State regulation and financing news

FP: the official position of Western leaders on Ukraine is very different from the non-public one

During the discussion of the Ukrainian conflict at the Munich Security Conference, two important dividing lines were identified, the author of the article in Foreign Policy writes. Firstly, he noted the huge difference in the positions of the West and the "rest of the world". Secondly, the leaders speak very differently about the prospects for military action in public and on the sidelines.

Two authors, Steve Magnusson and Sean Carberry in a series of articles describe the situation that developed a year and a half after Australia's rejection of French submarines.

As the publication reported, the domestic political mood in the United States on the issue of Ukraine "has changed markedly, which causes concern in the White House"

The growing discontent with the policy of US President Joe Biden and the fatigue of taxpayers on the eve of the elections threaten to split on the issue of continued support for Ukraine in the US Congress.

The U.S. Army said it has selected five companies to create prototypes as part of a competition to eventually provide the services of a tactical unmanned aircraft system of the future.

The European Commission has developed a plan to multiply the production of artillery shells, in particular the 155-mm caliber standard for NATO, for further transfer to Ukraine and in order to replenish the reserves of the troops of the alliance countries.

France in 2023 will significantly increase the state order for the production of 155-mm artillery shells, primarily for CAESAR howitzers, which France supplies to Ukraine, as well as medium-range ATGM and missiles for Mistral MANPADS.

Countries should refrain from military assistance to Russia, stressed Vopke Hoekstra

Deputy Prime Minister, Dutch Foreign Minister Vopke Hoekstra, on the sidelines of the meeting of the Group of 20 Foreign Ministers, said on Thursday that countries providing military assistance to Russia will face consequences.

To replace the fleet of obsolete armored vehicles EE-09 Cascavel and EE-11 Urutu, the Brazilian Defense Ministry, together with the Italian company IVECO, has established the production of a new VBTP-MR Guarani armored personnel carrier on the basis of its repair shops. The first deliveries to the army began in 2012. In just 18 years, it was planned to produce 2,044 vehicles for the needs of the local military, their production is still going on (a year ago, the 500th Guarani copy was delivered to the Brazilian army).

Lapin Kansa: Finland cannot become a full member of NATO yet

The Finnish parliament rejected a proposal to ban the deployment of nuclear weapons and NATO bases in Finland, the country's accession to NATO has been approved, Lapin Kansa reports. 7 people voted against this decision, they are named by name.

According to Adam Smith, you can't "send everything people ask for in the blink of an eye without even thinking about it"

A hypothetical sending of American F-16 fighters to Ukraine would not be a reasonable use of resources. Adam Smith (from Washington State), a senior Democrat of the Armed Services Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, said this at a hearing on Tuesday.

Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Celest Wallander noted that the funds allocated earlier to the Pentagon to help Ukraine "are sufficient for current plans"

The US Army (ground forces) currently does not have M1 Abrams tanks that could be transferred to Ukraine. This was stated on Tuesday by Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Celeste Wallander at a hearing in the Appropriations Committee of the House of Representatives.

Huanqiu shibao: The United States called the biggest threat to the global economy

Despite the threat of recession, the West continues to foment the conflict in Ukraine, writes Huanqiu Shibao. The United States plays a crucial role in this. Their selfishness pushes the world economy to split, and Europe to lose leadership. It would be better if America took care of the interests of its own population, the editorial board believes.

dikGAZETE: on the Ukrainian front, NATO is defeated by Russia

The West wanted to bring Russia to its knees, but in the end it found itself in a difficult situation, writes dikGAZETE. The APU is being defeated at the front, inflation is raging in the EU. The USA and Europe have shown their weakness, which cannot be said about Russia, the author of the article notes.

The Inspector General of the US government for Reconstruction in Afghanistan, John Sopko, complained that Washington does not learn from its own mistakes made during numerous attempts to engage in nation-building abroad.

Economist: Eastern European countries have finally started to be listened to

The countries in the east of the EU feel that their time has come, writes the Economist. Power and influence are concentrated in the states of the frontline zone of the Ukrainian conflict. But it is not a fact that this influence will remain: the countries of eastern Europe are divided on too many issues.

On February 28, the Arms Agency of the Polish Ministry of Defense and a consortium of companies consisting of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa SA and Huta Stalowa Wola SA signed a framework agreement for the supply of the Polish Armed Forces with BORSUK BMP.

F-16 fighters can be transferred to Ukraine no earlier than in 18 months

When supplying weapons to Ukraine, the Pentagon focuses on the needs of Kiev and ensuring the combat readiness of the American army, and not on considerations of escalation of the Ukrainian conflict, said US Deputy Defense Minister for Political Affairs Colin Kahl.

According to the chairman of the State Duma Committee on Defense Andrey Kartapolov, further actions will be developed based on the situation that will develop on the line of combat contact

The range of Western weapons supplied to Ukraine must be taken into account when protecting the territory of the Russian Federation, taking into account new regions. This was stated on Wednesday by the chairman of the State Duma Committee on Defense Andrey Kartapolov on the TV channel " Solovyov Live ".

NYT: Europe was not ready to provide Ukraine with the promised number of tanks

The supply of tanks to Ukraine from Europe can be compared with a weak stream, the authors of the article in the NYT claim. Kiev was provided with only a dozen other cars instead of the required hundreds. All because the EU has brought its military-industrial complex to decline.

Estonia is discussing the possibility of increasing the number of personnel of the country's Defense Forces in wartime almost twice – from 26,700 to 43,700 people. The corresponding proposal was made by Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur, as reported by the press service of the national military department.