War Is Coming And The Global Financial Situation Is A Lot Worse Than You May Think

The conditions for a “perfect storm” are coming together very rapidly

Michael Snyder | Economic Collapse Blog - July 14, 2016


On the surface, things seem pretty quiet in mid-July 2016. The biggest news stories are about the speculation surrounding Donald Trump’s choice of running mate, the stock market in the U.S. keeps setting new all-time record highs, and the media seems completely obsessed with Taylor Swift’s love life.

But underneath the surface, it is a very different story. As you will see below, the conditions for a “perfect storm” are coming together very rapidly, and the rest of 2016 promises to be much more chaotic than what we have seen so far.

Let’s start with China. On Tuesday, an international tribunal in the Hague ruled against China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea. The Chinese government announced ahead of time that they do not recognize the jurisdiction of the tribunal, and they have absolutely no intention of abiding by the ruling. In fact, China is becoming even more defiant in the aftermath of this ruling. We aren’t hearing much about it in the U.S. media, but according to international news reports Chinese president Xi Jinping has ordered the People’s Liberation Army “to prepare for combat” with the United States if the Obama administration presses China to abandon the islands that they are currently occupying in the South China Sea…

“Chinese president Xi Jinping has reportedly ordered the People’s Liberation Army to prepare for combat,” reports Arirang.com. “U.S.-based Boxun News said Tuesday that the instruction was given in case the United States takes provocative action in the waters once the ruling is made.”

A U.S. aircraft carrier and fighter jets were already sent to the region in anticipation of the ruling, with the Chinese Navy also carrying out exercises near the disputed Paracel islands.

Last October, China said it was “not frightened” to fight a warwith the U.S. following an incident where the guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen violated the 12-nautical mile zone China claims around Subi and Mischief reefs in the Spratly archipelago.

Meanwhile, the relationship between the United States and Russia continues to go from bad to worse. The installation of a missile defense system in Romania is just the latest incident that has the Russians absolutely steaming, and during a public appearance on June 17th Russian President Vladimir Putin tried to get western reporters to understand that the world is being pulled toward war…

“We know year by year what’s going to happen, and they know that we know. It’s only you that they tell tall tales to, and you buy it, and spread it to the citizens of your countries. You people in turn do not feel a sense of the impending danger – this is what worries me. How do you not understand that the world is being pulled in an irreversible direction? While they pretend that nothing is going on. I don’t know how to get through to you anymore.”

And of course the Russians have been feverishly updating and modernizing their military in preparation for a potential future conflict with the United States. Just today we learned that the Russians are working to develop a hypersonic strategic bomber that is going to have the capability of striking targets with nuclear warheads from outer space.

Unfortunately, the Obama administration does not feel a similar sense of urgency. The size of our strategic nuclear arsenal has declined by about 95 percent since the peak of the Cold War, and many of our installations are still actually using rotary phones and the kind of 8 inch floppy disks for computers that were widely used back in the 1970s.

But I don’t expect war with China or Russia to erupt by the end of 2016. Of much more immediate concern is what is going on in the Middle East. The situation in Syria continues to deteriorate, but it is Israel that could soon be the center of attention.

Back in March, the Wall Street Journal reported that the Obama administration wanted to revive the peace process in the Middle East before Obama left office, and that a UN Security Council resolution that would divide the land of Israel and set the parameters for a Palestinian state was still definitely on the table…

The White House is working on plans for reviving long-stalled Middle East negotiations before President Barack Obama leaves office, including a possible United Nations Security Council resolution that would outline steps toward a deal between the Israelis and Palestinians, according to senior U.S. officials.

And just this week, the Washington Post reported that there were renewed “rumblings” about just such a resolution…

Israel is facing a restive European Union, which is backing a French initiative that seeks to outline a future peace deal by year’s end that would probably include a call for the withdrawal of Israeli troops and the creation of a Palestinian state. There are also rumblings that the U.N. Security Council might again hear resolutions about the conflict.

For years, Barack Obama has stressed the need for a Palestinian state, and now that his second term is drawing to a close he certainly realizes that this is his last chance to take action at the United Nations. If he is going to pull the trigger and support a UN resolution formally establishing a Palestinian state, it will almost certainly happen before the election in November. So over the coming months we will be watching these developments very carefully.

