Ukraine plinking a Russian GPS-jammer with a GPS-guided bomb. Ukrainian drones blowing up Russian drone-jammers. Ukraine’s cruise missiles striking Russian air-defense sites whose missions include, you guessed it, shooting down cruise missiles.

Russia’s 23-month wider war on Ukraine has seen a lot of ironic, darkly-hilarious clashes. The latest was also one of the quickest between setup and punchline.

On Tuesday morning, Russian media announced the deployment, to Ukraine, of Russian forces’ latest high-tech counterbattery radar. A few hours later in southern Ukraine, the Ukrainians blew it up … with artillery rockets.

The irony deepens. In theory, a Russian Yastreb-AV radar would help to protect Russian troops from Ukraine’s American-made High-Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems launchers—its HIMARS. Now guess what the Ukrainians used to destroy that first Yastreb-AV.

That’s right: HIMARS.

  • Inky@lemmy.ca
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    9 months ago

    If even a small fraction of Russia’s nuclear arsenal is functional then they are still incredibly dangerous

    • ChunkMcHorkle@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      If even a small fraction of Russia’s nuclear arsenal is functional then they are still incredibly dangerous

      Agreed, but it’s 50/50 as to whom. They can’t even afford to turn the keys at this point, lest that unmaintained shit blow up before it leaves Russian airspace – or, more likely, doesn’t even get off its Russian launchpad.

      If he could have, he would have, but Putin knows if he even tries he unleashes full MAD.

      I’m not saying he won’t or never would, just saying that for all the threats and saber-rattling, he’ll only do it when he himself is already damned.

      • oatscoop@midwest.social
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        9 months ago

        If they use nuclear weapons, it will end in one of two ways.

        1. Escalation to full scale nuclear exchange. Putin dies or has to live in the aftermath of a nuclear holocaust.

        2. The rest of the world saying “that’s enough”. Nobody in power wants using nukes to be normalized. It’s so profoundly destabilizing to the status quo that everyone sees it as a threat given it will inevitably lead to escalation. Every intelligence agency in the world will be making phone calls, offering sweet deals, and promising support to unhappy, powerful people in Russia to deal with the “Putin” problem. Ideological enemies will work together to eliminate this threat to their stability.

        • vaultdweller013@sh.itjust.works
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          9 months ago

          Option 3: Russia is converted into parking lot via a joint operation using conventional weaponry. Siberia is declared west Alaska.

          • Crashumbc@lemmy.world
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            9 months ago

            Scary thoughts. I don’t even think scientists realized the full extent of the device potential. Much less someone like Truman without an extensive science background. Even though they talked about the destructive potential, actually grasping it as a reality wasn’t comprehensible.