East to Alaska

On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin flew to Alaska to meet with President Trump in an effort to resolve the long-running war with Ukraine. (Too many geographically handicapped people believed SNL’s skit deriding Sarah Palin, asserting that she had said she could see Russia from her home, and they were surprised to learn how short an eastward trip from Russia is to the United States.) For a long time, corporate media largely has framed the war as one of an innocent party viciously attacked by a big neighbor, one that is worthy of unending military and financial support. As Trump has signaled, he’s had enough and wants Ukraine’s neighbors. whose interest is greater than ours, to step up, several Western European leaders have mouthed support. In advance of the summit, Stephen Bryen set out some relevant facts most of which are not well-publicized elsewhere:

Support for the war has dropped substantially in Ukraine: “More than three years into the war, Ukrainians’ support for continuing to fight until victory has hit a new low. In Gallup’s most recent poll of Ukraine -- conducted in early July -- 69% say they favor a negotiated end to the war as soon as possible, compared with 24% who support continuing to fight until victory.

This marks a nearly complete reversal from public opinion in 2022, when 73% favored Ukraine fighting until victory and 22% preferred that Ukraine seek a negotiated end as soon as possible. Yet, Zelensky continues doing whatever he can to sabotage the Trump-Putin meeting in Alaska and to behave as if Ukraine's army still has some hope of winning a war they are clearly losing.”

Europe is in no realistic position to enforce any ceasefire which might be agreed upon: “A European military contingent is, theoretically, supposed to enforce

GOPJ: "There’s an old story about a pond that will die when choked off by pond scum.
The scum doubles every day - and in 30 days will cover the whole pond - at which point it dies.
Now on what day will half the pond be covered??"

Yes, I understand your point, if by "pond scum" you are referring to mad-Vlad the Invader's Russkiy Mir-oviches.
However, the facts don't support your analogy:

233,062 square miles -- Ukraine's 2013 sovereign territory total
16,625 square miles -- 2014 Russian occupied Crimea & Donbas
24,010 square miles -- 2022 Russian net gains
=40,625 square miles -- 2022 Russian total occupied = 17.4% of Ukraine's total.
188 square miles -- 2023 Russian gains
1,239 square miles -- 2024 Russian gains
1,207 square miles -- 2025 Russian gains, to date.
=43,259 square miles -- 2025 to-date Russian occupied = 18.6% of Ukraine's total.

So, in three years, Russians have added 1.2% of Ukraine to their 2022 holdings, at a cost of roughly 1,000 Russian casualties and 100 Russian military vehicles & large weapons lost per day -- over 1 million casualties & 100,000 vehicles in total.
Such numbers suggest it will be many years -- over 100 years -- before Russians can conquer all of Ukraine.

On the other hand, if we look at the rate of increase in Russian gains from 2024 to 2025, they do suggest an exponential growth in Russian advances.
If that continues, then Ukraine's collapse could be less than 10 years away.

But will it continue?

I'd say, take your pick what you want to believe -- for Ukrainians the war is existential, but for Russians it's a matter of revanchism & restoring Russia's past glories.
For Europeans in general, it's a question of whether aggressive Eastern style autocracies will prevail over Western style democracies.
It does not end well for Europe if Russia wins in Ukraine.

For the US, Ukraine is less directly existential and more a question of diverted priorities, away from US domestic goals and Indo-Pacific challenges.
But even for the US, a Russian victory over Ukraine will greatly reduce our prestige, standing, and most especially the value of US military deterrence, in the world.

So, Pres. Trump is correct to emphasize Europeans' roles in leading the defense of Ukraine.
Are Europeans up to the job?
Time will tell...

GOPJ: "Europe is becoming Muslim."

Europe's population outside Russia and Belarus is about 600 million, of whom 30 million (5%) are Muslims.
This is up considerably from 20 years ago, and growth trends suggest Muslims could reach 10% of Europe's population by 2050.
Non-Muslim European birthrates (~1.5) are the same as white Americans, while Europe's Muslim birthrate at ~2.5 is well above the replacement rate of 2.1.
But like other birthrates, the Muslim rate is also falling.

