and of the Working Group on the Future of Russian-American Relations. 

In other words, Sushetsov is a product of degree mills in the US and is shaped as "professional" by the environment which produced a staggering number of diplomatic and governing failures. So, it is no wonder that he writes the piece with the title which even commenters on RT board laughed at.  

Andrey Sushentsov: Here’s why the US can’t get along with the other major global powers. American elites believe in democracy at home and dictatorship abroad; that’s why the world is so dangerous right now. 

I wonder what stone did he sleep under for the last 24 years? Yes, I am talking about well coordinated assault on the American Constitution and Bill of Rights, starting from Patriot Act and final subversion of Capitol Hill by Israel. Boy, those Valdai boys are slow. But if that hasn't been enough, Sushentsov goes to prove Arthur Clark's Third Law that:

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Modern military technology as well as its tactical and operational use, as well as formulation of military doctrine and strategy are extremely complex and require people with serious military and engineering background. This whole thing is in the foundation of global balance of power. But for Mr. Sushentsov who has a "soft degree" in essentially nothing, formation of the global power balance is indistinguishable from magic, because none of the Valdai boys have cognitive tools to grasp it. Because of that Sushentsov invents things trying to explain what he doesn't understand and views as magic.

Ukraine is a convenient, rather cheap tool for the US to weaken and contain Russia, and to force its European allies to keep their discipline and obey. This is all part of an international struggle for a new form of hierarchy.  Of course, it’s just a temporary phenomenon until a new balance of power, recognized by all, is established.

I have news for Sushentsov--recognition is always achieved through coercion and deterrence. In other words, this recognition and, hence, power balance are formed by those who know how to fight a war and win it. The whole structure of the international relations in XX and XXI centuries rests on warfare and industrial might. It will continue to be such until the United States is completely stripped off its grossly exaggerated military might, both through defeat in Ukraine and continuous unstoppable de-industrialization, and a complete loss of remnants of the US mythology as "the finest fighting force in history". This whole thing is in progress and it is Russia, and China, who already dictate conditions, with Russia leading the way because she did what China still cannot do--she accepted NATO's military challenge and brought about the implosion of the West as we know it. You see, magic. 

In other news, for those who still view Metternich (or Kissinger) as some kind of great diplomatic minds, as Stalin once responded to attempts to convince him on importance of Pope: "and how many divisions does the Pope have?" Until these guys understand that no diplomacy matters until one has Mr. Kinzhal and Mr. Borei-A behind diplomacy and international relations--they will continue to write this nonsense about the United States, its oligarchy selling "democracy" gospel to stupid, and power balance. Difficult to figure it out in XXI century without serving a day in armed forces and studying Theory of Operations, physics and systems integration. The might was always right in human history and it always was about the nature of this might.

Look at it--it is magic of the Project 955A Borei--it is a foundation of Russian diplomacy. I would love to quote Mr. Ostap Bender from the conclusion of the 12 Chairs immortal classics, but I only can quote Hofstadter:

… the complexity of modern life has steadily whittled away the functions the ordinary citizen can intelligently and comprehendingly perform for himself. In the original American populistic dream, the omnicompetence of the common man was fundamental and indispensable. It was believed that he could, without much special preparation, pursue the professions and run the government. Today he knows that he cannot even make his breakfast without using devices, more or less mysterious to him, which expertise has put at his disposal; and when he sits down to breakfast and looks at his morning newspaper, he reads about a whole range of vital and intricate issues and acknowledges, if he is candid with himself, that he has not acquired competence to judge most of them(c)

And don't call me Shirley.

Why I Am Ready To Explode...

