17 Comments
User's avatar
Vlad Venskus's avatar

The view promoted by you and Riley is I would say the Third view-the balanced vivew as opposed both to Duran liars and CNN presstitutes. It is amazing that in this age of information this third view is presented by a couple of people.

Expand full comment
Bugey libre's avatar

Stan,

I have already mentioned the Courrier des Stratèges website as an interesting source of information since it's creators are very courageous and have integrity (which doesn't mean of course that they never make mistakes. You might be interesting in that interview:

https://lecourrierdesstrateges.fr/2022/09/30/kharkov-est-un-theatre-secondaire-limportant-est-ce-qui-sest-passe-a-odessa-entretien-avec-alexandre-n/

If you deem it worthy of interest, you can give me your feedback.

Expand full comment
Stanley Sheppard's avatar

I've read this article in robotic translation that, as you know, still leaves a lot to be desired, but nevertheless gives you a sense of what author wanted to present. I wholeheartedly agree with their assessment that in terms of Russia-NATO standoff Odessa has much higher strategic priority then Kharkov. This is why, btw, Odessa in 2014 was made an example of NATO's decisiveness to do whatever it takes to keep control of the city. Remember the story of burning alive of 48 people in the Trade Unions building that prior were collecting signatures in a square next to the building for making Ukraine a federal, not unitarian state, thus giving more rights to the regions? It wasn't only that these people were killed on May 2, 2014 in the cruelest of ways, those who were trying to escape being roasted alive by jumping from burning building were met with baseball bats and steel rods on the ground. Before that there were protests of 100k plus in Odessa against "banderization" (as in Stephan Bandera, Ukrainian nationalists' icon) of the city and after this event Odessa went into hiding, anyone who was suspected of the slightest sympathy toward Russia had to escape or to risk an arrest or even worse - to become a missing person. People were arrested after this tragedy, but not the ones who threw Molotov cocktails into the building and not the ones who were finishing people on the ground (all was on camera) but those who managed to survive the assault! So, this was a lesson for Odessa and a very successful action to silence the city and most of other regions, except for Donbass where the ruthless actions by the newly appointed ultra-nationalist leaders of Ukraine had an incendiary effect instead on population.

So yes, we are likely to see more action around Odessa, unless a very powerful party within Russia, trying to stop the country from achieving a military victory, is going to win. And this, in my reading of the intelligence signals is still a very distinct possibility. Addressing the issue of a very significant opposition at the highest levels to Russia winning the war is probably going to be my next post.

As far as my assessment of the resource, "Le Courrier des Strateges" - I think it is good. It goes beyond the headlines and tries to present deeper analysis. And yes, use of Iranian kamikaze drone Shahead, in Russia they renamed it Geran', seemed to be very effective and cheap. One drone like this costs 10 times less than Russian version of Tomahawk cruise missile - Kalibr. So what if only 75%, not 100% reach their target? Still worth the money.

Expand full comment
Bugey libre's avatar

Thank you Stanley.

I remember clearly what happened in Odessa and that is one of the events that prompted me to write as a translator for the newly created French Saker blog and go deeper in Russian/Ukro history and problematic. I was unemployed at that time, coming from Mali as a refugee and had much time to read and translate.

Take care of you, stay healthy.

Expand full comment
Stanley Sheppard's avatar

Wow, you are a compassionate person, Bugey libre!

Expand full comment
Bugey libre's avatar

Being human brings many goods in the middle of hardships, where ever you are and in all situation. In this adventure, I met with a prominent astrophysician and his wife who were also disgusted by what was really going on. Meanwhile I had started trying to figure out what Systema was all about while becoming addicted to it's "tao".

It must be repeated that the Saker Francophone is independant from the original website. So much that they both had a very different view about the so called pandemic. It translates and publish whatever it wants without Andreï censuring.

Expand full comment
Vlad Venskus's avatar

Stanley, this article is great! Could you please write more on the strange details of this war. By the way, check out this author https://twitter.com/nikola_mikovic. I think it would be great if you created a podcast with him.

Expand full comment
Stanley Sheppard's avatar

Will certainly check on Nikola's Twitter feed. Not sure about the podcast yet, but I'll keep writing more material that takes, as you say, a "third" point of view on the whole situation between Russia and Ukraine, as well as other topics that concern me. It is very puzzling because of the great divergence between what our leaders (should I put leaders in quotes?) say and what they actually do. We live during very complicated times that are very hard to interpret, but, as usual, let's watch the hands, not just listen to words, this is the only way to get at least some idea about what's really going on.

Expand full comment
Vlad Venskus's avatar

The strangest part is that this war could end in a week-kill Zelensky with a Kinjal missile, which penetrates any bunker, turn off the electricity, and stop gas supplies to Europe, besides The grain deal/capitulation is a most horribe thing. Russia should have burned or blocked that grain deamanding that US stop flooding weapons.

Expand full comment
Sonja's avatar

The Russian politicians want to build back better, after destroying both Ukraine and Russia. How is it not possible to stop them?

Expand full comment
Stanley Sheppard's avatar

I do get a lot of conflicting signals out of Russia. Yes, there is definitely a group among the ruling class that is on the side of globalism, BBB, great reset and so on, yet there is another group that is distancing from all of that understanding they won't be given a respectable place in this new world, so they need to build and alternative system on their own.

Expand full comment
Vlad Venskus's avatar

The most amazing part is that Russians who demand bombing bridges, not taking Azov prisoners, targeting Zelensky and other unsavoury characters are called ULTRA-RADICALS in Russia!

Expand full comment
Bugey libre's avatar

Then there is the mystery of the whereabout of the supposed 50 French officers supposedly captured in Azovstal. Thank you Stan.

Expand full comment
Stanley Sheppard's avatar

I'm pretty sure they are safely back home. If regular mercenaries convicted to death punishment by DPR court were released, I'm sure French military were treated with even greater kindness and discretion. Btw, on the flight back home to UK, private jet courtesy of the Russian oligarch Abramovich, Brits were fed steak and tiramisu, and Abramovich gifted each one the latest iPhone so that they could call home right after landing. Ahw, how nice!

Expand full comment
Bugey libre's avatar

I am also convinced that they have been sent back in micronistan. How nice? Digustingly so...

Meanwhile in micronistan:

This week I called to buy some fuel not for heating the house, to expensive (I have bought wood and will use the old chimney) but to have hot water. The last years they would deliver whatever you needed in less than a day but now I have been told that I should wait between three weeks and one month and that they are unable to give a price for what one orders....

I hope it is better for you in Canada (if I'm right about your location)

Respect

Expand full comment
Stanley Sheppard's avatar

In Canada we heat our house with oil and price have doubled since 2021, but I didn't hear about any shortages or delays. In our house in US we use natural gas and the price hasn't changed much. Sorry to hear about the problems in France. A lot of it is self-inflicted injury and not just in France, but across the European Union. Glad you have a sense of irony and understand my cheese jokes ;)

Expand full comment
Bugey libre's avatar

Understanding cheese jokes is a grace man. As to the injuries, they are not really self inflicted since our "leaders" are servicing the globalist interests and no European people would make such crazy genocidal decisions. France was more than self sufficient in energy thanks to a strong nuclear park but under the pressure from Germany, we destroyed the independance. German companies are the main producers of giant wind mills which are destroying our landscape (tens of them in the area where I live but more than that (175 m high) in Britanny) so they pressured the so called French leaders to buy them.

Concerning the POW swap, you will, I guess, store that information which can very easily be translated:

https://www.menadefense.net/afnord/le-mercenaire-marocain-libere-par-la-russie/

Do the Russians have stakes in the NEOM project?

Expand full comment