Ukraine 2

[DB]

They're going to be prolonged broke then...

[txradioguy]

They're going to be prolonged broke then...

Well that's how Reagan beat them before...he broke the Russian economy.

[bilo]

Even Putin's media stooges are forced to admit Russia's invasion has stalled due to 'shameful' lack of equipment and reinforcements as Ukraine counter-strikes in the Donbas

By CHRIS PLEASANCE FOR MAILONLINE
10 May 2022

Putin's propagandists have begun openly criticising the state of Russia's military as even the Kremlin's most-hardened of supporters struggle to ignore the scope of its failings in Ukraine.

Vladimir Solovyov, one of Putin's most-prominent puppets, moaned last week about the 'shameful' length of time it takes for weapons to reach the front while guests on Russian state TV talk shows complained that men are being sent into battle 'with weapons of yesteryear' and the Russian economy cannot sustain the war.

Mikhail Khodaryonok, a retired Russia colonel, told viewers that even a much-feared general mobilisation of Russian forces would do little to turn the war in Moscow's favour because it lacks equipment and men to build new units. 'We don't have the reserves,' he told viewers.

Meanwhile Solovyov himself fumed that Russian troops are unable to get drones because so few are being produced, and even those that are made take too long to get into battle. 'Just try to bring something to the Donbas,' he said, 'it's easier to bring it in via Ukrainian customs in Lviv. They let any weapons through.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10800327/Ukraine-war-Russian-state-media-admits-shameful-military-failings.html

If a general mobilization would involve young men living in and around Moscow it might be the impetus for a call to end the invasion. It's one thing when the majority of troops that are dying and being wounded are from units that are from more remote areas it's another When units are from the most populated area of the country then it's hard to ignore.

[Hoodat]

Russians With Attitude
@RWApodcast

What strikes me the most when I see footage from Donetsk is how the people are... used to this. Everyone knows what to do when they hear artillery, "duck & cover", fire brigades move swiftly on muscle memory. 16-year-olds have lived half their lives like this.

7:13 AM · May 10, 2022·Twitter Web App

Yes, the people of Donetsk and Luhansk have gotten used to eight years of Russian shelling.

[bilo]

Russia pounds vital port of Odesa, targeting supply lines

By ELENA BECATOROS and JON GAMBRELL
May 10, 2022

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Russian troops pounded away at the vital port of Odesa, Ukrainian officials said Tuesday, apparently as part of efforts to disrupt the supply lines and weapons shipments that have been critical to Kyiv’s defense.

Ukraine’s ability to stymie a larger, better armed Russian military has surprised many observers, who had anticipated a much quicker conflict. With the war now in its 11th week and Kyiv bogging Russian forces down in many places and even staging a counteroffensive in others, Ukraine’s foreign minister appeared to suggest that the country could expand its aims beyond merely pushing Russia back to areas it or its allies held on the day of Feb. 24 invasion.

One of the most dramatic examples of Ukraine’s ability to deny Russia easy victories has been Mariupol, where Ukrainian fighters remain holed up at a steel plant despite a monthslong siege. The regiment defending the plant said Tuesday that Russian war planes continued pounding it.

*  *  *

Source:  https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-putin-business-nato-moscow-c8e00f7bbc4f24aa40d70a4ac2d97adb

Good!

If Ukraine can cripple Russia it would be a gift to the world in so many ways. China, North Korea, Iran all have to be looking at Russia's war on Ukraine and rethinking some of their plans of conquest. Also, if Russia can be forced out of all of Ukraine they will not only be in no position to try it again but other countries they currently dominate may think twice about their relationship with Russia. 

[Hoodat]

"Donetsk People's Republic leader holds Victory Day Parade in Mariupol"  (Video)

DPR leader Denis Pushilin giving an award to a DPR soldier wearing Nazi Waffen SS Totenkopf insignia.

[bilo]

Yes, the people of Donetsk and Luhansk have gotten used to eight years of Russian shelling.

Just a side note to the "shelling of Civilians" by Ukrainians. I realize that one of my worst qualities is I tend to respond to people the way they treat me. I don't condone killing innocent civilians, but with all the atrocities that the Russians have committed I can see how the bloodlust of Ukrainians could get the better of them. If any shelling has occurred I'm pretty confident it's without the approval of Ukraine's military leadership.

Ukraine's military leadership has been very smart. Along with their political leadership they have been able to inspire the free world to rally around them and support them. I think it's safe to assume that they are smart enough to realize that if they start committing atrocities like the Russians they will begin losing the support they need.

