Russian Invasion of Ukraine

[China]

Looks like the Russian mine hunter found a mine:

 

Russian Navy mine hunter reportedly explodes in bay at Russian-occupied Sevastopol

 

A large hydrographic boat of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, the Vladimir Kozitsky, designed to search for sea mines, has exploded in occupied Sevastopol, the Telegram channel Crimean Wind reported on Oct. 27, citing witnesses.

 

The vessel suddenly exploded on the outer parts of Sevastopol Bay, where it had been slowly "cruising around" for the past few days.

 

"Smoke was reportedly pouring out of the engine room," Crimean Wind writes.

 

“A tugboat was driven to the ‘smoking’ ship and dragged it towards Striletska Bay.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Separatist lined up to be Putin’s puppet leader in Ukraine ‘is shot in Crimea home’

 

A pro-Russian former politician in Ukraine is fighting for his life after being shot in his Crimea home, an official has said.

 

Oleg Tsaryov, who was reportedly being lined up to lead a puppet administration in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv after Russia’s invasion, is in intensive care, said Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-installed official in southern Ukraine.

 

He was reportedly shot twice at around midnight at his home in Crimea.

 

“Oleg’s condition is very serious. He is currently in intensive care,” Mr Rogov wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

 

Sources told Reuters last year that Russia had been lining up Mr Tsaryov to head a puppet government in Kyiv after Moscow’s forces invaded on 24 February.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[PokerPacker]

9 minutes ago, China said:

Separatist lined up to be Putin’s puppet leader in Ukraine ‘is shot in Crimea home’

 

A pro-Russian former politician in Ukraine is fighting for his life after being shot in his Crimea home, an official has said.

 

Oleg Tsaryov, who was reportedly being lined up to lead a puppet administration in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv after Russia’s invasion, is in intensive care, said Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-installed official in southern Ukraine.

 

He was reportedly shot twice at around midnight at his home in Crimea.

 

“Oleg’s condition is very serious. He is currently in intensive care,” Mr Rogov wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

 

Sources told Reuters last year that Russia had been lining up Mr Tsaryov to head a puppet government in Kyiv after Moscow’s forces invaded on 24 February.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Gurgeh]

It's unfortunately behind a paywall but it's a good read

 

The commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces on how to win the war (economist.com)

 

The 49-year-old told The Economist that he initially believed he could halt Russia “by bleeding its troops”. "That was my mistake. Russia has lost at least 150,000 dead. In any other country such casualties would have stopped the war. Let’s be honest, it’s a feudal state where the cheapest resource is human life. And for us…the most expensive thing we have is our people."

 

Ukraine’s army should have been able to push back at a pace of 18 miles a day as it breached Russian defensive lines, the general said.

 

“If you look at Nato’s text books and at the maths which we did [in planning the counter-offensive], four months should have been enough time for us to have reached Crimea, to have fought in Crimea, to return from Crimea and to have gone back in and out again,” Zaluzhny told the magazine. When his troops got nowhere, he wondered if it was his commanders, so he changed them. They still had no luck.

 

He said he only got an insight when he reread a book published in 1941 by a Soviet major-general, who analysed the battles of the First World War. It was called “Breaching Fortified Defence Lines”. He said: “And before I got even halfway through it, I realised that is exactly where we are because just like then, the level of our technological development today has put both us and our enemies in a stupor.”

 

Edited November 3, 2023 by Gurgeh

[China]

Zelenskyy invites Trump to Ukraine, says he needs just 24 minutes to explain to him why he ‘can’t bring peace’

 

Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, in an exclusive interview with “Meet the Press” that aired Sunday, invited Donald Trump to visit Ukraine after the former U.S. president promised he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine in 24 hours if he is re-elected in 2024.

 

Zelenskyy doubted Trump’s claim. “Former President Trump said that [in] about 24 hours, that he can manage it and finish the war. For me, what can I say? So he’s very welcome as well. President Biden was here, and he — I think he understood some details which you can understand only being here,” Zelenskyy told NBC News’ Kristen Welker. “So, I invite President Trump.”

