Three quick housekeeping notes. First, Rosie is doing great. Thank you all for the good thoughts, well wishes, prayers, and donations.

Second, Helene is passing us to the west. We’ve got wind gusts and rain and that’s about it. But in case the power decides to flicker a bit, let alone go out, I’m going to just power through and get as much in as I can.

Third, last night in comments way2blue asked:

A bit off topic.  But I would be quite interested in understanding how Rosie’s treatment works.  I’d never imagined such a long involved chemotherapy treatment.  How will you know if she’s gone into remission once it’s finished?  Thanks.

Rosie has lymphoma. The treatment for dogs is essentially the same for humans, but the intention is not to knock everything back completely including her immune system. Rather, it is to knock the lymphoma into remission. In Rosie’s case, she went into remission very quickly. The oncology vet estimated about 80% after the first treatment and in full remission by the third treatment. The survivability – as in how much time the treatment buys a dog in terms of post treatment longevity is about 12 months or so on average. Rosie will turn fourteen in November. She’s in otherwise great shape for a fourteen year old lab mix, but we’ll see how much additional time the treatment has bought her. My goal, and I was very clear with the oncology vet and my regular vet, is to do what is right for Rosie. Had she not been in excellent shape for a 13 and 1/2 year old lab mix, we’d have just done the high dose prednisone and then hospice/palliative to keep her comfortable and happy and let her go. When the time comes, that will happen. We will have to wait and see how much quality time the chemo has bought her.

After the Russians finished attacking Ukraine with the drone swarms last night, they switched over to Kinzhals this morning:

After a night of drone attacks—some shot down right above my head—Russia is now launching Kinzhals. And no, this isn’t because Ukraine is demolished and people are dead. We’re alive and fighting, and Russia is desperate to crush Ukraine and to break the unity of support pic.twitter.com/naTa5wpQVD

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) September 26, 2024

President Zelenskyy was in DC today meeting with President Biden and Vice President Harris. He has, as of 7:41 PM EDT, not made any addresses today.

During the meeting with @POTUS, I presented the Victory Plan to him. We discussed details to strengthen the Plan, coordinated our positions, views, and approaches, and tasked our teams with holding consultations on the next steps.

We deeply appreciate that Ukraine and the United… pic.twitter.com/ow67qHZqF9

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 26, 2024

During the meeting with @POTUS, I presented the Victory Plan to him. We discussed details to strengthen the Plan, coordinated our positions, views, and approaches, and tasked our teams with holding consultations on the next steps.

We deeply appreciate that Ukraine and the United States have stood side by side since the very beginning of the Russian invasion. Your determination is incredibly important for us to prevail.

🇺🇦🇺🇸

I shared the details of the Victory Plan with Vice President @KamalaHarris. It is very important for us to be fully understandable and work in full coordination with the United States.

We must end this war and achieve a just peace. We must protect our people – Ukrainian… pic.twitter.com/ihS1JrAzKk

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 26, 2024

I shared the details of the Victory Plan with Vice President @KamalaHarris. It is very important for us to be fully understandable and work in full coordination with the United States.

We must end this war and achieve a just peace. We must protect our people – Ukrainian families, Ukrainian children – and everyone from Putin’s evil. We are grateful to America for supporting Ukraine throughout this time.

VP Harris points out that “there are some in my country who [want] to force Ukraine to give up large parts of its sovereign territory…these proposals are the same as those of Putin. Let us be be clear. They are not proposals for peace. Instead, they are proposals for surrender” pic.twitter.com/N6oFYvH1Hm

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 26, 2024

President Zelenskyy also met with a bipartisan group of senators and then a bipartisan group of representatives earlier today as well.

President Biden issued a statement on US support for Ukraine prior to meeting with President Zelenskyy.

September 26, 2024

Statement from President JoeBiden on U.S. Support forUkraine

I am proud to welcome President Zelenskyy back to the White House today. For nearly three years, the United States has rallied the world to stand with the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom from Russian aggression, and it has been a top priority of my Administration to provide Ukraine with the support it needs to prevail. In that time, Ukraine has won the battle of Kyiv, reclaimed more than half the territory that Russia seized at the start of the war, and safeguarded its sovereignty and independence. But there is more work to do. That is why, today, I am announcing a surge in security assistance for Ukraine and a series of additional actions to help Ukraine win this war.