[Kamaji]

Putin strips FSB of Ukraine intelligence-gathering role and hands responsibility to GRU arm led by man 'who orchestrated Salisbury poisoning'

By DAVID AVERRE FOR MAILONLINE
10 May 2022

The military intelligence officer believed to have orchestrated the 2018 poisoning of former Russian agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury has now been tasked with leading Russia's intelligence operation in Ukraine.   

Vladimir Alekseev, a leading officer of a heavily militarised branch of the GRU - Russia's military intelligence directorate, has now assumed command of Russia's spy operations in Ukraine after Putin reportedly dropped the FSB - Russia's domestic intelligence service - from its role following the disastrous start to the war.

The strategic change represents a significant shift in the leadership of Moscow's 'special military operation', and was publicly acknowledged for the first time last week when the pro-Putin Tsargrad TV channel identified Alekseev as the top spy general overseeing intelligence operations.

Lieutenant General Alekseev, who is Ukrainian-born, was a former Spetsnaz special forces operative and has a reputation for brutality during Russian military action in Syria and the Donbas region, according to Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) senior fellows Irina Borogan and Andrei Soldatov.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10801811/Putin-cuts-FSB-lead-intelligence-role-Ukraine-man-orchestrated-Salisbury-poisoning.html

[Kamaji]

New footage shows Ukrainians blowing up Russia's most-advanced £4million tank 'with a Swedish rocket launcher that costs £18,000'

By CHRIS PLEASANCE FOR MAILONLINE
10 May 2022

New footage has emerged showing Russia's most expensive and up-to-date tank getting destroyed by Ukrainian forces during fighting in Donbas.

Drone footage, issued by Ukraine's Ministry of Defence today, shows the T-90M - a £4million latest-generation war machine - exploding after being hit during the battle for Stary Saltiv, to the north of Kharkiv, last week.

More footage then shows what appears to be the burned-out husk of the same tank, with a large hole through the tracks on its right side and evidence of an explosion at the rear with its armour plating bent outwards.

The Ukrainian MoD claimed the tank was taken out by a Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle - a Swedish-made rocket launcher that costs around £18,500, including the rocket.

'The pride of the Russian tank industry was destroyed by the Swedish hand-held anti-tank grenade launcher Carl Gustaf,' the ministry said in a tweet.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10801589/Ukraine-war-New-footage-shows-Russias-latest-gen-T-90M-tank-destroyed.html

[Kamaji]

Putin scrapped Victory Day flypast at the last minute 'because he feared a strike from the air' anti-Vladimir Russian news outlet claims

By WILL STEWART FOR MAILONLINE
10 May 2022

Vladimir Putin scrapped his Victory Day flypast at the last minute because 'he was afraid of an aerial strike', it has been claimed.

The military parade was scheduled to include 77 planes in the display of military might over Moscow's Red Square yesterday.

Among the planes were his 'Doomsday' Ilyushin Il-80 which allows the Kremlin leader to continue ruling Russia during a nuclear war.

But Putin pulled the plug on the flypast abruptly before the parade, blaming poor weather.

Airshows were also aborted or curtailed in at least ten other cities.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10801789/Putin-scrapped-Victory-Day-flypast-minute-feared-strike-air.html

[Smokin Joe]

Russians With Attitude
@RWApodcast

A shopping mall on the outskirts of Odessa is reported to be on fire after a missile strike. No information yet what the target was. "Patriotic" business owners have been offering up their businesses to the AFU (& sometimes they don't ask) - maybe we'll see

4:32 PM · May 9, 2022·Twitter for Android


"it does sound/look like something exploded after the missile hit"  (Video)

https://mobile.twitter.com/RWApodcast/status/1523781986116333570

Virtually any aerosol can has isobutane as the propellant. Isobutane is just slightly structurally different from Normal Butane, with the same chemical formula (C4H10). It burns, and with heat and or pressure the cans rupture and ignite. In other words, hit the average drug store, beauty salon, paint, or hardware store with a rocket with an explosive warhead and there will be plenty of fuel and loads of things popping off in the fire.

[Kamaji]

Virtually any aerosol can has isobutane as the propellant. Isobutane is just slightly structurally different from Normal Butane, with the same chemical formula (C4H10). It burns, and with heat and or pressure the cans rupture and ignite. In other words, hit the average drug store, beauty salon, paint, or hardware store with a rocket with an explosive warhead and there will be plenty of fuel and loads of things popping off in the fire.

OMG!!!

The Ukrainian bastards are hiding extra supplies of hairspray for the Ukraine army - how dare they keep their boyish good looks (and locks) while fighting the divine Russian army.

