The Biden Administration and its national security state controllers are determined to escalate the conflict in Ukraine. In addition to sending billions of dollars worth of armaments and munitions to a coup regime dependent on the brutality of neo-Nazi battalions, on Monday it was reported Ukraine will allow the Pentagon to designate targets.
Reading a CNN report on this latest development, we get the impression the masters of war in DC will have “veto power over Ukrainian targeting of Russia,” as if the war-addicted lunatics and neocons in charge will somehow show restraint in targeting and killing people.
The Pentagon wants to control “the Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, surface-to-surface missiles that can fly around 200 miles (300 kilometers), about four times the distance of the rockets used by the HIMARS mobile systems the US began sending to Ukraine four months ago,” according to one of the premier war propaganda organs of the state.
No doubt Russia is keenly watching this new development, which may or may not go forward, and will count it as a potential crossing of yet another red line, especially within areas that have decided through referenda to exit Ukraine and enter the Russian Federation.
As for Biden, it is nothing short of a miracle he can tie his shoes in the morning, let alone sort through complex information about weapons systems and the political implications associated with placing the advanced death technology in Ukraine. The ATACMS, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, carries a 500-lb class blast fragmentation warhead and has a maximum range of 300 kilometers (approximately 186 miles).
No doubt the use of these missiles will destroy hospitals, schools, civic centers, markets, etc., same as earlier death technology accomplished in Iraq (where the fresh water system was deliberately targeted; cholera, anyone?).
According to the Lockheed Martin website, the ATACMS “is a conventional surface-to-surface artillery weapon system capable of striking targets well beyond the range of existing Army cannons, rockets and other missiles.”
In short, if positioned correctly, the weapon system will be capable of inflicting heavy damage from a distance on the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic.
Late in February, the USG state department, led by Tony Blinken, listed a web page titled “Crimea Is Ukraine.” Remarkably, and no doubt predictably, Blinken and his demo-con crew write that Russia’s operation to get rid of racist and genocidal neo-Nazis determined to kill ethnic Russians is “a brazen affront to the modern international order.” Blinken, of course, was referencing the neoliberal order dominated by the USG and its corroded and devalued dollar. The “order” he mentioned benefits a very small number of billionaires, international banks, and large monopolistic corporations.
“Kiev, Washington and Moscow currently have different views on what is Russian versus Ukrainian territory. After a 2014 coup in Ukraine that saw US-backed elements overthrow a democratically elected government, Russia annexed the Crimea peninsula. Last week, Moscow claimed four additional regions of Ukraine as its own,” write Kyle Anzalone and Connor Freeman.
Expect the target list Zelenskyy will supposedly submit to include cities, towns, and villages inside the “annexed” areas, now Russia proper. “The White House has made clear that they will not recognize the new Russian territories, and NATO has said they will escalate their support for the proxy war.”
Blinken declared some time ago he will not be party to negotiating an end of the war. The USG plan is to ramp up the war considerably under the stupid assumption Ukraine can actually win. Thus far, the USG has unleashed a number of assets:
In addition to the CIA presence on the ground in Ukraine, NATO commandos from Lithuania, Canada, Britain, and France are also present. Notably, there are several Donald Trump-aligned Republicans in the legislature, including Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) eager to “[go] for the kill” and overtly deploy American military advisors to Ukraine. Former US special operators are already on the ground near the contact line, training Kiev’s forces and developing battle plans.
How can this be interpreted as anything but a full-fledged war, minus USG and NATO “boots on the ground”? For now it is advisors on the ground. History (unvarnished and truthful) demonstrates how this led to a rapid escalation in Vietnam.
It is true to say the average American has a very short attention span, is generally not interested in geopolitics, and, thanks largely to “pubic” education, has a very weak if nonexistent understanding of world events beyond what they are fed by the corporate media. It will be too late for an education when the bombs go off and nuclear winter sets in.
I believe it is a foregone conclusion Russia will react when NATO and USG artillery and missiles fall on Crimea or the newly established republics. It will be an attack on Russia proper.