Today, I am announcing that:

• I have directed the Department of Defense to allocate all of its remaining security assistance funding that has been appropriated for Ukraine by the end of my term in office. As part of this effort, the Department of Defense will allocate the remaining Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative funds by the end of this year. I also have authorized $5.5 billion in Presidential Drawdown Authority to ensure this authority does not expire, so that my Administration can fully utilize the funding appropriated by Congress to support the drawdown of U.S. equipment for Ukraine and then replenish U.S. stockpiles.
• The Department of Defense is announcing $2.4 billion in security assistance through the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which will provide Ukraine with additional air defense, Unmanned Aerial Systems, and air-to-ground munitions, as well as strengthen Ukraine’s defense industrial base and support its maintenance and sustainment requirements.
• To enhance Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities, I have decided to provide Ukraine with the Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) long-range munition.
• To further strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses, I have directed the Department of Defense to refurbish and provide Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense battery and to provide Ukraine with additional Patriot missiles. This builds on my decision earlier this year to divert U.S. air defense exports to Ukraine, which will provide Ukraine with hundreds of additional Patriot and AMRAAM missiles over the next year and will help Ukraine defend its cities and its people.
• To build the capacity of Ukraine’s air force, I have directed the Department of Defense to expand training for Ukrainian F-16 pilots, including by supporting the training of an additional 18 pilots next year.
• To counter Russian sanctions evasion and money laundering, the Department of Justice, the Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Secret Service have taken action today to disrupt a global cryptocurrency network, in coordination with international partners. The United States will continue to raise the costs on Russia for its war in Ukraine and to deprive the Russian defense industrial base of resources.
• I will convene a leader-level meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Germany next month to coordinate the efforts of the more than 50 countries supporting Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression.

Through these actions, my message is clear: The United States will provide Ukraine with the support it needs to win this war.

A number of reporters and subject matter experts have suggested this is the first time that President Biden actually used the word “win” in regard to Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s genocidal re-invasion. I don’t have time to go verify that.

I am grateful to @POTUS Joe Biden, U.S. Congress and its both parties, Republicans and Democrats, as well as the entire American people for today’s announcement of major U.S. defense assistance for Ukraine totalling $7.9 billion and sanctions against Russia.

On behalf of the…

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) September 26, 2024

I am grateful to @POTUS Joe Biden, U.S. Congress and its both parties, Republicans and Democrats, as well as the entire American people for today’s announcement of major U.S. defense assistance for Ukraine totalling $7.9 billion and sanctions against Russia.

On behalf of the Ukrainian people and our brave warriors on the front lines, I thank our closest ally, the United States, for finding a way to allocate the remaining security assistance to Ukraine and ensure that the Presidential authority is not expired by the end of the US financial year.

We will use this assistance in the most efficient and transparent manner to achieve our major common goal: victory for Ukraine, just and lasting peace, and transatlantic security.

I am grateful to the United States for providing the items that are most critical to protecting our people. An additional Patriot air defense battery, other air defense capabilities and interceptors, drones, long-range missiles, and air-to-ground munitions, as well as funds to strengthen Ukraine’s defense industrial base.

I also appreciate the decision to expand programs to train more of our pilots to fly F-16s, as well as the strong sanctions measures imposed to further limit Russia’s ability to fund its aggression against Ukraine.

Ukraine and the United States remain close allies dedicated to defending freedom, human life, and shared security in Europe and beyond. We have always valued the strong bipartisan support in the United States and among Americans for Ukraine’s just cause of defeating Russian aggression.

The US Department of Defense @DeptofDefense has announced an additional security assistance package for Ukraine, which has an estimated value of $375 million.
The capabilities in this package include:
• Air-to-ground munitions
• Ammunition for HIMARS
• 155mm and 105mm… pic.twitter.com/QHIvSqRPca

— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) September 26, 2024

The US Department of Defense @DeptofDefense has announced an additional security assistance package for Ukraine, which has an estimated value of $375 million.
The capabilities in this package include:
• Air-to-ground munitions
• Ammunition for HIMARS
• 155mm and 105mm artillery ammunition
• TOW missiles
• Javelin and AT-4 anti-armor systems
• M1117 Armored Security Vehicles
• MRAP Vehicles
• Light tactical vehicles
• Armored bridging systems
• Small arms
• Patrol boats
• Demolitions equipment and munitions
• Spare parts, ancillary equipment, services, training, and transportation

We are grateful to our American partners for their unwavering support!
Together, we are stronger!
🇺🇦🤝🇺🇸

🇺🇦🤝🇺🇸
The US has announced a historic security assistance package for Ukraine, which totals up to $7,9 billion.
The package includes additional Patriot air defense battery and missiles, JSOW long-range munition, training for Ukrainian F-16 pilots and other critical… pic.twitter.com/YzVWvwm7I5

— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) September 26, 2024

🇺🇦🤝🇺🇸
The US has announced a historic security assistance package for Ukraine, which totals up to $7,9 billion.
The package includes additional Patriot air defense battery and missiles, JSOW long-range munition, training for Ukrainian F-16 pilots and other critical capabilities.
We are grateful to our American friends for their ironclad support. Together, we will win!

