Ukraine War Update NEWS: Military Aid & Geopolitical News
Table of Contents 📖
"Elon Musk I'm telling you now you're a twat and I don't want to be so puerile on this geopolitical channel but you don't deserve to platform yourself and give those incorrect opinions out to millions of people to suck them up it's irresponsible."
Hello Team
🎦 00:00- 00:25
Jonathan welcomes viewers to another video and explains that this video covers the bits and pieces that didn’t make it into the first part of the update. He’s starting with news from Russia.
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Queues to pay respects to Navalny
🎦 00:25-01:02⏩
Jonathan reports that there are significant queues to pay respects to recently buried Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, 48 hours after he was buried and hopes that this will lead to more dissent and a movement for democracy in Russia. Jonathan also encourages viewers to watch the “excellent” Oscar-winning documentary Navalny.
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Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom
🎦 01:02-01:53⏩
Jonathan digresses to recommend the Netflix documentary Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom. He explains that it’s one of the best documentaries he’s ever seen and says that it gives him hope for humanity. He adds that Winter on Fire provides context about the current war in Ukraine, saying that it provides an understanding of “where Ukraine are at now”. He encourages viewers to share their feedback on the documentary.
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Unrest in Ingushetia and Karabakh
🎦 01:53-02:53⏩
Jonathan reports heavy gunfights and explosions in the republics of Ingushetia and Karabakh, currently part of the Russian Federation. He reports that Russian FSB (Federal Security Services of the Russian Federation) units are exchanging fire with “militants”.
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Ukrainian Fortifications
🎦 02:53-06:35⏩
Jonathan reports that the Ukrainian military is building huge fortifications across Donbas and Zaporizhzhia Oblast. He is pleased that Ukraine is finally doing this, but questions whether it’s “too little too late”. He shows a map of Avdiivka (created with the help of PlayFar on Discord) showing that the Russians have reached the first line of defense, but are yet to reach more significant defenses. Jonathan also reports on defenses in Olivka, Tonenka, Ivanovska, Kurakhova and along the Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
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Ukrainian Counteroffensive Near Avdiivka
🎦 06:35-06:56⏩
Jonathan reports that a Russian source has said that the Ukrainians are no longer fleeing from the Avdiivka area. Instead, Ukrainian reserves are attempting to recapture areas previously lost. Jonathan suggests that the Ukrainians are fighting hard over places like Olivka and along the line of defence along the river.
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Elon Musk’s Comments about NATO
🎦 06:56-12:46⏩
Jonathan rants about Elon Musk’s comments about NATO. He’s angry about Musk’s recent comments about why NATO still exists. Musk had agreed with a tweet from David Sacks, who said that NATO has been looking for a reason to exist ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Jonathan disagrees, explaining that the Warsaw Pact was formed in response to NATO, not the other way round, and brands Musk a “plonker”, “a twat” and “an absolute []”. He points out that Ukraine wanted to join NATO for protection from Russia. Jonathan highlights a comment from another Twitter (X) user James, who posted a map of Ukraine being invaded by Russia with the comment: “Yeah man sure is an effing mystery why people would want to join NATO”. Jonathan agrees, adding: “Why would NATO exist? Oh, Russia has invaded Ukraine. That's why Ukraine wanted to be a part of NATO, because it would have provided them national security. They weren't a part of NATO, so it didn't. So Russia felt they could invade it. That's the freaking point of NATO, you idiots.” Jonathan criticises Musk for expressing his opinions to millions of people: “Elon Musk I'm telling you now you're a twat and I don't want to be so puerile on this geopolitical channel but you don't deserve to platform yourself and give those incorrect opinions out to millions of people to suck them up it's irresponsible.” Jonathan explains that the Latvian president has even taken to Twitter to call Musk out on his comments. Jonathan is angry that Musk is expressing Pro-Russia, pro-China sentiment because he relies on the two countries for raw materials for his businesses. He concludes: “But even then, if someone's so morally egregious here, they can be good at doing some stuff with spaceships over there, but it doesn't stop them, it doesn't stop me saying, ostensibly, you're an absolute [], right, but I don't care if you're good at spaceship things, like, if I met you in a pub, I would be really hard-pressed not to shout in your face. Because as a human being, you've got it all wrong. You've got your moral political evaluations completely wrong.”
