Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan to 4.15: The situation is generally stable after the Iranian attack, and the House of Representatives may pass a bill to aid Ukraine this week!
Original Xiaolean A place to write 2024-04-15 20:14
Morning Mist / Repost
Original Creator: Sue Fei
Dear readers and friends, this is a series of original articles on the war situation between Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan on April 15, 2024.
Let's talk about the Middle East today, and fortunately, the situation has not yet developed in the direction of further instability:
After Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles to attack Israel in the early hours of yesterday morning, it did not have much impact on Israel. According to an Israeli military spokesman, 99% of flying objects were intercepted. Although Israeli schools were closed and planes were grounded, the damage encountered was very minor, with only one girl injured or frightened.
This is after a ballistic missile attack, Israeli engineers are repairing minor damage to the taxiing runway at the Nevatim airbase today:
Loading...
The IDF called the loss "minor".
I don't know how Iranian drones and missiles were made, could it be tofu dregs mixed with fart?
However, the Israeli government and opposition still attach great importance to this attack. Israeli President Isaac Herzog called the attack that took place from the night to the early hours of April 14 an act of "declaration of war" by Iran. It is unclear whether Israel will launch counter-retaliatory actions in response to Iran's retaliation.
The Turkish government said it does not want further escalation of tensions in the region against the backdrop of today's Iranian shelling of Israeli territory.
The UN is also trying to "extinguish the fire": UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a de-escalation and immediate de-escalation of the situation in the Middle East after Iran launched massive air and missile strikes on Israel on Saturday.
The Iranian side boasted that the attack had achieved good results. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said that "half of the flying objects hit the target", but could not provide any evidence. The Chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Mohammad Hussein Bagheri, warned Israel on the 14th that it must not retaliate, otherwise it will face a "harsher" response from Iran. It is as if Iran really has some "weapon of mass destruction" in its hands that terrifies the Israelis.
Unfortunately, hundreds of drones and missiles have failed to cause substantial harm to Israel, and I guess he probably meant that another Israeli child would face the "serious consequences" of minor injuries.
On the 14th local time, CNN quoted a senior U.S. government official as saying that Iran had privately told the United States that its retaliation against Israel "is over." This statement is consistent with Iran's public statements.
The senior U.S. official said on the 14th, "We have received a message from the Iranians through the Swiss side, basically indicating that they will stop after that, but this is still a continuous attack."
The British "Sun" website reported on April 14 that British Royal Air Force fighters helped Israel shoot down a number of Iranian drones and missiles on the 13th.
According to the report, at least four Typhoon fighter jets took off from the Royal Air Force Base in Akrotiri in Cyprus and shot down weapons fired at Israel. It was the largest air battle in which Britain had been involved since the Anglo-Argentine War in 1982.
According to a source in the British Ministry of Defense, British warplanes were in the air for several hours, supported by tankers. They shot down the drone over Iraq and Syria before it reached Israel.
"The situation is very complicated, because there are many missiles and drones from different directions, plus different allies who have different assets, aircraft and missiles," a source said. But that's exactly what NATO allies have been training together all along."
Last night, U.S. forces destroyed more than 80 Iranian suicide drones and at least six ballistic missiles, the U.S. Central Command confirmed in a newly released statement.
Here's what an Iranian ballistic missile shot down in the Dead Sea region looks like:
The U.S. military destroyed 7 drones and a ballistic missile before a ground launch in Yemen.
Israeli military officials said the United States, Britain and France were all involved in intercepting Iranian missiles, while Jordan and other countries provided airspace to help intercept Iranian missiles and drones.
It was even said that Princess Salma of Jordan, who is a pilot, shot down 5 Iranian drones last night.
In any case, this is the first time that Israel and Jordan have cooperated militarily.
There is information that Saudi air defense forces are also involved in intercepting drones and missiles fired at Israel.
It can be seen that in the face of Iran's possibility of sliding the situation in the Middle East further into the abyss of turmoil, the Jordanians and Saudis made the decision to stand with Israel!
