Ukraine 2

[Right_in_Virginia]

Gina Bontempo
@FlorioGina

At this point you'd think people would realize that putting the Ukraine flag in your bio is a surefire way to inform everyone that you are not to be taken seriously and your understanding of global conflict came from a Disney movie.

1:25 PM · May 15, 2022·Twitter Web App

[Hoodat]

Russia has lost a THIRD of its invasion force in combat, claims British intelligence as Ukrainian troops launch counter-offensive in eastern Ukraine and Putin's advance 'loses momentum'

• Izyum is one of the largest cities in the Kharkiv oblast, close to the Donbas region
• Liberating the city from Russian occupation could prove to be a key turning point
• Ukraine's counter-offensive comes just one day after the city of Kharkiv was won

DAVID AVERRE  |  05:47 EDT, 15 May 2022  |  UPDATED: 13:10 EDT, 15 May 2022


Ukraine's armed forces have launched a counter-offensive on the Russian-held city of Izyum in what could prove to be a major turning point in the battle for the country's east.

Izyum is one of the largest cities in the Kharkiv oblast and sits less than 15 miles from the regional border with Donetsk - part of the infamous Donbas region which Russian President Vladimir Putin is hell bent on seizing.

Liberating the city from Russian occupation would provide Ukrainian forces with a key strategic position on the Donets river from which to launch further counter-offensives to drive Putin's forces back into the Donbas.

The counter-attack in Izyum comes just one day after the general staff of the armed forces of Ukraine announced they had successfully repelled Russian forces from the second city Kharkiv, a mere 40 miles from the Russian border.

But a Ukrainian military spokesperson admitted that Russian units had advanced elsewhere, gaining ground in a number of smaller cities and towns along the eastern front.  .  .  .

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10817905/Ukrainian-forces-launch-counter-offensive-NATO-official-says-Putins-advance-losing-momentum.html


An assault on Izyum marks a change in Ukraine strategy.  The bulk of Russia's reinforcements lie to the east.  If they are successful, they will be in position to threaten Russian supply lines southward.

[240B]

[240B]

I think you have three extra zeroes in there.

@Smokin Joe

Yes. You are right. Cannot think of any reason for me doing that. Old age I guess?

[Hoodat]

My opinion, only one tenth of this money will actually make it to Ukraine.
Only one tenth of the money which actually makes it to Ukraine, will end up being spent on "weakening Russia".

That's a very optimistic assessment.  You really think $400 million of it will be spent on offensive military equipment delivered to Ukraine?  I would guess maybe a fourth of that.  $100 million of a $40 billion package sounds about right.

[Smokin Joe]

@Smokin Joe

Yes. You are right. Cannot think of any reason for me doing that. Old age I guess?

Maybe you just got carried away typing those in...like Congress does.

[Smokin Joe]

That's a very optimistic assessment.  You really think $400 million of it will be spent on offensive military equipment delivered to Ukraine?  I would guess maybe a fourth of that.  $100 million of a $40 billion package sounds about right.

If "infrastructure" spending is any indicator of how much actually goes to the headline cause, you may be optimistic.

[Right_in_Virginia]

What are Brussels and Davos going to do with no resistance or competition in Europe?

[Kamaji]

Russian ambassador hints some Kremlin officials want war to end: reports

By Natalie O'Neill
May 15, 2022

Russia’s ambassador to the US hinted at a split in the Kremlin Sunday — as NATO declared Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine is not going to plan, according to reports.

Anatoly Antonov, a military officer and diplomat, implied during an appearance on state-run TV that some powerful people inside the Kremlin are ready to give up the brutal invasion, which began more than two months ago.

The 67-year-old senior diplomat — who insisted he’s not among those willing to fold — said some forces want to move back troops and “repent.”

He added that US officials are covertly giving the Kremlin the terms of negotiations — including moving back troops — in order to stop the fighting.

