World War III urgently wanted! (submittals to box number: president.gov.ua)
Volodymyr Zelenskyj hit a sensitive nerve with his call for "preemptive strikes" – after the sabotage of North Stream 1&2. And today the attack on the Crimean bridge followed.
While the senile dodder in the White House has said the risk of nuclear war is at the highest level since the peak of Cold War brinkmanship in the 1960s and stating that soaring hostilities between Russia, Ukraine and the West could escalate to outright “Armageddon”, the Kremlin spoke of a call to start the “Third World War”.
According to Zelenskyj, NATO must prevent the possibility of a Russian use of nuclear weapons - if necessary with preemptive strikes. He emphasized the importance of preventive measures during an appearance in front of the Lowy Institute in Sydney on Thursday. NATO “must eliminate the possibility of Russia using nuclear weapons”.
Although Zelenskyj's spokesman Serhij Nykyforow immediately stressed that Zelenskyj's demand had been misunderstood, his statement speaks an unmistakable language:
»But what is important - and I am addressing the world community for this reason, as I did before February 24 - is that these are preemptive strikes, so that they know what they will face if they use them.«
Zelenskyj wisely avoided the phrase “preemptive nuclear strikes”, but if one recalls his remarks on nuclear rearmament of Ukraine a few weeks ago and the attacks on the nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, it is not too difficult to understand what he could have meant by “preemptive strikes”.
Regardless of who the biggest beneficiaries of the blowing up of the Baltic pipelines are, and regardless of what Zelenskyj had in mind when he called for “preemptive strikes”, today's strike against the Crimean bridge opens a new chapter in the further escalation of the war in Ukraine. An escalation that could, of course, lead to a hot war across Europe, if not a Third World War.
This morning’s attack on the Crimean bridge not only hits Russia at a strategically important point, it also hits a prestigious object of Putin, and this one day after his 70th birthday. The response from the Russian leadership and also from the Russian population is likely to be accordingly.
Another aspect that the Russian side will also take into account when calculating appropriate retaliatory measures - and these will follow - is, as was already the case with the attacks on the Nordstream pipelines, the fact that these attacks had already been more or less announced in advance and were thus quasi-deliberate. (i.e. Biden’s speech in a press conference here or the talks between British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace and Ukrainian Rada deputy Alexej Goncharenko at the NATO summit in June this year, where, according to Goncharenko's telegram post, the destruction of the Crimean bridge was openly discussed. Likewise, Ukrainian military declared the Crimean bridge as their number one target.)
Recent statements by a Pentagon spokeswoman on the status quo in Crimea also do not contribute to a de-escalation of the conflict:
»There is no doubt that U.S. policy considers Crimea to be Ukrainian. I want to be clear on this point. We are providing assistance to Ukraine. You mentioned HIMARS, but the U.S. also provides intelligence to help Ukraine defend all of its territory.«
I don't want to participate in the speculations about possible Russian reactions to this new attack, which are going viral right now, but it should be clear to anyone with a bit of sense that they will happen. Likewise, the prospects for peace negotiations in the near future are likely to be a distant prospect.
It is worth mentioning, however, that Russia has so far reacted with restraint to all these incidents. Russia’s back is against the wall, as it is forced to protect its own territory from Ukrainian attacks, not to mention the risks posed by the shelling of the nuclear power plant. With the deliberate escalation that Ukraine is engaging in, and which is obviously supported by the U.S., Russia is under increasing pressure to respond harshly.
And if one reads the comments, which demand here and in other publications, instead of de-escalation an ever larger increase of the employment in favor of the regime in the Ukraine and those the commitment above all of Germany cannot go far enough and/or which live out an unimagined Russophobia, then all nevertheless reminds very much of 1913/14. Also at that time a morbid, decadent class danced in the ball houses of Europe, while press and politicians heated up the boiler to bursting! The downfall of the ruling classes and the horrible long-term consequences, from WW II to the cold war etc.. , are unfortunately known only to those who still had the pleasure to enjoy a reasonable education. It is obvious that the gang of crazy Ukrainian wannabes not only wants to keep the war going (after all, it fills the coffers with billions), but also to leave no stone unturned to involve half the world in it.
Even if at present there is little to suggest that there could be a nuclear escalation of the conflict (except for Zelenskyj's drivel), the parties to the conflict should be clear about one thing:
Be careful, this will not end well, at worst in a third world war – and then God have mercy on us…