Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Petty moves from a petty man.

The only way through is to slog through the muck one step at at time.

So many bastards, so little time.

Republicans: “Abortion is murder but you can take a bus to get one.” Easy peasy.

Red lights blinking on democracy’s dashboard

Beware of advice from anyone for whom Democrats are “they” and not “we.”

The arc of the moral universe does not bend itself. it is up to us to bend it.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

Pessimism assures that nothing of any importance will change.

President Musk and Trump are both poorly raised, coddled 8 year old boys.

Their freedom requires your slavery.

Republicans do not trust women.

“I was told there would be no fact checking.”

Optimism opens the door to great things.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

Someone should tell Republicans that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent, or possibly the first.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

How stupid are these people?

This chaos was totally avoidable.

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.

Just because you believe it, that does not make it true.

You are here: Home / Foreign Affairs / War for Ukraine Day 372: Something Appears To Have Gone Boom Outside of Moscow

War for Ukraine Day 372: Something Appears To Have Gone Boom Outside of Moscow

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Ukrainska Pravda is reporting that there appears to have been an explosion in Kolomna, which is just southwest of Moscow:

An explosion occurred in the Russian city of Kolomna, Moscow Oblast, on the evening of 2 March. It is not yet known what exactly happened.

Source: Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti; BAZA and MASH Russian Telegram channels

Details: A powerful explosion was heard in the suburbs of Kolomna, a city just over 100 kilometres from the Russian capital Moscow.

Residents report that the sound was heard throughout the city.

Propagandists report that emergency services have arrived at the scene of the explosion.

There are no details of what happened yet.

You can hear the explosion at RIA Novosti’s telegram channel, which Ukrainska Pravda linked too. And yes, RIA Novosti is a Russian state controlled “news” media channel. The Jerusalem Post is also reporting the apparent explosion:

A large explosion was heard near the city of Kolomna, southeast of Moscow, on Thursday night, according to RIA Novosti.

The background of the incident is as of yet unclear. Emergency services arrived to the area after the explosion.

There’s a lot of speculation going on so far, as well as a lot of denials that there was an explosion at all. However, Kolomna, Moscow Oblast has one notable location. The company that makes the Iskander missiles, KB Mashinostroyeniya, is headquartered in Kolomna.

Now we wait for more information to be reported.

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump:

The occupier will inevitably feel our strength of justice – address by the President of Ukraine

2 March 2023 – 21:27

I wish you health, dear Ukrainians!

A brief report on the day.

I have just spoken with the President of Brazil. It was a useful conversation. We are resuming contacts between our countries at the highest level.

I informed him about Russia’s attacks against our people, about the killing of children, about the strikes on our civilian infrastructure.

I thanked Brazil for supporting our resolution on peace and territorial integrity for Ukraine.

We discussed diplomatic efforts to stop Russian aggression and restore peace for our country, the region, and the world.

In particular, international efforts to implement our Peace Formula.

Today I also spoke with the President of Switzerland. This is our first conversation with the new President.

I thanked him for the support package for Ukraine and our people. We discussed further bilateral cooperation and possible interaction on international platforms.

I heard that Switzerland is interested in implementing our Peace Formula. This is a very good signal.

I held a meeting of the Staff, which focused solely on the frontline and security situation.

The Commander-in-Chief made a general report. There was an intelligence report.

Detailed reports from specific combat areas, from the commanders of our groups of troops.

Khortytsia Operational and Strategic Group of Troops – key attention to Bakhmut.

Tavria Operational and Strategic Group of Troops – discussed the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia directions. General Tarnavskyi delivered a detailed report.

Today’s brutal Russian missile attack on Zaporizhzhia will face our military and legal response. The occupier will inevitably feel our strength. The strength of justice in every sense of the word.

And I want to thank all our rescuers who have been clearing the rubble of the house whose block was destroyed by the missile since the night before.

They managed to rescue 11 people, and more than 70 received help.

