US Resets to the Fact Putin Won’t Play Nice

• Ukraine’s president said Russian forces issued an ultimatum on Crimea, after blockading Ukrainian forces in the region.

• A Rear Admiral just appointed to lead the Ukrainian navy swore allegiance to “the residents of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea”, which really means he defected to Russia. Of course the Russians swear all they’re doing is defending human rights. Which is also the purpose of live fire exercises in the Kaliningrad exclave.

• The Obama administration is putting together a list of travel and financial restrictions they could enact against Russian officials, while the Russian stock market is taking a nosedive.

• NATO’s Secretary General’s statement (video):

“We condemn Russia’s military escalation in Crimea. We express our grave concern regarding the authorisation, by the Russian Parliament, of the use of the armed forces of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine.

• China clarifies its stance: they have no stance. They don’t want to look like they are meddling with the “internal affairs” of other countries. Don’t ask how that’s possibly relevant to the current situation in Ukraine. Meanwhile, China keeps pushing against the international norms regulating territorial disputes.

• In a 1994 Memorandum, the US, Russia, and the UK affirmed their commitment “to respect the independence and sovereignty and the existing borders of Ukraine.”

• While many observers, mostly in American media, seem taken aback by Russia’s behavior in Ukraine as if it was not right out of their playbook, DID in July 2012: “Introducing Spice de Cold War, by Vladimir.”

• Stars & Stripes describes the struggle to downsize EUCOM.

IOTV: Interceptor’s Incremental Improvement

IOTV: key features

The USA’s Interceptor OTV (Outer Tactical Vest) Body Armor, and its SAPI/ESAPI ceramic plate inserts, offer a significant improvement over its 1990s predecessors in terms of both weight and protection. After episodic issues with production ramp-up and quality control, this gear is widely fielded with the US Army and several allied militaries (the US Marines replaced it with the MTV). In May 2007, controversy regarding the armor’s effectiveness boiled over in the wake of a TV news feature. The US Army responded with rare public claims about a competing product, even as several high-profile legislators advocated independent civilian tests to ensure that US soldiers were really getting the best system.

Meanwhile, improvements were being made to the OTV system in response to feedback from the field. Hence the Improved OTV, whose Generation II model is now in production.