And it is interesting to note that there is an organization called “Americans For Peace Now” that is collecting signatures and strongly urging Obama to support a UN resolution of this nature. The following comes from their official website…

Now is the time for real leadership that can revive and re-accredit the two-state solution as President Obama enters his final months in office. And he can do this – he can lay the groundwork for a two-state agreement in the future by supporting an Israeli-Palestinian two-state resolution in the United Nations Security Council.

Such a resolution would restore U.S. leadership in the Israeli-Palestinian arena. It would preserve the now-foundering two-state outcome. And it would be a gift to the next president, leaving her or him constructive options for consequential actions in the Israeli-Palestinian arena, in place of the ever-worsening, politically stalemated status quo there is today.

Sadly, a UN resolution that divides the land of Israel and that formally establishes a Palestinian state would not bring lasting peace. Instead, it would be the biggest mistake of the Obama era, and it would set the stage for a major war between Israel and her neighbors. This is something that I discussed during a recent televised appearance down at Morningside that you can watch right here…

At the same time all of this is going on, the global economic crisis continues to escalate. Even though U.S. financial markets are in great shape at the moment, the same cannot be said for much of the rest of the world.

Just look at the country that is hosting the Olympics this summer. Brazil is mired in the worst economic downturn that it has seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s, and Rio de Janeiro’s governor has declared “a state of financial emergency“.

Next door, the Venezuelan economy has completely collapsed, and some people have become so desperate that they are actually hunting cats, dogs and pigeons for food.

Elsewhere, China is experiencing the worst economic downturn that they have seen in decades, the Japanese are still trying to find the end of their “lost decade”, and the banking crisis in Europe is getting worse with each passing month.

In quite a few articles recently, I have discussed the ongoing implosion of the biggest and most important bank in Germany. But I am certainly not the only one warning about this. In one of his recent articles, Simon Black also commented on the turmoil at “the most dangerous bank in Europe”…

Well-capitalized banks are supposed to have double-digit capital levels while making low risk investments.

Deutsche Bank, on the other hand, has a capital level of less that 3% (just like Lehman), and an incredibly risky asset base that boasts notional derivatives exposure of more than $70 trillion,roughly the size of world GDP.

But of course Deutsche Bank isn’t getting a lot of attention from the mainstream media right now because of the stunning meltdown of banks in Italy, Spain and Greece. Here is more from Simon Black…

Italian banks are sitting on over 360 billion euros in bad loans right now and are in desperate need of a massive bailout.

IMF calculations show that Italian banks’ capital levels are among the lowest in the world, just ahead of Bangladesh.

And this doesn’t even scratch the surface of problems in other banking jurisdictions.

Spanish banks have been scrambling to raise billions in capital to cover persistent losses that still haven’t healed from the last crisis.

In Greece, over 35% of all loans in the banking system are classified as “non-performing”.

Even though U.S. stocks are doing well for the moment, the truth is that trillions of dollars of stock market wealth has been lost globally since this time last year. If you are not familiar with what has been going on around the rest of the planet, this may come as a surprise to you. During my recent appearance at Morningside, I shared some very startling charts which show how dramatically global markets have shifted over the past 12 months. You can view the segment in which I shared these charts right here…

I would really like it if the rest of 2016 was as quiet and peaceful as the past couple of days have been.

Unfortunately, I don’t believe that is going to be the case at all.

The storm clouds are rising and the conditions for a “perfect storm” are brewing. Sadly, most people are not going to understand what is happening until it is far too late.

U.S. Warships Surround Disputed Chinese Waters, Prepared for War: “WWIII At Stake”

Territorial disputes are a delicate thing… and potentially deadly as well

Mac Slavo | SHTF Plan - July 16, 2016

Territorial disputes are a delicate thing… and potentially deadly as well.

That’s why the U.S. is backing up its positions with an ever-increasing presence of warships in the South China Sea.

China is very touchy about these territories, and unwilling to give up what they perceive as their waters, even as a UN tribunal just denied their claims and strengthened the U.S. hand.

Indeed, the entire situation is combustible and very dangerous.

As James Holbrooks of the Underground Reporter noted:

In a congressional hearing on Wednesday, former Director of National Intelligence and retired Navy admiral Dennis Blair told the panel that the United States should be prepared to use military force to oppose Chinese aggression in the South China Sea.

“I think we need to have some specific lines and then encourage China to compromise on some of its objectives,” Blair, who headed the U.S. Pacific Command while in the Navy, said at the hearing.

The admiral’s recommendation came the day after a United Nations tribunalinvalidated China’s claim of territorial rights to nearly all of the waters in the South China Sea.

