TheOldGuy @TheOldGuy@qoto.org
I am a Democrat who supports Ukraine in their battle against The Russian fascist invaders.
I am a 73 year old Covid hermit who
lives on 10 acres in a sparsely populated area of the Ozarks. I heat with wood that is leftover by the lumber industry. When cutting oak for lumber only the trunk is used.
The largest town is population 2993. The county is 13k people scattered over 713 square miles.
Joined Dec 2022
"Failure of the system." Russian elites perceived the invasion of the Ukrainian Armed Forces as a blow to Putin's reputation
The breakthrough of Ukrainian military units into the Kursk region and their advance over the course of four days left high-ranking government officials and businessmen close to the Kremlin in a state of shock. At the same time, just recently, representatives of the bureaucratic and business elite were talking about Vladimir Putin organizing military operations in neighboring NATO countries and capturing cities like Narva, Estonia.
"This is a very big blow to the reputation of the Russian authorities, the military, and Putin. Because for two and a half years, Russian territory, with the exception of the occupied territories [in Ukraine], suffered minimal damage. It was only from drones," a major Russian businessman told The Washington Post. — And now it is unclear how many victims there were, there is destruction, and it is obvious that they [the authorities, the military] are not able to stop it quickly.” This is indeed a blow, since it is clear that the leadership received a signal from intelligence, but “measures were not taken,” says political scientist Sergei Markov, close to the Kremlin: “This is a failure of the entire intelligence system, and since Putin is responsible for this, it is clear that this is a blow to Putin.”
@ukrainejournal
A message from our friends at the Freedom of Russia Legion
To the great regret of Putin's war correspondents, in the 800 square kilometers of liberated Russian territory, the Bucha scenario has not been repeated in any populated area. Civilians are not lying cold by the roads, but are writing petitions to Putin asking for "help."
Bad news: Putin won't help you. Just as he didn't help the residents of Belgorod, Orsk, Buryatia and other regions from where he regularly receives such requests.
❗️ But we can.
Follow the example of TASS, which filmed the movement of equipment: send information about the location, movement of equipment and the availability of other information.
▪️ Anonymous and safe form of the Legion's Razvedsil: https://forms.gle/BE3GcoVVtmXXoUqz8
▪️ Official bot: https://t.me/lsr_official_bot
Help us stop the war. Only together we will win.
P.S. We are not Akhmat, who has been heroically fighting for three days on the approaches to the Kursk region; we are Russians. We love our land and wish it well. And for this, the war must be stopped, and Putin and his gang must be destroyed.
@ukrainejournal
💥Summer, heat... and precise hits.
July, through the eyes of the "GROZA" platoon of the Freedom of Russia Legion's RUBPAK in the Volchansk area.
☠️ Become part of the Legion
@ukrainejournal
The Kursk operation may partly serve to further expose the myth of russia's so-called "red lines," according to an article in Foreign Policy.
In the past, there was intense debate in Washington, Berlin, and the media about possible "red lines" that, if crossed, could trigger a Third World War or nuclear conflict with russia. One such line was the use of Western weapons to bring the conflict onto russian territory. However, this has already occurred, writes Andreas Umland, an analyst at the Swedish Institute of International Relations. He argues that the Kursk operation demonstrates the fallacy of these "red lines."
Umland points out that this operation showcases Ukraine's ability to execute unexpected and sudden breakthroughs—something russia has consistently failed to achieve since the war began. He suggests that Ukraine's strategy may be shifting not just the military dynamics on the ground but also the framework for negotiations—from a "land for peace" agreement to a "land for land" agreement.
This situation, according to Umland, places Putin in a difficult position: losing control over russian territory is a significant embarrassment for the Kremlin. However, the occupied Ukrainian regions that Putin aims to retain are also part of the "state territory" he is obligated to protect.
Umland concludes that Ukraine's new strategy might enable the "doves" within the russian leadership—if they exist and have any influence over Putin—to argue for the cancellation of the annexation of these territories to restore russia's territorial integrity. As long as Ukraine can control russian territories, there will be mounting pressure on Putin to bring them back under Moscow's control.
@ukrainejournal
THE ‘STRATEGY’ OF KURSK
Everyone wants to be excited about the Kursk offensive. I get that, after months of retreats and hard fought battles it’s fascinating to see highly mobile forces move so quickly - they’ve ‘occupied’ as much land as the Russians took in the whole Avdivka-Pokrovsk region in ten months.
The Ukrainians still haven’t explained their objectives or reasoning and there are only two things that now stand out as having any merit.
Either they plan to seize land and try and hold it, to exchange for similar sized territory occupied by Russia, or they are aiming for a potential wide enveloping sweep to cut off the rail lines to the Kharkiv front, and potentially come down behind it, though it’s a hell of a distance.
How will they hold the area they take once the Russians get their act together, though right now they seem almost comically incompetent? Is this a take and keep operation? Ukraine doesn’t have the resources to open such a large front and occupy it for good. It seems frankly incomprehensible that they could manage this.
Ukraine doesn’t have the machines or the manpower to sustain such a huge front once it settles down- and all fronts eventually settle down in wars like this.
Is it a distraction- trying to pull Russian ‘reserves’ of which there are far fewer than you might think. Rather than reserves it’s more accurate to describe what Russia has as deployed forces that are slightly in excess of what’s minimal. It’s those forces, in Kherson and Zaporhizia that can be pulled away. Would that enable another strike over the river and an attempt to rapidly reach Crimea?
Only time will tell.
As it stands like it or not (and a lot of people don’t), it looks like a very large scale raid until such times as it becomes clear what the aims are.
The facts are that right now it’s causing a big surge in Ukrainian morale, the Russians are deeply embarrassed and knocked totally off guard. Putin’s face during a briefing Friday, looked like a thunderclap, and if looks could kill most of the defence ministry is dead.
Will whatever this is actually be worth the effort in the end? Again, only time will tell. One advantage is that if we can’t guess what the Ukrainians are doing - neither can the Russians and that’s going to drive them insane.
‘The Analyst’ MilStratOnX
Slava Ukraini 🇺🇦!
@ukrainejournal
As a former Army medic, medics are vital to combat units
They often remain behind the scenes, but their work is also important.
The golden hands of the masters who bring our Victory closer❗️
⚔ 56 separate motorized infantry Mariupol brigade.
@ukrainejournal
The Russians don't have any current footage. They have nothing positioned to attack. They lost a ship pot of glide bombs the other night when the whole depot burned and exploded.
Good morning Resisters everywhere. It rained just a bit this morning. The Rose of Sharon I planted last year has bloomed. Two flowers. Surprise. It's still quite small, but growing.
I am a Democrat who supports Ukraine in their battle against The Russian fascist invaders.
I am a 73 year old Covid hermit who
lives on 10 acres in a sparsely populated area of the Ozarks. I heat with wood that is leftover by the lumber industry. When cutting oak for lumber only the trunk is used.
The largest town is population 2993. The county is 13k people scattered over 713 square miles.
Joined Dec 2022
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