*  *  *

Source:  https://nypost.com/2022/05/15/russian-ambassador-hints-that-some-officials-want-war-to-end/

[Kamaji]

Russia’s Vladimir Putin ‘very ill’ with blood cancer: secret recording

By Eileen AJ Connelly
May 14, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin is “very ill with blood cancer,” an oligarch close to the Kremlin said in a secret recording obtained by New Lines Magazine.

The type of cancer was unspecified, New Lines reported in a story discussing myriad rumors about Putin’s health.

“The recording represents rare testimony by someone with proven ties to the Russian government that its fanatical dictator may well be seriously unwell,” the magazine stated of the comments made during a mid-March discussion with someone described as a “Western venture capitalist.”

“He absolutely ruined Russia’s economy, Ukraine’s economy and many other economies — ruined [them] absolutely,” the unnamed oligarch said of Putin on the tape. “The problem is with his head. … One crazy guy can turn the world upside down.”

*  *  *

Source:  https://nypost.com/2022/05/14/russias-vladimir-putin-ill-with-blood-cancer-secret-recording/

[Kamaji]

Russian forces retreat as Ukraine appears to win Battle of Kharkiv

By Eileen AJ Connelly
May 14, 2022

Ukraine “appears to have won the Battle of Kharkiv,” a US think tank said.

The Russian military has withdrawn from its positions around Ukraine’s second-largest city “in the face of Ukrainian counteroffensives and the limited availability of reinforcements,” said the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Russian units were unable to hold ground against the Ukrainian fighters over the past several days, the ISW said, and were prevented from encircling the city in northeast Ukraine.

As they retreated, however, they continued to bombard the eastern Donetsk province in order to “deplete Ukrainian forces and destroy fortifications,” the Ukrainian military said Saturday.

Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said the country was “entering a new – long-term – phase of the war.”

The comments came two days after a major Ukranian victory at the Siverskiy Donets River, an area about 25 miles east of Kharkiv which Russia previously controlled. The battle ended with Russian tanks and other destroyed equipment littering the area around the river.

*  *  *

Source:  https://nypost.com/2022/05/14/russian-forces-retreat-as-ukraine-appears-to-win-battle-of-kharkiv/

[Kamaji]

Russia has lost a THIRD of its invasion force in combat, claims British intelligence as Ukrainian troops launch counter-offensive in eastern Ukraine and Putin's advance 'loses momentum'

By DAVID AVERRE FOR MAILONLINE
15 May 2022

Ukraine's armed forces have launched a counter-offensive on the Russian-held city of Izyum in what could prove to be a major turning point in the battle for the country's east.

Izyum is one of the largest cities in the Kharkiv oblast and sits less than 15 miles from the regional border with Donetsk - part of the infamous Donbas region which Russian President Vladimir Putin is hell bent on seizing.

Liberating the city from Russian occupation would provide Ukrainian forces with a key strategic position on the Donets river from which to launch further counter-offensives to drive Putin's forces back into the Donbas.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10817905/Ukrainian-forces-launch-counter-offensive-NATO-official-says-Putins-advance-losing-momentum.html

[Kamaji]

Putin's commanders are slaughtering their own wounded soldiers rather than retrieving them from the battlefield for medical treatment, captured Russian soldiers reveal

By WILL STEWART and JACK NEWMAN and CHRIS PLEASANCE FOR MAILONLINE
16 May 2022

Russian commanders are slaughtering their own wounded soldiers instead of retrieving them from the battlefield for treatment, Putin's own troops have said.

A lieutenant-colonel was accused of personally shooting dead multiple troops as they lay injured.

It comes as investigations in the horror town of Bucha have revealed 650 civilians were shot rather than hit by shelling in what police say proves they were executed by Russian thugs.

But their barbarity is not directed only towards the Ukrainians, as Russians spoke out about the brutal killings of their own forces within the ranks.