While they’ve gotten themselves out of the “we have to do something before the end of the federal fiscal year” crack they’d wedged themselves into, don’t count on much of the above getting to Ukraine any time soon.

The admin had about 4 more days to commit the remaining ~5.9 billion in presidential drawdown authority before it expired at the end of Sept. But the actual shipment of weapons will likely be delayed because of dwindling stockpiles: https://t.co/hTdd80XnUk https://t.co/n7vf6XShVz

— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) September 26, 2024

CNN has the details:

The US plans to announce billions of dollars for Ukraine in the coming days, committing the funding before it expires after Congress failed to include an extension for the aid in its stopgap measure to keep the government open, according to two defense officials and several congressional sources.

The first of the military aid packages, which is expected as soon as Wednesday, will total $375 million, according to the defense officials. From there, the value of the packages will rise sharply, with less than a week before the remainder of the authority expires. Although the packages will be announced in the near future, the shipment of weapons will be delayed because of dwindling stockpiles in the weapons and equipment that the US is willing to send Ukraine, as CNN previously reported.

With days left until the Ukraine aid authority expires, the Biden administration was still looking at a way to extend the authority through the end of the year. The plan requires the administration to obligate the funds to Ukraine before they expire at the end of the month, which would then give the US more time to announce specific aid packages.

“We are committed to making sure Ukraine gets the resources Congress approved before the end of the President’s term and we will have more details to provide soon,” a third defense official said.

The Biden administration has nearly $6 billion left in what’s known as presidential drawdown authority to deliver arms and equipment to Ukraine before it expires at the end of the month. The Pentagon was pushing Congress to extend the authority into the next fiscal year so that it would not expire, which would give the US more flexibility in its ability to provide critical supplies to support Ukraine in its war with Russia.

Congressional leaders were forced to leave the language out of the spending bill because of internal resistance from the House GOP, according to a person familiar with the matter. House Republicans remain deeply divided over funding for Ukraine

Zelensky has repeatedly called on the US and other countries to deliver more weapons to Ukraine and has pushed for the US to loosen its restrictions on the use of US weapons against targets deep inside Russia.

CNN reported last week that the US was considering announcing large military aid packages to Ukraine that would be delivered over the course of months. In the past, military aid packages under presidential drawdown authority were often delivered within days or weeks.

But with billions in military aid set to expire, the US is expected to announce large overall aid package and space out the delivery of supplies and equipment over several months, turning a short-term supply line into a longer-term commitment.

Almost three years into this phase of the war and the US’s defense industrial base is still incapable of doing much of anything.

This is true: the longer we allow the axis of revisionist states to do unthinkable things with impunity, the likelier we will end up with more war and larger war. https://t.co/AAnHDpuGmD

— Edward Hunter Christie (@EHunterChristie) September 26, 2024

Unfortunately, we still don’t have positive movement regarding Ukraine’s use of US produced long range weaponry or other state’s long range weaponry made with US components.

Russian nuclear saber rattling while Zelenskyy visits the UN & DC is a non-story.
This is a tired old Kremlin scare tactic. Yet it still works on many, including Biden. So Russia keeps exploiting that weakness. Western fear is Russia’s greatest weapon. Our fear prolongs this war.

— Jessica Berlin (@berlin_bridge) September 26, 2024

Argument against Ukraine striking inside Russia to avoid escalation is wearing thin—Russia’s already escalating. In my first article for @FPRI, I explain why limiting Ukraine’s strikes only plays into Moscow’s hands.https://t.co/0fKmAjUm2E

— Maria Avdeeva (@maria_avdv) September 26, 2024

From The Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI):

On a sunny Sunday afternoon, August 30, Russia launched five glide bombs toward Kharkiv. One bomb obliterated the entrance of a twelve-story residential building, where a seventy-one-year-old burned alive. Another killed a fourteen-year-old girl sitting on a bench in a park, leaving six people dead in total. In September, Russia began showering Kharkiv with deadly glide bombs almost daily, most targeting densely populated residential areas. These bombs were launched from fighter jets just across the border in Russia’s Belgorod region, leaving Kharkiv residents no chance to take cover because of its close proximity. These brutal assaults have turned Kharkiv into a symbol of daily terror but also a powerful emblem of Ukraine’s resilience, underscoring with brutal clarity that limiting Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied weapons is neither viable nor effective.

