Actually Russia present a small deficit. True the fiscal situation is by far not as bad as in Western Europe and in the USA, but it was a infighting on the subject with Kudrin launching warning shots about overspending on the Armed Forces.
Anyway, I think the main decisions have been taken and now the focus in the implementation management, schedules fulfillment and delays and so on.

By the way the price of Yasen subs seems exorbitant.

PD: I am anxiously expecting “the salvo”. 🙂

The last time the Western world went into recession, in 2008, oil fell to about $35 per barrel. Russia’s public finances will be in horrible shape if that happens again. Russia depends on energy production; China still depends on exports to the West. If the West goes into depression so will Russia and China, there will be no escape.

Any chance of China selling to Gaddafi once this is all over?

No high ticket items. The NATO countries will use their privileged position in Libya, their relationship to the rebs, to get weapons deals that are to their liking. Libya’s future combat jets, ships, and armored vehicles will, in all likelihood, be Western types.

If they buy new it will be the Rafale or the Eurofighter, if used it will most likely be something French.

Hate to p*ss on the parade but i wonder if in 30 years time we will be looking back at this and still “celebrate”.
I really don’t think it will make one iota of difference,a mad suicide bomber will still find a reason and a way to kill and hurt.
Yes it’s nice to get a brief revenge but i bet he died a better death than the victims of atrocities that have been perpetrated by people whether they had anything to do with him or not.
I am more worried about the cover ups and non truths that will now come out of the USA.

UBL was a co-conspirator in the deaths of thousands of Americans and others. Justice needed to be done. Now justice has been done. Justice is always worth celebrating.

I am afraid I don’t accept everything at face value, stories can be fabricated, as well as being economically less than truthfull.
I have been looking at some of the USA forums, and many folks are asking, very near demanding absolute proof of his death.Many of them are stating their President has opened a can of worms, and are dreading repercussions.by his replacement/s.Bin Ladens that is.

Lincoln .7

The vast majority of the US population (the sane part) accepts the statement from Obama and the rest of the US government. It’s likely that the forums you visit are not a representative sample of America.

Also, many of UBL’s subordinates have already been killed. So there is not a lot of quality leadership waiting in the wings.

Also, UBL’s approval rating in the Islamic world has been falling over the past decade to only a smallish minority now. Hundreds of millions of Muslims will be glad that UBL is dead.

China ‘owns’ America, and by default pretty much owns Australia!:diablo:

Hardly. China owns $1.1 trillion in US debt, about 8% of our total debt and of GDP. The largest US debt holder is the Federal Reserve bank.

This is like someone who makes $50,000/yr owing $4k to China – hardly a crisis.

The regime has made it clear that it will treat any opponents on which it can get its hands with unrestrained savagery. There are credible reports of Gaddafi’s non-Libyan mercenaries appearing in vehicles at demonstrations and opening fire on the civilian (not “civilian” as you put it) demonstrators. Such acts are likely to be judged as crimes against humanity and those who gave such orders to be guilty thereof (ie all in the regime advocating/supporting such acts).

I think that any execution or torture of combatants who have surrendered lays the perpetrators open to conviction for war crimes. I would be extremely surprised if this is not happening.

It is strange that foreign powers have not intervened decisively against a dictator whose policies and actions have antagonised them so much and for so long.

Many of those “demonstrators” were armed, threatening violence, and/or actually violent. There have most certainly been excesses in the use of force and in torturing and humiliating people – but that has occurred on both sides. The rebels have tortured and executed mercenaries that they captured. And many of those supposed mercenaries were just suspected because they were black. The opposition has captured innocent people and killed them. So why should we help the opposition come to power?

If a Western intervention is going to be a principled intervention then we need to capture and try the government leaders as well as the opposition leaders. And if we do that we would need to establish a temporary administration (Is Paul Bremmer doing anything?) to build up local capacity and …oh wait, this is a horrible idea that we already tried.

In sum, we should stay out of other people’s civil wars. If Darfur didn’t warrant a (forceful) Western intervention then Libya sure doesn’t.

These Libyan “citizens” are armed combatants and international law allows Khadafi’s military to attack them.

There’s no reason for a Western NFZ, no humanitarian reason and no vital interests.

Most reports and youtube videos (which I won’t post here since they can be rather grizzly) I’ve seen indicated that many are from Francophone Africa, such is Mauritania and Chad, but apparently passports have been found on mercenaries coming from as far away as Cameroon, Nigeria and Eritrea.

It’s also clear that some of those people killed/captured by the rebels were not mercenaries but were innocent immigrants. 🙁