Ukraine drone strikes hit Moscow region, 3 dead

The Economist siad last week that the tide of the war in Ukraine was beginning to turn. This week, fresh analysis of battlefield data and maps strengthens that case. Russia has paid a staggering price: our estimates suggest around 3% of its pre-war male population of fighting age has been killed or wounded. Meanwhile, Ukraine has begun to claw back territory. Ukraines drones seem to be the rulers of the battlefield and can get miles into Russian territory,

The west neeeds to learn from this.

3 hours ago, kwilco said:

that the tide of the war in Ukraine was beginning to turn

Oh, really?

Yes Ukraine needs to hit them in their major city , turn the people against Putin,

even more so , you have to admire Ukraine ,holding back Russia ,adapting to new

methods to wage a defense against an aggressor much more powerful than it's

self ,in manpower at least ,

regards worgeordie

15 hours ago, Hakuna Matata said:

Oh, really?

It certainly has, yes, a while ago. You're not up to date.

One has to take one's hat off to the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian population as a whole.

But it is a slaughter-house tragedy they have been led into, blindfolded by western propaganda and that of their own xenophobic nationalists. A war that is crippling their nation, leaving it in ruins and bled white.

It is a war that has benefited no one but a few well-placed individuals who have skimmed off a substantial proportion of the financial and material aid delivered to the country. And who will continue the war as long as they continue to profit from it.

This war benefits only a wealthy few in the U.S. It is highly detrimental to western Europe. Detrimental to the Russian Federation. And catastrophic for the Ukraine. Together with the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran it will produce a global economic Depression of dire consequences.

_________________________________________________

Web search algorithms seem to throw up results with a strongly distorted bias in favour of the UAF [Armed Forces of the Ukraine]; whether from Ukrainian or Western media. Official Russian sources are also biased, but more by omission than actual falsehood.

To get closer to the reality, these may be useful (not confined to the Ukraine conflict):

https://www.youtube.com/@WeebUnionWU

https://simplicius76.substack.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@ruslanbelov86

https://www.youtube.com/@DanielDavisDeepDive

https://www.youtube.com/@borzzikman

https://www.youtube.com/@AlexMercouris

https://www.youtube.com/@historylegends

https://www.youtube.com/@timesofindia

https://www.youtube.com/@globalinsightnetwork1

https://www.youtube.com/@GDiesen1

https://www.worldaffairsincontext.com/

https://rachelblevins.substack.com/

https://scottritter.substack.com/

9 minutes ago, ericbj said:

One has to take one's hat off to the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian population as a whole.

But it is a slaughter-house tragedy they have been led into, blindfolded by western propaganda and that of their own xenophobic nationalists. A war that is crippling their nation, leaving it in ruins and bled white.

It is a war that has benefited no one but a few well-placed individuals who have skimmed off a substantial proportion of the financial and material aid delivered to the country. And who will continue the war as long as they continue to profit from it.

This war benefits only a wealthy few in the U.S. It is highly detrimental to western Europe. Detrimental to the Russian Federation. And catastrophic for the Ukraine. Together with the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran it will produce a global economic Depression of dire consequences.

You seem to forget that Russia invaded Ukraine because Putin wanted to go back to the future.

Rarely see articles on the recent arrest of Zelinski's right hand, charged with top level corruption. All the trillions of dollars that the west is sending to Ukraine blindly...who is checking really on site, where the cash goes and how it is spent ? Sure the Ruskys are no better, but in this case, it's ukraine who is getting all the funding from the west, while many westers nations are going bankrupt with the blind funding.

6 hours ago, TedG said:

You seem to forget that Russia invaded Ukraine because Putin wanted to go back to the future.

You have not studied how it started. You need to go back at least to 2014, and preferably 1991 and beyond.

Absolutely fantastic news. After years of genocide throughout Ukraine, Russia deeply deserves this. Let us hope they can keep up the pressure thanks to the European allies.

The US has dropped 99% of its support for Ukraine under the cowardly "leadership" of Disaster Don. His fealty to Putin always leads him astray. What a goon.

41 minutes ago, ericbj said:

You have not studied how it started. You need to go back at least to 2014, and preferably 1991 and beyond.

I have studied how the war started. Russian invaded Ukraine. That’s how it started.