Two people are currently on the list of those killed. My condolences to the families!

Odesa Operational and Strategic Group of Troops – a report about the situation in the southern direction. In particular, the situation in Kherson and the region.

Of course, we do not ignore the north of our country, the border.

Commanders are well aware that their task is to do everything possible to suppress terrorist fire. And we are constantly working with our partners to increase the range of our capabilities.

Today, I signed several decrees awarding our warriors. In total, 847 defenders received state awards on this day.

Soldiers of our mechanized brigades, tankmen, artillerymen, marines, intelligence officers, Air Force, Special Operations Forces, territorial defense, the National Guard, the National Police, border guards, SBI and SES employees.

As of today, the number of our defenders whose bravery and efficiency have been recognized with state awards is over 40 thousand. I thank everyone who defends our country!

I am grateful to all those who daily accustom Russia to the idea that Ukraine cannot be broken.

We will endure. We will win. And we will bring all Russian terrorists to justice.

Glory to our warriors! 

Glory to Ukraine!

Here is former NAVDEVGRU Squadron Leader Chuck Pfarrer’s most recent assessment of the situations in Bakhmut and Kreminna:

Bakhmut:

Here’s the interview with English subtitles:

Vuhledar:

Zaporizhzhia:

Bellingcat has video and analysis of the Ukrainian drone attack on the RU AF A50:

You may have seen reporting that there was a false flag attack in Bryansk today. Or an attack that wasn’t. There was, it is not a false flag, but it’s complicated. Here’s some details:

Basically the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) are sketchy. Their founder and leader is a neo-NAZI. But they’re useful and largely deniable. And so you get this meshugas.

That’s enough for tonight.

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Open thread!

Reader Interactions

29Comments

  1. 1.

    Alison Rose

    Basically the Russian Volunteer Corps (RDK) are sketchy.

    I’m shocked, shocked to find…

    I appreciate people labeling russia’s war crimes for what they are, but at the same time, it seems that most of the world has decided wagging a finger and imposing minimal sanctions is about the sum total of punishment they’ll receive for it. Even once the war is over and Ukraine has won back all of its land, I don’t see a lot of urgency from many countries regarding pursuing penalties for all of it. I’d like to be proven wrong, but I fear I won’t be.

    On a lighter note, an ATM somewhere in Ukraine offers the user a choice of languages, but if you choose russian, you get a blue and yellow screen reading Слава Україні. The only option is to go back to the main menu by selecting a button labeled Героям слава. Perfecto.

    Thank you as always, Adam.

  2. 2.

    YY_Sima Qian

    When fighting for national survival, one typically can’t be very choosy about allies. As long as such extremist elements are marginalized in the effort & kept on a leash so that they do not target civilians or civilian infrastructure, it is not a big danger.

    More important that these elements are not allowed to enter positions of power during the post-invasion reconstruction. In that regard, I think Ukrainian ultra-nationalists (every country has then) need to be more closely watched.

  3. 3.

    NutmegAgain

    I’m feeling terrible for that town near Moscow. ::snerk:: not.

     

    Hard to go wrong with the Velvet Underground, although I might have chosen European Son, in the Defense of Ukraine tweet. Lyrics below. Oddly fitting, but that’s what they do.

    You killed your European son

    You spit on those under twenty-one

    But now your blue car’s gone

    You better say so long

    Hey hey, bye bye bye
    You made your wallpapers green

    You want to make love to the scene

    Your European son is gone

    You’d better say so long

    Your clown’s bid you goodbye

  4. 4.

    oldster

    I hit on the Iskander factory?

    OMG — let’s hope it’s true.

    Such beautiful poetic justice.

    Thanks as always, Adam.

  6. 6.

    lashonharangue

    Thanks Adam.  Am I understanding this correctly?  These are the few neo-nazis that were supposed to represent Ukraine according to Russia.  They were excluded from the regular military.  The UKR military intelligence thought they could use them – more for pysops purposes than actual impact.  And they would probably get themselves killed as a twofer. The neo-nazi gets to play out his violent fantasy and figures he will be a mission impossible hero that will look great politically post-war.

