Thread image created by yours truly, depicting Iran and Pakistan very impolitely not asking whether America, on the other side of the planet, is okay with them transporting gas around.
The Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline has long been obstructed by American involvement in the region. Iran completed its section of the pipeline quite quickly, but Pakistan has been unable to finish its construction for a decade due to the fear of falling afoul of American sanctions on Iran. The United States has repeatedly tried to pressure Pakistan to give up the project and obtain gas from other countries instead. Recent articles on the state of the pipeline are contradictory, with some stating that Iran or Pakistan have given up on the pipeline while American sanctions persist. Pakistani officials reject this framing, saying that they are still working with Iran to try and get the project completed somehow. Nonetheless, Iran is becoming increasingly frustrated and is threatening a legal battle and a demand for reparations.
Meanwhile, back in Niger, the $13 billion under-construction pipeline connecting Nigeria and other West African countries to Spain and Italy will likely face delays due to the sanctions applied by the West and ECOWAS on Niger. Those following the European gas fiasco will be aware that while Spain and Italy have been impacted by the energy crisis, they have been very busy making deals with African countries to replace their Russian gas, and thus stand a better chance than Germany of making it through the crisis with their industries somewhat intact. The coup has thrown a wrench into their plans, though they can still obtain some gas from northern African countries.
And, last but not least, America tried for years to stop the construction of the Nord Stream pipelines between Germany and Russia, which culminated in them deciding to blow them up late last year.
All in all - the United States really does not like it when countries build up energy infrastructure and gain some independence from them.
Here is the map of the Ukraine conflict, courtesy of Wikipedia.
This week's first update is here in the comments.
This week's second update is here in the comments.
This week's third update is here in the comments.
Links and Stuff
The bulletins site is down.
Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict
Add to the above list if you can.
Resources For Understanding The War
Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.
Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.
Telegram Channels
Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.
Pro-Russian
https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.
Pro-Ukraine
Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.
Last week's discussion post.
I've noticed a slight shift in the reporting on Ukraine in Danish media. There's less of the "Our superior Wunderwaffen will crush Russia!" stuff and a lot more stuff about how challenging things are for the Ukrainian armed forces, some even go as far as saying that the counteroffensive has failed.
Theyre still campaigning to give Ukraine F-16's and seems to think that this time superior Aryan technology will change the tide of the war.
Something suggests that at least some of the sources that western media get their Ukraine content from is winding down their bellicose stance.
My take is when Ukraine finally loses you'll see part of the media reverting to their normal racist fashy shit Ukrainians will become the dumbass asian/slav hordes whatever idiots that couldn't figure out how to use the awesome tactics and the super magical BS weapons. They literally already did this but it will go to 11 when they lose imo.
At the same time I think another part of the media will hold on to the Ukrainian sacrifice myth until the end, they'll claim it could all be avoided if we sent more [insert outdated NATO shit from 1985 here], it is all our Russian bots fault for not supporting the holy fight for democracy and freedom, we are responsible for 500k dead Ukrainian children, how we all failed the brave and heroic Ukrainian ~~Nazis~~ freedom fighters blah blah and that is why we need more and more spending and why Russia is the big evil more than ever.
In essence, they'll play both sides.
It'll be like the brave mujahudeen thing until some Azov guy flies an airplane in the Eiffel tower.
"Azov is a Russian Nazi organization sent to destroy Europe as part of Putler's genocide."
It's like all these libs saying that you can't "force democracy" on removed savages like I've been seeing pop up about Afghanistan after federation
That's been a talking point since the invasion of Iraq
Liberalism cannot fail, it can only be failed
I think you discribed the media split between the western states proper and the hyper-reactionary post-soviet states in the middle of the West and the East.
This is going to be the same goddamn thing as the last few wars isn't it
They're going to tone it down down down until they'll say right to your face that "nobody really supported zelensky" or "I thought the war was suspicious from the start" when they're the ones who were screaming "kill the orcs!" right along with the other nazis.
I can't talk about the Iraq War around any older people I knew at the time because they all tell me they didn't really support the war when I fucking remember that they did! My dad does it and it's maddening.
Mkultrawide is infuriated by people's false narratives and altered histories.
When you remove the context the idea becomes quite funny.
20 years later, president Ben Shapiro signs off on ending the war but passes it on to president Sinema to botch the execution.
Sinema: "This will not be like Vietnam, or like Afghanistan. There will be no photo of a heli lifting people out at the last minute."
If the Ukrainians get the old stuff, that means that NATO has to replace it with new stuff.
Old is an understatement at some point they received Harpoon missiles from the UK that were literally past the expiration date.
I still remember this shit
And Harpoons are like the worst ASM’s in current stock anywhere
For real, small, slow, short ranged. Out performed by basically every Soviet and Chinese ashm.
Are the Harpoons even being used against Russian ships, or just fired into Donetsk like everything else?
That’s a good question. As far as memory goes, harpoon guidance only really works against ships.