The U.S., citing the territorial dispute and security concerns raised by its allies in the region, have for months been sending warships into the South China Sea as a check against Chinese hostility.

Beijing, acutely aware of the military buildup off its coast, has publicly warnedthe U.S. it’s more than ready to defend against provocations. “China hopes disputes can be resolved by talks… but it must be prepared for any military confrontation.”

It seems that the situation is being deliberately stoked into conflict, and that tensions are programmed to reach a boiling over point. If true, there is no indication of where the point of no return would be.

The U.S. has the excuse of protecting its ally, and former territory, the Philippines, and thus has a pretext to play policeman in the region.

But in turn, that is only a thinly-veiled ruse to amplify the military pressure, and let bloated speech and menacing saber-rattling episodes set the tone for ‘diplomacy’ with the Red Dragon.

Now, there is not only an escalation, but an acknowledgement on both sides of the Pacific that things are headed towards war – and it is being openly discussed in those stark terms:

“If our security is being threatened, of course we have the right to demarcate a zone,” Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said Wednesday at a briefing in Beijing. “We hope that other countries will not take this opportunity to threaten China and work with China to protect the peace and stability of the South China Sea, and not let it become the origin of a war.”

And war, it appears, is becoming increasingly likely by the day — with other countries in Southeast Asia beginning to take sides.

[…]

So, with the U.S. demanding compromise from a China who refuses to bow down — and forcing local powers to choose sides in the process — it seems the stage is being set for a potential military conflict in the South China Sea that could engulf the entire region.

Are we really to expect a looming world war from China, who has played the parts of villain, ally, trade partner and rival all at the same time?

No one can say, but there is plenty of worry that war could really happen. Even billionaire George Soros warned that the potential danger of WWIII breaking out with China was ‘not an exaggeration’:

The US government has little to gain and much to lose by treating the relationship with China as a zero-sum game. In other words it has little bargaining power. It could, of course, obstruct China’s progress, but that would be very dangerous. President Xi Jinping has taken personal responsibility for the economy and national security. If his market-oriented reforms fail, he may foster some external conflicts to keep the country united and maintain himself in power. This could lead China to align itself with Russia not only financially but also politically and militarily. In that case, should the external conflict escalate into a military confrontation with an ally of the United States such as Japan, it is not an exaggeration to say that we would be on the threshold of a third world war.

And yet, President Obama and numerous other U.S. officials have been deliberately stoking the tension and adding fuel to the fire with provocation in the disputed waters.

As Michael Snyder wrote several months ago:

Barack Obama sent a guided missile destroyer into disputed waters in the South China Sea to see if the Chinese would start shooting at it. Yes, this is what he actually did. Fortunately for us, the Chinese backed down and did not follow through on their threats to take military action. Instead, the Chinese have chosen to respond with very angry words. The Chinese ambassador to the United States, Cui Tiankai, says that what Obama did was “a very serious provocation, politically and militarily.” And as you will see below, a state-run newspaper stated that China “is not frightened to fight a war with the US in the region”. So why in the world would Obama provoke the Chinese like this? Yes, the Chinese claims in the South China Sea are questionable. But there are other ways to resolve things like this.

Most Americans assume that an actual shooting war between the United States and China is not even within the realm of possibility, but many of our leaders see things very differently. For instance, just check out what CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell thinks…

The current posturing in the area has led to heightened tensions between the world’s preeminent military powers, and in May Former CIA Deputy Director Michael Morell told CNN that the confrontation indicates there is “absolutely” a risk of the U.S. and China going to war sometime in the future.

Not long ago, the U.S. also demonstrated ballistic missiles – armed with nuclear warheads – over the coast of California in an apparent demonstration towards China regarding the readiness and seriousness of their clash.

Though it isn’t on the front burner right now amid other sensational headlines, keep an eye to the fact that World War III is slowly being brewed on the back burner. Someday, it could ignite into a full blown nightmare. Stay vigilant. Hope for peace, prepare for war.

Russia Prepares For World War

Putin previously begged Western media to wake up to NWO

Clifford Cunningham | Infowars.com - July 14, 2016

Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed that Russia is preparing for war after firing nearly 50 senior officers for refusing to confront NATO ships and warning that the world is “being pulled in an irreversible direction.”