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Military Aid to Ukraine
🎦 12:46-18:52⏩
Jonathan reports on the following military and humanitarian aid recently provided to Ukraine:
- Finland is calling on the West to increase arms supplies to Ukraine.
- Germany has delivered 50,000 first aid kits out of a total of 500,000 planned.
- Australia has sent 14 HMT Extender Mark II special purpose vehicles.
- Jonathan refers to the Answering the Call article by Oryx, updated with information provided by Stijn Mitzer, that lists equipment provided to Ukraine. Recent additions include six CAESAR 155mm self-propelled howitzers from France and 2 MEKO 17 helicopters from Austria and Argentina.
- The Czech Republic has pledged nine DANA 2 self-propelled howitzers.
- Sweden has pledged 10 Combat Boat 90 (CB90) combat boats and 20 smaller boats.
- Germany has pledged 18 Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers, 18 RCH 155 howitzers, 9 DAX armoured engineer vehicles, 2 Skynex air defence systems, 20 Caracal 4x4 vehicles and 12 CAESAR howitzers.
- France has pledged 12 CAESAR 155mm 6x6 howitzers.
- The UK will supply tracks and drive sprockets for Ukraine’s Soviet-era MTLB, BMP and T-72 vehicles. Cook Defence Systems reverse engineered the parts, using incomplete Soviet-era drawings and specimens from Ukraine and the UK’s Tank Museum.
- British farmers have donated 27 pickup trucks and SUVs filled with humanitarian aid as part of the Pickups for Peace project.
British Jackal Drone
🎦 18:52-21:11⏩
Jonathan reports on a new British-made combat drone, the Jackal, which he says will “challenge a battlefield forever”. Development began in 2022 and the drone has already received hundreds of pre-orders from other countries. The drone can fire anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) “without major recoil” and has a five metre wingspan, allowing it to carry a significant payload. The Jackal can be adapted for different missions and weapons systems thanks to a ‘plug-and-play system’. It also features Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS), Sub-Theatre Battle Group Level, multi-spectral sensors for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, and stealth technology.
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Slovakia’s Pro-Russia Stance
🎦 21:11-22:23⏩
Jonathan reports that Slovakia has been criticised for its Pro-Russia stance, including its foreign minister shaking hands with Sergei Lavrov in Turkey. He is critical of Slovakia’s behaviour: “What are you doing Slovakia? You are moving away from the EU, you're moving away from NATO, you're moving into the sphere of influence of Russia, there’s surely going to be some ramifications to this.” He reports that Italy has withdrawn its SAMP/T air defence system from Slovakia, supposedly because it’s “needed elsewhere”. Jonathan hopes this means that it is going to Ukraine and has little sympathy for the Slovakian’s predicament.
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Russia Intercepting Communications
🎦 22:23-25:40⏩
Jonathan reports that Russia is using intercepted information, including from an unsecured call involving German military figures, to interfere with elections and decision-making in the West. He says that Russia has likely collected a vast amount of sensitive information and is using it to shape political dynamics in its favour. This includes “blowing up the Crimea bridge”. He highlights that a Republican US lawmaker recently stated that Russia has “kompromat” (compromising information) on US politicians and is using it to influence decision-making, for example, decisions about aid for Ukraine. Jonathan rants about how Russia is able to interfere with Western elections with impunity, whereas it works the other way around: “We can't disinform their population. I mean, there's nothing their population can do. They've got such an iron grip on the internal security services in Russia, the Kremlin, that it's a one-way thing, this. So Russia will be absolutely screwing over democratic institutions, processes, and discourse around the world, in Europe, in the UK, in the US, in Latin America. They will be doing that, and they will be doing that with almost impunity.”
