Planet Rugby Forum

openclashXX

According to The Standard, the FA recently released data on the Chelsea stars as part of their annual agent payments report last week. The data suggests that the Blues have extended the contracts of Fernandez and Mudryk until 2032 and 2031 respectively. If both the players stay at Stamford Bridge u...

openclashXX

Suggestions that they've exhausted the combat capabilities over several areas of the frontline at this point based on the expenditure of men and materiel over their winter offensive(s). Surely it'll take them a good while to reconstitute and resupply before they can throw people into the grinder ag...

openclashXX

While all the focus is on Israel: Ukrainian Main Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) Head Lieutenant General Kyrylo Budanov stated that Ukrainian forces are preparing to repel a future Russian major offensive expected in late May or the beginning of June but noted that this will be “catastrophi...

openclashXX

If you believe it’s over, explain how? The City run-in is how. Hard to make a case for them getting anything other than the full 18 points available. Spurs away is the only fixture you could conceivably see them dropping points at, which looks less and less likely with their form in the last few ga...

openclashXX

300 drones and missiles fired, only 7 actually hit anything. No casualties, no major damage Great Iranian success :thumbup: If you want to appear like a tough guy who lashes out indiscriminately at the first provocation, ie Israel, it isn't, but if what you're doing is playing a longer game, it is....

openclashXX

300 drones and missiles fired, only 7 actually hit anything. No casualties, no major damage

Great Iranian success

openclashXX

The latest Battlegrounds episode is worth a listen. The section with journalist Julius Strauss on his field visit to Kharkiv and Eastern Ukraine, interactions with soldiers and locals, the reactions he gets when speaking in Russian now vs 1 year ago. Insightful https://open.spotify.com/episode/3Cbiw...

openclashXX

https://open.spotify.com/episode/4p4cb4gsuR4dpInygeYMbT?si=NiVE1Un3SV6WSOHfBM-wSQ&nd=1&utm_medium=organic&product=open&%24full_url=https%3A%2F%2Fopen.spotify.com%2Fepisode%2F4p4cb4gsuR4dpInygeYMbT%3Fsi%3DNiVE1Un3SV6WSOHfBM-wSQ&feature=organic&_branch_match_id=1249975132369160527&_branch_referrer=H4...

openclashXX

Do refinery attacks matter for the Russian state budget? They mostly don't - this sounds counterintuitive, but let me explain how it works Russian state collects all petroleum taxes at the wellhead. There are two different regimes for different fields, one is called Mineral Extraction Tax (NDPI), o...

openclashXX

Ukrainian soldiers have criticised the country’s new conscription law after provisions were removed to send soldiers home from the front lines after 3 years. It had been hoped that the bill, which has been the subject of heated debate, would have paved the way for the demobilisation of soldiers aft...

openclashXX

Germany's anti-nuclear energy stance coming back to haunt it - gas-intensive German industries no longer competitive enough globally German industry is unlikely to recover to pre-Ukraine war levels as elevated prices from imported liquefied natural gas have put Europe’s largest economy at a “disadva...

openclashXX

Hellraiser wrote: ↑Tue Apr 09, 2024 5:30 pm Unsurprisingly Syrskyi has announced that rotation of long-serving troops out of the line has started.

Source? Great news if true.

openclashXX

Seems you are determined to pick a fight on the basis that any criticism of the actions of Ukrainian political and military leadership is heresy. Vatnik mentality. Suit yourself.

openclashXX

My understanding is that their shell shortage is the hugely significant factor in this. It's lack of shells, not men, that's causing them to slowly conceed slivers of land to attackers. In the short-term and in the context of individual battles, yes I agree. But over the medium-term, there's a grow...

openclashXX

Speaking of Kazakhstan... As per Reuters sources, Russian officials have unofficially requested Kazakhstan to prepare gasoline for possible export to Russia. Officially, Shyngys Ilyasov, an advisor to Kazakhstan’s energy minister, said the energy ministry has not received such a request from its Rus...

openclashXX

To be clear, you general narrative, as I see it, is that a negotiated settlement can be achieved and maintained with Russia. That is dangerous in the extreme. Absolutely not. My point is that Ukraine has a stated political objective - to reclaim its 1991 borders - that is massively disconnected fro...

openclashXX

Are you being deliberately argumentative? The USA was the sponsor of those wars. They did the heavy lifting. Everyone else supplied a few thousand troops. As it stands, Britain could not now replicate even that effort. By various reports, Britain would run out of artillery shells in 6 weeks. Ukrain...

openclashXX

shanky wrote: ↑Mon Apr 08, 2024 10:29 pm All these countries (inc France) are geared towards limited conflicts, not grinding ground wars

Afghanistan and Iraq never happened, huh?

openclashXX

Why is it stupid? Britain has like a handful of regiments and 3 working ships, but they’re going to sail into the Baltic to defend a place your average person couldn’t find on a map? What's the British airforce like these days? Could NATO not expect to win air superiority given how Russia have stru...

openclashXX

Why is it stupid? Britain has like a handful of regiments and 3 working ships, but they’re going to sail into the Baltic to defend a place your average person couldn’t find on a map? Britain has done far more outlandish things in the past. They deployed troops to Iraq - twice. The average Brit is f...