As Russia escalates its aggression, the question is no longer whether Ukraine should be allowed to strike deep into Russian territory, but when. The time to lift restrictions on Ukraine’s use of Western-supplied weapons to target Russia’s military infrastructure is long overdue. During his visit to the United States, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will likely push to secure guarantees before the upcoming US elections, “while all the officials who want the victory of Ukraine are in official positions.” Among Kyiv’s urgent requests is the ability to use British, French, and Italian Storm Shadow missiles, as well as US-made Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) to strike airbases and other critical military targets inside Russia.

Speaking from aboard a plane en route to a Pennsylvania ammunition factory producing some of Ukraine’s most urgently needed munitions, Zelensky announced that he is to present a victory plan to President Joe Biden and other Western leaders. A week earlier, Russia’s representative to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, issued an ultimatum. Any decision by NATO countries to allow Ukraine to use long-range weapons to strike inside Russia would be seen as a direct act of war by NATO against Russia. “The facts are that NATO will be a direct party to hostilities against a nuclear power,” Nebenzia warned. His remarks echoed earlier threats made by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has repeatedly claimed that such an agreement would mark NATO’s formal entry into the war.

Russia has consistently employed reflexive control tactics, leveraging threats and diplomatic manipulations to sway Western decision-making. This strategy relies on deliberately ambiguous nuclear warnings to amplify perceived danger. By playing on the fear of escalation, Russia seeks to undermine Western resolve and restrain support for Kyiv at pivotal junctures.

As the war approaches its third year anniversary, the challenges in Ukraine are expected to grow “deeper and harsher,” especially heading into late 2025 and beyond. The current policy of restraint is becoming increasingly outdated and counterproductive. Lifting the ban on Ukraine striking deep into Russian territory is not only long overdue—it is crucial for several key reasons.

The Escalation Argument Has Lost its Power

One of the primary reasons the West has maintained the restriction on Ukraine using Western weapons to strike inside Russia has been the fear of escalation. NATO countries, particularly the United States, have been cautious about actions that could be interpreted as direct involvement in the war. The Biden administration has repeatedly emphasized its goal: helping Ukraine defend itself without triggering a broader NATO-Russia conflict.

However, the reality is that escalation has already happened, and much of it has been initiated by Russia. Moscow has systematically broadened the scope of the war by acquiring more advanced weaponry, including Iranian ballistic missiles, and ramping up its strikes on Ukrainian cities, energy infrastructure, and civilian targets. Recent missile and glide bomb attacks launched from Russian territory into Ukraine—especially the daily bombardments of Kharkiv—demonstrate Russia’s increasing aggression. One of the deadliest attacks, the bombing of Kharkiv’s Epicenter home improvement store and the Factor Druk printing house in May 2024, highlighted the growing destruction and sophistication of Moscow’s campaign.

Russia’s arsenal now also includes supplies from North Korea, with reports confirming ballistic missile shipments. These were used in assaults such as the August 18 attack on Kyiv. Meanwhile, Moscow continues to devastate Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, targeting its capacity to generate electricity and heating ahead of the winter months. The systematic destruction of Ukraine’s energy system, which began intensifying in the spring of 2024, has already wiped out over two-thirds of Ukraine’s generation capacity. The coming winter threatens to be the most difficult yet for Ukraine’s energy sector, as Russia’s ongoing strikes continue to destabilize the country.

In this context, the argument that Ukraine should avoid striking inside Russia to prevent escalation rings increasingly hollow. Russia is already escalating. Limiting Ukraine’s ability to respond effectively only weakens its defense and emboldens Moscow.

In reality, none of the steps the West has already taken—or is considering doing—would trigger a nuclear response based on Russia’s own nuclear doctrine. By that same doctrine, however, Ukraine’s recent incursion into Russia’s Kursk region could have generated a nuclear response, as it constituted an attack on what Russia considers its territorial integrity. In fact, some experts suggest that Ukraine’s offensive in Kursk was partly intended to send a message to the West: Putin’s so-called red lines can be crossed without provoking major retaliation, such as nuclear strikes. The move aimed to expose Russia’s nuclear threats as bluster and push Western countries to recognize that many of these threats are hollow.

More at the link.

