Russian Invasion of Ukraine[In Progress]

[DaRude]

Irrelevant and missing the point as usual. It is irrelevant how many nukes Ruzzia and up to a point where they have them.
-snip-

Where NATO places its nukes is completely irrelevant. Why you root for global exponential growth for nuclear conflicts also stinks of desperation. You're just changing your narrative to "either NATO expands to Ukraine or we start a nuclear war, but try to blame Putin for it". That's clinical insanity.

✂️.

I think it's nothing new here. Already in first year of war we saw people mainly from Nepal, some African countries fighting for Russia.
I don't think Russia is hiring them because they're running out of people. It's more just a way to get some cheap meat. And now it doesn't looks that number of such mercenaries is very significant.

Well, the report I saw on the Cuban people going to Russia to fight for Putin was talking about four hundred civilians who became military units in the front, that is indeed quite an small number of soldiers, which is unlikely to make a difference on the result of battles by its own, so I am not sure what is the objective of this recruitment campaign. It could be about slowly recruiting foreigners, so Putin would not need to gather his own population and levy for more native Russians to go fight in the front.

I am not sure I would call these people to be used as "cheap meat" as you call them, if the numbers of their salaries and the possibility on getting Russian citizenship are not unfunded, then they are being paid very good salaries, considering they come from a third world country like Cuba. I am not informed on those citizens from Nepal and African countries though, It makes sense something like that could be happening.

Mercs are pretty much cheap meat. Throw them in first just make sure not to collect bodies so you can just mark them as missing and not pay out

Ukraine was a magnet for foreign fighters. After 2 bruising years, many are disillusioned or dead.
...
Some volunteers barely lasted a week. A Russian missile strike in March 2022 hit a base near Lviv being used for foreign fighters.

According to Ukrainian officials, dozens of Ukrainians were killed and more than 100 foreign volunteers injured, ending their campaigns before they began.
...
International fighters proved "more expendable than Ukrainian soldiers for high-risk operations," Pugliese said.

Indeed, Larson, who headed a 25-man platoon of legionaries in 2022, said he and his men were a "sacrificial unit."
...
"We were a speed bump," he said. "If the Russians had come, we could have held them up for maybe an hour."
...
According to Larson, who continues to help recruiters for the Legion, sign-ups have dwindled by two thirds since the flood of March 2022.

"Half the signups are from Latin America now," he noted, a big shift.

In the fall of 2023, the Legion began admitting Spanish-speaking applicants, many of whom were inadmissible before, Pugliese told BI.

Some had made it in but were mistreated by their officers, he said.

The new Bolivar Battalion, for example, was formed by fighters from Venezuela, Ecuador, Argentina, and Colombia and was is led by a Venezuelan anti-government fighter.

Many are former professional soldiers from Colombia, battle-hardened fighting drug cartels and rebel groups in their homeland.

Experienced non-commissioned officers can earn four times as much as back home, or even more, the Associated Press reported.

Latin Americans "have different motivations from typical Western soldiers," Larson told BI.

"They're there for the money."

And hundreds are heading to fight in Ukraine, where many make four times as much as experienced non-commissioned officers earn in Colombia, or even more.
...
Retired Colombian soldiers began to head overseas in the early 2000s to work for U.S. military contractors protecting infrastructure including oil wells in Iraq.
...
Corporals in Colombia get a basic salary of around $400 a month, while experienced drill sergeants can earn up to $900. Colombia’s monthly minimum wage is currently $330.

In Ukraine any member of the armed forces, regardless of citizenship, is entitled to a monthly salary of up to $3,300, depending on their rank and type of service. They are also entitled to up to $28,660 if they are injured, depending on the severity of the wounds. If they are killed in action, their families are due $400,000 compensation

In Colombia, word about recruitment to the Ukrainian army spreads mostly through social media. Some of the volunteers who already fight in Ukraine share insights on the recruitment process on platforms such as TikTok or WhatsApp.

$400k of blood money, might sound like a good deal for some poor souls. I mean everyone of course is fighting to protect democracy in Ukraine

[paxmao]

[...]
Indeed, Larson, who headed a 25-man platoon of legionaries in 2022, said he and his men were a "sacrificial unit."
[...]