 ... each time I read some "analysis" from some pol.sci-journo "expert" in nothing who knows nothing but platitudes passed as "expertise". I spoke about this in my latest video, but I need to elaborate:

Andrey Sushentsov: War will be a constant in the 21st century, but only a few countries can mount a truly major conflict. Until the global balance of power is properly reset, dreams of world peace will have to wait 

Immediately, for Sushentsov and RT's information--war was ALWAYS a constant in human history. It is an omnipresent reality and the "dreams of world peace" among real military-intel professionals, unlike Sushentsov and this cabal from Valdai, is merely measured by intensity of the conflicts--relatively high, relatively low. But there is always a WAR. A conflict. But what do you expect from such "expert":

Andrey Sushentsov is an EASI-Hurford Next Generation fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace focused on Russian policy toward Ukraine and the future of Russian-Ukrainian interdependence. Sushentsov is also a political analyst and international relations scholar at Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) and a managing partner with the Moscow-based consulting agency Foreign Policy Analysis Group. His publications include books on U.S. politics and the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, “America’s Small Wars” and “Essays on U.S. Politics and Regional Conflicts,” both published in Russian in 2014, as well as articles and reports on U.S.-Russian and Russian-Georgian relations. In his field-based research, Sushentsov pays special attention to collision of U.S. and Russian interests in Ukraine and the South Caucasus. In 2015, he edited a volume of Russian perspectives on international security issues looking ahead to 2020. Sushentsov was a visiting researcher at Georgetown University’s Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies in 2007 and at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in 2008. He was a visiting professor at Rome LUISS University in 2013 and at Armenian State University of Economics in 2014. He is participating in a Working Group on the Future of U.S.-Russia Relations established by Higher School of Economics (Moscow) and Harvard University

RT continues to provide tribune to illiterate pseudo-academics with serious Western background, which is a euphemism for being trained within fraudulent US academia as related to modern history, Russia and warfare. How the guy who has zero STEM military-intel background (a defining feature of all those Valdai guys) and who spent all his adult life within the confines of utterly corrupt American think-tankdom can pass any judgement on war is beyond belief. 

So, the guy continues:

The military crisis raging in Eastern Europe has dispelled the illusion that the era of large armies is a thing of the past. Military thinking among leading powers is beginning to move away from the 2000s maxim that the goal of war is to dazzle and stun the enemy to lower its technological level and prevent it from waging 21st century warfare, knocking out its high-precision, mobile, deep-coverage capabilities. Looking at these trends, can we say that warfare in the 21st century will be highly mobile, highly technological, and fought with small numbers? Or, alternatively, are we seeing a return to the historical norm of large armies? The risk of great power wars is increasing, and small and mobile forces have no significant advantages over large ones based on population mobilization. Indeed, it seems that the characteristics of a major military conflict between comparable powers will be exactly the same as they have been throughout history.

Seriously, dude? How about talking to senior officers, especially with operational and strategic level experience--I mean talking, if they will talk, not collecting rumors--why very few of them appreciated Mr. Serdyukov's reforms, especially with brigade-based structure. How about recalling that late Mr. Shlykov altogether called for abolition of General Staff and copying... US C2 structure. It was exactly your environment of pro-Western liberals (naturally ignorant and badly educated) which called for decades for disposing of the Soviet military science experiences and research. But then again, what can you expect from an academic shyster who barely knows the difference between ballistic and cruise, and that is why his conclusion is infuriating:

War is once again a constant, but a very narrow circle of countries will be capable of mounting a truly major conflict.

ONCE AGAIN? Once Again? Mr. Sushentsov, pray tell, when was the last time that war was not a constant? Do you mean Korea, Vietnam, two Afghanistans, one in 20th, the other in 21st centuries. Or do you mean the breakup of Yugoslavia throughout 1990s, resulting in the gang rape of Serbia by NATO in 1999. How about both Chechnyas? Or maybe Africa was a calm place? Gulf Wars? 

It is down right risible when some boys from MGIMO begin to wax warfareish having ZERO, zilch, nada tool kit for grasping the nature of the conflict which comes through understanding the tools of the conflict, and those things are not taught in their educational institutions. But then it is clear why that none of them produced any serious strategic thought in ages, actually never, merely retelling news headlines and parasitising on other people's ideas whose depth none of them can grasp. In the end, it has to be stated that all greatest modern strategic works of humanity, all, without exception, be that Clausewitz, Alfred Thayer Mahan, Fuller, Svechin, Gorshkov, Moltke to name a few, all, without exception have been created by cadre military officers. And even not so great works of strategy, such as air forces fantasy by Douhet or Jeune Ecole by Aube, still have been written by professional military people.  