Readers who shop should check the order and logistics information through the "Group Solitaire Pro" applet, or contact customer service (or me) through this applet.
Here's another look at the international community's reaction to the Iranian attack:
After meeting virtually, the G7 pledged to support Israel in the wake of the Iranian attack.
According to White House advisers, Biden made it clear that he does not believe that Iran's attack on Israel will escalate into a large-scale war.
At the United Nations, a war of words over the attacks is also taking place. Israel's Permanent Representative to the UN Erdan said the Security Council must condemn Iran's terrorist acts, reinstate sanctions against Iran, and designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps as a "terrorist organization."
Others, including the United States, are willing to see tensions de-escalate. The United States has also made it clear that it will not participate in any Israeli counteroffensive against Iran. The U.S. side said it would continue to defend against Israel, but it did not want a war with Iran.
After Netanyahu and Biden spoke on the phone, Netanyahu reportedly canceled the counterattack against Iran.
Trump also came to rub the heat. The former U.S. president criticized Biden for letting Iran attack Israel go unchecked, saying that would not have happened if he had remained in office.
It's a pity that Trump is not in office!
Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson confirmed that it is planned to consider the issue of assistance to Israel this week from April 15.
Judging from this incident, although Iran's territory is N times larger than Israel's, it can only launch a self-inflicted "counterattack", and the fundamental purpose is not to weaken Israel -- Iran's scientific and technological strength is simply impossible to give Iran a chance to harm Israel -- therefore, this so-called "counterattack" is just a move by the gods to save face and appease the people at home.
Israel, on the other hand, has a very strong military strength, but it does not covet the territory of the surrounding countries, so it only seeks to protect itself from attacks from Iran.
In particular, the United Kingdom, the United States, France, and Jordan have helped Israel defend itself against attacks, making it easier for Israel to respond to such incidents.
It can be seen that the strength of a country depends not only on the level of economic, scientific, technological, and industrial development at home, but also on whether it has allies and friends. Although Iran has spared no effort to support Allah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen, Hamas, Syria, and has tried to build good relations with Russia for many years, in the end, none of these fox friends can help, and none of them dare to help.
Who mixes better, it's clear at a glance.
Briefing on the overall situation of the war between Russia and Ukraine:
1. On the 782nd day of the war, according to the results report released by the General Staff of Ukraine this morning local time, in the past day, a total of 54 battles took place on the entire front.
According to President Zelensky, the situation on the front line, especially in the Donetsk region, is becoming more and more complicated.
According to the Ukrainian General Staff, more than 480 battles have taken place on the front line over the past week. Most of them are in the Bakhmut and Novopavlivka directions, indicating that the Russian army is bound to Chasiv Yar.
Of course, they still have not made decisive progress, and the Ukrainian fighters repelled more than 300 attacks of the Russian army.
There is a rather unusual data. Yesterday, the Ukrainian Air Force launched 22 strikes on Russian targets, which is significantly more than the usual number of about 10 to 12 attacks per day. Whether this is an accident or the "new normal" remains to be seen.
As of yesterday, the Russian army has accumulated 454,420 casualties, and yesterday there were 770 new losses.
The Ukrainian army also destroyed a total of 7,180 Russian tanks, with 6 new ones, 13,796 armored vehicles, 31 new ones, and 11,593 artillery pieces, with 41 new ones.
2. In terms of air strikes: Ukrainian air defense systems shot down all 10 Shahid drones in the Kharkiv region in the early hours of this morning.
In the city of Dnipro and the community of Lyubimivka, 12 people were injured as a result of the fall of fragments of intercepted missiles:
Ukrainian air defense shot down 2 Kh-59 missiles over the Black Sea near Odessa:
Odessa's air defense is more difficult because of its proximity to the sea, but some sporadic information suggests that the Ukrainian army may have managed to strengthen Odessa's air defense capabilities.
