Rumors that Russia would attack Ukraine during Christmas turned out to be false. That was predictable. If Russia wants to attack Ukraine, they are strong enough to do it whenever they want. They don’t need to check the Western holiday calendar. An escalation in January seems more likely.
Archives for December 2018
Russia’s first Karakurt-corvette enters service in the Baltic Fleet
The Karakurt-class corvette Mytishchi has been commisioned by the Russian Navy and joined the Baltic Fleet. It is the first ship in this new class of smaller Russian warships.
Russian speaking U.S. soldiers on exercise in Estonia is brilliant information work
A television performance by two U.S. soldiers has achieved remarkable strategic effect. In fluent Russian they explain what the American soldiers are doing during an exercise in Estonia. It sends the right message to both the Russian minorities in the Baltic countries and to Russia as a potential enemy.
Sanctions are a tool of reward, not of punishment
It is doubtful that Western sanctions have had any effect on Russia’s behavior but that doesn’t mean that the sanctions don’t work. They will be good bargaining chips some day when things are less emotional.
Seems like SPIKE will be Estonia’s new anti-tank missile
It looks like Estonia will buy a EuroSpike anti-tank missile system, since no other company has made a bid in the competition. Spike is a well-tested missile with a long range and sophisticated features. This is the second step in the modernization of Estonia’s anti-tank force, which began when they acquired the smaller Javelin missile a few years ago.
Estonia buys new 5.56 and 7.62 mm rifles from LMT
Estonia has decided to buy American rifles from the Lewis Machine & Tool Company. It is a somewhat unconventional choice. Only New Zealand has purchased LMT rifles at this scale for armed forces before.
Unmanned technology will soon be cheap enough for small countries
Prices for unmanned technology and artificial intelligence drop quickly, and soon it will be a realistic option for smaller countries. That was the topic of the Finnish Naval Defense Day 2018, which Corporal Frisk covered nicely.
Two Russian ships also collided when Ukrainian tug was rammed
When a Russian coastguard vessel struck a Ukrainian tug in the Kerch Strait this week, they also hit their own partner. In fact, it looks like he damaged his countryman badly.