The Baltic Fleet’s Commander, Vice Admiral Viktor Kravchuk, and his chief-of-staff, Rear Admiral Sergey Popov, were among the nearly 50 officers sacked by Putin over reportedly failing to aggressively confront NATO vessels in the Baltic Sea; last month, Kravchuk and Popov were suspended by Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu for “serious shortcomings in organizing combat training, daily activities of their units, poor care of their subordinates as well as misrepresenting the real situation in their reports.”

“Some hint that the ‘buzzing’ of USS Donald Cook by Russian Su-24 fighter-bombers on April 14, 2016 was meant to be part of a broader series of Russian confrontations against Western ships in the Baltic,” said international affairs analyst Peter Coates, “but the Russian Baltic Fleet in April, however, refused to follow such dangerous orders — hence Putin’s retaliation against his own naval officers.”

Speaking with journalists following the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum, and amid growing NATO troop deployments in countries along the Russian border, Putin admonished the Western media for reporting “tall tales” when covering U.S. and NATO actions in Europe and ignoring the chance they will lead to nuclear war.

“We know year by year what’s going to happen, and they know that we know. It’s only you that they tell tall tales to, and you buy it, and spread it to the citizens of your countries. You people in turn do not feel a sense of the impending danger – this is what worries me. How do you not understand that the world is being pulled in an irreversible direction? While they pretend that nothing is going on. I don’t know how to get through to you anymore,” he said.

The Baltic Fleet, compromised of over 50 warships, including corvettes, destroyers, frigates, landing craft and submarines, is based in Kaliningrad, a Russian enclave situated between NATO members Lithuania and Poland. In response to growing tensions, as well NATO military exercises like BALTOPS 2016 simulating an amphibious assault, Putin has fortified Kaliningrad and stationed advanced nuclear-capable Iskander missiles in the enclave.

While not as well equipped as the Black Sea or Northern Fleets, the Baltic Fleet has taken on greater significance as NATO continues to expand its presence in Poland and the Baltic States, having recently committed to deploy four battalions totaling 3,000 to 4,000 troops into those countries on a rotating basis.

Russia’s on-going preparations for war with the Unite States and NATO are nothing new.

A Russian Balzam-class intelligence-gathering vessel was spotted off the coast of Hawaii earlier this month, reportedly to monitor the annual RIMPAC naval exercise.

The Russian government recently reached an agreement with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega to build an electronic intelligence-gathering facility in the country in exchange for the sale of 5o T-72 tanks.

If you look at Kalinningrad from google earth, it is mostly dead plants and trees crisscrossed with railways and warehouses. One big toxic shithole from back in the day when the Soviets gave no care whatsoever for the environment. The main reason the Poles did not roll up the territory in the early 1990s and even the Germans don't want it back. Someone was hoping the Russians would clean the place up on their own, but I guess that's not happening much.

Is Putin’s Purge Of Top Russian Commanders An Advance Warning Of Large-Scale Military Action In The Near Future?

Jeremiah Johnson July 17th, 2016
SHTFplan.com


In a previous article on the U.S. backing Russia into a corner and provoking a response that can lead to WWIII, we referenced the following report from the Daily Mail: Putin sacks EVERY commander in his Baltic fleet in Stalin-style purge.

The information is important, because the article details the importance of Kaliningrad, the westernmost Russian military staging base on the Baltic and the hub of a tremendous amount of posturing by Russian forces to counter the US-NATO buildup in the area. Kaliningrad is detailed in purpose and history, and this in itself is important to understand in order to follow future movements and deployments by Russia. There is another, subtler reason the article’s information is critical to understand: the mind of a Russian leader who was “brought up” and schooled in the Soviet system of warfare.

Past articles pertaining to Russia have mentioned the work “Inside the Soviet Army,” by Viktor Suvorov, (true name Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun) who during the 1980’s authored some other works, pertaining to “the Aquarium” (the GRU, the USSR’s-Now-Russia’s version of the CIA), Spetsnaz, and such. Although written in the1980’s, the tactics have not changed in terms of an “evolution” with the USSR’s transformation to Russia post “debridement” of the former SSR’s and becoming leaner and more technologically advanced.

One of the things that Suvorov mentions is that prior to an operation or a large-scale military action, the Soviet command would purge itself of its highest-ranking generals and officers, and emplace those seconds-in-command to each of the “vacated” positions, or those immediately succeeding deemed worthy. The reasoning for this was to limit complete understanding of the entire situation only to what the Kremlin wanted known, and even for the final plan of attack/defense to be released only upon the eve of the actual operation.