8 hours ago, Sigmund said:

Rarely see articles on the recent arrest of Zelinski's right hand, charged with top level corruption. All the trillions of dollars that the west is sending to Ukraine blindly...who is checking really on site, where the cash goes and how it is spent ? Sure the Ruskys are no better, but in this case, it's ukraine who is getting all the funding from the west, while many westers nations are going bankrupt with the blind funding.

"The case against Yermak also ties Mindich [Zelemsky's former business partner] and another Zelenskyy ally, former deputy prime minister Oleksiy Chernyshov"

Reuters, July 2025:

"Parliament grants general prosecutor control over two agencies. Critics allege wider crackdown against anti-corruption community Move could complicate Kyiv's European integration"

"Ukraine has toughened restrictions on two anti-corruption agencies at the centre of the government's reform drive, rolling back their autonomy in favour of TIGHTER EXECUTIVE CONTROL.

"Stamping out endemic graft is a requirement for Kyiv to join the European Union as well as to secure billions in Western aid. Independent investigators have in recent months embarrassed senior officials with allegations of corruption."

The accused are scapegoats who will be let off the hook lest they spill the beans. Unless they can be suppressed in some other way. (Zelensky lacks loyalty: see how he treated his former patron, Kolomoyskyi). Don't imagine Zelensky got his massive wealth, including Italian and Israeli property, from his former comedy act.

Note that the formerly "independent" NABU, once controlled secretively by the regime, is now OFFICIALLY controlled by the regime. Corruption problem solved.

p.s. Look for photo captioned thus:

"Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and … Andriy Yermak pose … with Spain's King Felipe, Madrid, Spain, November 18, 2025."

The Ukraine is a land of smoke and mirrors, described before the outbreak of war as the most corrupt country in Europe. What the oligarchs imposed was the law. Said to be worse than Russia under Yeltsin.

1 hour ago, TedG said:

I have studied how the war started. Russian invaded Ukraine. That’s how it started.

And you hold that the Second World War started because Britain and France declared war on Germany ?

21 hours ago, ericbj said:

One has to take one's hat off to the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian population as a whole.

But it is a slaughter-house tragedy they have been led into, blindfolded by western propaganda and that of their own xenophobic nationalists. A war that is crippling their nation, leaving it in ruins and bled white.

It is a war that has benefited no one but a few well-placed individuals who have skimmed off a substantial proportion of the financial and material aid delivered to the country. And who will continue the war as long as they continue to profit from it.

This war benefits only a wealthy few in the U.S. It is highly detrimental to western Europe. Detrimental to the Russian Federation. And catastrophic for the Ukraine. Together with the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran it will produce a global economic Depression of dire consequences.

_________________________________________________

Web search algorithms seem to throw up results with a strongly distorted bias in favour of the UAF [Armed Forces of the Ukraine]; whether from Ukrainian or Western media. Official Russian sources are also biased, but more by omission than actual falsehood.

To get closer to the reality, these may be useful (not confined to the Ukraine conflict):

https://www.youtube.com/@WeebUnionWU

https://simplicius76.substack.com/

https://www.youtube.com/@ruslanbelov86

https://www.youtube.com/@DanielDavisDeepDive

https://www.youtube.com/@borzzikman

https://www.youtube.com/@AlexMercouris

https://www.youtube.com/@historylegends

https://www.youtube.com/@timesofindia

https://www.youtube.com/@globalinsightnetwork1

https://www.youtube.com/@GDiesen1

https://www.worldaffairsincontext.com/

https://rachelblevins.substack.com/

https://scottritter.substack.com/

YouTube?? Seriously?

And Glenn Diesen??? Wtf. He has been a Russian asset from the start. I know, he is a countryman of mine, and is seriously biased. He is a bit of a laughing stock in Norway, and has lost any credibility.

Can't take you seriously after this.

13 hours ago, ericbj said:

And you hold that the Second World War started because Britain and France declared war on Germany ?

The WW2 started when Germany invaded Poland in 1939.

31 minutes ago, thaibreaker said:

YouTube?? Seriously?

And Glenn Diesen??? Wtf. He has been a Russian asset from the start. I know, he is a countryman of mine, and is seriously biased. He is a bit of a laughing stock in Norway, and has lost any credibility.

Can't take you seriously after this.

Bingo.

Scott Ritter is even worse.

Useful idiots for Putin are so annoying.