Which perfectly matches the fact that he is alive and talking about it?  

Another Su25 has been shoot in Avdiivka direction. A direct effect of all that help "that is nothing", all those weapons that "do not work" and all the "US taxpayers" money wasted that Branko is so worried about (it is heartbreaking to see how much you love the US taxpayers).

There is an unusual level of Ukrainian drone activity. There is a video out there in which 6 drones are used to kill what appears like 4 Ruzzian mercenaries in a treeline.

[...]

$400k of blood money, might sound like a good deal for some poor souls. I mean everyone of course is fighting to protect democracy in Ukraine

I do not know. You tell us.

@Branko, you claim to have combat experience. Tell us, is this a special tactic? I mean, a Ruzzian soldier is usually trained to detonate a grenade in his own chest?

https://t.me/ssternenko/28454

Oh, Trump has spoken about his plan to reach peace:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/19/ukraine-war-briefing-donald-trump-says-survival-of-ukraine-important-to-the-us

Donald Trump has said the survival of Ukraine is important to the US, in what Reuters describes as a shift in tone days before Republicans are due to vote on a $61bn aid package in the US House of Representatives. “As everyone agrees, Ukrainian Survival and Strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET MOVING EUROPE!”

As usual... blaming someone else after stopping the aid for 6 months. dumBAss gonna love this one.

[Branko]

@Branko, you claim to have combat experience. Tell us, is this a special tactic? I mean, a Ruzzian soldier is usually trained to detonate a grenade in his own chest?

Its very brave.
My uncle shot himself so Italian fascists don't catch him alive

Totally different than Ukrainian soldiers killing themselves so
they don't get sent to fight

[Hispo]

...

Oh, Trump has spoken about his plan to reach peace:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/19/ukraine-war-briefing-donald-trump-says-survival-of-ukraine-important-to-the-us

Donald Trump has said the survival of Ukraine is important to the US, in what Reuters describes as a shift in tone days before Republicans are due to vote on a $61bn aid package in the US House of Representatives. “As everyone agrees, Ukrainian Survival and Strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET MOVING EUROPE!”

As usual... blaming someone else after stopping the aid for 6 months. dumBAss gonna love this one.

Well, that is quite absurd if true. Trump and the Republican party (mostly the people who support Trump/Maga) have spent entire months claiming it was wasteful to send equipment to Ukraine and offer them support with the taxpayer money from the people, while there are other problems to be solved domestically and now Trump seems to be flipping on the issue of Ukraine due to God knows what reason.
If anyone in the Republican party had some spine left, they would call out Trump for his double speech and the way he easily changes of opinion in any politically relevant topic for his own benefit, some would even call him Uniparty and RINO in different circumstances. It has already flipped on abortion, in the topic of Bitcoin/cryptocurrency and now this.
I wonder how much this could hurt him politically, probably not much, considering his core base does not use logic and consistency to vote in the first place.

[paxmao]

@Branko, you claim to have combat experience. Tell us, is this a special tactic? I mean, a Ruzzian soldier is usually trained to detonate a grenade in his own chest?

Its very brave.
My uncle shot himself so Italian fascists don't catch him alive

Totally different than Ukrainian soldiers killing themselves so
they don't get sent to fight

I hope there are many more "brave" soldiers doing the same in the Ruzzian army then, it would make a future peace much easier.

BTW there are news that the "brave" commander that was in charge of the Bucha massacres has been HIMARSed. I think Ukrainians tend not to forget that type of bravery.

...

Oh, Trump has spoken about his plan to reach peace:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/19/ukraine-war-briefing-donald-trump-says-survival-of-ukraine-important-to-the-us

Donald Trump has said the survival of Ukraine is important to the US, in what Reuters describes as a shift in tone days before Republicans are due to vote on a $61bn aid package in the US House of Representatives. “As everyone agrees, Ukrainian Survival and Strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET MOVING EUROPE!”

As usual... blaming someone else after stopping the aid for 6 months. dumBAss gonna love this one.

