Top Russian military leaders repeatedly decline calls from U.S., prompting fears of 'sleepwalking

[applegrove]

into war’

Lack of communication leaves the world’s two largest nuclear powers in the dark about explanations for military movements

By John Hudson at the Washington Post

Today at 8:24 p.m. EDT

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/03/23/russia-us-military-leaders-communication/?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=wp_news_alert_revere&location=alert&wpmk=1&wpisrc=al_world__alert-world--alert-national&pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJjb29raWVuYW1lIjoid3BfY3J0aWQiLCJpc3MiOiJDYXJ0YSIsImNvb2tpZXZhbHVlIjoiNTk2ZmY3NGM5YmJjMGY1N2ZlZjc3NjQwIiwidGFnIjoid3BfbmV3c19hbGVydF9yZXZlcmUiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy53YXNoaW5ndG9ucG9zdC5jb20vbmF0aW9uYWwtc2VjdXJpdHkvMjAyMi8wMy8yMy9ydXNzaWEtdXMtbWlsaXRhcnktbGVhZGVycy1jb21tdW5pY2F0aW9uLz91dG1fc291cmNlPWFsZXJ0JnV0bV9tZWRpdW09ZW1haWwmdXRtX2NhbXBhaWduPXdwX25ld3NfYWxlcnRfcmV2ZXJlJmxvY2F0aW9uPWFsZXJ0JndwbWs9MSZ3cGlzcmM9YWxfd29ybGRfX2FsZXJ0LXdvcmxkLS1hbGVydC1uYXRpb25hbCJ9.IAE4xigSblzXvZr2IUGzycRIxNGgC-vyZkNV4LKE3_I

"SNIP......

Repeated attempts by the United States’ top defense and military leaders to speak with their Russian counterparts have been rejected by Moscow for the last month, leaving the world’s two largest nuclear powers in the dark about explanations for military movements and raising fears of a major miscalculation or battlefield accident.

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have tried to set up phone calls with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Gen. Valery Gerasimov but the Russians “have so far declined to engage,” said Pentagon spokesman John Kirby in a statement Wednesday.

The attempted calls by Austin and Milley, which have not previously been reported, come as Russia conducts operations near the borders of NATO members Poland and Romania while the United States and its European allies conduct air-policing operations over the Baltic Sea and pour weapons and equipment into Ukraine by ground transport.

Moscow and Washington maintain a deconfliction channel but current and former officials say contact from higher-ranking military leaders is needed to avoid unnecessary escalation or confusion.

......SNIP"

[PortTack]

1. No doubt by pootie's orders

[SleeplessinSoCal]

2. I'm going to add to this story this info on Energy Markets

Listening to this now.

How Energy Markets Are Shaping Putin’s Invasion — and the World
The Ezra Klein Show

Nearly every dimension of the Ukraine-Russia conflict has been shaped by energy markets.

Russia’s oil and gas exports have long been the foundation of its economy and geopolitical strength. Vladimir Putin’s decision to invade Ukraine — like his annexation of Crimea in 2014 — coincided with high energy prices. While Western sanctions have dealt a major blow to Russia’s financial system, European carve-outs for Russian oil and gas have kept hundreds of millions of dollars flowing to Moscow every day....

More here:

https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/how-energy-markets-are-shaping-putins-invasion-and/id1548604447?i=1000554830246

[Bev54]

3. Get Macron to talk to them, he is talking with Putin often.

[haele]

4. Rumors are that Soigu hasn't been officially heard from since 10 March

I don't think it's sleepwalking, I think Putin is punishing his inner circle for giving him "bad advice".

If this is true, who knows who is in charge.

Haele

[airmid]

5. It's my understanding that the Defense Minister has not been seen for about 12 days.

The Kremlin said he is absent due to “heart problems”.

[Irish_Dem]

10. Right, his heart may have stopped beating.

[Red Mountain]

6. Little bit hard to blame them....

our leadership/efforts are blowing their sh#t up.

[Turbineguy]

7. Maybe the Russians want tp solve this themselves.

There has to be a future after Putin. And one not dictated by the U.S.

[Golden Raisin]

8. I grew up in the Cold War.

Truman was President when I was born. I ducked and hid under my wooden desk at school to "protect" myself from an atomic bomb attack. I remember fallout shelters, Sputnik, the Cuban Missile Crisis and Khrushchev banging his shoe at the U.N. and also thundering, "We will bury you!" I'm increasingly having some deja-vu flashbacks to an era I thought was behind us, and certainly do not get a warm and fuzzy feeling reading about the lack of top-level Russo/American military communication when nuclear armaments are apparently back on the table.

[TheBlackAdder]

9. Perhaps their all standing in line to get a view from the 4th floor balcony railing or meeting room.

.

General Assimov, you're next. Either you or your sister.



.