Captured troops recalled one commander asking a soldier if he could walk after suffering an injury, and when the man replied he could not, the officer killed him instantly.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10820515/Putins-commanders-slaughtering-wounded-soldiers-captured-Russian-troops-reveal.html

[Right_in_Virginia]

Russia’s Vladimir Putin ‘very ill’ with blood cancer: secret recording

By Eileen AJ Connelly
May 14, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin is “very ill with blood cancer,” an oligarch close to the Kremlin said in a secret recording obtained by New Lines Magazine.   The type of cancer was unspecified, New Lines reported in a story discussing myriad rumors about Putin’s health.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10817905/Ukrainian-forces-launch-counter-offensive-NATO-official-says-Putins-advance-losing-momentum.html

Xi Jinping to step down as Chinese President? Rumors buzz over CPC leader's ill-health, Covid mismanagement
May 15, 2022

After several reports claimed that China's President Xi Jinping is suffering from 'cerebral aneurysm', the country's social media is buzzing with rumours that the Chinese Premier might resign from the top post soon.

More:  https://www.indiatvnews.com/news/world/xi-jinping-to-step-down-as-chinese-president-rumors-buzz-over-cpc-leader-ill-health-covid-mismanagement-economy-fall-2022-05-15-776711

[Right_in_Virginia]

Putin's commanders are slaughtering their own wounded soldiers rather than retrieving them from the battlefield for medical treatment, captured Russian soldiers reveal

Russian commanders are slaughtering their own wounded soldiers instead of retrieving them from the battlefield for treatment, Putin's own troops have said.

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10820515/Putins-commanders-slaughtering-wounded-soldiers-captured-Russian-troops-reveal.html

Russians With Attitude
@RWApodcast

Looks like the Ukrainians at Azovstal are getting ready to surrender their wounded into Russian custody; according to Khodakovsky they've asked for stretchers to carry them.

8:11 AM · May 16, 2022·Twitter for Android

[Hoodat]

Russians With Attitude
@RWApodcast

Looks like the Ukrainians at Azovstal are getting ready to surrender their wounded into Russian custody; according to Khodakovsky they've asked for stretchers to carry them.

8:11 AM · May 16, 2022·Twitter for Android

This Russian propaganda site was saying the same thing a month ago.

[DefiantMassRINO]

How long before Russian soldiers start fragging their own officers?

[DB]

How long before Russian soldiers start fragging their own officers?

There are reports that they have been. Who knows to what degree if any.

[Kamaji]

Dramatic audio captures Russian warship’s final moments after Ukraine missile strike

By Yaron Steinbuch
May 16, 2022

Dramatic audio captured the final moments of the Russian Black Sea flagship Moskva after it was struck by a Ukrainian missile – as a crewman shouts that the doomed vessel was “lying on its side” and sinking.

 “Moskva-1, two holes! Propeller stalled! Sinking! Lying on its side!” the sailor yells after the warship was hit April 14, the Kyiv Independent reported on the audio posted by Ukraine’s Operational Command “South.”

The frantic crew member also says a hole under the waterline sent the vaunted guided-missile cruiser into a roll of 30 degrees.

“There is no way to get closer to the tugboats,” he reportedly adds in the 42-second transmission. “We’re doing our best to save the crew.”

*  *  *

Source:  https://nypost.com/2022/05/16/audio-captures-russian-ship-moskva-after-ukraine-missile-strike/

[mountaineer]

Russian forces are continuing to focus their attacks on the east of the country but resistance from Ukrainian troops is slowing their progress.

Here are the latest developments:

    Strong Ukrainian defences in Donbas region holding for now
    Russian forces pushed out further from second-city Kharkiv
    Ongoing bombardment of Mariupol factory by Russian forces
    Belarus deploys some forces near Ukraine border

More at BBC News

[DB]

Dramatic audio captures Russian warship’s final moments after Ukraine missile strike

By Yaron Steinbuch
May 16, 2022

Dramatic audio captured the final moments of the Russian Black Sea flagship Moskva after it was struck by a Ukrainian missile – as a crewman shouts that the doomed vessel was “lying on its side” and sinking.

 “Moskva-1, two holes! Propeller stalled! Sinking! Lying on its side!” the sailor yells after the warship was hit April 14, the Kyiv Independent reported on the audio posted by Ukraine’s Operational Command “South.”

