meanwhile back at the Kremlin

[centerhill condor]

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia said Saturday it will suspend participation in a key European arms control treaty, halting NATO inspections of its military sites and no longer limiting the numbers of its tanks and other heavy conventional weapons.
The move, threatened for months, added new tension to relations with the West already strained over U.S. plans to build a missile shield in Eastern Europe, Russian conflicts with its neighbors and Western criticism of Moscow's human rights record.
The suspension is to take place 150 days after Russia officially notifies all the countries concerned of its intention.
Experts said the move was a symbolic gesture rather than a sign of Russian intent to build up forces near its borders. The Kremlin, they said, appeared to be expressing its dissatisfaction with the perceived U.S. domination of global affairs, and positioning Russia as an unyielding global player.
The Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty was signed by Russian and NATO members in 1990, when Soviet and NATO troops faced off in Central Europe. It was amended in 1999 to reflect changes since the breakup of the Soviet Union, adding the requirement that Moscow withdraw its forces from the former Soviet republics of Moldova and Georgia.
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Yea, I thought they were our "friends" now...apparently only when it suits their world domination program. They lost most of the territory they gained during WWII with the stroke of a pen. Now, they pursue a strategy of intimidation and arm twisting. What changed exactly? Tactics. Back in the day, they would send in tanks and KGB. Now they extort with natural gas. Kind of a blessing I suppose.
Mr. Putin is using fear of US domination as a tool to maintain political control of his failing state. The big surprise will be when his own people choose western leaders as a replacement. Another Red revolution...this time with "feeling".
We bought a bunch of warhead components (pits) during the Clinton years. Smart move.
Appears as if you may get that military draft reinstatement after all!
CC

[Glamasu]

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia said Saturday it will suspend participation in a key European arms control treaty, halting NATO inspections of its military sites and no longer limiting the numbers of its tanks and other heavy conventional weapons.
The move, threatened for months, added new tension to relations with the West already strained over U.S. plans to build a missile shield in Eastern Europe, Russian conflicts with its neighbors and Western criticism of Moscow's human rights record.
The suspension is to take place 150 days after Russia officially notifies all the countries concerned of its intention.
Experts said the move was a symbolic gesture rather than a sign of Russian intent to build up forces near its borders. The Kremlin, they said, appeared to be expressing its dissatisfaction with the perceived U.S. domination of global affairs, and positioning Russia as an unyielding global player.
The Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty was signed by Russian and NATO members in 1990, when Soviet and NATO troops faced off in Central Europe. It was amended in 1999 to reflect changes since the breakup of the Soviet Union, adding the requirement that Moscow withdraw its forces from the former Soviet republics of Moldova and Georgia.
================================================== ==========================================
Yea, I thought they were our "friends" now...apparently only when it suits their world domination program. They lost most of the territory they gained during WWII with the stroke of a pen. Now, they pursue a strategy of intimidation and arm twisting. What changed exactly? Tactics. Back in the day, they would send in tanks and KGB. Now they extort with natural gas. Kind of a blessing I suppose.
Mr. Putin is using fear of US domination as a tool to maintain political control of his failing state. The big surprise will be when his own people choose western leaders as a replacement. Another Red revolution...this time with "feeling".
We bought a bunch of warhead components (pits) during the Clinton years. Smart move.
Appears as if you may get that military draft reinstatement after all!
CC
I don't doubt this at all

[IMPATIENT 1]

they don't want none, we'd __ck em up . it'd cost us major losses but imagine what it'd cost the russians. i'm on board with the "Mr. Putin is using fear of US domination as a tool to maintain political control of his failing state" statement.
either that or nkorea/russia are postering before wwwiii that would scare me alittle

[SmokinLowriderSS]

I see it as simple posturing, with no real hazzards attatched.
Unlike the nuts from the middle east, the Russians/Soviets as well as the Chinese have always seen the ultimate price as too high to pay for direct confrontation with the US/the west.
It'll all be smoothed over in another year or so and everyone will still be happy.

[centerhill condor]

MOSCOW - Russia said Thursday it will expel four British diplomats and suspend counterterrorism cooperation with London, the latest move in a mounting confrontation over the radiation poisoning death of former KGB officer Alexander Litvinenko.
President Vladimir Putin said he was certain both nations would overcome what he called "a mini-crisis." A spokesman for Prime Minister Gordon Brown called the Russian move "completely unjustified."
"It's necessary to balance one's actions with common sense, to respect the legal rights and interests of partners — then everything will develop in the best way," the ITAR-Tass news agency quoted Putin as saying. "I'm sure we will overcome this mini-crisis, too."
Britain had announced Monday the expulsion of four Russian diplomats and restrictions on visas issued to Russian government officials after Moscow refused to extradite Andrei Lugovoi, accused of killing Litvinenko in London last November.
The dispute marks a new low in relations between Moscow and London, which had already been troubled by Russia's opposition to the war in Iraq, Britain's refusal to extradite exiled tycoon Boris Berezovsky to face embezzlement charges, and by Kremlin allegations last year of spying by British diplomats.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
and the plot thickens! I wonder where this is gonna lead? Suspend counter terrorism cooperation...this is trouble.

[centerhill condor]

Russian bomber jets resume Cold War sorties
By Dmitry Solovyov | August 9, 2007
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's strategic bombers have resumed Cold War-style long-haul missions to areas patrolled by NATO and the United States, top generals said on Thursday.
Breaking News Alerts A Russian bomber flew over a U.S. naval base on the Pacific island of Guam on Wednesday and "exchanged smiles" with U.S. pilots who had scrambled to track it, said Major-General Pavel Androsov, head of long-range aviation in the Russian air force.
"It has always been the tradition of our long-range aviation to fly far into the ocean, to meet (U.S.) aircraft carriers and greet (U.S. pilots) visually," Androsov told a news conference.
"Yesterday we revived this tradition, and two of our young crews paid a visit to the area of the (U.S. Pacific Naval Activities) base of Guam," he said.
President Vladimir Putin has sought to make Russia more assertive in the world. Putin has boosted defense spending and sought to raise morale in the armed forces, which were starved of funding following the fall of the Soviet Union.
Androsov said the sortie by the two turboprop Tu-95MS bombers, from a base near Blagoveshchensk in the Far East, had lasted for 13 hours. The Tu-95, codenamed "Bear" by NATO, is Russia's Cold War icon and may stay in service until 2040.
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This is dangerous...those old planes, antique equipment, and poorly trained crews can cause modern problems...can you imagine the looks on these young US pilots faces when they saw these loud antiques in the sky. Gotta be a first for most of 'em.
This coupled with Putin's foot draggin' on Kosovo's and others succession is gonna lead to hard times. Once again, foreign policy matters.
Please note that all this saber rattlin' is financed by $70 oil.
The only global warming that concerns me is from live ordnance!
CC