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US Readies Battle Plans For Baltic War With Russia: Report
One of the most interesting - or perhaps “worrisome” is the better word - things about Moscow’s move to increase its support for the Bashar al-Assad regime as it battles to wrest control of large swaths of territory in Syria from Islamic State and other anti-government forces, is that it comes as the conflict in Ukraine still simmers.
Even if, as Bloomberg suggested on Friday, The Kremlin is “leaning on the separatists to limit cease-fire violations and focus on turning their makeshift administration into a functioning government with the help of Moscow-trained bureaucrats,” the issue is far from resolved and if Transnistria is any guide, it may never be.
That of course means the tension between Russia and Europe isn’t likely to dissipate any time in the foreseeable future, a fact that makes Moscow’s overt military support of Assad in Syria seem like a rather risky maneuver. In short, it appears that no matter how one wishes to characterize Moscow’s actions (i.e. irrespective of who the “aggressor” is), the West’s Russophobia as it relates to Putin’s willingness to chance a direct military confrontation with NATO isn’t entirely unfounded and as we’ve been keen to point out over the last several days, what the Russians have done by reinforcing Assad at Latakia is effectively call America’s bluff.
Needless to say, NATO’s actions over the last six or so months have done nothing to de-escalate what amounts to the most intense staring contest between Russia and the West since the Cold War. War games and snap drills conducted along Russia’s border combined with the stationing of heavy weapons in Poland lend credence to the idea that at best, the US isn’t nearly as anxious to re-establish a constructive dialogue with Moscow as Washington would like the public to believe.
It’s against this backdrop that we present the following excerpts from Foreign Policy who reports that “for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the U.S. Department of Defense is reviewing and updating its contingency plans for armed conflict with Russia.” Notably, when the Army ran a series of war games to test NATO's preparedness, the results were nothing short of a disaster.
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Via Foreign Policy
The Pentagon generates contingency plans continuously, planning for every possible scenario — anything from armed confrontation with North Korea to zombie attacks. But those plans are also ranked and worked on according to priority and probability. After 1991, military plans to deal with Russian aggression fell off the Pentagon’s radar. They sat on the shelf, gathering dust as Russia became increasingly integrated into the West and came to be seen as a potential partner on a range of issues. Now, according to several current and former officials in the State and Defense departments, the Pentagon is dusting off those plans and re-evaluating them, updating them to reflect a new, post-Crimea-annexation geopolitical reality in which Russia is no longer a potential partner, but a potential threat.
“Russia’s invasion of eastern Ukraine made the U.S. dust off its contingency plans,” says Michèle Flournoy, a former undersecretary of defense for policy and co-founder of the Center for a New American Security. “They were pretty out of date.”
The new plans, according to the senior defense official, have two tracks. One focuses on what the United States can do as part of NATO if Russia attacks one of NATO’s member states; the other variant considers American action outside the NATO umbrella. Both versions of the updated contingency plans focus on Russian incursions into the Baltics, a scenario seen as the most likely front.
After Russia’s 2008 war with neighboring Georgia, NATO slightly modified its plans vis-à-vis Russia, according to Julie Smith, who until recently served as the vice president’s deputy national security advisor, but the Pentagon did not. In preparing the 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review, the Pentagon’s office for force planning — that is, long-term resource allocation based on the United States’ defense priorities — proposed to then-Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to include a scenario that would counter an aggressive Russia. Gates ruled it out. “Everyone’s judgment at the time was that Russia is pursuing objectives aligned with ours,” says David Ochmanek, who, as deputy assistant secretary of defense for force development, ran that office at the time. “Russia’s future looked to be increasingly integrated with the West.” Smith, who worked on European and NATO policy at the Pentagon at the time, told me, “If you asked the military five years ago, ‘Give us a flavor of what you’re thinking about,’ they would’ve said, ‘Terrorism, terrorism, terrorism — and China.’”
In June 2014, a month after he had left his force-planning job at the Pentagon, the Air Force asked Ochmanek for advice on Russia’s neighborhood ahead of Obama’s September visit to Tallinn, Estonia. At the same time, the Army had approached another of Ochmanek’s colleagues at Rand, and the two teamed up to run a thought exercise called a “table top,” a sort of war game between two teams: the red team (Russia) and the blue team (NATO). The scenario was similar to the one that played out in Crimea and eastern Ukraine: increasing Russian political pressure on Estonia and Latvia (two NATO countries that share borders with Russia and have sizable Russian-speaking minorities), followed by the appearance of provocateurs, demonstrations, and the seizure of government buildings. “Our question was: Would NATO be able to defend those countries?” Ochmanek recalls.
