Putin is now at the stage of 'manic' anger.

It should come as no surprise that Putin is, almost manically, determined to bomb the people of Ukraine into submission.

The 'triumvirate' of Putin, Xi Jinping of China, and Kim Jon Un of North Korea, are determined to ensure that their brutal 'authoritarian' reign over their own peoples' remains intact.

Putin's defeat in Ukraine will, in the eyes of Xi Jinping and Kim Jon Un, be a harbinger of their own defeat to maintain their own 'iron grip' on power.

 

 DW News : November 2023 : YouTube

 

It is no wonder that Xi Jinping and Kim Jon Un are accelerating their supply of military weaponry and ammunition to bolster Putin's forces in his war against Ukraine.

As John Varga (right) reports,

"Vladimir Putin is set to give the green light to a major military offensive that could land a catastrophic blow on Ukrainian morale and lead to Russian victory on the battlefield.

The Kremlin's army has stepped up its attacks all along the frontlines, as it smells blood.

Zelensky's troops are suffering from a chronic lack of ammunition, and are being outgunned 10 to one in some areas.

The Ukrainians have had to cede territory to their bitter foes throughout the winter and are now preparing for a major Russian onslaught in the summer." (Express : 22 April 2024) (my emphasis)

The recent passing of the $61 billion worth of military and other aid to Ukraine from the US, together with the UK's plan to give vital military equipment to Kyiv together with an additional £500m in military funding (cf: blog entry 23 April) will no doubt spur on Xi Jinping and Kim Jon Un to even further accellerate their arm shipments to Putin's forces in Ukraine.

 

CNN : 27 April 2024 : YouTube

 And just recently, as reported by Reuters,

"Australia backs Ukraine with $100-mln military aid.

"We understand that this will be an enduring conflict and we will be contributing more in the future because we are determined to stand side by side with Ukraine for as long as it takes for Ukraine to prevail," Marles, who is also deputy prime minister, told reporters. " (Reuters on Yahoo News: 28 April 2024) (my emphasis)

Reuters Video: 28 April 2024

Underscoring Putin manically determined to bomb the people of Ukraine into submission, John Varga also reports that,

 "Vladimir Putin's closest ally [Belarus president Lukashenko (left)] raised the spectre of an impending nuclear armageddon after revealing his country now possessed "several dozen" Russian nukes.

The shocking news has prompted Nato to scramble to put its nuclear forces on full alert, after Belarus' murderous tyrant warned a major confrontation with the West could end in an atomic "apocalypse". (Express : 27 April 2024) (my emphasis)

Yet whilst NATO forces are now scrambling to put their nuclear forces on FULL alert, Joshua Posaner and Henry Donovan report that,

"The United States and the United Kingdom have said they will send fresh batches of long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine this week, but while Germany ramps up pressure on its allies to donate air defense systems to the embattled country, there's no sign Chancellor Olaf Scholz will budge on sending the German military's available Taurus long-range missiles.

Scholz's refusal to send the weapons "remains the case" despite new pledges from the U.S. and the U.K., German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said during an interview on German public television late Wednesday." (Politico : 25 April 2024) (my emphasis)

Sky News : 25 April 2024 : YouTube

 Let us remind ourselves of that 'minor' German royalty, Princess Sophia Augusta Frederica von Anhalt-Zerbst, who became Catherine the Great of Russia through marriage, and who conducted a triumphal procession in the Crimea after annexing it in 1783. (Wikipedia)

Let us also not forget that,

"...[the late Chancellor of Germany] Angela Merkel [had] a portrait on her desk of Russian empress Catherine the Great, the Prussian-born princess who went on to expand Russia’s territory to the west and the south, including Crimea." (Patrick Donahue and Tino Andresen : Bloomberg : March 4, 2014)

Which rather inextricably links the current illegal Kerch Strait bridge of Putin with Russia and Crimea, and with German history.

Is it the 'Ghost of the German Princess Sophia Augusta Frederica von Anhalt-Zerbst' that is sitting on the shoulder of Olaf Scholz, preventing him from sending Taurus missiles to Ukraine to blow up the Kerch Strait Bridge?

And is so doing, is Scholz prolonging the suffering of the people of Ukraine at the hands of the manic Putin by hiding behind the political 'skirt' of not wanting to 'escalate' Putin's manic anger?

 

(to be continued)