Massive American bomber build up suggests upcoming strike

Jim, I am sure the US is paying the UK for their use of Diego Garcia.

The irrationality in those discussions is deeply concerning. Just couldn’t help themselves taking the opportunity to slag off the Europeans and how incapable of carrying out such operations we all are and claiming they are mostly doing it for the European’s benefit. Yes of course there is an element of truth most manipulated prejudice usually does. But let’s get it straight one they couldn’t do it on this scale if we didn’t rent them Diego Garcia.

Equally the US didn’t want European powers in the Pacific, this was to be their playground so why would Europeans develop the super carriers to do a back up job to the long range stealth bombers or indeed produce the large bombers themselves, they are mostly Pacific orientated power tools. Yet as they lecture us in the art of ‘knowing our place’ we are European powers and should concentrate on European defence where such tools just aren’t what’s needed. Equally don’t tell me the US are really doing this for jolly old Europe, they are doing it for their own ship’s protection, prestige, power projection and above all taking all that into the equation, to protect their Israeli mates. The duplicity and self serving rewriting, is a warning to us in all manner of relations with them which will just get more and more anti Europe and hostile and we need to get our act together because it doesn’t matter how we bend the knee Starmer style,(though we in the Uk have a little sway in so doing) or do as we are told, there will always be new and endless demands because as with Putin and co, it’s for internal consumption and hating freeloading foreigners has to be the message to MAGA extremists true or otherwise. Hate is their power even as Trump pr sells it as stopping wars even when they are being expanded and Biden is slagged off for not doing so ironically writing his strikes out of MAGA written history.

But Fox (or is it Ministry of Truth) is selling it as being open and true to the US people… or calling it a lie by a pinko lying hack if you are Hegseth or keeping stum and unavailable probably till he sobered up, once a colleague admitted it was all authentic.

It’s 25% of the B2 fleet.

Depends whether one believes that B2s are as lethal as the Americans like to boast of. Short of all out war Immsure they are more than enough especially combined with carrier types to do all they would want to do or are capable of anyway to meet agent Orange’s commands.

Almost nothing except perishables (food stuffs) fly out on airplanes.

What on earth are you talking about? This is nonsense of the highest order. If the Iranians or their proxies managed to shut down any of these vital shipping lanes Europe incl UK would be in serious trouble, and we’d be begging the US to help sort. Even if are large portion of our fuel supplies didn’t come from there (they currently do), most of our allies would be badly effected, which would have serious knock-on effects economically for us.

In his eyes the EU seems to be free loaders as they will benefit yet they are not helping this time to clear the Red Sea for transit, whilst the US and the UK are. The UK sending air tankers and I think Typhoons.

I guess a good joke is worth hearing twice boom, boom.

I see Trump denying he knew anything aboutit yesterday is today claiming nothing of importance was discussed blah, blah, blah. About sums up his decision making I guess, even deniability comes and goes at will, his supporters don’t care either way let’s be honest. Black and white are just variations of grey after all.

And his VP 😀

I totally agree with your logic of course we in the U.K. unlike most of Europe were totally indebted to the US for all the money we borrowed to protect freedom at the outset of WW2 which was a deliberate policy to undermine our preeminent position on the world stage in the post war world. This was most clearly demonstrated in 1956 when the final nail in the coffin of our status at the top table by our great friend and then POTUS Mr Eisenhower.
Ultimately, none of this really mattered (we sucked it up) because US and U.K. interests were pretty much aligned and whilst the US dominated the U.K. still had a powerful military and industrial base that could on occasions demonstrates a level of capability and expertise that the US military admired.
However, in the 21st Century we have allowed ourselves to become totally dependent on US military capabilities whilst we have reaped? a peace dividend.
A simple example of this change is how in 1980 we instigated the Armilla patrol in the Gulf to protect oil exports. This was constantly at least 2 RN escorts and at times of tension more for over two decades. This was a tangible commitment to sharing the burden of maintaining and protecting our way of life.
This approach was maintained during the Somali pirate period but U.K. warship numbers were down but compensated for by other European navies. If you now look at the Houthi situation in the Red Sea the U.K. cannot maintain one suitable vessel on station and the rest of Europes commitment is less in number and the war fighting capability of some navies questionable.
3% of the vessels passing through the Red Sea are heading to or from the US but 40% + to Europe.
Whilst there is a clear link between this problem and the ongoing US support of Israel we cannot protect our own vessels as we did in the 1980s and 1990s.
Despite the very clear bravery of British forces in both Iraq and Afghanistan the US also questioned U.K. military leadership and capability in those two disastrous wars. A good friend would offer wise counsel during these periods even if that is not welcome but for reasons only Mr Blair will know we allowed ourselves to offer unqualified support. That is a sign of an unhealthy and unequal relationship and we need a PM that can articulate that over the coming decades we are going to take a more independent approach because the fix will take a long time and should be gradual for our own benefit.
Nobody stays in the White House forever so it is very possible that the US may become more rational but that should not stop our direction of travel, which must be to reinforce our military with 3% of gdp spent on defence enabling a gradual run down of US forces in the U.K. This is all possible if the burden is shared with likeminded nations in Europe and elsewhere. Where trade is concerned we need to show we are not to be messed with particularly when we have a pretty equal trading relationship with the US.
Longer term this will benefit ourselves, Europe and the US.

I read that the USAF developed earth penetrators to take out Yamantau and Konvinsky. Under thousands of feet of granite and quartz.
I doubt Iranian subterranean sites will be a problem if conventional versions of those weapons exist.