In this manner, the Kremlin was assured of handpicked leaders with the loyalty level they wished for and a removal of potential dissenters. Additionally, it also removed the possibility of a “leak” prior to the engagement’s commencement. The actual overall plan was only given out to the highest members of the newly-formed chain-of-command to assure centralized secrecy and control up until the time that the command to move forward with the operation was given.

This policy does not even have its roots grounded in the Soviet Union; it is an ancient technique of restructuring to assure secrecy and centralized command that dates back a thousand years or more in Russia. When on a war-footing, it does not necessarily mean the cashiered officers are “disgraced” so much as that they are reshuffled to other areas to serve in other ways, while this technique is being implemented.

If you should manage to get a hold of a copy of Suvorov’s book, another thing that bears mention is the superb manner that the Russians “stockpile” reserves of equipment, weapons, and supplies. Suvorov mentioned that tanks, for example, were built that had few amenities and creature-comforts: rugged in their simplicity that could be operated with a minimum of training. The doctrine very much followed (and still does) of quick, deep penetration that promotes large gains of territory quickly and manages to instill “shock and awe” in an opponent.

The Russians believe in a good, quick offense that takes ground swiftly. This offense is also defensive in nature in the mindset, because by seizing territory in warfare, it creates a larger buffer and simultaneously keeps an enemy off balance. Speed and deep penetration of armored units into an enemy’s (formerly) rear area is the concept. It follows that simplistic, time-honored tenet: “The best defense is a good offense.”

This is why it is important to understand the effects of the US-NATO encroachment on the “mind” or mindset of Russia. Perhaps the West views the additional troops and units as “routine,” however, this “minimization” of a threat in the West’s eyes is nothing less than an attack posture in Russian eyes, and right in their own backyard. What the former views as nothing, the latter views as a direct provocation and an attack. Then when (or if) Russia responds, the West points a finger and denounces Russian “aggression” when the West’s own actions have provoked a threat response and fulfilled Russia’s “matrix” for actions.

Such is precisely what happened with the annexation of Crimea. The West initiated a coup d’état and ousted the elected President of Ukraine, then inserted Yatsenuk. Some lag time occurred, in which Russia acted decisively rather than lose Sevastopol and its naval base of operations for its entire Black Sea fleet. Such is also why Syria, and now Eastern Ukraine are such flash points, just as the entire region for the Baltic States has now become.

Russians have been famed as great chess players for many decades, and they are smart enough and decisive enough to act and make wise moves when needed that do not necessarily affect a balance of power while protecting their own interests in their sphere of influence. A prime example of this is Syria. ISIS is a creation of the United States, and used as a “vehicle” for the West to try and topple Assad, leader of Syria. Underlying this was the desire for the West to “knock the knees” off of Gazprom (hence Russia’s) importation and sales of natural gas to Europe. The West intended to run a gas pipeline from Qatar through northwestern Syria to do this.

Russia was brilliant. First they “invited” the US to “team up” with them in the war against ISIS. Obama was dumbstruck, as this would mean the US would be fighting its own creation. The Russians then acted decisively: They bombed the daylights out of Assad’s opposition (who we backed), bolstered Assad’s forces, left a token force of their own (largely air assets), and then declared the actions to be “over.” Obama the community organizer was no match for Putin the former Colonel of the KGB. Furthermore (if you notice), all of the West’s actions have been shifted in focus by the media to “protect the refugees/humanitarian aid/defense,” a lying slant to mask the underlying desire of the US to topple Assad and control Syria.

So to conclude, something is definitely happening, with the Russian Vice-Admiral and another 50 or so officers either relieved or removed and shuffled to parts unknown. It may interest you to know that an article appeared entitled Russian Armageddon Convoy Practices for WWIII that details movements and shuffling around of nuclear missiles (ICBM’s) of the Topol and Yars missile systems, which are multiple warhead systems, as well as deploying NBC (Nuclear, Biological, Chemical) units. The article describes how convoys with as many as 400 vehicles have been observed moving around from the European border all the way to Mongolia.

The situation changes by the day, and Putin himself warned the western journalists that they were presenting a picture of the overall situation that was false and misleading…and that we are on the precipice of WWIII. Food for thought, and almost anything can trigger a response in any of the current flashpoints that can easily escalate into a world war.

Also see...