Russia's population is roughly 10% Muslim and Russia's ethnic Russian birthrate is equivalent to Japan's at ~1.1.

GOPJ: "China - our largest trading partner is also an enemy.
That’s never been the case before.
Generally our friends are also our trading partners."

I blame Slick William Clinton for making that happen, with the WTO and most favored status.
Pres. Trump is working to correct the worst abuses, especially the trade imbalances and US over-dependence of critical Chinese materials (i.e., pharmaceuticals).
As of today, things look more promising than they have since the early 1990s.

GOPJ: "The Z man suspended voting shortly after the war started and closed down churches after that..."

All that kind of talk is Russian propaganda bull cr*p that no sane person should believe, much less repeat.
The truth is:

In February 2022, under existential invasions by Russian forces, Ukrainians declared 90-day martial law, which by constitutional law suspended elections for the duration.
As invasions continue, martial law is extended every 90 days for another 90 days.
When the war ends, martial law will expire, and new elections will be held.
Both France and Britain also suspended elections during both First and Second World Wars.
Russia, in its entire history, has never had an internationally recognized free and fair election.
So, Russians complaining about a lack of democracy in Ukraine are the height of obscenity.
On Moscow's Russian Orthodox churches -- they were less churches than centers for Russia's FSB & other intelligence services espionage & covert operations.
Most still hold normal services and none are permanently closed, though some are under investigation of their FSB agent clergy.

Bulgaria and North Macedonia have also expelled Russian FSB agents posing as Russian Orthodox clergy.

GOPJ: "He outlawed men of military age from leaving the country."

Under existential threat from Russian invasions and constitutionally declared martial law, Ukraine imposed several emergency measures, similar to those of other democratic countries such as France and Britain during both World Wars.

Nobody outside Russian propaganda Koolaid drinkers thinks that's a problem for democracy.

GOPJ: "Ukraine was known for corruption and money laundering for ‘elites’"

Thirty years ago, Ukraine was considered to be as corrupt as the world's most corrupt countries, including especially, Russia.
Today, Russia is still among the world's most corrupt, but Ukraine has risen considerably into the ranks of countries like Turkey, India & Brazil, meaning: not perfect, but still people we can work with.

In the meantime, the US has fallen (#1 is best) from #16 down to #28 among least corrupt countries.

GOPJ: "You speak like the ‘contest’ is between a free, loving democracy and a totalitarian state... and that NATO is still the people who fought with during World War II..."

You speak like you've been drinking the Russian propaganda Koolaid, so I ask again: why would any sane person do that?
You're just babbling stupid nonsense, and why?

The truth is that Ukraine is vastly more democratic that Russia ever aspired to be.

GOPJ: "(by the War, Russia was on our side against the Germans in World WarII)"

The First World War was almost lost because Russians -- after having helped start the war -- surrendered in 1917, releasing a million German troops to assault their Western Front against the Brits, French & USA in France and Belgium.

The Second World War started in 1939 by Soviet leader Stalin signing the Hitler-Stalin Pact to divvy up Poland.
That pact also freed Stalin, as Hitler's ally, to invade Finland (1940) and annex the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania.

During all that time (from August 1939 to June 1941), Russian propagandists in the United States worked to make the USA isolationist, neutral and "America First".

GOPJ: " I want what’s best for the US first and what’s fair for the rest of the world that also stops wars."

That's total nonsense -- what you really want is Russian victory over Ukraine and defeat of western style democratic alliances in favor of brutally aggressive Eastern style empire building dictatorships.

You agree with mad-Vlad the Invader that the collapse of the USSR in 1991 was the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century" and most in need of correcting, regardless of how many millions of lives Putin destroys doing it.

As for preventing wars -- the simplest way to prevent all wars is to surrender immediately to brutal dictators who threaten or launch wars to achieve their geopolitical goals.
Sure, that'll "keep the peace" -- the peace of the dead, the enslaved and dispossessed.

And if that's what you truly want, then you should be a Democrat.
Don't pretend to be a Republican, conservative or anyone else with a sense of self respect and understanding of history, FRiend.

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