Well, that is quite absurd if true. Trump and the Republican party (mostly the people who support Trump/Maga) have spent entire months claiming it was wasteful to send equipment to Ukraine and offer them support with the taxpayer money from the people, while there are other problems to be solved domestically and now Trump seems to be flipping on the issue of Ukraine due to God knows what reason.
If anyone in the Republican party had some spine left, they would call out Trump for his double speech and the way he easily changes of opinion in any politically relevant topic for his own benefit, some would even call him Uniparty and RINO in different circumstances. It has already flipped on abortion, in the topic of Bitcoin/cryptocurrency and now this.
I wonder how much this could hurt him politically, probably not much, considering his core base does not use logic and consistency to vote in the first place.

Spot on, his base does not care. What I see here is that Trump had to yield to the party instead of the party yielding to him. It is possibly the first time that this happens and signals a much lower grip that we all assumed.

He is swapping the narrative to keep his parties support, but yeah.. he may do whatever about the Ruzzo- Ukrainian war when elected anyway. My guess is that he understands that the US benefits from a free and strong Ukraine, but he may play the "businessman" simply forcing Ukraine to give up land. Putin would certainly love that scenario since he has been "buying" Ukrainian land at a ridiculous price in weapons, blood and political credit so getting it "for free" thanks to Trump bloated ego and pretences of "statemanship" and his like for simple solutions to complex problems.

How would Trump gain at least to a point my respect? If Ruzzia were to give a meaningful chunk of he Ukrainian land they have taken. THAT would proof some statesmanship. For a funny example, I can close a deal in the name of Ukraine that gives Putin half of the country and two major cities (for example), or for that matter sell you a car and on top pay you to take it, but that makes me a stupid not a businessman.

[Branko]

BTW there are news that the "brave" commander that was in charge of the Bucha massacres has been HIMARSed. I think Ukrainians tend not to forget that type of bravery.

Did they hit that BBC guy who invented whole story all the way in England, or
maybe BBC sent him to Ukraine to silence him for whatever reason?

[paxmao]

BTW there are news that the "brave" commander that was in charge of the Bucha massacres has been HIMARSed. I think Ukrainians tend not to forget that type of bravery.

Did they hit that BBC guy who invented whole story all the way in England, or
maybe BBC sent him to Ukraine to silence him for whatever reason?

There are tens of witnesses Branko. Your loved Ruzzia army is a bunch of sadistic butchers. There are images of drones attacking families and old men simply going about their business for training. You need some?

Seems like Shoigu has been demoted and changed for a Civilian from the closer Putin's economic circle.

My guess is that the war is going so well and corruption is so under control that Putin has taken this decision based on the armpit smell of Shoigu and not because he is an absolute incompetent in war, but very extremely competent in sending unequipped troops while filling his banks accounts with the money that should have provided the equipment.

[be.open]

Seems like Shoigu has been demoted and changed for a Civilian from the closer Putin's economic circle.

My guess is that the war is going so well and corruption is so under control that Putin has taken this decision based on the armpit smell of Shoigu and not because he is an absolute incompetent in war, but very extremely competent in sending unequipped troops while filling his banks accounts with the money that should have provided the equipment.

The Minister of Defense should be a civilian; in fact, he is a supply manager. In Russia, the Minister of Defense has been a civilian since 2001 (Shoigu is also a civilian). The current Minister of Defense of Ukraine seems to also be a civilian. Almost all defense ministers in Europe are civilians.

Military operations are led by the General Staff, the Chief of the General Staff is still Gerasimov.

[Branko]

BTW there are news that the "brave" commander that was in charge of the Bucha massacres has been HIMARSed. I think Ukrainians tend not to forget that type of bravery.

Did they hit that BBC guy who invented whole story all the way in England, or
maybe BBC sent him to Ukraine to silence him for whatever reason?

There are tens of witnesses Branko. Your loved Ruzzia army is a bunch of sadistic butchers. There are images of drones attacking families and old men simply going about their business for training. You need some?

Seems like Shoigu has been demoted and changed for a Civilian from the closer Putin's economic circle.

