Russia Ukraine Update Thread - part 2

a reply to: PerfectAnomoly

People can't seem to understand that Putin is stuck in the 1980's / cold war mindset. He can't seem to accept that the Russian Empire and Soviet Union are no more.

As with all dictators when they start seeing that they are losing their populaces support they must create a distraction to refocus their attention. Ukraine, NATO and the West are the distraction.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Did you catch that recent comment by Shoigu? Something like, once Ukraine is defeated, the Soviet Union will exist again. Those people really are trapped in the 1980s.

Cheers

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2


Ultimately it will be there own undoing... again.

The video posted below touches on the comments about the Soviet Union.

a reply to: Xcathdra

Russia without Ukraine is a country... Russia with Ukraine is an empire.

29 July Update

Key Takeaways

* A kinetic event killed and wounded scores of Ukrainian POWs in Russian-occupied Donetsk Oblast on July 28. Ukraine and Russia are blaming each other for the attack. Available visual evidence appears to support the Ukrainian claim more than the Russian, but ISW cannot independently assess the nature of the attack or the party responsible for it at this time.

* Ground fighting continued north of Kharkiv City with no significant change in control of terrain.

* Russian forces attempted a limited ground assault in Kherson Oblast and continued conducting combat operations without creating strike groups along occupied lines.

* Russian regional outlets reported the recruitment and establishment of an additional volunteer battalion in the Republic of Buryatia and the formation of a reserve battalion in Novosibirsk.

* Members of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia party traveled to occupied Ukrainian territories to promote an organization called “We Are Together with Russia,” likely to present the façade of a “grassroots” call for the Russian annexation of occupied Ukraine and to prepare for falsified annexation referenda.

More at URL.

Cheers

originally posted by: Xcathdra

The front lines have been relatively stable for weeks, but it looks like both sides are gearing up for a larger battle around Kherson. The SpeakTheTruth video mentioned Kherson being cut off by the destroyed bridges over the Dnipro river, and around 20 minutes he says he doesn't know if the Russian forces are going to be able to retreat over the main bridges. Instead of talking about retreat, this article gives a different slant on the situation than the speakTheTruth video, talking about Russian reinforcements pouring in to the area:

Ukraine pushes to retake ground in the south as Russia pours in reinforcements.

The Ukrainians have been setting the stage for a broad counteroffensive in the south for some time, and recent long-range missile strikes have left thousands of Russian soldiers stationed west of the Dnipro River around the port city of Kherson in a precarious position, largely cut off from Russian strongholds to the east. But Russia is now moving “the maximum number” of forces to the southern front in the Kherson region, the head of Ukraine’s National Security Council told Ukrainian television late Wednesday.

The official, Oleksiy Danilov, described “a very powerful movement of their troops” to the front in Kherson.

It sounds like one of the larger battles in the conflict is being prepared now by both sides.

If the bridges can be kept out of service for supply trucks, one has to wonder how all those Russian troops around Kherson are going to be re-supplied. Apparently pontoon bridges can be tricky on the Dnipro due to strong currents and Russia has had some disasters with pontoon bridges earlier in the conflict.

a reply to: Arbitrageur

i read yesterday that russia has completed 2 pontoon bridges in the area and are using human shields to prevent Ukraine from hitting them with artilary.

Oh dear:


www.newsweek.com...

originally posted by: WeDemBoyz
a reply to: Arbitrageur

i read yesterday that russia has completed 2 pontoon bridges in the area and are using human shields to prevent Ukraine from hitting them with artilary.

If they are ukranian patriots then they will die in the pursuit of freedom,and will be remembered as heros.

Those Wagner Group Russian mercs:


www.aljazeera.com...*1qcfqbr*_ga*S01LTlJpbnAxM3A0VDZheVBPTzh PZFc4MEJNdFBwTnQ5TVl6NU9idDExT19EbnFvVTdTVHhFdUNBVlhwd3pTNg..

a reply to: Oldcarpy2

So WAGNER were the green men in crimea. Well that settles is. the vote was a fake under duress.

30 July Update

Key Takeaways

* Russian forces conducted ground assaults around Bakhmut and the environs of Donetsk City as well as southwest of Izyum. One assault east of Bakhmut made limited gains.

* Russian forces did not conduct ground assaults near Siversk again, suggesting that they are deprioritizing operations in that area.

* Satellite imagery showed Russian reinforcements concentrated near the Ukrainian border on the ground line of communication (GLOC) leading toward Izyum.

* Ukrainian forces disrupted a Russian ground assault in Kherson Oblast with preemptive artillery strikes.

* Ukrainian officials claim that damage to the railway bridge across the Dnipro near Kherson renders Russian forces unable to resupply their positions on the west bank of the river by rail.

More at URL above.

Cheers

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

The shortage of Russian infantry in Ukraine is displaying flow-on effects. As a result, Russian ground forces are resorting to using firepower/advantages in artillery to destroy Ukrainian defensive positions. Moreover, the Allies did the same during the Italian campaign, but mountainous terrain and not force structure was the hindrance. But like the German Army in Italy and elsewhere, the Russians face logistical handicaps.

Also, Russian forces are vulnerable to Ukrainian counterattacks without any significant breakthroughs. So those counterattacks mirror what the German defenders in Italy mastered.

In summary, the Russians lack the sledgehammer to crack the nut, but they break blunt knives along the way.

a reply to: xpert11

Putin's resort to mercenaries and "volunteer" battalions does not bode well for the Russian war effort.

I sense, though, some fatigue on Ukraine's part as well. The comments mentioning how "HIMARS has boosted morale" tell their own story.

World War One Western Front - like. Whose fighting spirit will collapse first?

Cheers

The most recent aircraft carrier in Russia ....


In #Tyumen, #Russia, the local authorities put up posters celebrating the Russian Navy Day. Yet the posters feature USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier of the #US Navy:

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

The impact of the coming winter weather and conditions on troops in static defensive positions might determine how both armies fare. In addition, the logistical issues plaguing Russian forces will impact the supply of winter clothing to soldiers at the front line. In a twist of historical irony, the logistical and climate problems that affected the Germans on the Russian Front might do the same for the Russians in Ukraine.

The level of esprit de corps and suitable clothing will play a role in Ukrainian units. In addition, the quality of leadership among the ranks and the background of the soldiers are points to consider.