Running Newsticker for the War in Ukraine

No way to know.

 

this has just finished streaming.....

 

Index PMI (marth 2023)
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Country Last Previous
Saudi Arabia 58.7 59.8 India 56.4 55.3 United Arab Emirates 55.9 54.3 Myanmar 55.5 51.1 Hungary 55.3 56.3 Qatar 53.8 51.9 Hong Kong 53.5 53.9 Russia 53.2 53.6 Thailand 53.1 54.8 Greece 52.8 51.7 Philippines 52.5 52.7 Israel 52.3 53.9 New Zealand 52 51.2 Indonesia 51.9 51.2 Kazakhstan 51.6 51.2 Colombia 51.5 49.8 Spain 51.3 50.7 Italy 51.1 52 Mexico 51 51 Turkey 50.9 50.1 Puerto Rico 50.5 56.3 China 50 51.6 Mir 50 49.1 Singapore 49.9 50 Ireland 49.7 51.3 Lebanon 49.7 48.8 Kenya 49.2 46.6 United States 49.2 47.3 Japan 49.2 47.7 Malaysia 48.8 48.4 Canada 48.6 52.4 Taiwan 48.6 49 Norway 48.3 47.3 Poland 48.3 48.5 South Africa 48.1 48.8 Great Britain 47.9 49.3 Vietnam 47.7 51.2 South Korea 47.6 48.5 Nigeria 47.4 47.8 Euro area 47.3 48.5 France 47.3 47.4 Brazil 47 49.2 Switzerland 47 48.9 Egypt 46.7 46.9 Netherlands 46.4 48.7 Sweden 45.7 46.9 Austria 44.7 47.1 Germany 44.7 46.3 Czech Republic 44.3 44.3 Denmark 44.28 39.17 Sri Lanka 42.3 40.8

 

Ukraine Conflict Updates
Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, April 6, 2023

Click here to read the full report.
Key Takeaways

• Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin met in Moscow on April 5 and 6 to discuss further Union State integration, with Putin likely focused on strengthening Russian economic control over Belarus.
• Lukashenko delivered boilerplate rhetoric that continues to indicate that he has no intention of involving Belarus further in Russia’s war effort.
• Russian commanders are reportedly constructing specialized company-size units within key frontline formations engaged in urban combat to reinforce the diminished combat effectiveness of most Russian units.
• Russian forces will likely deploy these “Storm Z” units along the Avdiivka–Donetsk City frontline.
• China continues to rhetorically downplay its support for Russia and demonstrate that there are limits to the declared “no limits” Russian–Chinese partnership, but it will not be a true neutral arbiter in the war.
• Russian forces conducted limited ground attacks along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line.
• Russian forces continued ground attacks in and around Bakhmut and along the Avdiivka–Donetsk City line.
• Ukrainian officials indicated that Russian forces are able to maintain a suitable rate of artillery fire in prioritized areas of the front at the expense of other sectors.
• Russian forces may have withdrawn equipment from occupied Crimea for redeployment elsewhere in southern Ukraine out of fear of a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
• Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu visited Russian Defense Industrial Base (DIB) enterprises in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast to monitor the implementation of state defense orders.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin held one-on-one meetings with Russian occupation authorities. . . . .

Russian sources are likely exaggerating claims of offensive activity around Vuhledar. A Russian milblogger claimed that Russian forces conducted a significant MLRS strike against Vuhledar to pre-empt a ground attack, but ISW has seen no indications of either a large series of strikes or an attack.[41] Another milblogger claimed that Russian forces are using unguided aerial FAB-500 bombs modified for long range precision strikes near Vuhledar.[42] The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces did not conduct offensive operations in western Donetsk Oblast.[43] . . .

Russian forces may have withdrawn equipment from occupied Crimea for redeployment elsewhere in southern Ukraine out of fear of a Ukrainian counteroffensive. Satellite imagery shows the withdrawal of a significant amount of armored fighting vehicles, tanks, and towed artillery systems from a depot in Medvedivka (20km northeast of Dzhankoy along the M18 highway) between March 17 and April 5, though ISW cannot confirm their destination at this time.[44] . . . .

Ukrainian forces continue efforts to strike Russian rear positions and logistic nodes in southern Ukraine. Russian sources claimed on April 6 that Ukrainian forces launched six HIMARS rockets at Melitopol, occupied Zaporizhia Oblast, and claimed that Russian air defense intercepted all six of the rockets.[47] Ukrainian Mayor of Melitopol Ivan Fedorov reported the sound of explosions in the Melitopol area and noted that Russian forces sent ambulances to the Aviamistechka airfield despite claiming that air defenses successfully intercepted all of the rockets.[48] Ukrainian Joint Coordination Press Center of the Southern Forces Head Nataliya Humenyuk also noted on April 6 that effective Ukrainian strikes on Russian positions on the east (left) bank of Kherson Oblast have reduced the number of artillery positions from which Russian force can strike the west (right) bank of Kherson Oblast.[49] . . . .