The West Is Provoking A World War: ‘Russia Is Being Pushed To Its Limits’

Russia’s Attack Posture: “The Enemy...imate Soviet Objective Is Total Victory”

I just want to know who put the Chinese curse on us, cause things and getting "interesting."

Beijing Launches Combat Air Patrols Over South China Sea

China deploys long-range nuclear-capable bomber

Sputnik - July 19, 2016


Taking a page from the Pentagon playbook, China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) will now conduct regular combat patrols of the South China Sea.

Throughout the ongoing tensions in the South China Sea, the United States has conducted a series of provocative military patrols through the region. Claiming its actions are routine “freedom of navigation” exercises, the US Navy has sailed within the 12-mile territorial limit of Beijing’s land reclamation projects. American B-52 bombers have also conducted flights over the waterway, along with other surveillance aircraft.

On Friday, the PLAAF sent its own warplane over the South China Sea, an H-6K long-range nuclear-capable bomber.

On Monday, PLAAF spokesperson Shen Jinke indicated that these flightswill become a “regular practice” according to Xinhua news agency. By doing this, the air force hopes to “promote real combat training” in the region.

China’s patrols come in the wake of the ruling by the Hague-based Court of Arbitration, which said Beijing has no legal basis for claiming historical rights to territories within the nine-dash line in the South China Sea.

The Chinese government does not recognize the ruling as valid.

A highly-contested region through which roughly $5 trillion in international trade passes annually, most of the waterway is claimed by China, though there are overlapping claims by Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei.

The US and its Pacific allies have expressed opposition to China’s construction of artificial islands in the South China Sea, accusing Beijing of attempting to establish an air defense zone. China maintains it has every right to build within its own territory and that the island will be used primarily for civilian purposes.

In addition to combat patrols, China is conducting a series of maritime drills in the waterway, through Thursday. Beijing has warned all civilian ships to avoid waters where the exercises are taking place.

Things sure are getting interesting.

Onward and upward,
airforce

Preparing For War: Russian Citizens Stocking up on Essential Supplies

Moscow residents buying matches & salt as fears of new NATO conflict accelerate

Paul Joseph Watson - July 20, 2016

Russian citizens across the country are stocking up on essential supplies like salt, matches and buckwheat in preparation for war, according to an expert who recently visited the region.

Jill Dougherty, who served as CNN’s Foreign Affairs Correspondent for three decades, reveals how Russians are paranoid about a major imminent conflict in an article for the Wilson Center.

After explaining how a taxi driver in Moscow asked her, “When are we going to war?”, Dougherty relates how she traveled from “the Baltic region, to Georgia, and to Russia” and that “talk of war is everywhere”.

“At the office I ask a Russian employee about the mood in his working-class Moscow neighborhood,” she writes. “The old people are buying salt, matches and “gretchka,” (buckwheat) he tells me – the time-worn refuge for Russians stocking up on essentials in case of war.”

According to Dougherty, many prominent voices in Russia are incredibly concerned about NATO’s increasingly harsh rhetoric and military maneuvers.

She cites comments made by Sergei Karaganov, foreign affairs expert and member of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Foreign Policy and Defense Council, who told Der Spiegel that the western propaganda offensive against Russia is “reminiscent of the period preceding a new war.”

As Mac Slavo explains, all signs point to a major escalation.

“With Vladimir Putin having recently purged 50 of his top commanders following an old Soviet doctrine that calls for exactly such maneuvers ahead of war, there appear to be a variety of actions being undertaken by both East and West in anticipation of a large-scale conflict.”

“NATO is deploying more assets to the Eastern front and the Russians for, their part, are feverishly deploying new weapons systems, one of which is reportedly capable of obliterating an entire U.S. state the size of Texas, as well as a Tsunami torpedo that could wipe out entire coastal cities.”

It's funny you should post this, since I was just talking with a recent Russian immigrant a couple weeks ago at one of our Tulsa Libertarian get-togethers. I forget how the conversation turned to prepping, but preparing for hard times is nothing new for the Russian people. The last two hundred years of wars, economic collapses, dictatorships,and communism, has taught them that. Russians aren't necessarily prepping for war, but they are prepping.

And that's something more of us here should be doing.

Onward and upward,
airforce

Russians are just naturally that way. I have worked in a few homes of wealthy Russians. They do "prep" stuff which to them is not even "prepping" but "common sense" and cultural identity when it comes to their pickled stuff.

Not only that, but Russians learned to hide their preps and keep quiet about them...

