[Jabberwalker]

DrCaleb DrCaleb:

$1:

France yields to pressure, halts delivery of a $1.5-billion warship to Russia
PARIS — France is suspending the delivery of a hulking warship to Russia amid security concerns about Moscow’s actions in neighbouring Ukraine, President Francois Hollande’s office said Wednesday.

The announcement comes a day before the start of a NATO summit and after months of pressure on France from allies to suspend the sale amid tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

Hollande’s office, in a statement after he met with top defence advisers, called the fighting in eastern Ukraine “grave,” and said Russia’s recent actions harm “the foundations of security in Europe.”

The Vladivostok, the first of two Mistral-class helicopter carriers ordered by Russia, was to be delivered next month. The second — named Sevastopol, ironically, after a port in Russian-annexed Crimea — has been slated for delivery next year.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/09/03 ... to-russia/

That would make a cracking good replacement for the AORs, don't you think. We can probably get them cheap, too!

Notice to Canada, one LHD is now on the market. Never used. Will have to change all signage from Russian to English.

I wonder if the controls were designed for sailors with opposable thumbs?

[ How do you get a Russian sub to surface?

Throw a bar of soap over the rail. ]

[Zipperfish]

saturn_656 saturn_656:

Thank you France. For a while I thought they'd actually deliver it.

Notice to Canada, one LHD is now on the market. Never used. Will have to change all signage from Russian to English.

[BartSimpson]

saturn_656 saturn_656:

Notice to Canada, one LHD is now on the market. Never used. Will have to change all signage from Russian to English.

I thought the RCN had a policy against purchasing functional equipment from other countries?

[Jabberwalker]

You mean like Upholder Class submarines?

At least, this French job will have a nice, fresh warranty on her ... probably has a superb galley with a wine cellar, too.

[DrCaleb]

$1:

Ukraine crisis: Petro Poroshenko orders army ceasefire after agreement reached with rebels

Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko said he had ordered the army to observe a ceasefire from 11 a.m. ET on Friday in its conflict with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine after envoys in Minsk agreed a peace plan for the region.

The ceasefire must be observed by the separatists too and be monitored by international observers from Europe's OSCE security watchdog, he said in a statement published on his website.

"Human life is the highest value and we must do everything possible and impossible to end the bloodshed and the suffering," said Poroshenko, who has spent the last two days attending a NATO summit in Wales.

The talks to bring a much-anticipated ceasefire to the fighting​ began Friday at 7 a.m., even as the rebels kept pressing their offensive against a strategic port city.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-cr ... -1.2756517

[Delwin]

I'm not convinced this ceasefire will last. I give it 8 hours. Both sides shuffle some pieces, the first side to gain a tactical advantage from it's re positioning opens fire again.

[saturn_656]

An Estonian Security Service agent has been abducted from Estonia by Russian forces.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/s ... der-russia

[Jabberwalker]

Only one?

[saturn_656]

Must be the Russian way of saying "Look at what I can do!"

[Jabberwalker]

Any bets that they blame Angela Merkel in Russia?

[saturn_656]

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

Any bets that they blame Angela Merkel in Russia?

Merkel was one of the few who swore that Putin could be reasoned with and resisted the application of tough sanctions.

Then he went and decided to prove her wrong.

[Jabberwalker]

Who'd have thought that we would see a weak, emasculated Germany that is more interested in counting their gold like Nibelung dwarfs than defending their sovereignty? The "Fatherland", indeed.

Strange times that we live in.

[saturn_656]

Not surprising, after all we did it. The Allies took the fight out of Germany after WWII. They are the mellow non confrontational borderline pacifists we wanted them to be.

Unfortunately for us, that is now a problem.

[Jabberwalker]

Nature abhors a vacuum and the middle of Europe is a really bad place to have one.

[saturn_656]

Jabberwalker Jabberwalker:

Nature abhors a vacuum and the middle of Europe is a really bad place to have one.

Well hacking Germany into pieces and wrecking their martial (Prussian) culture seemed like a good idea at the time. This modern, and decidedly feeble, Germany is our creation.

Hindsight is 20/20.