14 hours ago, ericbj said:

"The case against Yermak also ties Mindich [Zelemsky's former business partner] and another Zelenskyy ally, former deputy prime minister Oleksiy Chernyshov"

Reuters, July 2025:

"Parliament grants general prosecutor control over two agencies. Critics allege wider crackdown against anti-corruption community Move could complicate Kyiv's European integration"

"Ukraine has toughened restrictions on two anti-corruption agencies at the centre of the government's reform drive, rolling back their autonomy in favour of TIGHTER EXECUTIVE CONTROL.

"Stamping out endemic graft is a requirement for Kyiv to join the European Union as well as to secure billions in Western aid. Independent investigators have in recent months embarrassed senior officials with allegations of corruption."

The accused are scapegoats who will be let off the hook lest they spill the beans. Unless they can be suppressed in some other way. (Zelensky lacks loyalty: see how he treated his former patron, Kolomoyskyi). Don't imagine Zelensky got his massive wealth, including Italian and Israeli property, from his former comedy act.

Note that the formerly "independent" NABU, once controlled secretively by the regime, is now OFFICIALLY controlled by the regime. Corruption problem solved.

p.s. Look for photo captioned thus:

"Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and … Andriy Yermak pose … with Spain's King Felipe, Madrid, Spain, November 18, 2025."

The Ukraine is a land of smoke and mirrors, described before the outbreak of war as the most corrupt country in Europe. What the oligarchs imposed was the law. Said to be worse than Russia under Yeltsin.

Anti Ukraine Z fascist propaganda

It's not the Ukraine.

15 hours ago, ericbj said:

The Ukraine is a land of smoke and mirrors, described before the outbreak of war as the most corrupt country in Europe. What the oligarchs imposed was the law. Said to be worse than Russia under Yeltsin.

This is a freakin' lie. That has always been Russia. No matter how much you wish it wasn't.

Come up with a link supporting your claim. You can't find one.

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

Anti Ukraine Z fascist propaganda

It's not the Ukraine.

Absolutely, and it's a shame we have these Russian propagandists around.

They're probably Trump-supporters (Maga) as well. Trump is steering USA into the fascists world too, and they support it.

I watched a report from the BBC the other day they have a reporter in Russia. He was interviewing someone in a city (not Moscow) that had been hit by Ukrainian drones he said something like "it was terrifying we should send a few drones in their direction to teach them a lesson" this was after the massive attack on Kiew by Russia.

Made me think the average Russian has no idea what is going on.

13 hours ago, TedG said:

The WW2 started when Germany invaded Poland in 1939.

Hitler did not want war with France and Britain, and he did not expect it.

Of course the Allies declared war on Germany, three days after his attack on Poland, and then did nothing. They could have done nothing to directly defend Poland. The guarantee was bogus. But they lacked the will to strike Germany along its largely undefended western frontier.

12 hours ago, Bannoi said:

I watched a report from the BBC the other day they have a reporter in Russia. He was interviewing someone in a city (not Moscow) that had been hit by Ukrainian drones he said something like "it was terrifying we should send a few drones in their direction to teach them a lesson" this was after the massive attack on Kiew by Russia.

Made me think the average Russian has no idea what is going on.

Yep

I'm adding anyone who quotes convicted paedophile Scott Ritter to my ignore list.

5 hours ago, Roadsternut said:

I'm adding anyone who quotes convicted paedophile Scott Ritter to my ignore list.

Challenge accepted.

"Weapons of mass destruction aren't pulled out of a black hat like a white rabbit at a magic show. They're produced in factories. There's science and technology involved. They're not produced in a hole in the ground or in a basement."

How many trouble themselvesto see what lies behind the headlines?

U.S. involvement in the Ukraine developed from 1991 as result of policies pushed by Secretary of Defence Dick Cheney who sought to break up the Soviet Union. His view was weakly opposed by President G.H.Bush who felt it best to work with existing institutions and allow situations to evolve.

Viktor Yanukovych, who was elected President of the Ukraine in 2010, endeavoured to maintain a balance between the differing interests of the population, the mainly western Ukrainians, Ukrainian-speaking Roman Catholics, who looked to the E.U. for their salvation, and the Russian-speaking easterners, Russian Orthodox Church, oriented more towards Russia.

In 2013, the International Monetary Fund offered Yanukovych a loan which came with their usual austerity measures, which would slash healthcare and education budgets and stop household subsidies for natural gas. He turned to Russia to seek a better offer. Western-leaning Ukrainians branded him "pro-Russian" and masses of demonstrators joined those already demonstrating against corruption and poverty.

Corruption and poverty tend to exist together, and the Ukraine was reputedly the most corrupt country in Europe. The oligarchs ruled their patches of territory, seizing any business that took their fancy on the threat, if the owner refused, of liquidating his family.