Among the class of political "scientists", however, we have only risible geopolitical fantasies written by amateurs such as Huntington, Fukuyama, Brzezinski and platitude abuser Kissinger, to name a few, whose ideas have been discredited the moment those ideas have been put in print. Yet, here we are again, some semi-literate hacks continue to provide Karaganovesque pseudo-military BS and, of course, these "experts" are given again the tribune at RT. How about RT calls on real military professionals in Russia to express their opinions? I am sure there are plenty of those in Russia who would make RT's military "experts" look like a middle-schoolers who failed math test, who most of them, essentially, are. For Sushentsov, however, while it is not too late--how about he tries some military educational facility. Hey, I am sure they will make an exception for him in, say, Combined Arms Order of Zhukov Academy? He will need to freshen up his physics, higher math, mechanics, statistics... Ah, wait, what am I talking about--the kid will need to get his Form 1A clearance for starters. Forget it.     

Disclaimer: For those who do not follow me on this issue from the get go. I am officially done with RT, do not want to do anything with them other than news aggregator. RT's last remaining REAL military expert is Scott Ritter. Only he has a background for talking about modern war.

Some Relevant Headlines...

... recent XX Congress of CPC was certainly IT in policy terms. 

China has pledged to support Russia as it regains its global power status, foreign minister Wang Yi reportedly told his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov during a phone conversation on Thursday, in which the two officials vowed to back each other in their geopolitical endeavors. Beijing will “firmly support the Russian side,” assisting President Vladimir Putin’s efforts to “unite and lead the Russian people to overcome difficulties and eliminate disturbances,” as well as realize the “strategic development goals” to bolster Russia’s status as a major power on the international stage, according to the readout posted by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “It is the legitimate right of China and Russia to realize their own development and revitalization, which fully conforms to the development trend of the times,” said Beijing’s press release. “Any attempt to block the progress of China and Russia will never succeed.” 

That, my friends, how alliance of two superpowers sounds. Do not forget what was the topic of the whole Valdai Conference and of Putin's speech at it. Right "The World After Hegemony" (in Russian). When even Tony figured it out. 

Better late than never, as they say. In related news, three prototypes of PD-8 engine which will be certified in 2023 and will substitute French-Russian engines at SSJ-100 have been tested (in Russian). While coming communications satellite Express-AMU4 is fully 100% Russian-made with previously used components by Franco-Italian Thales Alenia Space removed. Make your own conclusions how it was all achieved. 

 

P.S. A-ha. 

House Republicans have accused U.S. President Joe Biden of misusing the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve to counter OPEC+’s move to cut its oil production and to lower gasoline prices ahead of the midterm elections. In a letter sent by Republicans sitting on the House Oversight Committee, House Republicans sent a letter this week to U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm demanding that the Administration explain its March decision to release 180 million barrels of crude oil from the nation’s emergency reserves, according to the Daily Mail, who obtained a copy of the letter.The letter also detailed further concerns that the Administration could ban exports of oil and gas. 

Midterms are coming, you know. 

Very Pleasant, Very...

... to have what I say non-stop to be confirmed by Vladimir Vladimirovich. Last time I said it was three days ago in my video.   

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared on Thursday that Russia is an “independent” civilization that does not consider itself an enemy of the West. Instead, he sees the “aggressive” and “neo-colonial” liberal elite in charge of the West as a foe. “In the current conditions of a tough conflict, I will say some things directly,” Putin told a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club. “Russia, being an independent, original civilization, has never considered and does not consider itself an enemy of the West.” Hatred for American, British, French or German people “are the same form of racism as Russophobia and anti-Semitism,” he added. Putin went on to describe the West as two entities. On one hand, the traditional, primarily Christian West “is close to us in some ways,” he said, noting that “we have in many respects common and ancient roots.”