Hoarders were seen as greedy and selfish at best... Enemies of the state at worst.

My wife's family is "German from Russia"... I've read letters from family that stayed... Soviets would take everything, then return and even take the seed... The arrest them when the "refused to plant a crop" (for which they had no seed)... Anyone caught sharing food with them was arrested for aiding enemies of the state...

A lot of them are listed "disappeared to Siberia 1925" in the family album.

The Russians have learned the hard way over the past few centuries to always be prepared. At the slightest hint of war they stock up. Something Amerikans need to learn.

This is long but well worth the read. It details exactly how the Russian military is preparing to deal with the NATO threat.

How Russia Is Preparing for World War III

China Holds Massive Naval Drills To Prepare For ‘Sudden, Cruel & Short’ Modern War


RT - August 2, 2016

The Chinese navy held a large-scale “live ammunition” drill in the East China Sea, which involved hundreds of ships and submarines from all three fleets of the People’s Liberation Army.

The exercise involving China’s East Sea, North Sea and South Sea fleets practiced both offensive and defensive capabilities of the Chinese naval power. The exercise mobilized some 300 ships, dozens of fighter planes, and involved troops that are responsible for coastal defense radars, communications, and electronic warfare defense, daily newspaper The China Times reported.

“The drill is aimed at honing the assault intensity, precision, stability and speed of troops amid heavy electromagnetic influences,” said a navy statement released Monday. “An information technology-based war at sea is sudden, cruel and short, which requires a fast transition to combat status, quick preparation and high assault efficiency.”

The participating troops and vessels were divided into red and blue teams. The red side joint-assault group perfected skills in attacking the blue side, while the blue team had to use missiles and torpedoes to counterattack their enemy. The drills overall covered a wide range of combat scenarios including reconnaissance, early warning, long-range precision strikes and air and missile defense capabilities of the navy.

China’s Defense Ministry called the drills “routine” and not directed against any third party. The drills, however, come at a time of increased tensions in East Asia after an international arbitration tribunal last month rejected Chinese territorial claims to the South China Sea. Beijing rejected the decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague calling the ruling “waste paper.”

Despite the court ruling, China continues to claim most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in annual trade passes. Furthermore, China has repeatedly warned against US intervention in the region, which continues to show its force through the freedom of navigation principle.

“The People’s Liberation Army is ready,” one source with ties to the military told Reuters. “We should go in and give them a bloody nose like Deng Xiaoping did to Vietnam in 1979.”

Last week, Beijing also announced that it would hold a “routine” naval exercises in the South China Sea in September with Russia.

“This is a routine exercise between the two armed forces, aimed at strengthening the developing China-Russia strategic cooperative partnership,” China’s defense ministry spokesman Yang Yujun told reporters. “The exercise is not directed against third parties.”

A squadron of B-1B bombers are headed for Guam.

Onward and upward,
airforce

Report: US Moving Nukes Closer to Ukraine
Pentagon denies, but evidence suggests otherwise

Kit Daniels - August 18, 2016

The US is reportedly moving nukes from Turkey to Romania amid rising tensions in Ukraine – and after a recent report warned that ISIS could steal the nukes in Turkey.

At least 50 tactical nukes are stored at the Incirlik Air Base about 70 miles from the Syrian border, and according to EurActiv, the US is moving at least 20 of them to Romania, which shares a border with Ukraine.

US officials have denied the claim, but recent developments reveal there’s credibility to the reported nuke transfer.

For one thing, Turkey is now considering military ties with Russia due to its deteriorating relationship with NATO.

“It seems to us that NATO members behave in an evasive fashion on issues such as the exchange of technology and joint investments,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told Sputnik, a Russian news outlet. “Turkey intends to develop its own defense industry and strengthen its defense system.”

“In this sense, if Russia were to treat this with interest, we are ready to consider the possibility of cooperation in this sector.”

Additionally, the Pentagon is claiming that nearly 40,000 Russian troops are massing on Russia’s border with Ukraine, including armored vehicles, tanks and fighter jets.

And the nukes stored in Turkey are at risk of being stolen by ISIS, according to a report by the Stimson Center.

“From a security point of view, it’s a roll of the dice to continue to have approximately 50 of America’s nuclear weapons stationed at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey,” said report co-author Laicie Heeley. “There are significant safeguards in place… but safeguards are just that, they don’t eliminate risk.”

“In the event of a coup, we can’t say for certain that we would have been able to maintain control.”