  7. 7.

    FelonyGovt

    The company that makes the Iskander missiles, KB Mashinostroyeniya, is headquartered in Kolomna.

    A long-ago coworker of mine might have said, “That’s an interesting aspect.”

  8. 8.

    YY_Sima Qian

    @Gin & Tonic: Absolutely, not saying otherwise. However, the historical experience of other countries fighting off existential threats do suggest that succumbing to ultra-nationalism is a real danger. Something to be vigilant about. In any case, I think Ukrainian popular sentiments will definitely be tempered by the process of EU accession.

  9. 9.

    FelonyGovt

    Glad that now that Brazil has non-fascist, non-insane leadership, their relations with Ukraine are hopefully back on track.

  10. 10.

    dimmsdale

    Just nodding in to say a big THANK YOU, Adam. Constant reader/lurker, wouldn’t miss these posts of yours. Love how you’ve managed to draw in a bunch of smart, well sourced commenters, too. With all these informed perspectives, I’m glad to be here soaking it all in. Thanks EVERYBODY!

  13. 13.

    Mallard Filmore

    @lashonharangue: 

    These are the few neo-nazis that were supposed to represent Ukraine according to Russia.

    According to the YouTuber Denys Davydov, these are RUSSIAN neo-nazis. Since they are operating out of Ukraine, I’m not sure if that changes Putin’s view of the situation.

    YouTube link: https://youtu.be/1Kl_BycXWc8

    video title: “Update from Ukraine | Civil war in Ruzzia | Opposition forces assault in Bryansk Region of Ruzzia”

  14. 14.

    Geminid

    CNN reported a story related to Ukraine’s grain exports. The USAID announced $44 million in investments to “support storage and infrastructure” for grain transport. Some will go to Danube basin ports at the southwestern Ukrainian cities of Ismail and Reni. Some will be invested in facilities at the eastern Slovakian city of Cierna nad Tisov, just across the Ukrainian border. There is a very extensive rail yard there because of the change from the wider Ukrain gauge to the standard European.

  17. 17.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Mallard Filmore: You need a scorecard to keep track.

    What the Bellingcat guy is alleging is that these are pro-Ukrainian (or at least anti-Putin) ethnically-russian neo-nazis. They may be tactically aligned with the far-right ethnically-Ukrainian nationalists (who may or may not be neo-nazis.) Do not confuse them with the anti-Ukrainian ethnically-russian neo-nazis.

  18. 18.

    Adam L Silverman

    @Gin & Tonic: You are correct. I read through the old reporting being linked to on the group and its leader. He’s Russian, from Russia, is anti-Putin Russia as it is currently constituted, and is a neo-NAZI who’d been living in Germany running a white supremacist mixed martial arts competition. They people in his militia/organization are ethnically Russian, one would gather they’re also neo-NAZIs, and they’re opposed to Putin and Russia as it is currently constituted.

    The whole thing is just weird!

  19. 19.

    zhena gogolia

    @Gin & Tonic: If they’re connected with the FSB (as one of those tweets asserts, I think, although my head is spinning), doesn’t that kind of make it a false flag? Apparently the Russian media is going hogwild with this one.

    ETA: Now I can’t find the tweet where I saw that.

  21. 21.

    Gin & Tonic

    @zhena gogolia: You know every Slav will view this as darkly and conspiratorially as possible. I’m going to wait a couple of days and see how it shakes out.

  23. 23.

    EZSmirkzz

    Hey Adam, not sure if you read Greg Palast, a lot of peeps don’t anymore,

    As a New York Tribune columnist, the abolitionist Karl Marx, wrote before the US Civil War, when some Britons supported the slavers: “History speaks twice; the first time as tragedy, the second as farce.”