One of the practical reasons why me and my family can and do live in the US is precisely because of the commonality of the roots. Also, in many respects--commonality of the values' system, which currently is being demolished. E.g. I do respect and even admire in many senses the cultures of China and India, but I couldn't live there--because culturally we are different. Not better or worse, just different. And Putin is absolutely correct, Russia is not West's enemy but Western elites, certainly, are enemies of Russia and Russian people. That is what this whole ordeal is about. And I mean culture not only in a material sense; although the Starbucks and McDonald's left Russia, Russians everywhere continue to drink lattes and eat cheeseburgers. Among many other things which are distinctly Western, not least of them being Russian heavy-metal, punks or what have you. For better or worse--it is Western culture but with now traditional Russian twist. Russians continue to read Shakespeare.

Enough to take a look at Foreign Literature section of the Literature Course for Russian public schools to recognize this (in Russian). You can easily find Moliere, Shakespeare, Hugo, Cervantes, Bradbury, Jules Verne, Dickens, Oscar Wilde and Mark Twain among many others. It is all there, it always was and unlike it is the case in the West, especially Europe, Russia never cancelled Western culture. So, here we are today and this discussion is no less important than discussion on the strategic and operational issues of SMO. Especially since Putin himself today confirmed that losses ratios in SMO are reaching 1 to 7 or 1 to 8 in favor of Russian forces (in Russian). Sadly, 23 Chechen guys got killed today under the artillery barrage, Ramzan stated it today (in Russian). The revenge was dispatched immediately. R.I.P., guys. 

In related news, lapdogs start barking, sort of. Politico even called it: 

Scholz and Macron threaten trade retaliation against Biden. France and Germany want to negotiate with Washington about unfair competition — but they are ready to hit back if necessary.

Good luck trying this, because there are so many terrorists in France and Germany that they may strike, suddenly and unexpectedly, wink, wink;) Nevertheless, Politco concludes:

But even though their lunch came against an awkward backdrop, both leaders agreed that the EU cannot remain idle if Washington pushes ahead with its Inflation Reduction Act, which offers tax cuts and energy benefits for companies investing on U.S. soil, in its current form. Specifically, the recently signed U.S. legislation encourages consumers to “Buy American” when it comes to choosing an electric vehicle — a move particularly galling for major car industries in the likes of France and Germany.

The message from the Paris lunch is: If the U.S. doesn't scale back, then the EU will have to strike back. Similar incentive schemes for companies will be needed to avoid unfair competition or losing investments. That move would risk plunging transatlantic relations into a new trade war.

I am getting myself pop-corn...

During Times of Universal Deceit, Telling the Truth Becomes a Revolutionary Act(c).

 This Orwell's quote applies fully. 

Many western "intellectuals"--being a neurotic demagogue passes in the modern West for "intellectualism"--spent a lot of time trying to institutionalize pedophilia. They pushed the Overton Window to the extreme and institutionalized the whole gender perversion as a legitimate act. Children in the West are being systematically targeted, often with the cooperation of utterly corrupt American teachers, by the so called "transgender" lobby and I disagree with Putin on this one--it is not "borderline" crime against humanity, it is a full fledged one, especially since children are involved. 

 

But no matter how we define it from the judicial point of view, pedophilia eventually will be institutionalized in the West because we can only speculate on a true scale of pedophilia of Western "elites", what is undeniable--the scale is large. But then again, attraction to Nabokov's Lolita among Western "artsy" and "intellectual" class is well documented and it has nothing to do with rather average writing and questionable motives behind this novel. Yet, they praise it. Western, once mighty, intellect is lost and it is not coming back. What's left is a work on legitimizing Sodom and Gomorrah and if they need to sacrifice children--they will. Modern West has no moral compass anymore.

The Fate of the West.