President Zelenskyy has also extended his trip a day so he can meet with Trump who, along with his supporters, are performing upset over Zelenskyy’s visit to a munitions factory in Scranton, PA last week. Trump, or Dan Scavino who posts as Trump on his social media accounts, appears to have posted communications between Zelenskyy’s team and Trump regarding the meeting.

Donald Trump just published a screenshot of what appears to be internal communication between Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his team. https://t.co/UQBnSrkR5Q

— Ostap Yarysh (@OstapYarysh) September 26, 2024

Volodymyr Zelenskyy seeks to contain Republican backlash over US visit via @FT
https://t.co/BlIuniecjl

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) September 26, 2024

From The Financial Times:

Donald Trump has said he will meet Volodymyr Zelenskyy in New York on Friday, despite a Republican backlash against the Ukrainian president’s lobbying efforts in the US this week.

Zelenskyy had been trying to soothe US Republicans including Trump and House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson who had reacted furiously to the Ukrainian president’s courting of Democrats this week in an attempt to secure more support for Kyiv’s position against Russia.

“I hate to see the carnage,” Trump said on Thursday while claiming he would “quite quickly” strike a peace deal between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“As you know President Zelenskyy has asked to meet me and I will be meeting with him tomorrow morning at around 9:45 in Trump Tower,” the Republican former president added in a press conference in New York.

Trump’s comments came after Zelenskyy wrote to Trump asking for a meeting to discuss Ukraine’s pursuit of a “just peace”.

The Republican presidential candidate posted Zelenskyy’s letter on his social media platform earlier on Thursday.

“You know I always speak with great respect about everything connected to you,” Zelenskyy wrote. “I would really like for our meeting to take place as part of our efforts to end this war in a just way.”

The exchange marked an attempt by the Ukrainian leader to regain his footing after Trump and others expressed anger at Zelenskyy for focusing his diplomacy on Democratic politicians in the middle of the US election campaign.

The furore erupted after the US announced another $8bn package of aid for Ukraine backed by Republicans.

The Republican backlash caused consternation in Kyiv, where Zelenskyy’s allies accused officials of bungling the US trip at a crucial moment for Ukraine, which has lost ground to Russian forces in the eastern Donbas region.

A former Ukrainian official said: “It looks like the Republicans were looking for ways to create a scandal but we should have avoided giving them the opportunity. The Republicans will still be strong in Washington. They can block everything.”

Ukraine’s president earlier on Thursday expressed his gratitude to “Joe Biden, US Congress and both its parties, Republicans and Democrats, as well as the entire American people” for the fresh aid.

“We have always valued the strong bipartisan support in the United States and among Americans for Ukraine’s just cause of defeating Russian aggression,” he wrote on social media.

Trump lashed out at the Ukrainian leader on Wednesday, accusing him of refusing any negotiation with Russia and claiming Zelenskyy had cast “aspersions” about him.

Johnson demanded the resignation of Ukraine’s ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova, who organised Zelenskyy’s visit to an arms factory in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where he was accompanied only by Democrats. Pennsylvania is a swing state in November’s presidential election.

“The tour was clearly a partisan campaign event designed to help Democrats and is clearly election interference,” Johnson wrote in a letter to the Ukrainian leader.

Zelenskyy had intended to use his US trip to present his so-called victory plan for strengthening Ukraine’s military and diplomatic position to Biden, Trump and Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate.

He met Harris and Biden at the White House on Thursday, where the vice-president took veiled aim at Trump and his running mate JD Vance, implying they would “force Ukraine to give up large parts” of its land and “require Ukraine to forgo security”.

Speaking alongside Zelenskyy, she added: “They are proposals for surrender, which is dangerous and unacceptable”.

Trump on Thursday denied his vision for ending the war amounted to surrender.

“It’s not a surrender . . . my strategy is to save lives,” he said, adding that his message to Zelenskyy would be: “We need peace. We need to stop the death and destruction.”

The $8bn package unveiled by the White House comprises $2.4bn in new assistance and $5.6bn already earmarked for Ukraine and includes a first pledge of “joint stand-off weapons” or glide bombs, which could be used for long-range strikes.

But the package falls well short of the needs Zelenskyy presented to Biden later on Thursday. The US has rebuffed Kyiv’s repeated requests to use long-range weapons to strike targets inside Russia, an important element in his plan.

The Republican backlash over Zelenskyy’s US visit has triggered recriminations in Kyiv.

“Going to Scranton was a mistake,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, chair of the foreign affairs committee in the Ukrainian parliament. “The president has been let down either by someone in the embassy or in his office.”

