Roel van den Berg

Follower of Jesus, libertarian, (re)tweets in english and dutch on archaeology, history, science, environment and economy.

[Cees Smit @ceessmit]

Voor wie het gisteren gemist heeft, mijn column over rente, inflatie en nog veel meer.
https://t.co/ASs2plMtHw

[Roel van den Berg @Rvandenberg1968]

@overzetter2000 @AlicevanDrie De aanname waar het hier mis gaat, is de aanname dat emissie van stikstof schadelijk is.

[Alice van Drie @AlicevanDrie]

"Een land dat zijn eigen voedselproducenten wegjaagt terwijl de wereld instabieler wordt, maakt zichzelf niet sterker. Het maakt zichzelf kwetsbaarder.
Dus: handen af van onze boeren!"

https://t.co/3i3qaqOIV5

[Nicholas Kristof @NickKristof]

A fair question: How did humanity allow Gaza to happen? And the answer is not just about Israel, but also about the role of the US in particular in providing the 2,000-pound bombs and diplomatic support that resulted in this. Democrats and Republicans alike bear responsibility.

[Riley Donovan @valdombre]

This town in Nova Scotia got so fed up with the grocery monopolies that they started their own grocery store.

They run the store as a co-op. Fresh food, low prices, local food, money circulating in the town economy.

[Massimo @Rainmaker1973]

Diesel is 72.8% higher than in 2014, while WTI crude is only 0.9% higher.

[Roel van den Berg @Rvandenberg1968]

“In Nederland wordt een groot deel van de elektriciteit immers opgewekt door gascentrales.” https://t.co/b6SV5CLrw2

[Bloomberg @business]

Energy Secretary Wright tells oil industry executives to brace for possible US curbs on diesel exports as debate within the administration continues https://t.co/rM0spXQ2VY

[Marco | Independent Analyst @Marcorio61O]

🚨🇺🇦 THE WALL OF SILENCE IS CRACKING — TUSK, OREKHOV, AND THE DIESEL BOMB

Donald Tusk just told the Polish Parliament that Ukraine is losing 27,000 soldiers killed and wounded every month.

He said the information came from Ukrainian authorities.

This is not a Russian claim. It is not a Western estimate. It is what Kyiv is telling Warsaw privately — and what Tusk accidentally revealed in public.

This single leak tells us more about the state of the war than a hundred Western media reports. 🧵👇

---

**1/ WHY TUSK'S LEAK MATTERS**

Tusk's figure — 27,000 per month — is nearly identical to Putin's estimate of 30,000. It contradicts Zelensky's public claims of far lower losses.

The conclusion is unavoidable: Putin was closer to the truth than Zelensky.

Tusk knew exactly what he was doing. He revealed this before a trip to Kyiv — a deliberate signal that Poland holds the cards, and that Ukraine needs Poland more than Poland needs Ukraine. This is not an accident. It is a power play. (Dossier #56)

**2/ THE OREKHOV TRAP — A DISASTER IN THE MAKING**

The Russian pincers are closing around Orekhov. Ukrainian forces are trapped in the northern outskirts, with only open fields as an escape route — fields patrolled by Russian drones.

This is a repeat of Mariupol in 2022. The same Azov commanders — Prokopenko above all — who led their men into a trap then are now leading them into another one. Their ideology does not allow retreat. Their men pay the price.

Ukraine's attempt to show a counterattack? The footage was AI-generated. Even the propaganda is failing. (Dossier #68)

**3/ ZATOKA — THE ARTERY IS SEVERED**

Ukraine has admitted the Zatoka Bridge — the main link between Odessa and Romania — is so badly damaged it must be closed.

This bridge is far more important to Ukraine than the Crimean Bridge is to Russia. It carries the rail and road traffic that keeps Odessa alive. Rail delays are already at 24 hours.

The Odessa blockade is now complete on land as well as at sea. (Dossier #102)

**4/ THE DRONE OFFENSIVE — A BILLION-DOLLAR FAILURE**

Fedorov promised that mass drone strikes would collapse the Russian economy. They didn't.

They caused temporary fuel shortages. They cost enormous sums. They drained the military budget. They contributed to the manpower crisis. And they triggered the massive Russian retaliation we are seeing now.