 

World
Ukrayinska Pravda
Equipment Russia transferred to Melitopol over 4 days explodes

 

.....regarding the doctored doc about Uke casualties...



operation Mincemeatski.....

 

World
Business Insider
Russian technicians appear to have sabotaged MiG-29 fighter jets headed for Ukraine, Slovakia says

 

TG the parts can be replaced or fixed.

"Nad added that Ukraine has the resources to fix the defects and get the jets fully operational.
"They have pilots, spare parts, and a company that has worked on MiGs since the Soviet times," he said." Same source

 

Well, I am not convinced that all Russians are stupid.
I like to think their English reading skills are just a bit challenged -- especially when the United Nations condemns their corrupt ineffective government.

“Today almost fifty percent of jobs in the sphere of massive employment in Russia can be considered as purely migrant, in other words, “allocated” to migrants for many years to come. Among the factors making migrants more advantageous in the eyes of the Russian employers is their consent to be informally employed, which in fact means to become an object of exploitation and even of forced labour, the study says.

Roger Plant, Head of the ILO Special Action Programme to Combat Forced Labour, travelled to Moscow for the launch of the study. Speaking at the press conference, he noted that “trafficking today is in large part a question of forced labour exploitation. To combat it effectively, all labour institutions must be involved. We hope that this study by shedding light on the problems can constitute a first step towards solving them”.”
ILO, UN, New Forced Labour in Russia, News | 04 March 2004.
Full text of the Study (PDF 490Kb)
Summary (PDF 132Kb)
Press Clippings (in Russian and English) (PDF 2.8Mb)
https://www.ilo.org/moscow/news/WCMS_245567/lang--en/index.htm

 

What nonsense are you reading! Think for yourself, there are 3-4 million migrant workers in Russia, and the labor market in Russia is about 70 million. How can migrants make up 50% of jobs?
Secondly, informal employment (as it is written here) does not mean slavery. It means that employers underestimate the official salary in order to pay less taxes. For example, they pay 2/3 or half officially, and the rest of the salary is paid to employees in cash. And so everyone is paid, not only migrants.

 

Which is the more credible source? You or the United Nations International Labor Organization?

“One of the frequently encountered features of forced labour and human trafficking is withdrawal of migrants’ documents: in more than 20% of cases a passport of migrant is kept by his/her employer, this being an infringement of law in itself and an element of exploitation. Thus it is easier for an employer to illegally exploit and control the worker. Only 37% of those surveyed responded they could freely leave their employer, 12% of them have debts and roughly 10% are under the threat of deportation or violence.”
ILO, UN, New Forced Labour in Russia, News | 04 March 2004Full text of the Study (PDF 490Kb)
Summary (PDF 132Kb)
Press Clippings (in Russian and English) (PDF 2.8Mb)
https://www.ilo.org/moscow/news/WCMS_245567/lang--en/index.htm

 

I do not deny what is written there, but I clarify.
You are not getting all the information and distort it in the direction the authors need. Yes, I have heard about such cases when passports are taken away, but this does not mean slavery. Workers are also paid a salary and they also remain under the protection of the law and can file a complaint with the police about the actions of their employer.
I do not know why passports are being taken away - perhaps it is employers' insurance in case of theft or damage by a migrant. Suppose he inadvertently did something, for example, started a fire. If he has a passport, he can immediately buy a plane ticket and fly to his country.
The threat of deportation has absolutely nothing to do with slavery - it means that the migrant is in the country illegally.
And by the way, a lot of violations against migrants come from their own relativ on a national basis.

 

Would you rather call it involuntary servitude or forced labor?

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2018/07/23/800000-human-slaves-living-in-russia-report-says-a62317

 

Ukraine Conflict Updates
Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, April 7, 2023
Click here to read the full report
Key Takeaways

• Russian milbloggers responded with speculative anxiety to reportedly leaked (and possibly altered) classified US military documents about the war in Ukraine, indicating continued fear over the prospect of future Ukrainian counteroffensives in the Russian information space.
• The Kremlin continues to indicate that it is not interested in legitimate negotiations while placing the onus for negotiations on the West.
• A Ukrainian official reported that Russian aviation units are changing tactics, possibly as a result of aviation losses and depleted stocks of high-precision weapons.
• High-ranking Russian officials reportedly can only leave Russia with permission from Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.
• Former Russian officer and prominent critical milblogger Igor Girkin revealed on April 7 that a volunteer battalion that he previously promoted is essentially a sham.
• Russian forces conducted limited ground attacks along the Svatove-Kreminna line.
• Russian forces continued advancing in and around Bakhmut and continued ground attacks along the Avdiivka-Donetsk City frontline.
• Russian forces continue to build defenses in occupied Zaporizhia and Kherson oblasts.
• Russian officials continue measures to support Russia’s ongoing spring conscription cycle amid continued crypto-mobilization efforts.
• Russian occupation officials are accelerating passportization efforts in occupied Ukraine. . . . .