The results were dispiriting. Given the recent reductions in the defense budgets of NATO member countries and American pullback from the region, Ochmanek says the blue team was outnumbered 2-to-1 in terms of manpower, even if all the U.S. and NATO troops stationed in Europe were dispatched to the Baltics — including the 82nd Airborne, which is supposed to be ready to go on 24 hours’ notice and is based at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
“We just don’t have those forces in Europe,” Ochmanek explains. Then there’s the fact that the Russians have the world’s best surface-to-air missiles and are not afraid to use heavy artillery.
After eight hours of gaming out various scenarios, the blue team went home depressed. “The conclusion,” Ochmanek says, “was that we are unable to defend the Baltics.”
Ochmanek has run the two-day table-top exercise eight times now, including at the Pentagon and at Ramstein Air Base, in Germany, with active-duty military officers. “We played it 16 different times with eight different teams,” Ochmanek says, “always with the same conclusion.”
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Even H.L. Mencken would be surprised.
Not much to add except that all of Russia's North Atlantic naval assets can be tied up in the Baltic Sea.
Russia, along with Poland, Finland and the 3 Baltic states must pass through the Danish Straits to get to the North Sea.
This ezplains the sudden importance of Tartus and now the even more advanced port of Latakia.
In a war, like the one the US is trying to provoke with Russia, naval fleets are of no consequence. In the time it takes to leave the home port in Russia and head for the North Sea, and even before the home port is out of site, the war will already be over.
Naval assets were vital in WW2. Today, they are only useful when raping small defenseless countries like Libya. 30 minutes after a nuclear war with China or Russia begins, all of the carrier battle groups will be on the bottom of the ocean, along with their crews. So it doesn't matter if the naval assets are in the Baltic Sea or San Diego Harbor. They will all disappear in an instant.
In fact, CBRs can actually hurt military readiness when confronting a real military power. CBRs are more than just a carrier. There are typically about 24-26 ships that travel together as a CBR. Collectively, they represent a massive allocation of military funds that will be destroyed by a single nuclear tipped missile almost immediately after the war starts. All of the money wasted on assets that can't be defended could have been used more productively.
Come to think of it, when driving around San Diego harbor, it's not unusual to see 4-5 carriers parked there. When the war comes, San Diego will be glowing in the dark. You may be safer in the baltics.
The very last thing Obama will do to put the final nail in the American coffin is to go to war with Russia just before the new puppet is sworn in.
Watch and see.
More ZioNeoCon bullshit to keep the people in fear and the banker/military industrial complex rich. Shit is going to have to get really bad for any kind of reset to happen. Hopefully when we come out the other side we remember history past what sports team won last week. I must say that the bread and circus is as great as it has ever been in human history.
No mention of the 300-knot Soviet Shkval torpedo?
They make it in regular and nuckular!
It's being readied here too.
Remember those "Make My Day" laws? It appears there was no such thing.
You now automatically go to jail (prints/bio.m), you're going to court even if the buggar broke in to harm you.
Long bondsman, private prisons & prison food contractors.
EDIT: https://www.uslawshield.com/
There is some ironic justice to this and it goes back to 'The Good War.'
Due to the Allied insistence on unconditional surrender, Germany was utterly smashed and out of the ashes has risen a strange mixture of soulless, consumerism. The Continent is virtually a void of true identity.
So, as a result such a society is not going to churn out warriors (the neo-West is busy with pressing matters like feminism, gender queer, inter alia.)
The problem is that this bizarre socialist soup that runs the show is dealing with a more or less nationalistic and formidable neighbor, indeed one wherein men generally are not apologizing for being men.
And so the real loser in any exchange is the smaller border countries, like the Baltics. Had the Allies been willing to negotiate a peace, there Baltics would have been happy to stay in Germany's orbit (well, certain demographics would not have faired too well perhaps, though the average Latvian, Estonian, and Lithuanian along with the Finns would have preferred the Berlin-centered arrangement as it was if SS Waffen enlistments are any indication.)
I might surprise some with this post: I don't believe Russia has a legitimate claim to the Baltics, as they do have such a claim to eastern Ukraine.
Given that Germany and Poland have been absorbed by the socialist modernist regime, the Baltics are sadly on their own. I can assure Baltic readers: Uncle Sam will happily sell you out as he did last time.