My guess is that the war is going so well and corruption is so under control that Putin has taken this decision based on the armpit smell of Shoigu and not because he is an absolute incompetent in war, but very extremely competent in sending unequipped troops while filling his banks accounts with the money that should have provided the equipment.

There were "tons of evidence" about Iraq WMDs too...I'll never again believe anything coming from USA or UK:

https://tribunemag.co.uk/2023/03/blair-knew-saddam-had-no-wdms-no10-told-me-so-before-the-war#:~:text=When%20Alistair%20Campbell%20arranged%20for,not%20exist%2C%20writes%20Chris%20McLaughlin.

[paxmao]

Seems like Shoigu has been demoted and changed for a Civilian from the closer Putin's economic circle.

My guess is that the war is going so well and corruption is so under control that Putin has taken this decision based on the armpit smell of Shoigu and not because he is an absolute incompetent in war, but very extremely competent in sending unequipped troops while filling his banks accounts with the money that should have provided the equipment.

The Minister of Defense should be a civilian; in fact, he is a supply manager. In Russia, the Minister of Defense has been a civilian since 2001 (Shoigu is also a civilian). The current Minister of Defense of Ukraine seems to also be a civilian. Almost all defense ministers in Europe are civilians.

Military operations are led by the General Staff, the Chief of the General Staff is still Gerasimov.

Shoigu civilian? ... well, short of...

Shoigu received the rank of major general in 1993,[12] and was promoted swiftly to lieutenant general in 1995,[13] colonel general in 1998,[14] and to army general, in practice the highest Russian military rank, in 2003.[15]

All those are military ranks, he wears mostly military uniforms and - me not an expert - seems to carry around quite a bit of cheap metal in the chest quite military looking. I guess he is not properly a military grown in the lower ranks if that's your point.

A "supply manager" ... he certainly "manages" the supplies here and there yes  



Not as good as the mafia boss of course:

https://www.google.com/maps/@44.422079,38.2078166,1238m/data=!3m1!1e3?entry=ttu

[be.open]

Shoigu civilian? ... well, short of...

Shoigu received the rank of major general in 1993,[12] and was promoted swiftly to lieutenant general in 1995,[13] colonel general in 1998,[14] and to army general, in practice the highest Russian military rank, in 2003.[15]

Yep, Shoigu civilian. Before becoming a major general, he was a lieutenant, and received the rank of lieutenant thanks to his studies at a university with a military department. And you yourself know this very well, but out of habit you quoted only that part of the information that is beneficial to you. You have a professional deformation from an overdose of propaganda.

[paxmao]

Shoigu civilian? ... well, short of...

Shoigu received the rank of major general in 1993,[12] and was promoted swiftly to lieutenant general in 1995,[13] colonel general in 1998,[14] and to army general, in practice the highest Russian military rank, in 2003.[15]

Yep, Shoigu civilian. Before becoming a major general, he was a lieutenant, and received the rank of lieutenant thanks to his studies at a university with a military department. And you yourself know this very well, but out of habit you quoted only that part of the information that is beneficial to you. You have a professional deformation from an overdose of propaganda.

Oh, so he was civilian before he is no longer civilian. So now is not civilian? And somehow I am doing propaganda? You have an interesting way of thinking.

I mean, I am sure that applies to all military, they are not born militaries, they eventually become militaries. I could quote how he was first civilian, but it would not add, subtract, multiply, divide nor make the square root of the fact that he is not civilian now, but military and hence my statement saying that he is military is correct, whereas your statement about him being civilian is, at minimum, inaccurate.

[be.open]

Shoigu civilian? ... well, short of...

Shoigu received the rank of major general in 1993,[12] and was promoted swiftly to lieutenant general in 1995,[13] colonel general in 1998,[14] and to army general, in practice the highest Russian military rank, in 2003.[15]

Yep, Shoigu civilian. Before becoming a major general, he was a lieutenant, and received the rank of lieutenant thanks to his studies at a university with a military department. And you yourself know this very well, but out of habit you quoted only that part of the information that is beneficial to you. You have a professional deformation from an overdose of propaganda.

Oh, so he was civilian before he is no longer civilian. So now is not civilian? And somehow I am doing propaganda? You have an interesting way of thinking.