[Smokin Joe]

OMG!!!

The Ukrainian bastards are hiding extra supplies of hairspray for the Ukraine army - how dare they keep their boyish good looks (and locks) while fighting the divine Russian army.

It might have just been shaving cream... (Helps the gas masks seal to be clean shaven--which is why wearing the covid masks over a full beard was an absolute farce.)

[Kamaji]

It might have just been shaving cream... (Helps the gas masks seal to be clean shaven--which is why wearing the covid masks over a full beard was an absolute farce.)

That too!!!  How dare they appear clean-shaven and guapo in the midst of the Holy Russian liberation!

Gas masks - that was the reason for Hitler's little chopped off toothbrush of a mustache, if I recall correctly.

[Smokin Joe]

That too!!!  How dare they appear clean-shaven and guapo in the midst of the Holy Russian liberation!

Gas masks - that was the reason for Hitler's little chopped off toothbrush of a mustache, if I recall correctly.

Out in the patch where you might be required to mask up, the limit of the moustache used to be at the edges of your mouth. Same rules when I was a fireman. It's pretty relaxed up here any more (the Bakken has proven to be Sweet throughout, so no masks on the drilling rigs any more).

[Right_in_Virginia]

A little more on the situation .....

FIGHTING IN AZOVSTAL CONTINUES. UKRAINIAN MILITANTS BEG FOR EVACUATION (VIDEOS, PHOTOS)
May 9, 2022

On May 9, shelling on the Azovstal facilities continued in the city of Mariupol. After humanitarian corridors in Mariupol were closed, the artillery of the DPR People’s Militia, supported by the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS), are destroying the fortified areas of nationalist militants in Azovstal.

According to Azov militants, over the past day, 34 aircraft flights, including 8 sorties of strategic bombers, were carried out on the territory of the Azovstal plant. Russian naval and conventional artillery continue shelling of Azov military positions.

On May 9, battles were reported near the railway bridge on the north-eastern outskirts of the Azovstal plant

More than 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers are currently at the Azovstal plant, hundreds of them are wounded, according to Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk.

The deputy commander of the Azov regiment Svyatoslav Palamar (nickname Kalina) recently gave an interview to the BBC, that Ukrainian forces are suffering significant losses, counted in thousands of servicemen. The Azov militants reportedly have about 600 wounded. Many of the injured are dying due to the lack of medicines. Palamar also accused the Ukrainian command that it actually left the militants at Azovstal dying.

More w/video, photos:  https://southfront.org/fighting-in-azovstal-continues-ukrainian-militants-beg-for-evacuation-videos-photos/

[Right_in_Virginia]

If you gave him a thousand billion dollars today, tomorrow he will say he needs 100,000 thousand billion dollars. There is no end to it. And as long as Congress gets their "Big Guy 10% kickback", they will keep feeding him.

$600, 000, 000, 000 is 600 thousand million dollars.
But why stop there? Let's give him ...
$100, 000, 000, 000, 000 a hundred trillion dollars.
Hell man, lets give him a million trillion dollars?
It is all Monopoly Money anyway ...

[Right_in_Virginia]

@Right_in_Virginia

What's with this "us stuff",bubba?

Is Lady Lindsey now saying she is going to "suit up" and go to war?

Doubt it @sneakypete

This jackass calling for a no fly zone and the assassination of a foreign leader was an AF JAG officer .......

[Hoodat]

Bodies of 44 civilians found as battle for Izyum rages

Sophie Williams & Olga Pona  -  BBC, Lviv  |  8 hours ago


The city's mayor has confirmed that the bodies of 44 civilians were pulled from the rubble

Bodies of 44 civilians have been found in the rubble of a collapsed building in the Ukrainian city of Izyum as the battle for control of the area rages.

The five-storey building collapsed in March as residents hid in the basement from Russian shelling.

But rescuers have only just been able to reach the building, one local official told the BBC.

And there are fears the death toll could rise further, as another building in the same street was also targeted.

"We know there were people in there as well. The search work is continuing and I think we will know more numbers of victims soon," Izyum mayor Valeriy Marchenko told the BBC.

Russia seized control of Izyum on 1 April and troops have occupied the city since.

Mr Marchenko said when the buildings were attacked, Russian troops had seized control of half of the city.

As troops tried to advance, they fired directly at the building where the bodies have now been retrieved.

Rescuers only been able to reach it now because the apartment block was in an occupied area of the city.  .  .