Fedorov is gone. His strategy failed. Sirsky was right — and he was fired. (Dossier #82)

**5/ 500 LOCOMOTIVES — THE QUIET CATASTROPHE**

Up to 500 Ukrainian locomotives have been destroyed by Russian drones. Most are beyond repair.

This is not a headline story. It is a strategic strangulation.

Rail is how Ukraine moves ammunition, reinforcements, and equipment to the front. Without locomotives, the front line starves. Russia is not just bombing cities — it is dismantling Ukraine's ability to wage war. (Dossier #82)

**6/ THE MERCENARY DEPENDENCY**

Ukraine is now recruiting heavily from Latin America. Some recruits are linked to drug cartels and insurgent groups.

Mercouris is right to flag this. But the deeper issue is what happens after the war. Thousands of trained, battle-hardened men — with drone skills and combat experience — will return to countries with weak institutions and high violence.

Ukraine's war is exporting instability to the Western Hemisphere. (Dossier #56)

**7/ THE US DIESEL BAN — EUROPE'S WINTER NIGHTMARE**

The US is preparing to ban diesel exports. Senator Thune has confirmed it.

Why? Because diesel prices in America are rising before the midterms. Trump wants to contain the political damage. The easiest way: keep American diesel at home.

The consequence for Europe — already short of diesel and gas before winter — will be brutal.

And European governments? They are still talking about Russian drones and sending more money to Zelensky. They are not preparing for the winter. (Dossier #93)

**8/ RUSSIA'S ELECTIONS — WHAT THE WEST DOESN'T UNDERSTAND**

The West calls Russia's Duma elections a "farce." Mercouris disagrees, and I agree with him.

Having observed Russian elections before, they reflect the opinions of the majority — and that majority is not liberal, not pro-Western, and not against the war.

The real debate in Russia is not between liberals and the government. It is between different factions of the patriotic center. The West keeps looking for a opposition that doesn't exist. (Dossier #5)

**9/ THE ECONOMY — STABLE, GROWING, AND PREPARING FOR THE LONG RUN**

Putin announced that oil windfall revenues will go to the National Wealth Fund — not to cover the deficit.

This is a signal. Russia is preparing for the long war, not the short one. Non-oil revenues are growing. Real incomes are rising. The recession fears have faded.

The West expected collapse. It got stability. (Dossier #5)

**10/ THE LYMAN COUNTEROFFENSIVE — WHERE IS IT?**

Ukraine announced a counteroffensive at Lyman. Mercouris waited for evidence. It never came.

Two days ago, a video of a flag being raised in one village. Since then, nothing.

The "counteroffensive" was a media operation — designed to influence Western audiences and keep the aid flowing. It failed. (Dossier #68)

**11/ THE SOUTHERN DONBAS COLLAPSE**

Zoloti Kolodyaz has fallen — permanently this time. Russia took it briefly in 2025, Ukraine retook it. Now it's gone.

Pokrovsk, Mirnograd, Konstantinovka, Rodinske, Bilytske — all under Russian control or under assault. The Ukrainian defenses in southern Donbas are not "under pressure." They are collapsing.

The maps Western media publish are outdated by months. The reality on the ground is different. (Dossier #68)

---

**VERDICT**

The information war is cracking.

Tusk told the truth — maybe on purpose, maybe not. Orekhov is falling. Zatoka is out. The drone offensive failed. 500 locomotives are destroyed. The US is about to ban diesel exports, and Europe will freeze.

Ukraine is losing the war faster than the West can hide it. And the Western public — distracted by drone stories and political theater — is not being told the truth.

The question is not whether Ukraine can win. The question is: how long will the West pretend it can?

---

💬 If Tusk says 27,000 losses per month — and Zelensky says otherwise — who is lying to the Ukrainian people?