The crux of this is of course that certain elements of the neo-West are nutty enough to desire open war with Russia. It is nutty for the obvious reasons but also because our countries as socialist, democratic welfare states without any identity (even a bad or warped one.)
I'm not sure any cultural void could actually field a serious theater wide military. And if our fate is war, are techno toys will not go nearly as far as we would hope.
More bullshit from the war party. Russia does not want the Balts. They are assholes and they are not economically viable.
While all the fuckwits in DC were talking about Putis having assbergers syndrome the didn't hear what he had to say. He said fuck you America and fuck all your stupid vassal states. We are turning East and you can take your ukie nazis and your Baltic nazis and stick them up your ass.
The Russians have also made it clear that if they are attacked the response will be nuclear so the pentagon can update plans all it wants. It's all bullshit.
When the US Federal Reserve Ponzi scheme fails the economic and political leaders take us to war.
The US government has not represented the US people for a very, very, very long time.
Uh, wait a second. The article said:
“Russia’s invasion of eastern Ukraine made the U.S. dust off its contingency plans,” says Michèle Flournoy, a former undersecretary of defense for policy and co-founder of the Center for a New American Security.
The US government overthrew the Ukraine government, causing the Russians to enter the battle to defend the rightly elected government of Ukraine. Also, the Ukrainian people overwhelmingly wanted to stay with Russia.
Michele Flournoy is a lying douchebag.
99 articles of war on the wall, 99 articles of war,
take one down, pass it around, 98 articles of war on the wall.
Hey everybody! Do you have a favorite relative or even a not so favorite relative that you're ready to send off to be used as cannon fodder in the next media generated war? Give them a FOND FAREWELL before they go overseas. Think AHEAD for a change, be a boy scout.
First thing BHO did as president was to withdfraw the missile defense shield from eastern Europe. Immediately it was a betrayal of those allies and ultimately the beginning of the surrender.
I'm finding more and more nuggets of "hope" these days leading me to believe Obama might actually have a plan going on here...and maybe that early move was a tip off. Sans Clinton he seems to be trying to drive the neocons/neolibs out of the foreign policy monopoly they had.
The missle shield was a boondoggle and it was there to try and lure the Russians (post USSR) in to war. How clear did that have to be? "Allies"....pleeeeaaaassssseeee. What? Because they supported us in all the bogus wars of the last few decades? Allies of the Strangeloves, yes? Not mine.
I think the USA government military/government are either lying to the world or just dumb regarding Russia invading the EC zone.
Putin is too busy stabilisiing Crimea and the Ukraine against USA interference.
Putin is too busy helping Asad (democratically elected) reclaiming Syria from ISIS (in effect what USA created).
Russia, being the largest country in the world with a population of only 145 million has more mineral resources (a lot untapped as yet) and can be self sufficient therefore not needing to intefere with anyone.
Ask yourself this question: What benefit has Russia of attacking and owning the over populated bankrupt EC ?
The EC will be destroying itself internally with leadership squabbling over EC monies/budgets and muslim terrorism.
nuland will have her choice of hiring unemployed neo-nazis, or re-route isis, their already on the payroll, to help the Baltic states.
whens are Germans, and most of the eu going to figure out your means of access to reasonably priced oil, and natural gas are being destroyed, by us,and nato.
"Germans" are a bunch of barren 50+ year old short haired childless women and their cucked beta male "partners." Their thoughts and opinions don't mean shit to anyone. Other than their votes for white genocide (Merkel). If you want to know where Germany is headed ask a Muslim living in Germany. They are the only fighting age men in Germany and therefore the only ones that matter. And they are the only ones reproducing so they control the destiny of this nation.
Flournoy's assertion that Russia "invaded" Eastern Ukraine is just an example of the dirty propaganda that the pentagon has deluded itself with. Shame on you Michéle. Russia knows that the Baltics are a trip wire for heavy conflict with NATO, and has studiously avoided provocations, notwithstanding Latvian linguistic chauvinism and Poland's centuries-old hatred, which have now been fueled by NATO's violation of its own agreement not to move east after German reunification.
I live in Aus I can say that I am sick and tired of the American influence. People believe the crap they see from Hollywood where spiderman or batman saves america, or some war film where some dickhead american saves the whole world using a piece of string and a pencil. When it rains in washington it seems to me the umbrellas go up worldwide. When will the people of this world realise that America is the enemy?