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-61396800

[Hoodat]

Russian offensive in Donbas expected to peak in coming weeks and Putin's options 'don't look terribly good'

Russia is focusing on "liberating" the eastern Donbas region as part of its "special military operation" after withdrawing from the north of Ukraine earlier in the war following stiff Ukrainian resistance.

10 May 2022 23:20, UK

The Russian offensive in the breakaway Donbas region of eastern Ukraine is "building" and is expected to peak in the next two to three weeks, according to Sky's defence analyst Michael Clarke.

He also said what happens between now and the end of this month will determine how much room for manoeuvre President Vladimir Putin has and what his military options are in the invasion - as so far "they don't look terribly good".

It comes as dozens of bodies have been found in a five-storey building which collapsed in March in Izyum, about 75 miles from the second biggest city, Kharkiv, according to the head of the regional administration, Oleh Synehubov.

Professor Clarke said that Mr Putin is starting to realise that his options are getting "rather limited" because in Monday's Victory Day speech in Moscow "he didn't say anything about what else the war might achieve".

The analyst said the Russian leader was "quite conservative about defending what his forces have already taken in the Donbas and Crimea, and in the land bridge in between".  .  .

https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-war-russian-offensive-in-donbas-expected-to-peak-in-coming-weeks-and-putins-options-dont-look-terribly-good-12610029

[Hoodat]

[Elderberry]

Al Jazeera shows refrigerated train filled with unclaimed bodies of Russian soldiers

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/3479612-al-jazeera-shows-refrigerated-train-filled-with-unclaimed-bodies-of-russian-soldiers.html

Qatar's Al Jazeera English, a 24-hour English-language TV channel, has reported on refrigerated trains filled with the bodies of Russian servicemen killed during the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

According to Ukrinform, this is stated in the Al Jazeera English report on its YouTube channel.

"The real toll of this war for Russia – unclaimed body bags stacked in refrigerated trains,"  says the report by Al Jazeera English.

It is noted that in one bag carrying the body of an elite Russian military serviceman, jewelry was found, allegedly stolen from Ukrainian civilians in Kyiv region.
Read also: Some 44 civilian bodies found under rubble in Kharkiv Region’s Izium

"Ukraine treats the dead enemies better than they treated civilians. They will be kept as long as need be. The government will decide because Russia refuses to take them. It doesn’t want to. Each body is proof of a war crime. So if they refuse to take them, Ukraine will bury them at our own cost," said Ukraine Army Colonel Volodymyr Liamzin.

Officially, Russia claims only 1,300 KIAs in Ukraine, while the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine says Russian death toll has exceeded 26,000.

More at link.

[sneakypete]

Officially, Russia claims only 1,300 KIAs in Ukraine, while the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine says Russian death toll has exceeded 26,000.

@Elderberry

Yeah,not buying it. The first rule,even for propaganda ministers,is "when you tell a lie,make it believable."

[txradioguy]

Out in the patch where you might be required to mask up, the limit of the moustache used to be at the edges of your mouth. Same rules when I was a fireman. It's pretty relaxed up here any more (the Bakken has proven to be Sweet throughout, so no masks on the drilling rigs any more).

H2S is no joke.  During the brief time I worked for my dad before I went back active duty I had to take a safety class on it.

My thought at the time was that it would make a great chemical weapon for the military.

[Kamaji]

Russian Troops Retreat From Ukraine to Russia: Planned Redeployment or the Beginning of Collapse?

By streiff
May 10, 2022

Over the last week, the Russian position north of Kharkiv has collapsed. There are two explanations, and both involve an endgame for Putin’s War.

Most commentary on military operations over the last week has focused on what is assumed to be the center of gravity of the Russian campaign in Ukraine, Donbas, and the siege of Mariupol. However, in my opinion, the real activity to watch has been occurring on the Ukraine-Russia border. Kharkiv had been under daily artillery and rocket fire, destroying most of it.

*  *  *

However, you can see a significant shift in positions northeast of Kharkiv over the last week. My tweet below gives a side-by-side view of the front line today and one week ago.

https://twitter.com/streiffredstate/status/1524120123086360576

The Ukrainian counteroffensive has pushed Russian artillery out of range of Kharkiv, but the big news is that, in advance, that covered 40 kilometers, Ukrainian troops have reached the border with Russia, and Russian troops seem to be withdrawing from that area of operations back into Russia.

https://twitter.com/Nrg8000/status/1524113813024690176

*  *  *

Source:  https://redstate.com/streiff/2022/05/10/russian-troops-retreat-from-ukraine-to-russia-planned-redeployment-or-the-beginning-of-collapse-n562608