The demonstrations against Yanukovych continued for some months, funded by the National Endowment for Democracy and USAid (both of them C.I.A. spin-offs), and with U.S. Senators

McCain and Murphy participating in Kiev in December 2013.

In early February the hitherto peaceful demonstrations started to turn violent owing to the intervention of a neo-nazi Banderite group who sought to oblige the police to react forcibly while themselves claiming to be "non-violent student demonstrators" who had been brutalised.

To put an end to the confrontation Yanukovych agreed to a deal with the pro-EU leaders to give them what they wanted. This would have aborted the planned coup, so on the 20th February snipers positioned on the second floor of the Hotel Ukraina fired on both pro-E.U. demonstrators and police, killing 49 and wounding 190. Yanukovych was blamed for the killings and had to flee. Many Russian-speakers in Kiev also fled to the Eastern Ukraine.

The U.S. and its NATO allies were able ramp up involvement in the Ukraine from 2014, thanks to the Maidan Coup, engineered by Victoria Nuland of the State Department at a cost - according to her - of 5 billion dollars. Obama was President of the U.S. at that time.

Following on from the coup of February 2014, ethnic strife broke out fostered by a resurgence of the xenophobic nationalism of the 1940s. Then Ukrainians had played a major role in the organised massacre of Jews, and the less well known and more spontaneous massacre of ethnic Poles. (Poles in Poland had earlier suffered from liquidation by both German military and Soviet NKVD, of their elites, academics, priests and army officers). But from 2014 the target was now the ethnic Russian-speaking population, a majority in the eastern oblasts. Ethnic cleansing proceeded by banning their language, destroying their churches and customs, killing them (including massacres in Odessa and Mariupol), and causing others to flee the country.

Many more were to die. Not counting the unknown numbers of disappeared from Odessa, Mariupol, and elsewhere, there are the approximately 14,000, mainly noncombatants of all ages and both sexes that were killed in the Donbass and Lugansk enclaves by mortar, artillery, missile and sniper fire between 2014 and 2022. And of course the wounded and maimed, some due to the scarcely visible 'butterfly-mines' scattered from missiles over urban centres.

Over that period the elected government of the two P.D.R.s repeatedly requested the Russian Federation to recognise them as autonomous republics within the Ukraine. Requests refused.

Beginning about ten days before the Russian attack of 24th February 2022, the Ukrainian Army with an estimated 80,000 of its best troops located in the gap between the two breakaway enclaves, and against the Russian border, launched an unprecedentedly heavy artillery bombardment on the civilian cebtres of Lugansk and Donetsk. As witnessed in the reports of OECD (pro-western) observers. Events can be predicted with some accuracy when one thing leads to another.

There is today increasing frustration amongst some Russians at what they claim is Putin's inadequate response to provocations by European governments. This is merely my observation, not my judgement. Is it possible we are failing to observe the lessons of the past?

17 minutes ago, ericbj said:

How many trouble themselvesto see what lies behind the headlines?

U.S. involvement in the Ukraine developed from 1991 as result of policies pushed by Secretary of Defence Dick Cheney who sought to break up the Soviet Union. His view was weakly opposed by President G.H.Bush who felt it best to work with existing institutions and allow situations to evolve.

Viktor Yanukovych, who was elected President of the Ukraine in 2010, endeavoured to maintain a balance between the differing interests of the population, the mainly western Ukrainians, Ukrainian-speaking Roman Catholics, who looked to the E.U. for their salvation, and the Russian-speaking easterners, Russian Orthodox Church, oriented more towards Russia.

In 2013, the International Monetary Fund offered Yanukovych a loan which came with their usual austerity measures, which would slash healthcare and education budgets and stop household subsidies for natural gas. He turned to Russia to seek a better offer. Western-leaning Ukrainians branded him "pro-Russian" and masses of demonstrators joined those already demonstrating against corruption and poverty.

Corruption and poverty tend to exist together, and the Ukraine was reputedly the most corrupt country in Europe. The oligarchs ruled their patches of territory, seizing any business that took their fancy on the threat, if the owner refused, of liquidating his family.

The demonstrations against Yanukovych continued for some months, funded by the National Endowment for Democracy and USAid (both of them C.I.A. spin-offs), and with U.S. Senators

McCain and Murphy participating in Kiev in December 2013.