You can thank American unions and the price the first men paid to have an 8 hour day, a job that did not leave their wife a widow at 50. Row houses, company stores which gave a form of credit by deducting from paycheck what was purchased, and no hope for more for the downtrodden was not that long ago. And, as we have said over and fucking over, the state of affairs in America is one of State Capture. Bankrupting your nation in what appears to be a coordinated attempt via banking, military engagements, deregulation and tax breaks/subsidies to the richest motherfuckers on earth who can now donate vast sums of money to "law makers" after the judicial system has been turned into a syndicated criminal enterprise, filled with surly members who wear a flag called Conflict of Interest like a badge of honor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS3GiUAvjJ8
Come Down (Bush) A song
America is not the enemy. All her heroes have been slaughtered or silenced. 911 was clear and solid evidence America has been null and voided. Israeli Firsters run America. Silent Coup that was not so silent but controlling the information made this possible. Israel is the world's common enemy and we can thank this mean little country for bringing us together. Along with Facebook and Twitter.
Can't see the point in decrying Russia when the US foregin policy seems to be to implement puppet states that subsequently fail and we end up with anarchy that by the masses of refugees and suffering is imposed on the rest of the world.
Because of that what exactly is the US defence department doing in real terms and COST? ... Well planning military capabilitiy for when the regime change foreign policy fails.
Ironically so the US taxpayer pays for the instigation and the long drawn out if ever resolved end to this charade.
Interesting isnt it, everybody claim to fight same foe and yet they preparing to attack each other. Hypocrisy at its best.
If Russia would attack the Baltic states it's because they have sizable Russian minorities there. Leave these minorities alone and treat them well and there is no reason. If you leave a bear alone, it won't come after you. Europe would need to worry the moment these minorities are mistreated. That could be just 'spontaneous' harassment or deliberate. I am sorry for the people in the Baltic states but nobody in the rest of Europe would want to go to war with Russia about them whether they are a NATO member or not. Same goes for Ukraine.
You mean France won't go nuclear with Russia over the 800,000 people in Latvia? No way!
USSA fight a real war against a real country...with a real army? Is this some kind of joke?
I think the US's plan is to use their European colonies to do the actual fighting.
They aren't smart enough to figure out that once the war starts, things will be different this time. The average american thinks he will sit in front of his TV with a beer in hand and cheer while enjoying the MSM coverage of the shock and awe attacks on Moscow.
But Moscow is not Baghdad, and it won't only be foreign children that are slaughtered.
Happily ... VERY HAPPILY ... this time it won't work that way.
The TV entertainment show of foreign death and destruction that the average american loves watching will not be broadcast very long. Very shortly after the show starts, their TV sets will lose their signal. I'm not sure why, but it may have something to do with that very bright light in the sky that is melting their children's flesh and bones.
On a happy note, the 50-plus megaton Tsar Bomba leaves a crater a mile wide and 400 feet deep. The fireballs alone will cover all of Manhattan island, and all of DC. As an extra bonus for the useless eaters (the 99%), the death zone will extend all the way to the Hamptons, where the Job Creators lived when the US existed.
Many around the world will rejoice. Americans, on the other hand, will be wondering why it was their children's turn this time.
How about if America mind its own fucking business, guard its own borders, takes care of its own citizenry, and lets the rest of the world solve its problems as it will? Just a crazy fucking idea.
"“Russia’s invasion of eastern Ukraine made the U.S. dust off its contingency plans,”"
Like Ruby Ridge, Oklahoma City, Waco, WTC Demolition Attempt I, WTC Demolition Derby II, Iraq I, Iraq II, Afghanistan, Libya , Syria, Yemen, Yellowcake, and on and on,,, the bullshit hits from government and media prevaricators just keep coming. Seems like the whole shebang started about 1990. Since 1963 the Spook agencies have held control of most of the u.s government. In 1989 a ex CIA director actually becomes POTUS and it's been downhill for America ever since.
One has to wonder just when, if ever, ameriKans will wake from their induced coma to smell the manure they have been spreading around the globe.
Nation Buildaberger Buildin'
.
War to end all war III
Even assuming that Russia is an aggressive warmonger like the US (it isn't), why would the Russians waste their time on the Baltic states that have no value whatsoever to the Russians. The US wants a war with Russia (using Euro/Nato blood) so badly that they seem desperate to get the shooting started in the hope that the war will avoid their impending bankruptcy. Does anyone, other than the typical stupid yank, believe anything from the US?
You can trust the Commander-In-Chief
Who intends to thrust his prick in every hole
but what if he gets impaled like Ivan the terrible
dont worry he is a homo-he is used to getting screwed from behind
hah ha