I mean, I am sure that applies to all military, they are not born militaries, they eventually become militaries. I could quote how he was first civilian, but it would not add, subtract, multiply, divide nor make the square root of the fact that he is not civilian now, but military and hence my statement saying that he is military is correct, whereas your statement about him being civilian is, at minimum, inaccurate.

It seems you are ready to argue about anything, simply because you like to argue.

Shoigu is not a military man in the sense that he is not a product of the military system. He did not serve in the army, did not graduate from a higher military school, and was not an active officer. The Russian military itself does not consider Shoigu a military man.

Before Shoigu, Russia's Minister of Defense was Serdyukov, a former head of the tax service. Before Serdyukov, the Minister of Defense was Ivanov, a philologist by training. My point is that the Minister of Defense is not a professional military man; this is normal practice in Europe in general and in Russia in particular. The highest rank for a military man is the head of the General Staff. Formally, the supreme commander is the president, but you won’t say that Biden is a military man?

[paxmao]

Shoigu civilian? ... well, short of...

Shoigu received the rank of major general in 1993,[12] and was promoted swiftly to lieutenant general in 1995,[13] colonel general in 1998,[14] and to army general, in practice the highest Russian military rank, in 2003.[15]

Yep, Shoigu civilian. Before becoming a major general, he was a lieutenant, and received the rank of lieutenant thanks to his studies at a university with a military department. And you yourself know this very well, but out of habit you quoted only that part of the information that is beneficial to you. You have a professional deformation from an overdose of propaganda.

Oh, so he was civilian before he is no longer civilian. So now is not civilian? And somehow I am doing propaganda? You have an interesting way of thinking.

I mean, I am sure that applies to all military, they are not born militaries, they eventually become militaries. I could quote how he was first civilian, but it would not add, subtract, multiply, divide nor make the square root of the fact that he is not civilian now, but military and hence my statement saying that he is military is correct, whereas your statement about him being civilian is, at minimum, inaccurate.

It seems you are ready to argue about anything, simply because you like to argue.

Shoigu is not a military man in the sense that he is not a product of the military system. He did not serve in the army, did not graduate from a higher military school, and was not an active officer. The Russian military itself does not consider Shoigu a military man.

Before Shoigu, Russia's Minister of Defense was Serdyukov, a former head of the tax service. Before Serdyukov, the Minister of Defense was Ivanov, a philologist by training. My point is that the Minister of Defense is not a professional military man; this is normal practice in Europe in general and in Russia in particular. The highest rank for a military man is the head of the General Staff. Formally, the supreme commander is the president, but you won’t say that Biden is a military man?

Glad to know the European and Ruzzian cultures have so many points in common. Ok, he has a military rank but is not a career military guy.

Why do you think he has been shown the door? Is everything going well over there?

There is a more interesting topic, but you may not like it or most likely you will say it is not true, but anyway: Today has marked the record of Ruzzian soldiers killed. Not only that, it seems that is NOT the record of vehicles destroyed. If you wish to give credit, 1700 Ruzzian soldiers died. They did not have adequate vehicle support.

I guess you'd like to question this?

The cause is the Kharkiv attack vector, which is an absolute crazy idea.

[be.open]

There is a more interesting topic, but you may not like it or most likely you will say it is not true, but anyway: Today has marked the record of Ruzzian soldiers killed. Not only that, it seems that is NOT the record of vehicles destroyed. If you wish to give credit, 1700 Ruzzian soldiers died. They did not have adequate vehicle support.

I guess you'd like to question this?

The cause is the Kharkiv attack vector, which is an absolute crazy idea.

I have already expressed my opinion on this matter a little higher, I think this is a regular diversionary strike in order to force Syrsky to transfer reserves from other sectors of the front and accordingly weaken them (because he has no free combat-ready reserves). Syrsky now has a very difficult situation - he is forced to do what he does not want, because he cannot simply ignore the attack of the "North" group.