In early February the hitherto peaceful demonstrations started to turn violent owing to the intervention of a neo-nazi Banderite group who sought to oblige the police to react forcibly while themselves claiming to be "non-violent student demonstrators" who had been brutalised.

To put an end to the confrontation Yanukovych agreed to a deal with the pro-EU leaders to give them what they wanted. This would have aborted the planned coup, so on the 20th February snipers positioned on the second floor of the Hotel Ukraina fired on both pro-E.U. demonstrators and police, killing 49 and wounding 190. Yanukovych was blamed for the killings and had to flee. Many Russian-speakers in Kiev also fled to the Eastern Ukraine.

The U.S. and its NATO allies were able ramp up involvement in the Ukraine from 2014, thanks to the Maidan Coup, engineered by Victoria Nuland of the State Department at a cost - according to her - of 5 billion dollars. Obama was President of the U.S. at that time.

Following on from the coup of February 2014, ethnic strife broke out fostered by a resurgence of the xenophobic nationalism of the 1940s. Then Ukrainians had played a major role in the organised massacre of Jews, and the less well known and more spontaneous massacre of ethnic Poles. (Poles in Poland had earlier suffered from liquidation by both German military and Soviet NKVD, of their elites, academics, priests and army officers). But from 2014 the target was now the ethnic Russian-speaking population, a majority in the eastern oblasts. Ethnic cleansing proceeded by banning their language, destroying their churches and customs, killing them (including massacres in Odessa and Mariupol), and causing others to flee the country.

Many more were to die. Not counting the unknown numbers of disappeared from Odessa, Mariupol, and elsewhere, there are the approximately 14,000, mainly noncombatants of all ages and both sexes that were killed in the Donbass and Lugansk enclaves by mortar, artillery, missile and sniper fire between 2014 and 2022. And of course the wounded and maimed, some due to the scarcely visible 'butterfly-mines' scattered from missiles over urban centres.

Over that period the elected government of the two P.D.R.s repeatedly requested the Russian Federation to recognise them as autonomous republics within the Ukraine. Requests refused.

Beginning about ten days before the Russian attack of 24th February 2022, the Ukrainian Army with an estimated 80,000 of its best troops located in the gap between the two breakaway enclaves, and against the Russian border, launched an unprecedentedly heavy artillery bombardment on the civilian cebtres of Lugansk and Donetsk. As witnessed in the reports of OECD (pro-western) observers. Events can be predicted with some accuracy when one thing leads to another.

There is today increasing frustration amongst some Russians at what they claim is Putin's inadequate response to provocations by European governments. This is merely my observation, not my judgement. Is it possible we are failing to observe the lessons of the past?

Putin thanks you.

Now we don't have to search for Kremlin propaganda.

We get it served to us right here.

43 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Putin thanks you.

Now we don't have to search for Kremlin propaganda.

We get it served to us right here.

Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

1 hour ago, ericbj said:

Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

Signifying seeing what you're doing a mile away.

On 5/19/2026 at 10:40 PM, TedG said:

The WW2 started when Germany invaded Poland in 1939.

You are beside the issue here.

I am not suggesting that Hitler was morally right and the Allies were morally wrong. Far from it.

You are evaluating matters solely on the basis that the Russian Army attacked the Ukraine on the 24th February 2022.

That reminds me of the German au-pair girl we had in about 1950 who had been a member of the Hitler Youth. She greatly annoyed my mother, whose husband [my father] had died fighting in '44, by telling her that Britain was responsible for starting the War because the U.K. had declared war on Germany.

It is true that Hitler did not want war with Britain and France. Initially he even hoped Poland would cooperate with him in his plan to carve up the Soviet Union. He sought lebensraum in eastern Europe. He even claimed to admire the British Empire and said at one point that he would come to its defence if necessary. Of course no great reliance should be placed on Hitler's word. He claimed to be personally honest but added he would lie to any extent necessary to serve Germany's interest. He identified Germany's interest with his own. He assured Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway that he had no aggressive intentions towards them several weeks before he invaded.

I think one can say that Germany started the War after the Polish Government refused the demands over the Polish Corridor. But Britain and France turned it into what became a world war involving Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa, and [after a brief delay to denote their independence] Canada.

The German people as a whole, thanks to Dr Goebbels and his crew, believed that Germany was acting in self-defence. Had not Germany been attacked by the Polish Army? Well, actually, no. They had been attacked by German concentration-camp inmates dressed in Polish uniforms. And the attackers had all been successfully destroyed. Confusion in London and Paris caused by this staged scenario partially explains the delay in declaring war.

