Ukraine War. 2022-

...but Turkey is going to block them using some half-baked excuse that has nothing to do with the real questions. Is there a mechanism for kicking Turkey out ? I really wouldn't mind if the Russians invaded there.

 

Blimey chicken and turkey causing a storm in this thread


Makes you want to go vegan

 

A really good article, especially for the graphics. Rightly the concluding part asking are doing the right thing today: Chartbook #119: Lend-Lease & Escalation

A less useful article IMHO: America's massive 'lend-lease' aid plan for Ukraine recalls similar help in Britain's 'darkest hour'

Then a May 2022 KCL War Studies video (82 mins) of a panel asking What does history teach us about the future of warfare? Citing part of the summary:

Link:

 

Putin is said to be running the operations day to day

Reminds us of another dictator

Went the day well did it

 

As long as the operations are restricted to the dark arts of the KGB what could possibly go wrong?

 

Gentlemen! I am quite frankly astounded at the Flippancy of your responses to this somewhat serious situation.
With regard to Turkey they are the guardians of the Dardanelles (remember Churchill and Gallipoli?)
No-one passes to and from the Black Sea without their concession. They are crucial to NATO.
Dont forget that Russia and Ukraine are the bread basket of the world. Mariupol and Odessa are important to the flow of foodstuffs.
Whoever controls these ports will influence Asia, Africa and the Middle East after the world reduces the use of oil and gas.

 

Yes they are but we cant have one member who errs on the side of both camps stopping two concerned countries from joining NATO.

That is why we require them to join sending a message to the dictator the free world wants to be free and allow freedom for all.

 

So that's it for now! The Brigadier has declared a "Special Operation" to eradicate Sycamore shoots in her flower beds. "Advancing to contact".

Signing off with a song which just might be considered a related theme:

All the people under broken homes
Don't wanna fight no more
All the people nursing shattered bones
Don't wanna fight no more
But there's no profit in peace
So we've gotta fight some more

("No Profit in Peace" Ocean Colour Scene)

 

Just dropped of by the Postie - took a few weeks to get here from Kyiv but I'm impressed it got here at all

 

...except it's not as simple as that - a quick look at a map showing countries surrounding Turkey will illustrate that....and the Kurds have been wanting a 'homeland' for decades..... Turkeys position is truly complex.

 

....as I said - complex.

 

Well, the Turkey is not the only one which is considering blocking Finland and Sweden joining NATO. Croatian President is also calling for blocking their entry for his own reasons but there is very little chance that Croatia as country will do that.

 

I havent been to Turkey since the 70's. They were proud of being tough, Macho I think we call it now. I used to wear clogs in the foundry but just for show they would take their boots off to walk on hot ashes.. Had a night on the booze once, drinking Raki.... never again, it almost killed me.
The local doctor was called he was going away on honeymoon so gave me a bottle of tablets. Turkish medicine labels are in Arabic writing so I couldn't understand what it was.
They couldn't wake me after I took it so fetched my interpreter back as he had cleared off to see a relative. They had given me Penicillin which I am highly allergic to.
The interpreter drove 40 miles to his brother in law and came back with some antihistamine in a glass phial. He took me to a guy in a large bungalow surrounded with sheep.
He was a typical yokel wearing baggy pants and slippers. After a short while he produced a huge syringe and stabbed me in the leg pumping the liquid into me. By this time I was semiconscious. I thought he was a vet then realised he was the local shepherd.
The next day they took me back to Istanbul to see the house Doctor at the Intercontinental Hotel who was an American Army Doctor who asked who had stabbed me, as it looked like he had used a three quarter inch conduit! I eventually got sent home 1st Class as there were no tourist class seats for weeks as it was peak season.

Two pics attached a typical village (they didn't like being photographed) and the Bosphorus from the Intercontinental Hotel Istanbul.

 

From the Brick Lane area of London