If a country is ruthless enough, it can threaten the leaders of rival nations even far beyond its borders, as Ukrainian President Zelensky found out earlier this week.
Four "unidentified military-style" drones violated a no-fly zone on Monday at Dublin Airport as they flew toward the flight path of Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, according to Irish news outlet The Journal.
The flight carrying Zelensky landed, slightly ahead of schedule, a few moments before the drones flew at about 11 p.m.
The drones had their lights on, prompting security forces to suspect that the aim was to disrupt the arrival of Zelensky's plane into Dublin, the outlet said.
The drones, which reached the location where the Ukrainian president's plane was expected to be at the exact moment it had been due to pass, then orbited above an Irish Navy vessel that had secretly been deployed in the Irish Sea for the Zelensky visit.
The report said that, according to sources, the drones took off from the north-east of Dublin, possibly near Howth, and flew for up to two hours.
A lot is unknown at this point - who launched and controlled the drones, or where the drones are now.
The drones were "large, hugely expensive, of military specification, and ... the incident could be classed as a hybrid attack", Ireland's security services have found, according to the outlet.
There's more at the link.
I don't think there's any real doubt about where those drones came from, or who planned and executed the whole thing. My only question is whether the miniature aircraft would have tried to actually attack Zelensky's plane, or simply disrupt its flight path. I wouldn't put money either way at this point. I think Putin is more than ruthless enough to eliminate his rival if the opportunity arose, but he might hesitate due to the diplomatic repercussions . . . or would he? Enough of his internal political opponents have "fallen out of windows", or experienced aircraft "accidents", or whatever, that one can't be sure he has any real moral restraints at all - only practical ones.
What this means, of course, is that any politician or diplomat is vulnerable to the same sort of threat. What if Air Force One were intercepted by drones sent by, say, Venezuela, or Mexican drug cartels (which can easily afford weapons-grade military-style drones, plus the explosives needed to turn them into deadly missiles)? What if US transport aircraft ferrying supplies to an operation against terrorists or drug smugglers (e.g. in the Caribbean, or off Yemen) were threatened in the same way?
Nor is the distance between a potentially hostile nation and the aircraft concerned an obstacle, because (as in Ireland) drones can be smuggled into and through a country or countries relatively easily, particularly if disassembled. Once used (whether successfully or not), the drones can simply be crashed into the ground and their explosives detonated, or directed to dive themselves into the sea or a large, deep lake nearby. The odds of their being found, traced and identified are small.
This has the potential to make air travel in general, and in more dangerous areas in particular, a whole lot less safe. I would say that ship, train or road travel might become safer, except that drones can intercept vehicles at sea or on the ground even more easily than they can those in the air. I suspect that diplomatic teleconferencing might take on a whole new lease on life . . .
Peter
Peter assuming that Putin wants Zelensky dead is a bit of a jump.
ReplyDeleteHis "Best By" for Western Intelligence Services is almost gone.
Ask Saddam and Kaddafi about what happens when Western Nations give you weapons and power...until you're not useful anymore.
I DO notice Mr. Z has been gone from Ukraine more than IN Ukraine lately and trying to stay inside the "good graces" of EU leadership that *still* wants America to fight Russia.
Z-man's inner circle seems in a hurry to go to Israel where extradition of war criminals isn't a "thing".
Napoleon Bonaparte: 'Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.'
When engaged in a conflict, allowing an opponent to carry out their mistakes without intervention can lead to substantial benefits. By refraining from interference, one can observe their adversary's errors, vulnerabilities, and weaknesses, enabling them to be exploited later for maximum advantage.
Why assume that allowing Z-man to wander through out EU begging for arms and support isn't something Putin delights in as it continues to WEAKEN the EU while the Russian python slowly eats up Ukraine.
A WEAK EU is less dangerous to Russia. Then they can stew in their cesspool of Muslim invaders eating up their countries while "enjoying" the self inflected GREEN Energy scheme that cripples their economy. Napolean would approve.
Michael, well put.
DeleteThis is not to go after Zelensky but to provide an excuse for when they try and assassinate Putin on a visit to the West meant to end this damn war.
ReplyDeleteWell, Russia and Ukraine are engaged in a war. Zelinski is, as the head of the military, a valid target.
ReplyDeletePeter did you see this?
ReplyDeletehttps://simplicius76.substack.com/p/damage-control-major-blows-to-eu
Looks like distraction and false flag season AGAIN.
EU is BROKE. The Money machine is staggering to feed the "we must have war" machine.
Nothing like a false flag to distract, eh?
Lets hope it's not going to end up with extra sunrises scattered about.
I seem to recall the Ukraine smuggled drones deep into Russia not that long ago.
ReplyDeleteUkraine is also desperate to get western (US) forces to fight on their behalf.
It seems FAR more likely to me that this is a PR stunt by Ukraine to get sympathy and support than a Russian attack.
Person A travels by air to visit County B and Person C; the flight path crosses a medium to large body of water; during the initial and final stages of that flight the altitude is below 18K feet; multple one-way drones - released from a "fishing boat" that, mysteriously, sinks (small "fishing boats" encounter mechanical trouble, bad weather, etc. all the time and sink from multiple causes therefrom) - fly into the path of person A's aircraft, damaging it sufficiently (or destroying) to cause it to stop flying and wind up in water that's a couple miles deep.
ReplyDelete"Person A was scheduled to arrive today at 0800 local; he's late and we haven't heard anything from his aircraft about what the delay might be."
Eventually, someone - maybe - recovers some floating debris that's tracked back to pieces of person A's aircraft.
Lather, rinse repeat.
In some ways, Zelinsky is Putin's best ally. If you are going to have an enemy, you want them to be stupid and incompetent. So in some ways, it Russia was involved it may have been just to "send message."
ReplyDeleteI don't doubt Putin could do this. So could just about any Western government, including the US. They are all gambling with our lives while they fight their stupid battles between the elites.
If this makes the Zelinskys' and Euro assholes and Nuland State Department and CIA and Davos and WEF bigwigs worry, I'm all for it.
Agree with several above....is it really in Putin's interest to take Z out? The guy makes strategic mistake after strategic mistake. I do think that Putin should cast an eye to concluding the conflict soon. The west are upping their tech game in the drone space and maybe (despite the MIC delays and overruns) the window is closing.
ReplyDeleteCartels are already well aware of the advantages of drones as weapons. That is what we should be nervous about, not whether Zelensky's money junkets land safely.
ReplyDeleteSecretary of State Mike Pompeo did state that as CIA director, "we lied, we cheated, we stole,"
ReplyDeleteWith a statement like that, and other lies by Western Elites, I don't know whom is responsible. To many lies have destroyed their credibility. Claim the Nordstream Pipeline was sabotaged by the Russians. Or the US East Coast Drones that were launched from Iranian Motherships. Or the GPS of the EU Leader was jammed by the Russians. Or Obama's statement: "If you like your plan, you can keep your plan,".