He added: “It would have been better not to have made that visit at all.”

David Arakhamia, leader of Zelenskyy’s Servant of the People party in parliament, played down the significance of Trump’s comments, describing them as “campaign rhetoric and manipulation, which everyone is doing”.

Stop rationalizing that he’ll be OK, maybe even tough on Putin if Putin screws him over, etc. He wins, the war is all but lost for Ukraine. It’s why Russia is interfering in the election on his behalf (again). Moscow understands their man better than his party does. https://t.co/doPMOeZxbE

— Michael Weiss (@michaeldweiss) September 26, 2024

Here’s the full text of the quoted tweet:

“Ukraine is gone”

Before again calling for Ukraine to appease Putin, Trump runs through a series of verbatim Kremlin talking points, initially disparaging President Zelensky before moving on to the crown jewel of Russian disinformation narratives, namely that Ukraine doesn’t exist.

At this point, shouldn’t Americans be asking who Trump actually works for?

As I said after Trump’s one foreign policy speech in 2016, which was delivered at the think tank of the now indicted Russian asset Dmitry Simes, this is national security narcissism. It is also natsec and foreign policy by temper tantrum.

Constantly using Ukraine as a political target during elections for short-term gains creates hatred toward Ukrainians.

While elections come and go, the hate remains. As if enduring the largest invasion since World War II, along with destruction and deaths isn’t enough

— Tatarigami_UA (@Tatarigami_UA) September 26, 2024

Unfortunately, President Zelenskyy has no choice but to take these people seriously because there’s a 30% chance Trump could be elected in November – the same chance he had in 2020 and 2016 – and due to the bad map for the Democrats senate map and the fact that Republican gerrymanders are still in place and in some cases have been made more extreme combined with even more extreme voter suppression in GOP controlled states, Ukraine’s fate may be in their hands. Attempting to soothe their faux indignation is unlikely to actually help, but he still has to go through the motions to keep up the appearances.

The UK:

The UK’s new government set to surpass its pledge of delivering 12 AS90 artillery guns to Ukraine within 100 days of taking office. A total of 16 units are now on course to be delivered, with 10 already delivered and six more to follow in the coming weeks.… pic.twitter.com/UTHGntZlPy

— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) September 26, 2024

The UK’s new government set to surpass its pledge of delivering 12 AS90 artillery guns to Ukraine within 100 days of taking office. A total of 16 units are now on course to be delivered, with 10 already delivered and six more to follow in the coming weeks.

https://gov.uk/government/news/uk-to-speed-up-military-kit-deliveries-to-support-ukraines-fight

Germany:

Bundestag today agreed to increase funding for military support to Ukraine by around EUR 400 million in 2024. This will enable additional air defense, tanks, drones, ammunition and spare parts to be purchased, which will effectively strengthen the Ukrainian armed forces… pic.twitter.com/R4mW0W5q6E

— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) September 26, 2024

Bundestag today agreed to increase funding for military support to Ukraine by around EUR 400 million in 2024. This will enable additional air defense, tanks, drones, ammunition and spare parts to be purchased, which will effectively strengthen the Ukrainian armed forces

https://bundesregierung.de/breg-de/aktuelles/pressemitteilungen/zweites-treffen-der-teilnehmer-des-ukraine-compact-in-new-york-2311578

19, yes.

19 Skyranger mobile air defense units. 19 For the whole Bundeswehr. Not 190.

How is Russia supposed to take us seriously if we can’t take us seriously ourselves?

And yes, I know. More might be ordered. Might. https://t.co/loceXlef8g

— Fabian Hoffmann (@FRHoffmann1) September 25, 2024

Here’s the translation of the quoted tweet:

The #Bundeswehr will receive a total of 19 anti-aircraft tanks of the #Skyranger30 type by 2028. #Rheinmetall presented the combination of a turret with a 30-millimeter cannon and a Boxer wheeled tank in action for the first time in Zurich. 🔽
https://bundeswehr.de/de/aktuelles/meldungen/skyranger-30-bundeswehr-erhaelt-19-neue-flugabwehrpanzer

The cost:

The greatest respect goes to foreigners who volunteer to fight for Ukraine — those who came to stay and help Ukraine despite the unbelievable hell that rages at the front. https://t.co/mkGxSxj91e

— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) September 26, 2024

Germany’s defense industrial base also doesn’t seem to be in such good shape either.