Regarding human losses and a small number of armored vehicle losses. The assault troops of the "North" group consist of "Storm Z" fighters - these are former prisoners who entered into a contract with the Ministry of Defense. In fact, these are suicide bombers; they are not entitled to armored vehicles. But the “North” group has powerful support of about a thousand artillery barrels (this is more than in the Avdeevsky direction), plus aviation support with guided bombs. Therefore, their raid will continue successfully with further losses of territory in Ukraine until Syrsky transfers at least a couple of brigades here to stop them. Then a strike will follow on the weakened section of the front. Wait, this will happen within a month, before the peace conference in Switzerland.

[DaRude]

...

How would Trump gain at least to a point my respect? If Ruzzia were to give a meaningful chunk of he Ukrainian land they have taken. THAT would proof some statesmanship. For a funny example, I can close a deal in the name of Ukraine that gives Putin half of the country and two major cities (for example), or for that matter sell you a car and on top pay you to take it, but that makes me a stupid not a businessman.

Interesting watching even you pivot from back to borders of 1991 to would be nice to get just a meaningful chunk back. Biggest tragedy is that it was on the table during the negotiations before Johnson torpedoed them now looks like too much Russian blood has been spilled for that to be acceptable, that's the problem with raising the stakes.

...
There is a more interesting topic, but you may not like it or most likely you will say it is not true, but anyway: Today has marked the record of Ruzzian soldiers killed. Not only that, it seems that is NOT the record of vehicles destroyed. If you wish to give credit, 1700 Ruzzian soldiers died. They did not have adequate vehicle support.

I guess you'd like to question this?

The cause is the Kharkiv attack vector, which is an absolute crazy idea.

Question you? Now why would anyone even think of that? We of course just blindly trust any numbers that you write without any citations.

Now back to the real world

 

Russian Forces Push Deeper Into Northern Ukraine

With Ukrainian troops outnumbered, exhausted and now in retreat near Kharkiv, many Ukrainians wonder if the war has taken a significant turn for the worse.
...
In the past three days, Russian troops, backed by fighter jets, artillery and lethal drones, have poured across Ukraine’s northeastern border and seized at least nine villages and settlements, ­and more square miles per day than at almost any other point in the war, save the very beginning.

In some places, Ukrainian troops are retreating, and Ukrainian commanders are blaming each other for the defeats.
...
Military experts say the Russian advance has put Ukraine in a very dangerous spot. Ukrainian troops have been complaining for months about severe shortages of ammunition — exacerbated by the tangles in the U.S. Congress that delayed the delivery of key weapons. And Ukrainian soldiers, by all accounts, are exhausted.

More than two years of trying to fight off a country with three times the population to draw from has left Ukraine so depleted and desperate for fresh troops that its lawmakers have voted to mobilize convicts, a controversial practice that Ukraine had ridiculed Russia for using in the first half of the war.

One Ukrainian commander took the unusual step on Sunday of blasting his colleagues for what he said were terrible border defenses.

“The first line of fortifications and mines just didn’t exist,” Denys Yaroslavsky, a reconnaissance commander, wrote on Facebook. “The enemy freely entered the gray area, across the border line, which in principle should not have been gray!”
...
Commander Yaroslavsky added that street fights had broken out in Vovchansk, a small town near Kharkiv, and that it was now surrounded. “I say this because we can die and no one will hear the truth,” he wrote. “Then why is it all for?!”
...
The Russians are pressing on Lyptsi, another small town that is even closer to Kharkiv than Vovchansk. Residents who fled in evacuation vans on Sunday said the situation in Lyptsi was not looking good.
...
Taking Lyptsi would put the Russians within artillery range of Kharkiv, a metropolis of more than a million people that was just struggling to come back to life. All this, for the Ukrainians, is a bad case of déjà vu.
...
Part of the Russians’ plan with this overall attack, military analysts said, is to threaten Kharkiv and force Ukraine to divert troops from other battlefields, especially those in the eastern Donbas region.

And that’s exactly what is happening. A group of Ukrainian special forces soldiers were huddling at a gas station on Sunday afternoon, swigging energy drinks and trying to get the lay of the land. They looked tired. And they said they had just been redeployed from Donbas.

