NOTE: When providing a source, please provide a very brief summary on what it's about and what purpose it adds to the discussion. The supporting statement should clearly explain why the subject is relevant and needs to be discussed. Please follow this rule especially for tweets.
Your supporting statement should always come BEFORE you provide the source.
On February 04 2024 10:00 gobbledydook wrote: I don't think these tiny tactical victories matter in the long run. War is about logistics and economy first of all. It appears that Russia is all in, and the West is losing its will to match it, even though it would be a comparatively small sacrifice.
It was said a while ago that 10 million shells are needed each month for Ukraine, but there is no way the West with all its current combined production could get anywhere close. Russia presumably also had a shortfall but they have a large inheritance of shells and they're producing more.
Sanctions on Russia have had far less impact than the west had hoped, but has certainly helped strengthen Russias economic ties with China, India and the rest of the developing world.Russia is in a far better position to play out the long game.The west realises this which is why you see statements past two weeks from Head of British army Sanders calling for a return of conscription to fight Russia and Boris Johnson saying he would sign up in a war against Russia to fight for king and country and such nonsense.It really is getting ridiculous now.
Of course 3 months ago British Steel announced it was closing the last steel blast furnaces in England, at Scunthorpe with 2000 job losses and Tata steel announced last month it was closing both Port Talbot blast furnaces in Wales by end of year with 3000 jobs affected.Not competitive due to high energy prices? Ironic.Not good news if there was some kind of larger war, UK can't even produce steel any more.So we have war escalation rhetoric alongside news that all of the UKs current steel blast furnaces are set to shut?. OK then.
They import the steel and roll it in the UK. It’s cheaper. Steel isn’t hard to get on the international market.
So you don't think domestic production is important in times of war? I guess they can just keep importing 50% of the food they need during wartime as well.
Top steel exporter (2022) is China who would probably side with Russia, Russia is sixth largest exporter, Turkey fifth (A wildcard I guess).Japan and South Korea which are both very close to China and Russia make up five of the top six.That leaves Germany, who may need more steel for itself than before.
Depends on the war. Who is Britain going to war with?
Very interesting article from the Washington Post today and sheds some light onto the problems faced by Kiev forces and why things are going the way they are at the front (the collapse at Avdeevka being the most visible currently). I can't really seperate one part as being more important, the whole article is worth a read.
Front-line Ukrainian infantry units report acute shortage of soldiers
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine — The Ukrainian military is facing a critical shortage of infantry, leading to exhaustion and diminished morale on the front line, military personnel in the field said this week — a perilous new dynamic for Kyiv nearly two years into the grinding, bloody war with Russia.
In interviews across the front line in recent days, nearly a dozen soldiers and commanders told The Washington Post that personnel deficits were their most critical problem now, as Russia has regained the offensive initiative on the battlefield and is stepping up its attacks.
One battalion commander in a mechanized brigade fighting in eastern Ukraine said that his unit currently has fewer than 40 infantry troops — the soldiers deployed in front-line trenches who hold off Russian assaults. A fully equipped battalion would have more than 200, the commander said.
Another commander in an infantry battalion of a different brigade said his unit is similarly depleted.
The soldiers interviewed spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly and could face retribution for their comments.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The reports of acute troop shortages come as President Volodymyr Zelensky is preparing to replace his military chief, Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, with one chief disagreement being over how many new soldiers Ukraine needs to mobilize.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Ukrainian presidential office declined to comment, referring questions to the Defense Ministry, which in turn referred questions to the Ukrainian military’s General Staff. The General Staff did not respond to a request for comment.
Zaluzhny has told Zelensky that Ukraine needs nearly 500,000 new troops, according to two people familiar with the matter, but the president has pushed back on that figure privately and publicly. Zelensky has said he wants more justification from Ukraine’s military leadership about why so many conscripts are needed and has also expressed concern about how Kyiv would pay them.
Financial assistance from Western partners cannot be used to pay soldier salaries, and Ukraine’s budget is already under strain, with a $60 billion aid package proposed by President Biden stalled in Congress. The European Union last week approved roughly $54 billion in aid after it was delayed for weeks by opposition from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
The debate in Kyiv about mobilization — and to what degree the country should ramp it up — has angered soldiers on the front line.
Oleksandr, a battalion commander, said the companies in his unit on average are staffed at about 35 percent of what they should be. A second battalion commander from an assault brigade said that is typical for units that carry out combat tasks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Asked how many new soldiers he has received — not including those who have returned after injuries — Oleksandr said his battalion was sent five people over the past five months. He and other commanders said the new recruits tend to be poorly trained, creating a dilemma about whether to send someone immediately onto the battlefield because reinforcements are needed so badly, even though they are likely to get injured or killed because they lack the know-how.
“The basis of everything is the lack of people,” Oleksandr said.
“Where are we going? I don’t know,” he added. “There’s no positive outlook. Absolutely none. It’s going to end in a lot of death, a global failure. And most likely, I think, the front will collapse somewhere like it did for the enemy in 2022, in the Kharkiv region.”
The Ukrainian parliament is in the process of revising a draft law on mobilization that will lower the minimum conscription age from to 25 from 27. But lawmakers working on the bill and soldiers alike have acknowledged that Kyiv has done a poor job explaining to the public why sending more people to the front is necessary.
Instead, the messaging has been confused, with Zelensky and Zaluzhny contradicting each other publicly and creating an appearance of infighting.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In August, Zelensky fired the heads of all of Ukraine’s regional military recruitment offices, citing concerns about corruption. But with some of those positions left vacant, mobilization came to a halt, a high-ranking military official said. Commanders in the field confirmed that they have had few new people arrive since the fall.
