It would be the US causing the incident if they lock onto a foreign jet who is closing near 1000yds?
I think I have read it all now.
This was a pretty sudden event and I doubt the TAO would be willing to illuminate a Russian jet without that being on orders from the captain or higher. On a DDG the TAO is often a LT or perhaps an LCDR. I doubt they are interested in causing an international incident.
It would be the US causing the incident if they lock onto a foreign jet who is closing near 1000yds?
I think I have read it all now.
I thought ABM system's don't work anyway so why is Russia getting it's nuts all twisted up for?
I thought ABM system's don't work anyway so why is Russia getting it's nuts all twisted up for?
Otherwise it would not be tolerable for Russia. A good defensive weapon system is also an offensive weapon system unless one has only defensive weapon systems.they work, but the missile shield for the the foreseeable future is incapable of handling anywhere near the number of missiles Russia could throw at the west.
I don't think Red China and Russia are likely to get into bed together. Neither can trust the other, and from Russia's point of view there is no way she could gain anything near as much as would China. With China's record and the shared border, a greatly strengthened China would be much more of a Russia nightmare than the USA.You have a right to poke an angry bear with a stick too. Doesn't make it a smart thing to do.
The main question is what's the bigger long term US foreign policy? Do we have one? Who is our geopolitical rival?
Is it really Russia? If so, then we should keep isolating it and re-fighting the Cold War. That's not a hard fight for the West to win. NATO will be in Ukraine soon, yippee! We are all so much safer now.
But if our geopolitical rival is China, then winning the fight to isolate Russia only pushes it into China's arms. Then China gets access to enormous natural resources on favorable terms, and Europe and the West get denied those resources. This is in our long term interest?
Is securing a transit country for Russian natural resources (Ukraine) worth losing access to those resources to your real geopolitical rival?
The biggest battle of 21st century geopolitics is going to be a fight FOR Russia, not a fight WITH Russia. Russia has more to fear from China than US, by far, and US has more to fear from China than Russia, by far. Russia and US are natural allies against China. But because both US and Russia haven't been able to end the Cold War and bury the hatchet, now Russia is going to end up in Chinese embrace, fueling it's economy and war machinery. To win the Cold War and have Russia eating from your hands in early 90s, and in the span of 20 years just hand it over to China, because it was oh so important to keep expanding NATO to Russia's doorstep, it's foreign policy malpractice.
Officially welcome, but being majority ethnically Russian Odessa would stand a fair chance of going the way of Crimea. At the least, there would be violent protests which would be propaganda for Russia to use against Ukraine, either by claiming ethnic Russians were killed by the response or that ethnic Russians were endangered by the lock of response.You asked which port the US could go to as a port of call (implicitly to show support)
Odessa is still under Ukrainian control, not Russian.
Why would you state that a port of call would not be welcome?
"APNewsBreak: Russian jet passes near US warship"
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Russian fighter jet made multiple, close-range passes near an American warship in the Black Sea for more than 90 minutes Saturday amid escalating tensions in the region, U.S. military officials said Monday
In the first public account of the incident, the officials said the Russian Fencer made 12 passes, and flew within 1,000 yards (900 meters) of the USS Donald Cook, a Navy destroyer, at about 500 feet (150 meters) above sea level.
The U.S. warship issued several radio queries and warnings using international emergency circuits, but the Russian aircraft did not respond.
"This provocative and unprofessional Russian action is inconsistent with international protocols and previous agreements on the professional interaction between our militaries," said Army Col. Steve Warren, a Pentagon spokesman.
The fighter appeared to be unarmed and never was in danger of coming in contact with the ship, said the officials. The passes, which occurred in the early evening there, ended without incident. A second Russian fighter jet flew at a higher altitude and was not a concern, said Warren.
A U.S. military official also said that a Russian Navy ship, a frigate, has been shadowing the U.S. warship, remaining within visual distance but not close enough to be unsafe. The official was not authorized to discuss the incident publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity.
Warren said that he is not aware of any official communication or protests by the U.S. to the Russians about incident.
The USS Donald Cook has been conducting routine operations in international waters east of Romania. The ship, which carries helicopters, was deployed to the Black Sea on April 10, in the wake of the Russian military takeover of Ukraine's Crimea region and ongoing unrest there. U.S. military officials have said the deployment is part of an effort to reassure allies and partners in the region.
Ukraine's acting President Oleksandr Turchynov on Monday called for the deployment of United Nations peacekeeping troops in the east of the country, where pro-Russian insurgents have occupied buildings in nearly 10 cities. The gunmen are demanding more autonomy from the central government and closer ties with Russia.
The West has accused Moscow of fomenting the unrest. And European Union foreign ministers are meeting in Luxembourg Monday to consider additional sanctions against Russian officials because of Moscow's annexation of Crimea.
The USS Donald Cook is now in port at Constanta, Romania.
Romanian President Traian Basescu visited the ship Monday and said a second U.S. Navy warship — a frigate from the Navy's Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean Sea — is also heading to the Black Sea.
"My visit to the ship is symbolic, which first of all shows our respect to our NATO allies' reaction who have strengthened their presence in the Black Sea after Russia's annexation of Crimea," said Basescu, who is a former ship captain. He said the Russians "had created a circle of fire around the Black Sea."
The U.S. frigate, which has not yet been identified, is expected to arrive in the Black Sea in the next two weeks. According to a U.S. military official, the frigate is likely to replace the USS Donald Cook, which is expected to return to the Mediterranean Sea.
Associated Press writer Alison Mutler in Bucharest, Romania, contributed to this report."
We raise the stakes, they do the same in return. What is the point of this again?
The point? To stop Russia from invading other countries. I leave it up to you to decide if it is effective or not.
We raise the stakes, they do the same in return. What is the point of this again?
http://news.yahoo.com/apnewsbreak-russian-jet-passes-near-us-warship-155042130--politics.html
LoL How does a popular vote to secede by the Crema turn into Russia invading a country?
What do you think our ship should have done in that situation? Should we have shot their plane down?
Used to happen all the time, I've some old pictures around here of F-4's flying right next to the big Russian Bears from the 80's