Ukraine makes decision on mobilization
Kiev will not call up additional troops in response to Russia’s partial mobilization, a presidential adviser said
Ukraine will not announce additional mobilization in response to the referendums on joining Russia currently underway in the eastern part of the country, Mikhail Podolyak, adviser to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, told German TV program Tagesschau on Monday.
“We have already created reserves through the territorial defense system and will actively use these reserves. We should not announce additional mobilization today,” he told the outlet. “We have everything, and we are ready for more Russian troops.”
Podolyak insisted Ukraine was losing far fewer soldiers than Russia, echoing the words of Zelensky, who said last week that his army was suffering at least 50 daily casualties but that Russian losses dwarfed that figure by a factor of five. Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu had announced just days earlier that, while Russia has lost 6,000 troops since the beginning of the offensive in February, Ukraine has lost about 61,000. According to the Ukrainian side, about 55,000 Russian soldiers have been killed. According to the CIA, by the end of July Russia had lost more than 15,000 troops in Ukraine. British intelligence reported 20,000 deaths back in June.
The Ukrainian presidential adviser also claimed Russia uses 90% of its firepower destroying critical and civilian infrastructure and the civilians who need it, blaming its military for wiping out 1,200 settlements in areas Kiev has been shelling for eight years. Amnesty International had earlier criticized Ukraine for stationing its soldiers inside residential buildings, schools and hospitals, denouncing the use of civilians as human shields as a violation of international humanitarian law.
While Ukraine may not need additional manpower just yet, Podolyak said, a military victory would require tanks – and not the low-budget Soviet variety, either. Only “Western-style machines such as the Leopard 2” will do, he told his German audience.
Ukraine and Germany have locked horns over Berlin’s refusal to supply Leopards, with German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht declaring earlier this month that her country had reached its limit for supplying military aid, and could not give away more weapons without endangering its own security. Germany has already delivered Singer anti-aircraft missile systems, Gerard anti-aircraft gun tanks, and Panzerhaubitze 2000 self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine, but Kiev – and even some German officials – are unsatisfied with anything short of the Leopards.
Referendums on joining Russia are underway in the Russian-controlled eastern regions of Kherson and Zaporozhye as well as the independent Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. Moscow announced a partial mobilization last week.
https://www.rt.com/news/563573-ukraine-denies-mobilize-casualties-tanks/
Did China just have a military coup and is Xi Jinping missing? Here's why rumours are swirling
The rumours come ahead of a key political meeting of China's Communist Party next month, and as Chinese authorities announce a spate of high-profile sentences of top officials.
Rumours have been swirling online in recent days of activity in China, with unsubstantiated reports suggesting a military coup against President Xi Jinping.
Over the weekend, several Twitter accounts with thousands of followers shared unconfirmed rumours the president was under house arrest after being removed as the head of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA).
This has not been confirmed by any official source or state media.
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Evidence cited online included footage allegedly showing a convoy of military vehicles, reportedly up to 80 kilometres long, heading into Beijing, with reports of mass flight cancellations adding to speculation.
So, what do we actually know for sure?
The claims and who's making them
Rumours started appearing on social media following Mr Xi's recent appearance at a meeting of the eight-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
On 24 September, Indian politician Subramanian Swamy tweeted to his millions of followers: "New rumour to be checked out: Is Xi Jingping under house arrest in Beijing?
"When Xi was in Samarkand recently, the leaders of the Chinese Communist Party were supposed to have removed Xi from the Party’s in-charge of Army. Then house arrest followed. So goes the rumour."
Jennifer Zeng, a Chinese human rights activist with over 206,000 Twitter followers, posted a video which she claimed showed an 80-kilometre-long convoy of PLA military vehicles heading to Beijing.
"Meanwhile, rumour has it that #XiJingping was under house arrest after #CCP seniors removed him as head of PLA," she wrote on Twitter.
The video was widely shared on social media, including by Gordon Chang, author of a book titled 'The Coming Collapse of China'.
"This video of military vehicles moving to Beijing comes immediately after the grounding of 59 per cent of the flights in the country and the jailings of senior officials," he wrote on Twitter.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/did-china-just-have-a-military-coup-and-is-xi-jinping-missing-heres-why-rumours-are-swirling/jsh171vry
Turbines in One Part of Norway Are Falling Apart Because of…the Wind
Norway is awash in oil and gas. But the Norwegian government prefers renewables, including wind power. However, for turbines to work, two things need to happen. One, the wind needs to blow. And two, the turbines need to work. At the Ă…nstadblĂĄheia wind farm near Sortland, Norway, these two factors have combined to create a unique headache for the environmentally-minded.
The wind is blowing, so there’s that problem solved. But the farm’s turbines cannot handle it. Since 2020, at least seven parts of the turbines have fallen off during high winds. Life In Norway reports that the Norwegian Water Resources and Directive has given the farm until October 10 to fix the problem or shutter operations.
The site notes that there is a standard for turbine construction in Norway and that they must be able to handle harsh weather and, well, high wind. A power plant spokesman said that the wind and weather in the area create some of the toughest conditions to subject machinery to.
One of the favorite criticisms of wind power has been that the wind does not always blow. Well, that does not seem to be a problem in Sortland. Life in Norway notes that wind and ice have caused panels and covers to fall to the ground. If the wind is so strong that it’s blowing pieces off these things, exactly where is all this junk landing? Is it hitting cars? Hikers? Wildlife? Technicians are on the job as you read this, hoping to have the turbines operational and safe before the drop-dead date.
In the United States, before a company can drill for resources, there are at least feasibility studies, environmental impact studies, and countless reviews. I would think that Norway would have something like that in place. Didn’t anyone at least do a study of the conditions in the area or the quality of the equipment before putting the things up? Or did they just say, “Green is good! Get those turbines up right now!”
Ironically, CNS News reported back in July that a wind turbine in Sweden collapsed, and people were urged to avoid it because it was leaking — wait for it — oil. Turns out, much to the surprise of environmentally conscious Swedes, oil is pretty darn important for making sure that the gearboxes of wind turbines function as they should. The article quoted Patricia Pitsel, Ph.D., Principal at Pitsel & Associates Ltd., who said the average wind farm needs around 12,000 gallons of oil.
Someone better call Wile E. Coyote to see if he has any old ACME parts lying around. Or maybe get some duct tape.
https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/lincolnbrown/2022/09/26/turbines-in-one-part-of-norway-are-falling-apart-because-ofthe-wind-n1632399
Chinese National Convicted of Acting Within the United States as an Unregistered Agent of the People’s Republic of China
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/chinese-national-convicted-acting-within-united-states-unregistered-agent-people-s