It is not very enviable. The acquaintance of mine who spent a good deal of time around the Atlanticist political top and knows many people there personally sent me his (her) thoughts on the issue of "elites" (I know the identity of this person, which should remain obscured for now) in which notes of this significance appear:

I saw all these people and many others like John Bolton, etc., and you are absolutely correct in that they are irredeemably obtuse - clever at manipulation of their own populations while driving their empire to ruin even as they fuck up one project after another and label it a triumph, leaving death, misery and disaster in their wake. I'm thankful they are as stupid as they are wicked (evil has that effect over generations), but that is also still dangerous for the rest of us. Regarding the France article, the evil is generational and (in my view) ultimately spiritual in nature. If you examine the Dutroux affair in Belgium, you will find a nexus of NATO, politicians and nobility, satanic cults, high finance, organized crime, media and the Catholic hierarchy, rather like P2/Gladio in Italy, Jimmy Savile and MPs in Britain, or the Franklin pedo scandal in America which also tied in to cults and Iran Contra. In the UK case, London residency of KGB FCD had identified these rings as being under the protection of British intelligence. Similar revelations have also come out of Australia. Not to mention Epstein...It is all extremely dark and people have lost their lives attempting to expose it. That's the nature of the "elite" that rules the crumbling West today. Not many people can handle that all the same.

Well, evidently some French journalists had it with Macron:

ENTRETIEN. Gérard Davet et Fabrice Lhomme : « Nous avons cherché à démasquer Emmanuel Macron » Les journalistes Gérard Davet et Fabrice Lhomme publient, cette semaine, « Le traître et le néant » aux éditions Fayard. Une enquête de 630 pages sur l’accession au pouvoir d’Emmanuel Macron et son quinquennat. « Certains trouveront que l’image renvoyée du Président n’est pas si mauvaise, d’autres qu’elle est accablante », expliquent-ils.

Translation: Gérard Davet and Fabrice Lhomme: "We sought to unmask Emmanuel Macron" The journalists Gérard Davet and Fabrice Lhomme publish, this week, “The traitor and the nothingness” with the editions Fayard. A 630-page investigation into the accession to power of Emmanuel Macron and his five-year term. "Some will find that the returned image of the President is not that bad, others that it is overwhelming," they explain.

Read the whole thing (use Google Translate) and you will get the idea how human "nothingness"  (an apt definition) do betray their countries. Here is one quote:

The "thing" of Emmanuel Macron is that he is flirtatious, charismatic, clever, making the person in front of him believe that he is the most important in the world. He sends back to his older interlocutors the image of who they were or what they wanted to be. And Brigitte Macron plays a major role in this mechanism. She is present at every important moment.

Yes, they all are--they all are avatars, holograms with zero capabilities to run anything and still, who is guilty that this kind of human material gets elected? In Macron's case, France. French people--they elected him, they fell for his utter BS and agreed for their country to be finished off. Same goes for the United States--no matter what were manipulations at the ballot box--the fact that half the country voted for a senile, demented, con-artist and swamp creature--sorry guys, you wanted, you got it. Now live with the consequences. This is how the decline of civilization looks like: perverts, pedophiles and con-artists on the top, ignorant "bread and circuses" masses on the bottom. 

This is the reason why today Vladimir Putin speaking at Valdai reiterated his (and many others') point that:

“Everyone says that the existing model of capitalism, which is now the basis of the social order in the vast majority of countries, has run out of steam,” Putin said. “There is no longer any way out of the tangle of more and more confusing contradictions.”

Obviously, this is not news to anyone who didn't slumber under the rock for the last 20 years and saw how modern model simply stopped producing real wealth and value. Now we have a new version of FIRE woke capitalism which is a direct path to a complete totalitarianism and a bacchanalia of human depravity, led by people akin to Macron and his ilk. So, expect new Macrons, new Bidens and new Epsteins emerging from the murky depths of the West's political machine. Yes, I know, sounds depressing but it is what it is. Modern West and globalism are one and the same and the rest of the world doesn't like it, and West's departure from its dominant position is one of the indicators that the system doesn't work anymore. There is a lot more to be said about this whole thing but for now I need to run to do some chores, after that we may discuss the issue of China's test of hyper-sonic weapon, which evidently, shook the United States and forced Pentagon to declare:

The U.S. Navy and Army tested hypersonic weapon component prototypes on Wednesday that will inform development of new weapons, the Pentagon said, calling the three tests successful.