RIP brother 💔🇮🇪

Robert Deegan (29), from Newbridge, Co Kildare, was killed in action fighting for the Ukrainian special forces on the front line on Thursday, September 19.

The Kildare man was a highly skilled soldier who served in the Army Ranger Wing and the Engineers Unit of the Defence Forces Training Centre.

The released 22-year old Ukrainian POW who was tortured to the point of him being mute… started finally speaking and eating a little in hospital.

But the first thing that his mother said came out of his mouth was this: “why so much pain? How can people do this to each other?”… pic.twitter.com/9NROnnRDbQ

— Тетяна Denford 🇺🇦🔱 (@TetyanaUkrainka) September 26, 2024

The released 22-year old Ukrainian POW who was tortured to the point of him being mute… started finally speaking and eating a little in hospital.

But the first thing that his mother said came out of his mouth was this: “why so much pain? How can people do this to each other?” 💔

Kyiv:

2/2 У КМВА зазначали, що уламки впали на території дитячого садку, а у Печерському районі сталася розгерметизація газової труби в житловому будинку, також пошкоджено близько 20 автівок.

— Радіо Свобода (@radiosvoboda) September 26, 2024

Here’s the translation of the first tweet:

1/2 We show the consequences of the night attack on Kyiv, where air defense forces shot down drones for five hours

And the second one:

2/2 KMVA noted that debris fell on the territory of a kindergarten, and in the Pechersk district, a gas pipe depressurized in a residential building, and about 20 cars were also damaged.

More explosions and Ukrainian air defense engaging Russian attack drones over Kyiv just moment ago, as morning rush hour begins and nearly 3 million residents start their day. For many it begins in bomb shelters. https://t.co/seTmQViFi5

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) September 26, 2024

Vuhledar:

Heavy combat for Vuhledar continues. I don’t understand the rationale for holding onto the ruins until the last when resupply/evacuation routes are getting under enemy fire control. Since the Commander-in-Chief recently replaced the brigade commander, this isn’t a local decision pic.twitter.com/I9mxeWvlFP

— Tatarigami_UA (@Tatarigami_UA) September 26, 2024

Vuhledar & Pokrovsk:

Updated maps from the last two days showing Russian advances on the Vuhledar and Pokrovsk fronts.https://t.co/n5pLCZ3rrB https://t.co/8oj4YEVb6j pic.twitter.com/iJ2x9FzAsW

— Rob Lee (@RALee85) September 26, 2024

Kharkiv:

Russian troops have just carried out an airstrike on Kharkiv. According to the mayor’s initial report, the bomb struck a private house!

— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) September 26, 2024

Russian terror has destroyed tens of thousands of apartment buildings and houses across Ukraine. The comfort and memories tied to a beloved home, like those destroyed in this video from Kharkiv, cannot simply be “rebuilt.” These are more than just buildings – they are lives,… pic.twitter.com/VZKl6srLNs

— Iryna Voichuk (@IrynaVoichuk) September 26, 2024

Russian terror has destroyed tens of thousands of apartment buildings and houses across Ukraine. The comfort and memories tied to a beloved home, like those destroyed in this video from Kharkiv, cannot simply be “rebuilt.” These are more than just buildings – they are lives, dreams, and futures shattered. Many who lived there will never return, as countless families have been killed, leaving no one to rebuild for. In today’s russian aerial attack alone, four more civilians were wounded.

Kherson:

#Kherson is under heavy artillery fire now just as it is very night; after a day of hourly drone attacks on humans, just as it is every day.

And Kherson is not gone. It is fighting and it is Ukraine. Just as Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Odesa, Uman…

Slava Ukraine! Fuck Russia! https://t.co/7DMhVW3l40

— Zarina Zabrisky 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@ZarinaZabrisky) September 26, 2024

#Kherson region On Sept 25,

💔2 killed
💔14 injured

🔴Damaged

Critical infrastructure objects, administrative buildings
cultural and medical institutions, agricultural enterprises
shops
9 high-rises
20 private houses

🔴24 settlements shelled pic.twitter.com/YWVtRuHZSz

— Zarina Zabrisky 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@ZarinaZabrisky) September 26, 2024

Speaking of western components in weapons, Tatarigami and his Frontelligence Insight Team have a deep dive into how western components are still making their way into Russian weaponry.