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Russia’s Playbook: Moldova and Ukraine
🎦 25:40-28:04⏩
Jonathan reports that Moldova is preparing for elections in October and that the Pro-Russia opposition is looking to increase its standing, helped by Russian interference. Jonathan explains that this is “the playbook” that has been used before, citing Russia’s 1992 invasion of Moldova to establish the unrecognised Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR). He explains that Russia is using the same justification for its actions in Ukraine as it used for Moldova in 1992 - that they are there to fight fascists and protect Russian speakers. Jonathan believes that Russia will invade Moldova again, emboldened by the lack of Western response to previous actions in Chechnya, Georgia, South Ossetia, and Ukraine. He rants about how US politicians cite irrelevant issues (like the southern border wall) to avoid sending aid to Ukraine, which plays into Russia’s hands: “And meanwhile, Putin's going, oh, man, oh, they did the southern border thing. Oh, we're just doing what we did in Georgia and Chechnya and Moldova. And do you know what? We'll do it again in Moldova. And they won't do anything about it because they're freaking powerless because they live in basically democracies that we can manipulate.”
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Polish Farmers Blockading the Border
🎦 28:04-29:11⏩
Jonathan reports that Polish farmers have blockaded six border crossings with Ukraine, preventing 2,400 trucks, including six carrying military equipment, from entering the country. Jonathan is furious: “Okay, this makes me super angry as well like all six directions on Ukraine's border with Poland are blocked, who's this helping? Oh yeah, Putin. That's who it's helping.” He rants about the theft of Ukrainian grain by Russia, while Polish farmers complain about the impact of Ukrainian grain on European markets. He highlights the irony: “Widescale theft of Ukrainian grain. Meanwhile, complaining about Ukrainian grain getting into European markets. And Russia's busily stealing Ukrainian grain and shipping it out the Black Sea.”
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Lithuania to Confiscate Russian Vehicles
🎦 29:11-29:19⏩
Jonathan praises the Baltic states for their support of Ukraine: “Thank goodness for the Baltic states. They seem to know where things are at”. He reports that Lithuania is demanding that all cars with Russian number plates leave the country by 11 March or face confiscation. Vehicles travelling to and from the Kaliningrad Oblast will be exempt, but only permitted to remain in Lithuania for a maximum of 24 hours.
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China to Mediate in Ukraine
🎦 29:19-29:59⏩
Jonathan reports that the Chinese ambassador to Russia recently visited Moscow to discuss the war in Ukraine with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s deputy. The ambassador is also planning to visit the EU, Poland, Ukraine, Germany, and France. Jonathan is pleased: “That is not just a case of going to Russia and trying to do things just bilaterally there. There is a larger project going on there. I just hope that's for the good of Ukraine.”
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US 2024 Presidential Election
🎦 29:59-35:26⏩
Jonathan reports that Donald Trump has won the Republican Primaries in Missouri, Idaho, and Michigan, putting him one step closer to the Republican nomination. Jonathan is unsurprised given that the GOP appears to be fully behind Trump. He expresses concern about a potential second term for Trump, given that a significant number of Republicans voted for his rival, Nikki Haley, and have stated their intention not to vote for Trump in the presidential election. He points out that Trump will need the support of these voters if he is to win. Jonathan questions Trump’s cognitive abilities, arguing that, although Biden has been the focus of the media narrative, analysis of his recent speech in North Carolina reveals significant cognitive decline. He adds: “And it doesn't surprise me. The man must be under huge amounts of pressure given the legal issues he's, he's in like goodness me, that stress [would ] anyone out so, yeah. I guess it's not surprising, but don't have double standards and say, ‘oh, you know, look at Biden's decline’ and then ignore Trump's own cognitive issues. He has got some serious cognitive shortfalls at the moment and they're very publicly on show.” Jonathan is concerned by Biden’s age and some of his recent gaffes, including accidentally saying “Ukraine” instead of “Gaza”. However, he is concerned by Trump’s increasingly evident cognitive decline and use of “childish” language. He concludes: “It's just such a shame that, that the US is, is a, the, the election in November is a choice between two particularly old people that I don't think are the best choices for president of the US. It's such, such a shame. Um, I'd have Jamie Raskin any day of the week uh, but there you go, uh, that's my opinion.”
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Wrap Up
🎦 35:26-35:29⏩
Jonathan signs off, telling viewers to “take care”.
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