Right. "Components" of "prototypes". In related news, the tests of components of the prototypes of apple pies, like flour and apples, have been conducted in a number of households around the world and those tests have been successful, so in the future some apple pies could be baked. As Scott Ritter stated commenting on this launch about US efforts:

Pro hint: It’s not an arms race if one side is spending all the money while losing ground.

I am more blunt for the last 10 years: the West lost the arms race because it was preparing for the war which nobody is going to fight. So, it is not just a technological gap, it is doctrinal, and this one is much harder to close.

Pepe Escobar Wrote An Excellent Piece.

You can read it in full at Saker's Blog, Zerohedge or some few other media outlets, including Asia Times. Pepe refers to me, for which I am very thankful to him, when describing the the general state of the affairs today, and I quote him:

Only fools falling for the blind leading the blind syndrome don’t know that these liberal order “rules” are set by the Hegemon alone, and can be changed in a flash according to the Hegemon’s whims. So it’s no wonder a running joke in Moscow is “if you don’t listen to Lavrov, you will listen to Shoigu.” Sergey Shoigu is Russia’s Minister of Defense, supervising all those hypersonic weapons the US industrial-military complex can only dream about. The crucial point is even with so much NATO-engendered hysteria, Moscow could not give a damn because of its de facto military supremacy. And that freaks Washington and Brussels out even more.

Generally, Pepe and I we arrive to the same conclusion, as Pepe puts it:

As much as Washington is not “agreement-capable”, in the words of President Putin, so is the EU, says Lavrov: “We should stop to orient ourselves toward European partners and care about their assessments.” Not only Russia knows it: the overwhelming majority of the Global South also knows it.

A new Iron Curtain is not only possible it is inevitable now between EU/NATO and Russia. In fact, it is necessary for survival of Russia and Eurasia as a whole. Kremlin understands this completely as it is evident from today's (yesterday's) address of Putin to Valdai Conference and in a noticeable change of tone of Moscow, starting from Lavrov and now big boss himself. As Putin said today: 

"Укрепляя нашу страну, глядя на то, что происходит в мире, в других странах, хочу сказать тем, кто еще ждет постепенного затухания России: нас в этом случае беспокоит только одно — как бы не простудиться на ваших похоронах"

Translation: Making our country stronger, while looking at what is happening in the world, in other countries, I want to tell those who are still waiting for slow extinguishing of Russia: our concern in this case is only one--how not to get cold at your funeral.  

Kind of speaks volumes, doesn't it? Yes, a joke, but only so far. Remarkably, conflict in Karabah is a superb demonstration of Russia's intentions and how many still fail to understand that silly games are over. Russia knows where the relations with EU are leading to and the only political forces Russia will be looking to cooperate with in Europe will be genuinely conservative ones. Most of EU establishment and vast majority of European countries' political top is globalist and Russophobic in the extreme. Well, too bad. Putin also reiterated his old point that, sure, Russia will consider including hypersonic weapon systems into discussion on START, but Putin made explicit remarks that, indeed, negotiate anything with the US in good faith is useless. As he said--we do not desperately grasp this expiring START treaty, if it expires, so be it. Very nonchalant. 

As one commenter at Zero Hedge (probably German himself) noted:

The situation from the perspective of German citizens is exactly the opposite: The people want good relations with Russia. Many people like or love Russia. The deep-state puppet Merkel does not want or is not allowed to establish a partnership with Russia.

That may be true, after all, the best relations in the Warsaw Pact were namely between East Germans and Russians. There is a huge history between Russians and East Germans in terms of truly allied and extremely friendly relations. This explains why, as an example, French do not view Russians as European people, while modern Germans do. I guess one can figure out that the slight majority of Germans thinking that Russians are Europeans is provided by those East Germans. But, sadly for Germans, it doesn't matter for Russians anymore. As I stated not for once, throughout my almost 60 years of life never did I encounter so much contempt for the West and lack of any desire to integrate with it on part of overwhelming majority of Russians than it is the case for the last 10 years. Modern West and Russia have very little in common culturally and, as I state ad nauseam, the gap will only grow. Basically, Vladimir Putin confirmed these points today at Valdai. But the main question is extremely simple: to negotiate WHAT, with WHO? There is nobody in the West who qualifies for a status of statesman (or stateswoman)--mostly mindless globalist morons with no real influence on the events in their countries, let alone world. I agree with Pepe, Global South knows and waits when it will get its chance which will come only with the dissolution of the present world (dis)order which outlived its usefulness by about 30 years.        