If you look back no further than 3rd September 1939, and moreover believe the lie that Germany was acting in self-defence, it is easy to claim that Britain and France started WW2.

If one looks back no further than 24th February 2022, it is easy to claim that the Russian Federation started the war in the Ukraine. This ignores the fact that massacres followed by war began eight years earlier. The negotiation of the unkept Minsk-1 Accords resulted from a severe defeat of the Ukrainian Army by the forces of the autonomous regions.

Incidentally, western news reports claimed that Russia was arming the rebels. However no evidence was ever produced of this by on-the-spot OECD observers and NATO officers seconded in an advisory capacity to the Armed Forces of the Ukraine. Polish Military Intelligence reports to the latter stated there was no evidence of this. The rebels were well equipped with former Soviet weaponry from defecting Russian-speaking units of the A.F.U. Certainly there were volunteers from such places as Russia, Serbia, and Spain.

There existed several opportunities of a negotiated settlement before, and [the Istanbul Talks] even after, the fatal date in February 2022. But these were condemned to failure by the grip of a xenophobic minority and US/NATO promises to Kiev "We shall give you everything you need to win. Just keep fighting."

Angela Merkel admitted, long afterwards, of the Minsk-2 talks, "They were only intended to gain time for the Ukrainian Army to re-arm and re-organise."

51 minutes ago, ericbj said:

You are beside the issue here.

I am not suggesting that Hitler was morally right and the Allies were morally wrong. Far from it.

You are evaluating matters solely on the basis that the Russian Army attacked the Ukraine on the 24th February 2022.

That reminds me of the German au-pair girl we had in about 1950 who had been a member of the Hitler Youth. She greatly annoyed my mother, whose husband [my father] had died fighting in '44, by telling her that Britain was responsible for starting the War because the U.K. had declared war on Germany.

It is true that Hitler did not want war with Britain and France. Initially he even hoped Poland would cooperate with him in his plan to carve up the Soviet Union. He sought lebensraum in eastern Europe. He even claimed to admire the British Empire and said at one point that he would come to its defence if necessary. Of course no great reliance should be placed on Hitler's word. He claimed to be personally honest but added he would lie to any extent necessary to serve Germany's interest. He identified Germany's interest with his own. He assured Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway that he had no aggressive intentions towards them several weeks before he invaded.

I think one can say that Germany started the War after the Polish Government refused the demands over the Polish Corridor. But Britain and France turned it into what became a world war involving Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa, and [after a brief delay to denote their independence] Canada.

The German people as a whole, thanks to Dr Goebbels and his crew, believed that Germany was acting in self-defence. Had not Germany been attacked by the Polish Army? Well, actually, no. They had been attacked by German concentration-camp inmates dressed in Polish uniforms. And the attackers had all been successfully destroyed. Confusion in London and Paris caused by this staged scenario partially explains the delay in declaring war.

If you look back no further than 3rd September 1939, and moreover believe the lie that Germany was acting in self-defence, it is easy to claim that Britain and France started WW2.

If one looks back no further than 24th February 2022, it is easy to claim that the Russian Federation started the war in the Ukraine. This ignores the fact that massacres followed by war began eight years earlier. The negotiation of the unkept Minsk-1 Accords resulted from a severe defeat of the Ukrainian Army by the forces of the autonomous regions.

Incidentally, western news reports claimed that Russia was arming the rebels. However no evidence was ever produced of this by on-the-spot OECD observers and NATO officers seconded in an advisory capacity to the Armed Forces of the Ukraine. Polish Military Intelligence reports to the latter stated there was no evidence of this. The rebels were well equipped with former Soviet weaponry from defecting Russian-speaking units of the A.F.U. Certainly there were volunteers from such places as Russia, Serbia, and Spain.

There existed several opportunities of a negotiated settlement before, and [the Istanbul Talks] even after, the fatal date in February 2022. But these were condemned to failure by the grip of a xenophobic minority and US/NATO promises to Kiev "We shall give you everything you need to win. Just keep fighting."

Angela Merkel admitted, long afterwards, of the Minsk-2 talks, "They were only intended to gain time for the Ukrainian Army to re-arm and re-organise."

More Kremlin propaganda and topic hijacking. Why waste time engaging with such distorted crapalo. Ukraine is now kicking Putin's Z fascist ass. Focus on that

For anyone interested in news from the Ukrainian frontline (does not cover the broader situation):