Russia-Ukraine war and related tensions Megathread

[jaichind]

Russians advance into Dachne

https://twitter.com/AMK_Mapping_/status/1866791319324201147
 

[インターネット掲示板ユーザー Punxsutawney Phil]

https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/zelenskyy-announces-successful-test-of-new-1733854489.html

Ruta missile successfully tested

Necessity is the mother of invention.

[jaichind]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us-gives-20bn-ukraine-funded-205652059.html

"US gives $20bn to Ukraine funded by seized Russian assets"

This is part of the $50 billion loan to Ukraine based on the interest of frozen Russian assets over the next 50 years.

[CumbrianLefty]

Many such "loans" end up never being repaid, at least in full.

[jaichind]

Russians getting close to Pokrovsk

https://twitter.com/AMK_Mapping_/status/1866812338227335247

[jaichind]

Russians push into critical high-ground parts of  Chasiv Yar.   It seems the decisive phase of the battle of Chasiv Yar is coming soon.

https://twitter.com/AMK_Mapping_/status/1866793960741671044

[インターネット掲示板ユーザー Punxsutawney Phil]

Many such "loans" end up never being repaid, at least in full.

I suspect that in the end it won't be fully repaid. And we'd look the other way on that...

[インターネット掲示板ユーザー Punxsutawney Phil]

Russians push into critical high-ground parts of  Chasiv Yar.   It seems the decisive phase of the battle of Chasiv Yar is coming soon.

A reliable source reported that the refractory plant in Chasiv Yar has been practically captured by the Russians, although there are still some Ukrainians in the western buildings.

Fighting is reportedly gradually shifting towards the high-rise buildings in the city centre.

What does it feel like to be engaged in fighting in commercial high-rise buildings?

[UWS]

https://www.kyivpost.com/opinion/43670

Another reason Russia is a loser in Syria is because Syria provided 400,000 barrels oil every day

[Cassius]

https://www.kyivpost.com/opinion/43670

Another reason Russia is a loser in Syria is because Syria provided 400,000 barrels oil every day

Syria hasn’t exported (at least officially) any oil since the civil war broke out. The loss of that trade, which at its height provided at least 25% of the Syrian state’s revenue base, was one of the central reasons for the Assad government’s inability to pay and equip its soldiers properly, which of course was a key driver of the collapse we’ve just seen.

[jaichind]

First news of Russian units on the outskirts of Pokrovsk

https://twitter.com/AMK_Mapping_/status/1867144491238605306
 

[jaichind]

More Russian advances in Kurakhove.  They seems to be eating up this city one slide at a time

https://twitter.com/AMK_Mapping_/status/1867141957170114926

[インターネット掲示板ユーザー Punxsutawney Phil]

https://www.kyivpost.com/opinion/43670

Another reason Russia is a loser in Syria is because Syria provided 400,000 barrels oil every day

Syria hasn’t exported (at least officially) any oil since the civil war broke out. The loss of that trade, which at its height provided at least 25% of the Syrian state’s revenue base, was one of the central reasons for the Assad government’s inability to pay and equip its soldiers properly, which of course was a key driver of the collapse we’ve just seen.

Ouch.

[UWS]

https://www.kyivpost.com/post/43739

[Stranger in a strange land]

Russians push into critical high-ground parts of  Chasiv Yar.   It seems the decisive phase of the battle of Chasiv Yar is coming soon.

A reliable source reported that the refractory plant in Chasiv Yar has been practically captured by the Russians, although there are still some Ukrainians in the western buildings.

Fighting is reportedly gradually shifting towards the high-rise buildings in the city centre.

What does it feel like to be engaged in fighting in commercial high-rise buildings?

In recent & ongoing wars, fighting in high-rise buildings is actually pretty uncommon, since while troops on the upper floors can see for miles around, they can also be seen and  thus expose themselves to attack, troops on the upper floors can't escape once they're holed up there, and it's often easier for the attacking force to just drop the building by calling in an air or artillery strike, or surround and bypass it, rather than taking many days and casualties to clear it.