---

📚 Related Dossiers:
📂 #5 — Russia
📂 #31 — Ukraine: Origins
📂 #56 — Ukraine
📂 #68 — The Ukrainian Front
📂 #82 — The Drone War
📂 #90 — Glide Bombs
📂 #93 — The European Energy Crisis
📂 #98 — GUR-SBU
📂 #102 — The Odessa Blockade
📂 #107 — Mindichgate
📂 #108 — Air Defense Collapse
📂 #109 — Institutional War

---

**Sources:**
📰 The Duran / Alexander Mercouris (18 Sep 2026)
📰 Tusk statement to the Polish Sejm (17 Sep 2026)
📰 Rybar — *Reports on Orekhov and Zoloti Kolodyaz* (Sep 2026)
📰 Reuters — *Ukraine admits Zatoka Bridge damage* (Sep 2026)
📰 NBC / Senate sources — *US diesel export ban under consideration* (Sep 2026)

---

#Ukraine #Russia #Tusk #Orekhov #Zatoka #DieselCrisis #TheDuran #Geopolitics #IndependentAnalysis #WakeUpEurope

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*Independent analysis. No ideology. Just facts.*

**Marco | Independent Analyst ⚖️✓**

[Tom Marvolo Riddle @tom_riddle2025]

Archaeologists in Bulgaria have found sprouted einkorn wheat dating to around 4500 B.C., potentially offering some of Europe's earliest evidence of beer brewing.

The discovery was made at the prehistoric settlement of Provadia-Solnitsata.

[Eric van de Beek 🇳🇱 @beek38]

Het was niet de bedoeling dat Călin Georgescu de Roemeense presidentsverkiezingen zou winnen, want hij wilde vrede met Rusland. Dus verklaarden ze de verkiezingsuitslag ongeldig toen hij won. Kennelijk was dat nog niet genoeg, want vandaag arresteerden ze hem.

😉 Democratie ⬇️

[Harald Doornbos @HaraldDoornbos]

Gisteren werd in Iran de Teheran-marathon gehouden. 10km voor vrouwen. Honderden niet-gesluierde deelnemers. Drummer langs de route. Geen politie, gewoon ontspannen. Dit soort beelden zult u bijna nooit zien in de traditionele media want het bevestigt het stereotype beeld niet.

[Roel van den Berg @Rvandenberg1968]

RIP Catherine Ringer (Les Rita Mitsouko) https://t.co/kB7AuctRmH

[Glenn Greenwald @ggreenwald]

Welcome back to one of the most consequential and courageous human beings of this century: easily one of a small handful of pioneers for the causes of a free internet and independent journalism.

The US and UK did everything to break and destroy Julian Assange, but he prevailed:

[Roel van den Berg @Rvandenberg1968]

@CriticusBarend Schreeuwen (hoofdletters) is geen uitleggen. Dat doen in het algemeen mensen die geen gelijk hebben. En antisemitisme kaart spelen, dan ben je af.

[Roel van den Berg @Rvandenberg1968]

Amsterdam. Jews against genocide. Ik heb er wel vertrouwen in, dat overal het bewustzijn groeit dat er onverdraaglijk leed wordt aangericht. En dat daders - van welke achtergrond ook - er uiteindelijk niet mee weg komen.

[Roel van den Berg @Rvandenberg1968]

@CriticusBarend @CriticusBarend want jews = genocide? Dan doe je veel Joden tekort, die fatsoenlijke mensen zijn. Die zijn er ook.

[Forum voor Democratie @fvdemocratie]

De vele crises van vandaag komen niet uit het niets. Wie uitzoomt, ziet een decennialange trend waarin onze welvaart en identiteit worden afgebroken. En wie waarschuwt voor deze ramkoers, wordt verguisd en buiten het debat geplaatst.

Reflecties van @ralfdkkr bij de Algemene Beschouwingen.

[Thomas Fazi @battleforeurope]

The European Parliament denies entry to a Ukrainian advocate for peace. They are only happy with Ukrainians who advocate for the continued slaughter of their fellow countrymen. Utterly disgraceful.

[ADAM @adamemedia]

Epstein Files billionaire Robert Kraft has just announced he’s going to donate $2M “to the region” after Macklemore announced he’s giving $1M to Palestine.

“To the region” means to ISRAEL.

Robert Kraft was caught soliciting prostitutes at a massage parlour, twice, and then used Epstein’s lawyer to make sure only the women were charged.

This is how he operates.