The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensive operations near Kreminna, the Serebrianska forest area (10km south of Kreminna), Verkhnokamianske (18km south of Kreminna), and Spirne (25km south of Kreminna).[18] A Russian milblogger claimed that Russian forces conducted ground attacks near Torske, Terny, Nevske, and Makiivka (all within 14 to 21km west or northwest of Kreminna).[19] Another Russian milblogger claimed that Russian forces started using TOS-1A thermobaric artillery near Kreminna on April 6.[20] An interview with Ukrainian soldiers published on April 7 reported that Wagner Group fighters are the primary Russian force operating near Siversk (18km southwest of Kreminna).[21] . . . .

Russian forces continue to build defenses in occupied Zaporizhia and Kherson oblasts. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces continue to construct defensive lines and fortifications in occupied Kherson and Zaporizhia oblasts.[36] Geolocated footage published on April 7 purportedly shows Russian forces mining an unspecified location on the east (left) bank of the Dnipro River.[37] . . . .

Open-source reports on Russian casualties in Ukraine continue to indicate that volunteers and paramilitary personnel are suffering heavy casualties. The BBC and Russian opposition news outlet Mediazona reported on April 7 that they confirmed in the past two weeks the identities of 1,665 Russian servicemen who died in Ukraine.[49] Mediazona and the BBC stated that the figure is only those casualties they have confirmed from open-sources instead of the current total on the front.[50] The most significant part of the recent increase in the Mediazona and BBC casualty count is comprised of Wagner Group convict recruits and fatalities in the Bakhmut area.[51] Independent Russian investigative outlet Vazhnye Istorii (iStories) reported on April 6 that it calculated that at least 8,000 volunteers and mercenaries have died in the war in Ukraine based off of the increase in pension payments associated with the death of primary household income earners for non-contract personnel.[52] The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) has not published data on pensions for the relatives of deceased or injured contract servicemen in 2022, likely purposefully obscuring the true extent of Russian losses in Ukraine.[53]

Russian budgetary revenues and expenditures for the first quarter of 2023 indicate mounting financial burdens on the Russian government. The Russian Finance Ministry released preliminary data on the Russian Federal Budget from January to March of 2023 on April 7, showing that Russian revenues decreased by 21 percent and expenditures increased by 34 percent compared to the first quarter of 2022.[54] The Finance Ministry claimed that the differences in first quarter budgetary revenues and expenditures between 2022 and 2023 is a result of a 45 percent reduction in oil and gas revenues between those two time periods, ignoring the impact of the war in Ukraine.[55] The Russian Ministry of Finance classified a third of its budget expenditures, likely in an effort to conceal the true extent of the cost of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[56] . . . .

 

This spring offensive could honestly dictate the outcome of this war.

- if it goes amazingly and they make serious gains, then I see further full scale support from the west/NATO.
- if it doesn't amount to much and fizzles out then there is a real possibility that the West sees this as a stale mate and starts pushing towards peace talks.

I agree with Vlad here



If I were to guess? There will likely not be the kind of gains we are all hoping for. It's much easier to defend then it is to assault. Russia has had time to fortify and Putin has no issues throwing bodies in the way until the offensive is over with.

I've always said this has a North Korea South Korea stalemate vibe to it.

 

In 1917 the Russian army just quit and started walking home.

 

I know that can happen. I think it's very likely that Putin will kill anyone who tries to retreat. If Putin stays alive, I think Russia hangs on.

 

We shall see.

 

If it makes you feel better, Russia has already lost.



-Russia went in trying to prevent NATO expansion, he ended up causing NATO expansion, rejuvenating the purpose of NATO (which was faltering) and forced them into rearmament.
-Russia went in to try and save people from dying in the Donbas, but the civilian casualty rate increased over 100% as a direct result of Putin's war.
-Russia has lost several key trade partners and is now seen as a pariah globally.
As he is now mostly dependant on India and China, he can't really barter the price of goods.
-Russia Ha somewhat favorable opinion polls in most of western Europe. They have all since tanked to next to nothing.
-Russia went in with the goal of "DeNazifying" Ukraine, which includes the Kiev regime. That's very likely to not happen at this point.
-Russia declared that 4 new territories are now "Russian" but after a year into this war, he doesn't fully occupy or control ANY of them.

 

Yup. I said that last year.

 

This link doesn't open for me. Could you copy from there what you think is important?

 

Thanks.
Now I'm trying to imagine how many slaves there should be in the city where I live. There are about 1.2-1.5 million in it. So the number of slaves should be at least 6-7 thousand. This is a significant amount, a whole city block. Where can they be hidden so that neither the police, nor neighbors, nor reporters suspect anything? I have no idea, so I think that the figure is overstated. For example, I meet homeless people all the time, although I think that the number of them in the city is no more than a few hundred.

Why does no one see thousands of slaves? After all, slaves should try to get freedom in any way, and they probably cross paths with a lot of people every day, unless they are in a Sing Sing type of prison.

 

mostly they are in plain sight....we have "car washes" run by gangs with the "gang leaders" holding the passports and ID documents of the workers...slavery comes in many guises....