[falling apart like the ashes of American flags]

Russians push into critical high-ground parts of  Chasiv Yar.   It seems the decisive phase of the battle of Chasiv Yar is coming soon.

A reliable source reported that the refractory plant in Chasiv Yar has been practically captured by the Russians, although there are still some Ukrainians in the western buildings.

Fighting is reportedly gradually shifting towards the high-rise buildings in the city centre.

What does it feel like to be engaged in fighting in commercial high-rise buildings?

In recent & ongoing wars, fighting in high-rise buildings is actually pretty uncommon, since while troops on the upper floors can see for miles around, they can also be seen and  thus expose themselves to attack, troops on the upper floors can't escape once they're holed up there, and it's often easier for the attacking force to just drop the building by calling in an air or artillery strike, or surround and bypass it, rather than taking many days and casualties to clear it.

Makes sense why it's such a favorite setting of Call of Duty maps though. But of course no one would want to be in a situation fighting like THAT.

[UWS]

https://www.kyivpost.com/post/43272

[jaichind]

Zelensky and the Biden Administration are in a classic chicken-and-egg deadlock:

Biden Administration: Ukraine should lower the age of mobilization to 18 and the USA will provide the weapons to arm them

Zelensky: We cannot lower the age of mobilization to 18 because we have not received the right level of weapons from the USA so far which makes it useless to mobilization these extra men

[jaichind]

https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/ukraine-coking-mine-near-front-shuts-down-some-operations-industry-source-says-2024-12-12/

"Ukraine coking mine near front shuts down some operations, industry source says"

[UWS]

https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/12/13/7488956/

The F-16s orchestrated effective perform

[jaichind]

https://www.ft.com/content/18dd370b-e2cd-48c5-a182-4c21c5ae8870

"Ukraine’s patchy fortifications help Russia advance"

“The situation with fortifications is another factor demoralising troops,” said Dmytro Razumkov, a former ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy who is now on the parliamentary committee investigating delays and alleged corruption in the effort to build defences.

[jaichind]

Russian Pokrovsk Offensive up until now

Russian tactics since the battle of Avdivka remind me of a lot of the tactics of Austrian General Raus of the Wehrmacht during the Spring of 1942 which I read about when I read his book in college.  I wonder if the Russians remembered this and are now applying his tactics.



He was in charge of a rag-tag formation of various second-tier units in the Rzhev salient in the aftermath of the USSR 1941 Winter Counteroffensive.  His job was to push back the Russian forces so they would not be in as strong a position to cut off the salient when they were expected to resume their offensive in the Summer of 1942.   His units are still tactically superior to the Red Army but not by much and he is somewhat outnumbered.  The only good news is that he can carry out his mission slowly and he is not expected to destroy the enemy but just to push them back.  

 What he decided to do is to turn the campaign into a series of smaller unit battles where he captured a village and then another one some distance away which then eventually isolated Russian strong points.  He does not have the forces large enough or skilled enough to destroy those isolated Russian units but the Russian pullback allows for Raus's units to capture that strong point for "free."    He then repeats the same process with another set of villages.  With this approach, he was able to push back the Russian forces with fairly small losses even as he did not destroy that many Russian units himself.  But he achieved his goal of improving the German position which allowed the Germans to survive another Russian offensive against Rzhev salient in the Summer of 1942.

[jaichind]

More Russian advances in Kurakhove

https://twitter.com/AMK_Mapping_/status/1867846558647300130

[インターネット掲示板ユーザー Punxsutawney Phil]

https://www.ft.com/content/18dd370b-e2cd-48c5-a182-4c21c5ae8870

"Ukraine’s patchy fortifications help Russia advance"

“The situation with fortifications is another factor demoralising troops,” said Dmytro Razumkov, a former ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy who is now on the parliamentary committee investigating delays and alleged corruption in the effort to build defences.

It seems there's good reason why many Ukrainians are extremely unhappy about certain elements of how their country operates...

[UWS]

https://thedefensepost.com/2024/12/14/ukraine-russian-oil-terminal/amp/