    Indeed, there is a nauseating, horrifying humor watching one-time fighters against injustice, self-proclaimed “anti-war” activists, dancing cheek to cheek with Marjorie Taylor Greene, Ted Cruz, Tucker Carlson and fascist pin-up Silvio Berlusconi sharing their love, or at least, their sad excuse-making, for Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

    At its core, these strange bedfellows’ sympathy for the Russian invasion rests, ultimately, on the canard that it was NATO’s expansion that provoked Putin to attack.

    Pay attention to Putin’s own words.

    On July 12, 2021, months before his tanks rolled, Putin issued a detailed statement of his casus belli, his justification for total seizure of Ukraine, not just the Donbas, in a 21-page-long essay, “On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians.” No one should speak of this war unless they have read this, Putin’s Mein Kampf.

    His link didn’t work for me but this one does.

    Nowhere, nowhere, nowhere in his essay does Putin say one word about NATO expansion.

    That doesn’t mean it didn’t factor in, could just be Putin making a non emotional argument.

    One other thing you might find interesting,

    Lockheed executives told Reuters that investments made over the last year in their 282,000-square foot plant means that Lockheed only needs to make a few upgrades to meet increased production demands.

    Meanwhile, in an earnings call with investors, Lockheed’s CEO said, “On HIMARS specifically, we have already met with our long lead supply chain to plan for increasing production to 96 of these units per year.”

    After beginning with a HIMARS production rate of 48 launch platforms per year in 2022, Lockheed has since increased this figure to 60 annually.

    A good resource for OSINT sleuths or old farts with too much time on their hands is the Big Project, a massive collection of newspapers around the world written in English. 98% of information is redundant, but eventually they all come up with the 2% that may connect the dots. Hope it helps.

  24. 24.

    Chetan Murthy

    @EZSmirkzz:

    That doesn’t mean it [NATO] didn’t factor in, could just be Putin making a non emotional argument.

    It seems pretty obvious that NATO was a big part of why Putin invaded: once the CEE countries joined NATO, he could no longer threaten them militarily, and gosh that must have put the butthurt on.  After all, those lands are Russia’s — as is every land that Russia has ever occupied.  It’s like that Family Circus meme — “Dolly He hit me back!”

  25. 25.

    EZSmirkzz

    @Chetan Murthy:

    It seems like an integral part of his reasoning for sure, but politicians are always yanking  on the emotional issues of their target audience. I’m not a fan of emotional arguments.

    As Palast pointed out in his piece Kyiv was Russian when Russia didn’t exist.

    Along the line of John’s post up above, there is a tendency for people to read their perceptions into what other people are writing online.  I tend to discount emotional arguments, but especially when made by politicians or partisans as we term them now. No one’s an efing virgin in this stuff.

  26. 26.

    Hangö Kex

    @dimmsdale: ​

    Just nodding in to say a big THANK YOU, Adam. Constant reader/lurker, wouldn’t miss these posts of yours. Love how you’ve managed to draw in a bunch of smart, well sourced commenters, too. With all these informed perspectives, I’m glad to be here soaking it all in. Thanks EVERYBODY!

    Meant to post the same thing; quoting it instead. :)​

  27. 27.

    Hangö Kex

    re kabooms: I’d expect an increase when more explosives are manufactured, handled and transported (in a hurry) as must be the case with Russia ramping up ordnance production as best they can manage (i.e. not that well, one would believe or – at least – hope).

  28. 28.

    Bruce K in ATH-GR

    So the war appears to be coming home to Russia, huh? Vladimir Vladimirovich might do well to study historical precedents, specifically what happened pretty much every time in recorded history someone launched what they thought would be the proverbial “short victorious war”. The precedent of Tsar Nicholas II and the Russo-Japanese War might be particularly relevant…

  29. 29.

    VOR

    @YY_Sima Qian: When fighting for national survival, one typically can’t be very choosy about allies.

    Unfortunately true. Churchill was a long time anti-communist but worked with Stalin. He said “If Hitler invaded hell I would make at least a favourable reference to the devil in the House of Commons.”

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