 

“If he can come here, I will need 24 minutes — yes, 24 minutes. Not more. Yes. Not more — 24 minutes to explain [to] President Trump that he can’t manage this war” in that time frame, Zelenskyy said. “He can’t bring peace because of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

 

[PokerPacker]

4 hours ago, China said:

Zelenskyy invites Trump to Ukraine, says he needs just 24 minutes to explain to him why he ‘can’t bring peace’

 

Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, in an exclusive interview with “Meet the Press” that aired Sunday, invited Donald Trump to visit Ukraine after the former U.S. president promised he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine in 24 hours if he is re-elected in 2024.

 

Zelenskyy doubted Trump’s claim. “Former President Trump said that [in] about 24 hours, that he can manage it and finish the war. For me, what can I say? So he’s very welcome as well. President Biden was here, and he — I think he understood some details which you can understand only being here,” Zelenskyy told NBC News’ Kristen Welker. “So, I invite President Trump.”

 

“If he can come here, I will need 24 minutes — yes, 24 minutes. Not more. Yes. Not more — 24 minutes to explain [to] President Trump that he can’t manage this war” in that time frame, Zelenskyy said. “He can’t bring peace because of [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.”

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

 

You'll need more than 24 minutes to explain anything to Trump.

[dfitzo53]

21 minutes ago, PokerPacker said:

You'll need more than 24 minutes to explain anything to Trump.

And yet he does not have the attention span for anything approaching that length of time. 

 

The paradox of being an "advisor" to Trump. 

[PokerPacker]

8 minutes ago, dfitzo53 said:

And yet he does not have the attention span for anything approaching that length of time. 

 

The paradox of being an "advisor" to Trump. 

Yeah, go over 24 minutes and he might fall asleep or get agitated and start throwing ketchup all over the walls.

[Renegade7]

Hasn't Zelensky meet Trump before when he was President?

 

He probably know how far he can get in the coloring back before losing him.

[Gurgeh]

6 hours ago, Renegade7 said:

Hasn't Zelensky meet Trump before when he was President?

 

He probably know how far he can get in the coloring back before losing him.

 

 

https://www.congress.gov/116/meeting/house/110331/documents/HMKP-116-JU00-20191211-SD1364.pdf

 

PRESIDENT ZELENSKY: So, can you give me a word that you will come to our great country?

PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, I’m going to try. (Laughter.) And I know a lot of people — I will say this: I know a lot of people from Ukraine. They’re great people. And I owned something called the Miss Universe pageants years ago, and I sold it to IMG. And when I ran for President, I thought maybe it wouldn’t be the greatest thing to own the Miss Universe and Miss USA pageants. But it’s a great thing. And we had a winner from Ukraine, and we’ve really had — we got to know the country very well in a lot of different ways. But it’s a country, I think, with tremendous potential.

PRESIDENT ZELENSKY: Yes, I know it, because I’m from this country.

 

...

 

Q Will the military aid continue? Can you assure that it will continue in the future?

 

PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, we’re working with Ukraine. And we want other countries to work with Ukraine. When I saw “work,” I’m referring to money. They should put up more money. We put up a lot of money. I gave you anti-tank busters that — frankly, President Obama was sending you pillows and sheets. And I gave you anti-tank busters. And a lot of people didn’t want to do that, but I did it. And I really hope that Russia — because I really believe that President Putin would like to do something. I really hope that you and President Putin get together and can solve your problem. That would be a tremendous achievement. And I know you’re trying to do that

 

 

And as things turned out, Trump was right about one thing. President Putin definitely did "like to do something"

 

[China]

Ukraine Sinks Two Russian Landing Boats in Crimea -Military

 

Ukrainian naval drones sank two small Russian landing boats in Crimea, Ukraine's military intelligence agency said on Friday, while troops braced for further Russian assaults in the east, particularly the shattered town of Avdiivka.

 

Reuters could not independently verify the report of the attack on Vuzka Bay in the west of Crimea, which one Ukrainian military analyst said was a significant strike and loss for Russia.