“The Russians have understood, just as a lot of analysts have, that the major disadvantage that Ukraine is currently suffering from is manpower,” said Franz-Stefan Gady, a Vienna-based military analyst. “By thinning out the front line, you are increasing the odds of a breakthrough.”
...
Russian leaders want to push Ukrainians back from the border and carve out a buffer zone, a mission they began on Friday at dawn.
...
Another Ukrainian soldier serving near Kharkiv who spoke by telephone on Sunday said he and his comrades hadn’t slept in days and were in shock at how fast the Russians were moving.

With such news, Ukraine could use a lot of damage control right about now to keep morale from collapsing.

[Branko]

Three Ukrainian helicopters went to refuel, minute later Iskander destroyed all of them.
It seems Russian reaction time improved drastically compared to 2022 and 2023:

https://www.index.hr/vijesti/clanak/tri-ukrajinska-helikoptera-sletjela-kod-fronte-vidio-ih-dron-unisteni-su-zacas/2565059.aspx

[paxmao]

...

How would Trump gain at least to a point my respect? If Ruzzia were to give a meaningful chunk of he Ukrainian land they have taken. THAT would proof some statesmanship. For a funny example, I can close a deal in the name of Ukraine that gives Putin half of the country and two major cities (for example), or for that matter sell you a car and on top pay you to take it, but that makes me a stupid not a businessman.

Interesting watching even you pivot from back to borders of 1991 to would be nice to get just a meaningful chunk back. Biggest tragedy is that it was on the table during the negotiations before Johnson torpedoed them now looks like too much Russian blood has been spilled for that to be acceptable, that's the problem with raising the stakes.

...
There is a more interesting topic, but you may not like it or most likely you will say it is not true, but anyway: Today has marked the record of Ruzzian soldiers killed. Not only that, it seems that is NOT the record of vehicles destroyed. If you wish to give credit, 1700 Ruzzian soldiers died. They did not have adequate vehicle support.

I guess you'd like to question this?

The cause is the Kharkiv attack vector, which is an absolute crazy idea.

Question you? Now why would anyone even think of that? We of course just blindly trust any numbers that you write without any citations.

Now back to the real world

[...]

With such news, Ukraine could use a lot of damage control right about now to keep morale from collapsing.

Collapsing? I though you said something about back reality? Well, I can see that anything that does not look "surrender" is not "reality". Ruzzia has lost a bit under 1470 soldiers in a day. Please, keep "winning" and keep pressing near Kharkiv, you are right, I am wrong, keep it up.

You mean that Ukrainians are blaming each others? Like if you would for example choose to demote Shoigu because everything is going perfect?

I have not pivoted and I have not said what chunk of land either if you read carefully ("meaningful" could cover up to 30 km of Moscow). I am just saying that I can conceive a plan that would work as fast as Trump plan. All you need to do is to fulfil you troll wet dream of a surrender. Would that be something that require ingenuity, statesman ship or even vision of the future? Nah. Even your little troll mind can think of it.

There is a more interesting topic, but you may not like it or most likely you will say it is not true, but anyway: Today has marked the record of Ruzzian soldiers killed. Not only that, it seems that is NOT the record of vehicles destroyed. If you wish to give credit, 1700 Ruzzian soldiers died. They did not have adequate vehicle support.

I guess you'd like to question this?

The cause is the Kharkiv attack vector, which is an absolute crazy idea.

I have already expressed my opinion on this matter a little higher, I think this is a regular diversionary strike in order to force Syrsky to transfer reserves from other sectors of the front and accordingly weaken them (because he has no free combat-ready reserves). Syrsky now has a very difficult situation - he is forced to do what he does not want, because he cannot simply ignore the attack of the "North" group.

Regarding human losses and a small number of armored vehicle losses. The assault troops of the "North" group consist of "Storm Z" fighters - these are former prisoners who entered into a contract with the Ministry of Defense. In fact, these are suicide bombers; they are not entitled to armored vehicles. But the “North” group has powerful support of about a thousand artillery barrels (this is more than in the Avdeevsky direction), plus aviation support with guided bombs. Therefore, their raid will continue successfully with further losses of territory in Ukraine until Syrsky transfers at least a couple of brigades here to stop them. Then a strike will follow on the weakened section of the front. Wait, this will happen within a month, before the peace conference in Switzerland.