The US has already evacuated the dependents of US service members from the base, the report pointed out, so why wouldn’t the nukes also get transferred?

Also, over the summer NATO performed massive military exercises in Poland, which borders Ukraine, indicating that the US is preparing for war with Russia.

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The nukes would be welcome in Poland, but the Poles would be split over how welcome that would be. Most would not want it but the difference is that a small strong majority will do anything to prevent any repeat of the Soviet/Russian invasions of the past.

They welcome the wargames and military exercises as an excuse to check out NATO equipment that the rest of the NATO countries are surplussing out. The current Polish military looks a heck of a lot like the US forces in NATO of the 1990s. It's no accident, they just keep buying up everything but the rifles. For that they have a preference for locally made and the aircraft are a mix, mostly favoring soviet era stuff, but their SF types favor the old Hueys, rebuilt several times over of course.

South Korea Tires of North, Vows to Reduce Pyongyang ‘to Ashes’

South Korean newspapers sounded the alarm on September 10 over what one termed the 'nuclear maniac' Kim Jong-Un, saying the North Korean leader's fifth and biggest nuclear test is a game-changer demanding a tougher response.

by Frances Martel 12 Sep 2016


A South Korean military source told the national outlet Yonhap that his government is ready to reduce Pyongyang “to ashes” after the latest North Korean nuclear test, with “every Pyongyang district… completely destroyed.”

While not an official statement from Seoul, these are the sternest words to come out of South Korea’s government against the belligerent north in recent memory and a sign that South Korea is losing patience with Pyongyang’s repeated threats to attack its neighbor with nuclear weapons.

The military source told Yonhap that a plan is in place to destroy Pyongyang if necessary. “Every Pyongyang district, particularly where the North Korean leadership is possibly hidden, will be completely destroyed by ballistic missiles and high-explosive shells as soon as the North shows any signs of using a nuclear weapon,” the source said. “In other words, the North’s capital city will be reduced to ashes and removed from the map.”

While the South Korean Defense Ministry did not use such language, it did respond to this weekend’s nuclear test with its own official warning that Pyongyang should refrain from threatening it neighbors. Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon-hee called the nuclear test “really deplorable” and urged officials working under dictator Kim Jong-un to cease nuclear development. South Korea also announced the existence of a plan called “Korea Massive Punishment & Retaliation” (KMPR) last week, a comprehensive approach to destroying North Korea should they use nuclear weapons against the south.

South Korea has increasingly used stern language to condemn North Korea. In March, President Park Geun-hye delivered her most strident statement yet, calling for the world to unite to “end the tyranny that has deprived North Koreans of their freedom and human rights.” “I once again strongly urge North Korea to throw away the delusion that the nuclear programs guarantee the regime safety and to walk down the path of genuine change as soon as possible,” she concluded then. North Korea has clearly not abandoned those intentions.

North Korea, in turn, has used belligerent and, at times, vulgar language to refer to the South Korean president. In a three-part series published in 2014 called “We Accuse Park the Bitch,” North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun described the president as, among other epithets, a “bitch,” “cold-blooded animal,” “pumpkin,” and “old cat groaning in her sickbed.”

This weekend, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) once again “warned the traitor, hideous confrontation manic [sic] and the nation’s biggest trouble-maker” Park that North Korea plans to attack the south.” KCNA also accused South Korea of “recklessly talking nonsense like psychopaths, utterly fear-stricken by the daily-growing might of the DPRK.”

The communist North Korean government confirmed reports that a nuclear blast had occurred in the country over the weekend, though the tone of North Korean media has been slightly more reserved than in the aftermath of the nation’s fourth nuclear test in January. “Scientists and technicians of the DPRK carried out a nuclear explosion test for the judgment of the power of a nuclear warhead newly studied and manufactured by them at the northern nuclear test ground under the plan of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) for building strategic nuclear force,” the state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun reported, adding, “The nuclear test finally examined and confirmed the structure and specific features of movement of nuclear warhead that has been standardized to be able to be mounted on strategic ballistic rockets.”

A nuclear bomb that can be mounted on ballistic missiles would pose a threat to South Korea, Japan, China, and nations with vested territorial interests near the Korean peninsula. The South Korean government believes that another nuclear test could occur at any time.

“North Korea appears to be fully ready to carry out a nuclear test at its Punggye-ri test site on short notice. We are closely watching for any moves indicating another test,” an unnamed South Korean official told Yonhap Monday.