 

There was no immediate comment by Russia, which seized and annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and whose Black Sea Fleet is headquartered in the Crimean city of Sevastopol.

 

An initial report from Ukraine's military intelligence said the two small, amphibious Russian ships had been hit overnight.

 

A Friday evening update said the attack had been carried out by naval drones. It identified one landing craft as an Akula class vessel, the other a Serna class.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Gurgeh]

Bits and pieces from the ISW updates (Institute for the Study of War (understandingwar.org)

 

Both Russians and Ukrainians have called up reinforcements for the battles around Avdiivka. At full unit strength the Russians would have more than 40,000 troops there, but many units are not even close to full strength, and equipment losses have been severe. The Russians are increasingly relying on massed infantry attacks, partly because of the weather, and partly because they now simply lack the vehicles.

 

The Ukrainians are still holding their small territory on the east bank of the Dniepr around the village of Krynky. Groups of 50 to 70 are crossing the river and attempting to push further north along the riverbank and also further inland. There's estimated to be somewhere between 300 and 600 Ukrainian marines involved. For the first time some armored vehicles (but no tanks) were ferried across the river, but we only know that because two of them were seen to be destroyed. According to the Russians, "the enemy’s losses during the week totalled up to 505 servicemen, 18 field artillery guns, 15 boats and 25 vehicles" which would have wiped them out altogether if true (and the Ukrainians are definitely still there, up to 4 km from the river in places).

 

As well as the landing boats Ukraine destroyed, earlier in the week they severely damaged the corvette Askold in a cruise missile strike. The Askold is one of the newest ships in the Russian navy and had been used to launch cruise missile strikes on Ukraine. The ship was docked in the Zalyv shipyard at Kerch, the largest shipyard in eastern Europe and one the Russians had turned to following strikes on Sevastopol.

 

[Larry]

It seems stunning, to me, the incredible use of drones in this conflict. 

 

The notion that a war could be fought using weapons that are completely dependent on the ability to maintain continuous, live, streaming video. Over (classified) distances. While approaching actual warships. Airfields. Against the Russians?  

 

I really hope we're not exposing our tech over there. 

[Captain Wiggles]

6 minutes ago, Larry said:

I really hope we're not exposing our tech over there. 

 

Trump probably already gave the Russkies the blueprints to all our good stuffs. 🤭

[DCSaints_fan]

14 minutes ago, Larry said:

It seems stunning, to me, the incredible use of drones in this conflict. 

 

The notion that a war could be fought using weapons that are completely dependent on the ability to maintain continuous, live, streaming video. Over (classified) distances. While approaching actual warships. Airfields. Against the Russians?  

 

I really hope we're not exposing our tech over there. 

This has been going on since the early 2000s, even earlier in development.  I interned for one of the companies that worked on one of the subsystems for the ancestor of the Reaper in the late 90a.  At the time, the system had no weapons (that I knew of) only a video feed.  Later on the Hellfire system was added.

 

But I feel that any tech we’ve had the Russians have known about from their “sources” in Iraq/ Syria / Afghanistan for quite some time.  
 

And the scenarios where we would hit something inside Russians birder with a drone or anything else are pretty frightening 

Edited November 12, 2023 by DCSaints_fan

[China]

Watch moment gunpowder factory explodes before bursting into flames in Russia

 

A fire has once again erupted at the gunpowder factory in Kotovsk, located in the Russian region of Tambov.

 

This incident comes amid the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia, with Ukrainian forces reportedly targeting various military, logistical, and infrastructural sites in both occupied territories and within Russia.

 

The Ukrainian government has not officially commented on the alleged attack at the Kotovsk gunpowder factory, marking a departure from their usual response to such incidents.

 

Reports of Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory have seen a notable uptick since the summer of 2023.

 

This is not the first time the Kotovsk facility has faced such an attack. In June of this year, a fire at the same factory resulted in the death of four individuals and left twelve others injured.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Gurgeh]

On 11/12/2023 at 1:26 AM, Larry said:

It seems stunning, to me, the incredible use of drones in this conflict. 