The thing about diversionary strikes that require troops to divert troop from the opponent is that... well, you have to divert your troops too.

If you are saying that all the killed were convicts, I will have to take your word for it, but you must reckon is difficult to believe. I can see that Ruzzia has been able to take a few kilometres which may or may not mean something. Time will tell.

[BADecker]

Finally, Ukraine has decided to enter themselves into their war. All this while they have only been 'playing around', right? Now, with something like 600,000 of their people dead in the fight, they are thinking about getting serious and killing off the rest. Lol.

Poor, misguided Ukrainian people. The millions who left Ukraine at the start of the war are mostly still alive. And they feel sorry for their brothers and sisters who elected to stay and die... their meek-of-the-mind brothers and sister.

Well, you only live once. And once you are dead, it doesn't matter to you any longer. The saying that says that the meek will inherit the earth is true in Ukraine. The question is, in Ukraine, in what part of the earth are the Ukrainian troops buried?

Wanna help Ukraine? Look here to see the Ukrainians who really need your help - Six more Ukrainians drown trying to flee abroad – media - https://www.rt.com/russia/597106-ukraine-border-men-drowned/.


Ukrainian government warns of possible full mobilization


https://www.rt.com/russia/597420-ukraine-society-full-mobilization/
Defense Ministry spokesman Dmitry Lazutkin declares end of “peaceful life” until Russia defeated

The whole of Ukrainian society will need to make sacrifices and forget about their peaceful lives to defeat Russia, Defense Ministry spokesman Dmitry Lazutkin has argued.

Kiev is overhauling its conscription system to boost troop numbers following a series of setbacks in its conflict with Moscow, with harsh reforms set to come into force next week.

“Globally speaking, starting on May 18, when the mobilization law comes into force, first of all, the approach to this war will change,” Lazutkin told Espresso TV on Saturday. “This situation where some people are fighting at the front lines while others are living their quiet lives, is obviously coming to an end.”

Life in Kiev is “strikingly different” from the situation in the east of the country, which is “abnormal.”

“It would be normal if our enemy was weak. But with such an enemy, the whole country and the whole of society need to mobilize,” Lazutkin added.

...

[paxmao]

[...]


[...]
https://www.rt.com/russia/597420-ukraine-society-full-mobilization/

Hey dumBAss! Have you heard that Trump has now decided that Ukraine matters to the US? I hope you do not suffer an epilepsy now trying to change the narrative so sudenly... this must be like a 12-G manoeuvre...do not black out. Ukraine has long announced further mobilisations. It is to be expected that to have a country with Ruzzia as a neighbourgh you'd need to be prepared for war.

Stoltenberg stating the obvious:

"On the question about NATO's role in reconstruction of Ukraine after the war. The first thing I will say is that first of all, you need to ensure that Ukraine prevails. Because unless Ukraine prevails, there's nothing to reconstruct in the free and independent Ukraine. So the most immediate, the most important task now is to help Ukraine with military support as NATO Allies and NATO do. We need to sustain that. We need to make the support more predictable and more robust, and we are going to hopefully make decisions on that not least at the NATO Summit in July," Stoltenberg said.

Read also: China's support allows Russia to wage war against Ukraine - Stoltenberg
He noted that the future recovery of Ukraine will be a very costly process. In this context, preventing destruction is cheaper than subsequent recovery. Therefore, the more capabilities the allies provide to Ukraine so that it can defend itself, the less effort will be required for the nation’s post-war recovery.

“Every air defense missile we can provide Ukraine will actually mean less damage, less destruction. And then also less need for reconstruction after the war. We must be able to help Ukraine prevail because it's important for Ukrainians. But also because every day this war drags on, of course, the more destruction and the more expensive, the more resource demanding it will be to do reconstruction afterwards," the head of the Alliance emphasized.

"The sooner Ukraine can prevail, the sooner this war can end with just a lasting peace where Ukraine prevails as a sovereign independent nation in Europe," Stoltenberg added.

f16s are said to be arriving along June, my guess the US ones in July.

Some entertainment. I cannot but see the resemblance with phosphorous munitions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4N82wPpdg8