“We have direct trouble with personnel,” said Mykyta, a deputy infantry battalion commander. “Because this is war, and it’s infantry in defense that’s dying.”
“I’m talking with my friends, also officers in other units, and those in infantry; it’s almost the same situation everywhere,” Mykyta added.
“They need to be replaced by someone,” said Oleksandr, the battalion commander. “There is no one to replace them, so they sit there more, their morale drops, they get sick or suffer frostbite. They are running out. There is no one to replace them. The front is cracking. The front is crumbling. Why can’t we replace them? Because we don’t have people; nobody comes to the army. Why doesn’t anyone come to the army? Because the country didn’t tell people that they should go to the army. The state failed to explain to people that they should go to the army. Those who knew that they should go, they have already all run out.”
Serhiy, 41, a platoon commander fighting in Avdiivka, the site of Russia’s most intense assaults, said he and his men are rarely rotated out after just three days. More often five days go by — or even 10.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dmytro, another deputy battalion commander in a different brigade, said his infantry typically get two days of rest after five to 10 days holding the line, and because most of his soldiers are over the age of 40, their lack of physical fitness compounds the problems.
“You can feel it; people are exhausted both morally and physically,” Serhiy said. “It’s very hard, the weather conditions, the constant shelling. They have a great impact on the human psyche.”
The lack of rotations is a problem across the Ukrainian military — not just for infantry on the line. Soldiers might get a few days off to go home and see their families, but rarely more. They say they are still motivated to fight the Russian invaders, but also that they need rest and more men beside them.
Zelensky has also asked the military and parliament to prepare a law to demobilize those who have been fighting for nearly two years. Members of parliament working on the bill have said they are discussing a plan to discharge, or “demobilize,” soldiers who have been on the front for 36 months. But that would require sending people in to replace them.
“Every soldier thinks about that guy that walks around in Dnipro or Lviv or Kyiv,” Mykyta said. “They think about them and they want to have a rest, too. Of course, in their heads appears the thought: Some guys are just strolling around there, but we’re here.”
Sounds like he quit rather than get fired. In any case, this was signaled a while ago, and is by no means a shock. Zelenskyy believes the war needs to start heading in a different direction, and for this to happen there needs to be a change in the military leadership
And also apparently known for more "soviet style" leadership and less caring about the lives of soldiers. Let's see what happens, perhaps Załużny really was too cautious.
Zaluzhnyi was getting outside of his job description and undermining Zelenskyy publicly. Whatever else his merits were there’s certainly a justification for the change. The general and the elected leader have to be a partnership with a single public stance.
He also admitted that the war reached a stalemate on land, which Zelensky was reportedly not happy about since such a public admission could jeopardize further military aid.
On February 09 2024 02:46 Silvanel wrote: And also apparently known for more "soviet style" leadership and less caring about the lives of soldiers. Let's see what happens, perhaps Załużny really was too cautious.
He is also known as a complete Zelensky apparatchik among other terms like 'General 200'. Zaluzny was by far the most highly regarded public figure in Ukraine and polling has had his hypothetical political party sweeping elections in most polls.
Even this article from yesterday has opinion polls of Zelensky at 64, and Zaluzny at 88%, and Zelensky doesn't like not having undisputed power or anyone endangering his clique. Zaluzny for his part is doing the smart thing by going to retire to London to live out his days in luxury because pulling a Prigozhin cuts your life expectancy by a lot. A lot.
Why in the world is the alternative to living in London is an attempted coup?
Anyways.
I guess Zelensky has not yet gone through as many generals as Lincoln. However, the larger concern is West's deadlock on supplying Ukraine. Democracies are always so much more sluggish than authoritarian regimes on military matters but the quality vs quantity doesn't work if Ukraine doesn't get any while North Korea replenishes stockpiles.
WTF?! This has to be one of the most egregious examples of propaganda spewing ever. Putin even makes justifications for Hitler's invasion of Poland in 1939 (bad bad Poles didn't leave poor Hitler any other options).
Don't even tell me you expected anything better from this bald shithead.
His words are as a whole irrelevant. He's liar and whatever he says about not attacking this or that is like buzzing of the fly you can dismiss at hand.
Watched the whole thing this morning when I woke up. Kind of everything we all already know, Tucker seemed like he wasnt that ready with his questions and didnt really go with the flow of the conversation (in my opinion). That said, he did do a massive job hyping up the interview and ensuring the largest possible reach.
Going though the hot takes and off the cuff comments its strange how suprised people are that Putin can be coherant and sharp without notes for two hours. Juxaposed with Biden yesterday... Yeah, though Putin did die from cancer for the third time a month ago to be honest. Ill add that Carson should have told Putin to ask for Assange in exchange for the American reporter.
Also refreshing to read and hear the opinions of normal people. Not just the deranged mindless screeching we've all become accustomed to with anything regarding Ukraine. The screeching is still there obviously but its nice for the vocal minority to be drowned out by the normals once in a while.
On February 09 2024 08:46 FriedrichNietzsche wrote: the propaganda thing is always amusing to me.. as if only one fraction is using propaganda
These "both sides" arguments always amuses me. It's like comparing a thief to a murderer. Yes, both sides are doing propaganda, obviously. At the root, anything that is meant to induce patriotism is propaganda. But it's comparing apples to oranges. Only one side is actively blasting blatantly false propaganda pieces with the not-so-subtle promise of swift executions if you don't fall in line.
Ukraine bends the truth by focusing on their victories. Russia blatantly lies with every breath.
The reason this propaganda piece is getting called out is because it actively tries to (and likely will succeed) tricking a number of Americans to believe these lies, by using a familiar mouth piece to the right wing extremists. This actively undermines America's interests, and he should be treated as the traitor he is
EPT