 

The notion that a war could be fought using weapons that are completely dependent on the ability to maintain continuous, live, streaming video. Over (classified) distances. While approaching actual warships. Airfields. Against the Russians?  

 

I really hope we're not exposing our tech over there. 

 

The Ukrainians apparently have mixed opinions on the US Switchblade drones they've been given. They like the larger ones and want more, but the smaller drones aren't much better than the homebrew stuff the Ukrainians are making for themselves, and are much more expensive. In the air, the most dangerous drone on either side is probably the Russian Lancet. It's accounted for a lot of Ukrainian vehicles and artillery. So if anything, we should be learning from that.

 

The Ukrainian sea drones have pushed a whole navy away, and if I was Taiwan I'd be offering a lot of money for the blueprints. You'd get a lot of those drones for the price of say a corvette, and they'd probably be more effective if you're only interested in defending your coastline and not projecting naval power to distant shores.

 

As far as exposing our tech goes, the Russians have become pretty good at jamming HIMARS. Jamming alone doesn't stop the rounds from landing, but it has made them less accurate. Ironically, the ATACMS rounds we gave to Ukraine are so old they actually have an advantage: they use inertial guidance rather than GPS, so the Russians can't jam them.

 

The lessons go both ways though. We've learned our anti-mine equipment can't deal with the dense minefields deployed by the Russians, who quickly realised that double-stacking their anti-tank mines will blow a hole in anything the West has given Ukraine. That was definitely an area where we were too complacent about our ability to cope. And obviously how important drones are, especially in observation, and also how important artillery is when you don't dominate the skies and can take out the enemies big guns from a safe height.

 

Bear in mind that much of the equipment and ammunition that the US and the rest of NATO has given to Ukraine are things that were due to be retired or replaced. Those ATACMS rounds are from the 90s and were destined to be destroyed; ATACMS itself is being replaced. There's not much cutting edge tech going to the battlefield from our side.

 

 

 

[China]

Russian General Who Lambasted Armed Forces Under Putin Suffers Mystery Death

 

A highly decorated Russian general has been found dead in his home alongside his wife with no clear cause of death.

 

Lieutenant General Vladimir Sviridov, 68—who was outspoken when he commanded the 6th Army of the Air Force and Air Defense of Russia from 2005 to 2009—was found in the bedroom of his home in the Stavropol Krai on Wednesday, local authorities said. His wife, 72-year-old Tatyana, was found next to him, with the two of them lying side by side in bed, according to Kommersant.

 

Investigators said there were no signs of violence and the pair had apparently been dead already for about a week, having died at the same time. While carbon monoxide poisoning was initially viewed as a possible cause of death, no heightened levels of the gas were detected in the home, Kommersant reported, citing sources close to the investigation. Other conflicting reports said a power outage several days ago, combined with failed generators, had indeed led to a build-up of gas in the home.

 

The local branch of the FSB is now investigating the strange deaths. Neighbors said the last time the couple had been seen alive was on Nov. 5.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Russian soldiers are rumored to be sticking their hands out of trenches because they want to get shot

 

Rumors are circulating that Russian soldiers are so tired in Ukraine, that they are sticking their hands out of trenches in a deliberate bid to get injured, the wife of a mobilized soldier told Russian outlet Govorit NeMoskva.

 

The wife told the outlet that she is now campaigning alongside other Russian women to get their sons and husbands brought home from Ukraine. The outlet did not name her.

She said many people have written to her to say some Russian soldiers "stick their arms out of the trenches in order to get wounded and simply rest," according to The Moscow Times' translation.

 

"Some write: 'I'm so tired. Let something strike at us as soon as possible," she added.

 

The woman did not reveal exactly who made the claims, but said that she speaks to her husband and to several close friends who are on the front lines, according to the report.

 

Russian soldiers have previously been reported to be seeking injury so they can get away from the fighting. This includes a Russian paratrooper who fought in Ukraine. He said in August 2022 that Russian troops were deliberately shooting themselves in the leg to try and get away from the fighting, and to get a $50,000 payout.

