"Here lies a wounded bear. Once recuperated, he'll be back with a vengeance." -- reedak 1. The following are excerpts from the article, by Michael R. Gordon and Eric Schmitt on July 31, 2017, under the headline "Russia’s Military Drills Near NATO Border Raise Fears of Aggression" at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/world/europe/russia-military-exercise-zapad-west.html (Begin excerpts) WASHINGTON — Russia is preparing to send as many as 100,000 troops to the eastern edge of NATO territory at the end of the summer, one of the biggest steps yet in the military buildup undertaken by President Vladimir V. Putin and an exercise in intimidation that recalls the most ominous days of the Cold War. The troops are conducting military maneuvers known as Zapad, Russian for “west,” in Belarus, the Baltic Sea, western Russia and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. The drills will feature a reconstituted armored force named for a storied Soviet military unit, the First Guards Tank Army. Its establishment represents the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union that so much offensive power has been concentrated in a single command. ...the move is part of a larger effort by Mr. Putin to shore up Russia’s military prowess, and comes against the backdrop of an increasingly assertive Russia. Beyond Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election in support of the Trump campaign, which has seized attention in the United States, its military has in recent years deployed forces to Syria, seized Crimea and intervened in eastern Ukraine, rattled the Baltic States with snap exercises and buzzed NATO planes and ships. Punishing sanctions by the United States and European allies that have isolated Russia further have done nothing to stop Mr. Putin’s saber-rattling, as illustrated by the long-scheduled Zapad exercise. Even more worrying, top American military officers say, is that the maneuvers could be used as a pretext to increase Russia’s military presence in Belarus, a central European nation that borders three critical NATO allies: Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. “The great concern is they’re not going to leave, and that’s not paranoia,” Gen. Tony Thomas, the head of the United States Special Operations Command, told a national security conference in Aspen, Colo., in July. Peter B. Zwack, a retired one-star Army general who was the American defense attaché in Moscow from 2012 to 2014, said: “First and foremost, the messaging is, ‘We’re watching you; we’re strong; we’ve learned a lot; don’t mess with Russia.’”... In 2014, Russia’s stealthy forays into eastern Ukraine and its rapid capture of Crimea were seen as skillful exercises in “hybrid warfare,” a combination of cyberwarfare, a powerful disinformation campaign and the use of highly trained special operation troops and local proxy forces... After the end of the Cold War, the unit was withdrawn to Smolensk, near the border with Belarus, before being disbanded in 1998. But it was reconstituted by Mr. Putin to give the Russian military more offensive punch and present a visible demonstration of Russian power. “That name was chosen for a reason,” said Philip M. Breedlove, a retired four-star Air Force general who served as NATO commander. “It sends a very clear message to the Baltics and Poland.”... “Just the presence of the First Guards Tank Army near the Polish border would put NATO on the horns of a dilemma,” Mr. Karber said. “Does NATO reinforce the Baltics or defend eastern Poland? NATO does not have enough forces to do both in a short period of time. It adds to the political pressure Russia can bring to bear to keep the Baltic nations and Poland in line.”... (End excerpts) 2. As far back as Oct 7, 2011, I had pointed out the comeback of the Bear in this forum at http://www.politicalforum.com/index.php?threads/the-chinese-agenda.196337/page-31#post-4555384 (Begin excerpts) "The glory that was Greece and the grandeur that was Rome." -- Edgar Allan Poe Comparing their past and present, it's safe to say those two great civilizations will never regain their past glory and grandeur. The same can be said of other ancient civilizations or great empires like Egypt, Iraq, Sweden, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, etc. Their glorious past has gone forever like the Age of Dinosaurs. However, it will be at the Americans' own peril to write off the Russians from the global power equation as Russia has many national requisites necessary for aggrandizement such as its enormous size, well-educated population, abundant oil and other mineral resources... (End excerpts)
Good for Russia......the USA as usual has followed a belligerent course of action against Russia, now time for the great satan in North America to realize it is not the only country on the planet.
Good for Russia......the USA as usual has followed a belligerent course of action against Russia, now time for the great satan in North America to realize it is not the only country on the planet.
Don't forget Putin has pointed out that your master would allow your people to “eat grass” before he ever gives up his nuclear and missile defence programs. If a famine occurs in North Korea again, you can expect Putin to send nothing but grass for your people to "graze". While all your people are becoming thinner and thinner, your master is growing fatter and fatter like a "ball of fat". http://www.msn.com/en-sg/news/world...weapons/ar-AArm9bz?li=AAaGkVj&ocid=spartandhp http://www.politicalforum.com/index...tablish-the-equilibrium-of-real-force.514534/
