As Russian troops advance on Kyiv, Ukraine, in what will certainly end in the removal of President Volodymyr Zelensky and installation of a Putin puppet, President Biden has stepped up economic sanctions against Russia, adding four banks Thursday and cutting off assets of the country’s elites and their family members. Once a superpower in all aspects of the word, Russia’s economy now is comparable in size to Texas’. But the adjective still fits the country’s nuclear firepower.
“Today’s Russia remains one of the most powerful nuclear states,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday, per The Hill. “Moreover, it has a certain advantage in several cutting-edge weapons. …
“No matter who tries to stand in our way, they must know that Russia will respond immediately, and the consequences will be such as you have never seen in your entire history.”
No Idle Threat
Russia has 6,257 nuclear weapons as of 2022, with 1,458 active and 3,039 available, according to World Population Review[worldpopulationreview.com]. The U.S. has 5,500 total, of which 1,389 are active and 2,361 available. Add in the nuclear weapons of France (290) and the United Kingdom (225) and the total for NATO is 6,065. The website does not list data on the level of destructive power of each country’s weapons.
Blame Game
Speaking at a media event in Kentucky, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) called on Biden to ratchet up economic sanctions to the max, according to The Wall Street Journal. He repeated criticism, though, that Biden’s initial sanctions were weak and that the White House’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan last year “sent an invitation” to autocrats to make the move.
Recently retired German Chancellor Angela Merkel blamed European leaders including herself in letting Putin get away with Russia’s 2008 invasion of Georgia, and 2014 annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula without adequate consequences, NPR’s Morning Edition reports.
Article 5
Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner (D-VA) warned Thursday that a major cyberattack by Russia against Ukraine could have a “ripple effect” on a NATO country – cutting off electricity to Polish hospitals, say – and trigger NATO’s Article 5, which essentially says that as one member country is attacked all member countries, including the U.S., are required to respond. Which gets us back to those nuclear arms numbers.
Binary Attacks
While it has been widely reported that the Russians are assiduously attacking Ukrainian government sites with impunity, what is not as well known is that there are pro-Ukrainian hackers taking it to Putin. According to Politico, “The global hacktivist group Anonymous on Thursday evening said in a tweet it was ‘officially in cyber war against the Russian government’ and claimed it had taken down the website of Russia's state-controlled media network RT. The network said it was able to ‘repel’ the attack.” In addition, there are the Belarusian Cyber Partisans who are working to assist the Ukrainians.
It is arguably part of Putin’s disinformation campaign to make it seem like the Russians have digital invincibility. Odds are there are lots of exceedingly smart coders who don’t like what Putin is doing and may have as big effect on the Russian economic and political infrastructure as all of the G7 sanctions combined.
Meanwhile, in Orlando
The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) has assembled for its annual meeting in Donald J. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago backyard, Orlando, where Sens. Marsha Blackburn, of Tennessee and Ted Cruz, of Texas, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are among the potential candidates vying for a run for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, NPR reports. Presumed frontrunner Donald J. Trump has not yet appeared, however – expect a big weekend splash – and there’s been little talk of Ukraine or the White House’s response to Russia’s invasion, according to NPR’s Morning Edition.
Meanwhile, at Mar-A-Lago:
“You should run for Senate majority leader,” ex-President Donald J. Trump said to Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), Politico reports Friday in a scoop. Scott, who is the GOP’s Senate election chief, reportedly responded; “My only focus is on winning” … a Senate majority in this fall’s midterms. A little reminder that Trump and presumed future Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had a huge falling out after McConnell denounced Trump’s involvement in the January 6 Capitol insurrection, after voting to acquit the former president in his second impeachment.
--Todd Lassa and Gary S. Vasilash
•••
Read and comment on our flash debate on the Culture Wars: San Francisco School Board v. Teaching Race this weekend at https://thehustings.news
Become a citizen pundit with your comments to editors@thehustings.news
On Monday, News & Notes becomes …meanwhile…
On Tuesday, 9 p.m. Eastern/6 p.m. Pacific, President Biden gives his State of the Union address. Watch along and send your comments to editors@thehustings.news … tell us whether your comments belong in the left or right column, https://thehustings.news
.