openclashXX

Why is it stupid? Britain has like a handful of regiments and 3 working ships, but they’re going to sail into the Baltic to defend a place your average person couldn’t find on a map? Britain has done far more outlandish things in the past. They deployed troops to Iraq - twice. The average Brit is f...

openclashXX

I don’t think Putin will have a go at an active NATO member. He is in no position to do that. Belarus if it tries to be non-puppet is another story. Article 5 would ensure that an attack on a NATO county would be the last thing Putin would ever do. This. A discussion on the likelihood of Russia inv...

openclashXX

Now the question is what gain for Russia in going at war again? Is it worth it? Assuming that Putin's only motivation is expansionism and land-grabbing, then a more appropriate question would be: how many countries could seriously fit the bill of potential targets where Russia can justify another o...

openclashXX

For pity's sake. No and no. The single biggest issues is weapons and ammunition for those weapons. In particular long range weapons and sufficient ammunition to make them counite and give the Russians pause. The alternative would be to expend people, which the Russians would eagerly accept and reli...

openclashXX

Now the question is what gain for Russia in going at war again? Is it worth it? Assuming that Putin's only motivation is expansionism and land-grabbing, then a more appropriate question would be: how many countries could seriously fit the bill of potential targets where Russia can justify another o...

openclashXX

It's also a loss which emboldens Putin. It does get him what he wants out of the war at this stage - which is unpalatable to say the least. And opens the door for a repeat down the track. Everyone is massively overestimating the odds of this happening. The Russians are done, this war has shattered ...

openclashXX

It might be controversial to point this out, but Trump's (supposed) intention of freezing the conflict and ceding Crimea + Donbas to Russia is not inconsistent with the reality of the current manpower situation in Ukraine Ukraine's political objectives of restoring its 1991 borders are increasingly ...

openclashXX

A Ukrainian investigative journalism outlet Slidstvo.Info said on April 6 that their journalist, Yevhenii Shulhat, appeared to be targeted for military draft as retaliation for his work investigating authorities. Earlier in the week, Shulhat was approached by uniformed men who said they represented...

openclashXX

It'll be between Gordon, Grealish and Rashford for the left wing spot, and Saka, Foden and Palmer on the right wing. All six will end up in the squad, I'd imagine Just had a look back. It’s actually rare Saka and Foden have started together. They did in the World Cup and he put Foden left and Saka ...

openclashXX

It'll be between Gordon, Grealish and Rashford for the left wing spot, and Saka, Foden and Palmer on the right wing. All six will end up in the squad, I'd imagine No Sterling? One of Southgates faves Sterling hasn't played for England since the '22 World Cup - can't recall the last time he was even...

openclashXX

It'll be between Gordon, Grealish and Rashford for the left wing spot, and Saka, Foden and Palmer on the right wing. All six will end up in the squad, I'd imagine

openclashXX

Hawk97 wrote: ↑Fri Apr 05, 2024 9:00 am
RodneyRegis wrote: ↑Thu Apr 04, 2024 10:25 pm Get palmer on the bench for England just for pens.
Start him. If Rashford plays for England this summer, it’s an utter disgrace

Palmer isn't competing for Rashford's position on the left, it's Saka/Foden's on the right

openclashXX

Russians have advanced to the eastern outskirts of the city of Chasiv Yar, roughly 10km west of Bakhmut, and established a small foothold. Huge amounts of armoured vehicles and manpower being thrown at it.

The city is considered strategically important because of the higher ground it's on.

openclashXX

An official from the Ukrainian HUR tells the Guardian that the Kerch Bridge will be destroyed "in the first half of 2024"

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/ ... one-attack

openclashXX

Kaja Kallas falls in line behind Rutte. Disappointing. @KajaKallas 02 Apr For a strong #NATO, we need to be clear-eyed on Russia, boost deterrence and defence spending, back Ukraine's membership, and geographic balance. I have discussed this in depth with @markrutte and he commits to these prioritie...

openclashXX

Great thread on the build-up of Ukrainian defensive lines over the past few weeks: https://twitter.com/clement_molin/statu ... IAk6Q&s=19

openclashXX

Exports are a good indicator of a healthy local production but I was thinking purely in capability terms. A strong India will be a good counter-balance in the world, though their religious nutters are no better than anybody else's religious nutters and I've no doubt China will play Pakistan off aga...

openclashXX

The biggest risk of a large scale mobilisation (200-300k or more) is the catastrophic effect it would have on the Russian labour market. Unemployment is at an all-time low, and is also disproportionately worse outside of the large metropolitan areas. Regions like the northwest and the far east have...

openclashXX

India needs to get its act together and start producing its own stuff. There's plenty of OEM manufacturing that's heading its way at the moment which should help expand the industrial base. Huh? Discussion for another topic perhaps but I don't trust the USA's dominance of global arms nor the surge ...

openclashXX

The biggest risk of a large scale mobilisation (200-300k or more) is the catastrophic effect it would have on the Russian labour market. Unemployment is at an all-time low, and is also disproportionately worse outside of the large metropolitan areas. Regions like the northwest and the far east have ...

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