Lavrov: We May End It.

Sergei Lavrov is a man of no gimmicks--if he says something, that means he means it. By definition it also means Kremlin means it. So, today, he says it as it is at Valdai Conference:

"Те люди, которые отвечают за внешнюю политику на Западе и не понимают необходимости взаимоуважительного разговора, — наверное, мы должны просто на какое-то время перестать с ними общаться. Тем более что Урсула фон дер Ляйен заявляет, что с нынешней российской властью геополитического партнерства не получается. Так тому и быть, если они этого хотят"

Translation:  Those people in the West who are responsible for foreign policy and do not understand the necessity of mutually respectable conversation--well, we must simply stop for a while communicate with them. Especially since Ursula von der Leyen states that geopolitical partnership with current Russia's leadership is impossible. If this is the way they want it, so be it. 

It is my long standing contention that any professional discussion between Lavrov and former gynecologist such as von der Leyen, including Germany's Foreign Minister Maas, who is a lawyer and a party worm of German politics is a waste of time. Western "elites" and "intellectuals" are simply on a different, much lower level, than said Lavrov. You do not negotiate with monkeys, you treat them nicely, you make sure that they are not abused, but you don't negotiate with them, same as you don't negotiate with toddlers. They want to have their Navalny as their toy--let them. I call on Russia to start wrapping economic activity up with EU for a long time. They buy Russia's hydrocarbons and hi-tech, fine. Other than that, any other activity should be dramatically reduced and necessity of the Iron Curtain must not be doubted anymore. 

I reiterate, there is nothing in common culturally between modern Russia and the West and the gap is growing. Europe is being primed for cultural and demographic suicide, not to speak of institutionalizing degeneracy both in art and in real life,  plus the US needs to eat someone to extend its agony for a little bit longer. It is totally logical and if I need to see Renaissance art, Hermitage gives Louvre a run for its money. EU is a cemetery and one doesn't do business with cemetery other than burying. Lavrov's statement today is important in that it shows that Kremlin wrote current EU off. As I state for years, observing events in EU, when I have the time, I totally expect a stream of refugees from Europe to Russia soon, because many still sane Westerners will be faced with a terrifying choice: either adapt to living in Orwellian reality including a fairly fast (in historic term) transition to a third world economies and standard of living, or making decision to regain personal liberty and common sense, and economic stability and opportunity in Russia and those East European nations which will maintain strong economic ties with Russia. 

Boy, come to think about, writing this now--how did the times change. Who would have thought that for many even today Russia becomes a shining city on the hill. Don't believe me? Go to comments to any Voice of Europe videos, among many--scores of Germans, Belgians and even English people leave comments there that they seriously consider moving. Some decry their inability to do so immediately. We don't know real numbers of Westerners who are already in Russia on permanent bases, I know that there is a vibrant American community in Russia, how large? I don't know but American expats moving or living in Russia resource is updated regularly. I would love to stay in the US, but the way thing are going not just politically (unlike EU we have guns and we may yet reclaim some of our freedoms) but economically--401K, Social Security, don't bet on it--it is all going down the drain as I type it, but we'll see. After some time in Russia, I still begin to miss ocean and Cascades of Washington, Idaho or Montana, I also miss Oregon's coast. As for Germans. Many Germans already are in Russia, especially from East Germany. I know scores of Russian Germans are moving back. We are just at the beginning of a process which may take decades and as I pointed out on very many occasions, Putin's talk at Valdai in 2017 WAS about Russia effectively getting ready to become the Arc for whatever will be left of White Christendom in Europe, the rest, can go to hell--they earned it. EU has no subjectivity and as such is not agreement-capable. This is exactly what Lavrov said: " We should stop to orient ourselves toward European partners and care about their assessments."  Exactly, the time has come.