 

Audio published by Ukraine also revealed a Russian soldier in Ukraine telling his mother in a phone call that his superior shot himself to get out of fighting.

 

Russian soldiers, many of whom were called up to fight, have described grueling conditions in Ukraine where they are overworked, left to fight with insufficient equipment, and treated like meat by their superiors.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Gurgeh]

17 hours ago, China said:

Russian soldiers are rumored to be sticking their hands out of trenches because they want to get shot

 

Rumors are circulating that Russian soldiers are so tired in Ukraine, that they are sticking their hands out of trenches in a deliberate bid to get injured, the wife of a mobilized soldier told Russian outlet Govorit NeMoskva.

...

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

The Russian casualty levels in the last couple of months have been extreme even for this conflict. It seems the decree has come from the top that they need to capture Avdiivka  no matter the cost, much like Bakhmut last year, and it's possible they'll overrun it eventually by weight of artillery and numbers.

 

However, unlike last year at Bakhmut, there have been many reports of Russian units refusing orders to advance or attack. A lot of them are well below full strength, and have been fighting for months with little respite in poor conditions. The Russians have occasionally resorted to using special forces units in frontal assaults on the defences, and those unit commanders have complained bitterly about how it's a waste of elite troops.

 

One of the reasons the Ukrainians managed to cross the Dneipr river around Kherson was because that area is being defended mostly by Russian troops who had been withdrawn from other areas of the front line after taking heavy casualties. It's a mix of units with poor communication between them - in one graphic video a contingent of Russian soldiers were seen to be ambushed and almost wiped out by their own side. The Russians did have special forces defending the islands in the river a few months ago, but it seems they were sent elsewhere... 

 

 

 

 

[China]

Putin says he is ready to end war as fighting with Ukraine is 'tragedy'

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow is ready to end the war in Ukraine, branding it a "tragedy".

 

The Kremlin chief, who sent his troops into Ukraine last February, blamed Volodymyr Zelensky for the continued violence.

 

Both sides have lost thousands of soldiers on top of the many civilian deaths in Ukraine.

 

Putin is reportedly poised to use his speech at an upcoming G20 meeting to urge world leaders to work out a strategy for ending the war.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

I think the only strategy for ending the war Zelensky will accept is complete removal of all Russian troops from Ukranian territory with borders restored to pre-war boundaries.

[Long n Left]

33 minutes ago, China said:

I think the only strategy for ending the war Zelensky will accept is complete removal of all Russian troops from Ukranian territory with borders restored to pre-war boundaries.

As he should.

[RansomthePasserby]

52 minutes ago, China said:

The Kremlin chief, who sent his troops into Ukraine last February, blamed Volodymyr Zelensky for the continued violence.

 

Putin is reportedly poised to use his speech at an upcoming G20 meeting to urge world leaders to work out a strategy for ending the war.

He talks about this conflict as if it’s something happening to him and he has no influence on its direction at all. Weird. 

[FuriousD]

1 hour ago, China said:

I think the only strategy for ending the war Zelensky will accept is complete removal of all Russian troops from Ukranian territory with borders restored to pre-war boundaries.

You’re right of course, but it’s not hard to imagine Putin thinking “eff it, this craps gone on long enough and my army is spent”. Sue for peace, redraw the maps as they are now and winner, winner chicken dinner! 

[CousinsCowgirl84]

2 hours ago, China said:

Putin says he is ready to end war as fighting with Ukraine is 'tragedy'

 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow is ready to end the war in Ukraine, branding it a "tragedy".

 

The Kremlin chief, who sent his troops into Ukraine last February, blamed Volodymyr Zelensky for the continued violence.

 

Both sides have lost thousands of soldiers on top of the many civilian deaths in Ukraine.

 

Putin is reportedly poised to use his speech at an upcoming G20 meeting to urge world leaders to work out a strategy for ending the war.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

I think the only strategy for ending the war Zelensky will accept is complete removal of all Russian troops from Ukranian territory with borders restored to pre-war boundaries.

Unless us/nato applies pressure.