After reviewing an internal correspondence leak from a Russian military electronics plant “Mikropribor”, Frontelligence Insight, with data provided by @CyberResUa discovered that the production of the Su-57 is in jeopardy without access to crucial Western components. 🧵Thread:

2/ According to correspondence between the head of the procurement bureau at the “Red Banner” plant (a part of Almaz-Antei) and “Mikropribor” in August 2022, Mikropribor was given a list of required equipment for the MPPU-50. Keep this device name in mind- it’s important

3/ The provided list consists of foreign-made components, including the WA36 Fixed Attenuator, EA-PS 3150, and PLR7 60-12 power supplies, all sourced by various Russian companies. The goal of procurement is to ensure the assembly of automated workstations for testing the MPPU-50

4/ All the aforementioned components are produced abroad and supplied by various Russian companies that acquire and deliver this equipment. But why do we care and what exactly is the MPPU-50? 

5/ An official correspondence letter between the Almaz-Antei affiliate “Red Banner” and Mikropribor reveals that MPPU-50 modules are integral to the production of the Su-57. The letter states that challenges in MPPU-50 production could jeopardize the production of Su-57

6/ Additionally, we know that the “Mikropribor” research institute and production facility were working on at least three automated stations for testing and calibrating the MPPU-50, used in its latest generation of jets – Su-57 production, which heavily relied on Western parts.

7/ The list of specific parts provides clearer insight into the Western components used in production, in this particular example from Pulsar Microwave Corporation. Notably, the purchase offer for these components was made in July 2022, nearly six months into the war.

8/ The supplied parts extend beyond smaller components, as shown in the deal between the Mikropribor factory and a company called KMT, where KMT agreed to supply at least one Siemens lathe (model KLE 360) in July 2022

9/ While it’s hard to determine from the documents whether these components came from the existing Russian stockpiles or were deliberately sold via third countries, it’s clear that Russia’s military industry heavily depends on Western components, particularly in electronics 

10/ Considering that Russian military production continued to expand in 2023 and 2024, it’s clear that they find ways to smuggle key components or purchase Chinese replacements to maintain production. While we can’t eliminate these deliveries, we should aim to minimize them 

Moscow:

https://t.co/9IG7DuybvS pic.twitter.com/JsiGzE3CuV

— Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) September 26, 2024

From The Daily Beast:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to the United States notably darkened the mood in Russia.

In the run-up to the high-profile journey that clearly irked the Kremlin, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova claimed that America is just like the Third Reich. Other commentators apparently received the same set of talking points and started to describe the U.S. as a Nazi nation.

In anticipation of the visit, most state TV pundits and experts warned viewers that a decision to allow Ukraine to strike deep within Russian territory is all but imminent. To address these fears, some of the most prominent talking heads are being sent out to convince the population that even long-range strikes are not that big of a deal.

Tigran Keosayan, husband of Margarita Simonyan—the notorious editor-in-chief of the state-controlled RT network—caused quite a stir when he showed up on Vladimir Solovyov’s show earlier in September and tacitly criticized people who demand nuclear strikes in response to Ukraine’s counter-attacks into Russian territory. Keosayan argued that these kinds of strikes would not imperil Russia’s existence and therefore would not warrant a nuclear response.

Solovyov, who is a known proponent of preemptively nuking Western capitals, seemed to be in shock when he was contradicted on his own show. Since Simonyan is well-connected to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin circles, the talking points her husband was sent to deliver were most likely pre-approved.

After the debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump, most of Russian state TV’s talking heads and experts grimly concluded that their favored candidate, Trump, will most likely fail in his presidential bid, which means that America can’t be expected to abandon Ukraine and simply hand it over into Moscow’s clutches. However, if Trump was to prevail and Russia was able to defeat Ukraine, according to military expert Alexey Anpilogov, “a Russian steamroller” would keep moving throughout Europe and Poland would be next on the Kremlin’s target list.

During Monday’s broadcast of The Meeting Place, by contrast, political scientist Alexander Sytin addressed the glaring misconception that spurred the Kremlin’s ill-fated invasion. He asked: “Are you still certain, nearly three years later, that they’re waiting for you there, that they love you and are ready to submit to you?”

Host Andrey Norkin bluntly admitted: “It’s not about whether they’re waiting for us or love us, we just have to bring some kind of order there—otherwise they will keep jumping at us.”

“Hold on a second, who jumped on whom?” Sytin replied, amazed by the attempt to blame Ukraine for the war.

On an earlier September broadcast, Sytin threw caution to the wind as he pondered why Russia even launched the invasion given that it isn’t able to gain control of Ukraine by the means of conventional warfare and is most likely unwilling to use nuclear weapons. Putin himself said in 2022 “there can be no winners in a nuclear war” and it “should never be unleashed.”

That’s enough for tonight.

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