3. The number of gliding bombs used by the Russian army has reached a new high: Ukrainian military expert Vladislav Seleznyov disclosed on a Ukrainian radio program that the Russian army used about 2,300 gliding bombs in March, and in the first week of April, 600 were dropped. According to this trend, by the end of the month, the Russian army may use 3,000 gliding bombs, each of which brings death and destruction.
He also said that the Russian army is now transforming old 1.5-ton aerial bombs into gliding bombs, and the consequences of destruction are craters 6 to 8 meters deep and more than 20 meters in diameter, as well as fragments scattered hundreds of meters.
Here I will interject: the Russian army has a delusional confidence in the yield, and the bombs they made in the past were not accurate, so increasing the yield hopes to produce a miracle. But now that the technology has improved, the gliding kit can increase the accuracy of the bomb by an order of magnitude or two. A 1.5-ton bomb that hits a 10-story apartment building can knock it down in an instant. How to deal with such a threat is the immediate priority of the Ukrainian army. The Russian Su-1.5 throwing 34 tons of bombs will inevitably be closer to the front line, and if the Ukrainian army has enough long-range air defense systems in its hands, such as the "Patriot", the Russian army will not dare to be so rampant.
In addition, the Russian army's disregard for bombs of this power will cause more serious civilian injuries, which is also part of their terror strategy. They hope that the flying cruise missiles will frustrate and demoralize the Ukrainians, and they hope that the craters created everywhere will make the Ukrainians sad and afraid, and the best way to combat these is the air defense system and the F-16.
Two pieces of news from Ukraine:
1. About 25% of the territory of Ukraine is contaminated with explosives, of which the areas liberated from occupation have the most mines.
According to the Ukrainian state news agency, Interior Minister Ihor Klimenko gave the above figures in an interview with the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
"Overall, about 25% of the territory of Ukraine is currently contaminated by mines and explosive devices due to the misdeeds of the Russian Federation," he said. ”
Klimenko said that the areas liberated from occupation are still the most heavily mined.
The minister said that demining is being arranged as soon as possible, adding that the longer the Russians occupy the settlement, the greater the scope of the mine-laying. Minelaying is most acute in three oblasts – Kharkiv, Kherson and Donetsk.
2. There are huge opportunities in the construction industry in Ukraine: According to the Ukrainian News Agency, the National Statistics Service of Ukraine published a set of data on the construction industry: the volume of construction work in Ukraine in 2023 increased by 22.6% compared to 2022, and the index of Ukrainian construction products in 2023 increased by 122.6% compared to 2022, showing a positive trend throughout the year.
The largest increase in construction volume was recorded in the engineering structure sector, at 32.9 per cent, and the non-residential real estate sector also saw a significant increase of 20 per cent.
At the same time, residential construction fell by 4.6% compared to 2022.
According to the National Statistics Service of Ukraine, the capital construction and maintenance of premises accounted for the majority of the construction industry, at 42.9 per cent, and new construction accounted for 36.3 per cent.
According to reports, in 2022 the volume of construction in Ukraine decreased by 64.8% compared to 2021. Before the outbreak of the war, the construction output index had been on an upward trend for six consecutive years, with the largest increase in construction volume at 26.4% in 2017.
At the end of today's content, let's talk about the issue of aid to Ukraine, and there is good news:
First, at the virtual meeting of the G7 heads of state, countries reaffirmed their determination to support Ukraine's infrastructure recovery and development. The transport ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) signed a declaration on supporting the rehabilitation and development of infrastructure in Ukraine.
But more importantly, there is now news circulating on the Internet: Mike Turner, chairman of the US House of Representatives Intelligence Committee, expects that the US aid package for Ukraine will be voted on this week and will be passed by an overwhelming majority.
We all know that the majority of members of the House of Representatives are inclined to aid Ukraine, but the proposal has been delayed for a vote because of the obstruction of Trump's lackey Johnson.
Commenting on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's stance on aid to Ukraine, Turner noted that everyone in the United States is "very close to understanding" that the situation is at a critical juncture.
He made it clear that "progress is being made in the Russian Federation." Ukraine began to lose its ability to defend itself. The United States should step up and provide Ukraine with the weapons it needs. I think we're going to see overwhelming support in the House of Representatives this week."
While this is still Turner's good intentions rather than reality, it is still very encouraging.
White House National Security Adviser John Kirby also said that the issue of funding Israel and Ukraine should be submitted to the House of Representatives "as soon as possible" because the American public demands it.
It's been two months since the Senate passed the aid bill on Feb. 13 to provide $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and some other regions. It is known that $60 billion in the bill will be used to aid Ukraine.
Biden also urged the House of Representatives to pass the bill again yesterday as soon as possible.
Because the Ukraine aid bill has been delayed for too long, public opinion in the United States has changed. According to the latest Gallup poll, Americans now believe that the United States is doing too much and not enough to help Ukraine, at 36 percent each. However, public opinion is now more favorable for Ukraine than it was last fall, when more people thought the United States was doing too much (41 percent) than not enough (25 percent).
At the same time, Americans' perceptions of who is the winner in this war have changed, with more now believing that Russia rather than Ukraine has the upper hand, although most American adults still believe that neither side has won.
The most widespread perception in June of last year was that 43 percent of Americans at the time believed that the U.S. had done enough to support Ukraine. And this time, less than 30% still think so.
60% of Democrats (up 22 percentage points) believe that US support for Ukraine is insufficient, and 34% of independents (up 9 percentage points) agree with this statement.
At the same time, the opinion of Republicans is largely unchanged, with only 15% believing that the United States is not doing enough.
It can be seen that even taking into account the opinions of ordinary Americans, it is time to pass this crucial aid bill!
Hopefully, Turner's words that this bill will pass this week will become a reality!
At the moment, the situation in the Middle East is clearly a distraction from the international community's attention to the war in Ukraine. But in any case, Israel has all the power to defend itself, as evidenced by yesterday's Iranian attack that could not shake the Israeli air defense system.
Ukraine does not have such a powerful capability, and Russia is undoubtedly more than 10 times stronger than Iran.
Germany's swift decision to aid another "Patriot" system is a clear indication that Europe, and Germany in particular, is willing to shoulder the heavy responsibility of assisting Ukraine.
Recall that in the summer of 2022, Ukraine and Germany also had an unpleasant quarrel over aid. At that time, some people thought that Ukraine was not "sensible" enough, and even put on a face and played petty with the countries that assisted their allies. But I think that Ukraine cannot be blamed for this, it is indeed the fault of the German politicians: the German defense minister is almost a dime a dozen, saying that he will not give anything but helmets and blankets, ignoring the will of Germany and even Europe to resolutely assist Ukraine.
But Germany quickly realized its mistake, and they quickly replaced the female defense minister, and after Pistorius came to power, Germany provided Ukraine with almost all of its "Leopard 2", IRIS-T, "Cheetah", and later added "Leopard 1" and "Patriot". Germany is now the second country after the United States in providing assistance to Ukraine, providing several times more money and arms than France, the nominal "boss" of the European Union.
There is reason to believe that Germany's standing up will make Ukraine grateful, and Germany's responsible attitude will also make them respected. An EU under the leadership of such a Germany would not only be able to stop the barbarian attack on the civilized world, but would also allow the EU to further develop, grow and prosper. In the future, Ukraine will guard the eastern gate of the European Union, Europeans will work hard, and the world's geopolitical landscape may undergo earth-shaking changes.
I didn't expect that as a person born in the late 70s of the last century, I would still be able to see such a singable and magnificent modern history in my lifetime. And my meticulous record may also leave a little information and clues for future generations to study today's history.
Source:2024-04-15 WeChat official account A place to write things
https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/v_rq1JQsD_U7ooTzeq7cIQ
【Statement】This article is forwarded and shared, and the source has been indicated. It does not mean that this platform agrees with or opposes the views of the original author, and the responsibility and copyright belong to the original author. This article is reproduced for the purpose of conveying more information, if there is any infringement, please contact to delete.