The frantic crew member also says a hole under the waterline sent the vaunted guided-missile cruiser into a roll of 30 degrees.

“There is no way to get closer to the tugboats,” he reportedly adds in the 42-second transmission. “We’re doing our best to save the crew.”

*  *  *

Source:  https://nypost.com/2022/05/16/audio-captures-russian-ship-moskva-after-ukraine-missile-strike/

And Russia entirely lied about this event. They lied saying that the crew had been safely evacuated and they lied about the cause of the damage. Russia has proven itself no different than all the other dictatorships around the world - while claiming to be democratic.

[Smokin Joe]

Russian forces retreat as Ukraine appears to win Battle of Kharkiv

By Eileen AJ Connelly
May 14, 2022

Ukraine “appears to have won the Battle of Kharkiv,” a US think tank said.

The Russian military has withdrawn from its positions around Ukraine’s second-largest city “in the face of Ukrainian counteroffensives and the limited availability of reinforcements,” said the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Russian units were unable to hold ground against the Ukrainian fighters over the past several days, the ISW said, and were prevented from encircling the city in northeast Ukraine.

As they retreated, however, they continued to bombard the eastern Donetsk province in order to “deplete Ukrainian forces and destroy fortifications,” the Ukrainian military said Saturday.

Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said the country was “entering a new – long-term – phase of the war.”

The comments came two days after a major Ukranian victory at the Siverskiy Donets River, an area about 25 miles east of Kharkiv which Russia previously controlled. The battle ended with Russian tanks and other destroyed equipment littering the area around the river.

*  *  *

Source:  https://nypost.com/2022/05/14/russian-forces-retreat-as-ukraine-appears-to-win-battle-of-kharkiv/

Scorched earth withdrawal is a typically Russian tactic, going back to Stalin and beyond.

[Right_in_Virginia]

Russians With Attitude
@RWApodcast

Looks like the Ukrainians at Azovstal are getting ready to surrender their wounded into Russian custody; according to Khodakovsky they've asked for stretchers to carry them.

8:11 AM · May 16, 2022·Twitter for Android

Russia says wounded Ukrainian soldiers will be evacuated from Azovstal to Russian-occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts
Yahoo News, May 16, 2022

The Russian Ministry of Defence says that an agreement has been reached regarding the evacuation of wounded Ukrainian soldiers from the besieged Azovstal plant in Mariupol to the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine.

On 16 May, an agreement has been reached regarding the evacuation of the wounded [soldiers] as a result of negotiations with the Ukrainian military personnel blocked at the Azovstal steel works in Mariupol.

According to the Russian Ministry of Defence, a ceasefire at Azovstal has already begun and a humanitarian corridor has been opened to transport wounded Ukrainian soldiers to a hospital in Russian-occupied Novoazovsk, a town located in the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts.

https://news.yahoo.com/russia-says-wounded-ukrainian-soldiers-132904781.html

[Smokin Joe]

And Russia entirely lied about this event. They lied saying that the crew had been safely evacuated and they lied about the cause of the damage. Russia has proven itself no different than all the other dictatorships around the world - while claiming to be democratic.

When only 120 showed up for the ceremony, of a crew of nearly 500, you knew the casualty figures were much higher than the Government was willing to admit.

[Smokin Joe]

Putin's commanders are slaughtering their own wounded soldiers rather than retrieving them from the battlefield for medical treatment, captured Russian soldiers reveal

By WILL STEWART and JACK NEWMAN and CHRIS PLEASANCE FOR MAILONLINE
16 May 2022

Russian commanders are slaughtering their own wounded soldiers instead of retrieving them from the battlefield for treatment, Putin's own troops have said.

A lieutenant-colonel was accused of personally shooting dead multiple troops as they lay injured.

It comes as investigations in the horror town of Bucha have revealed 650 civilians were shot rather than hit by shelling in what police say proves they were executed by Russian thugs.

But their barbarity is not directed only towards the Ukrainians, as Russians spoke out about the brutal killings of their own forces within the ranks.

Captured troops recalled one commander asking a soldier if he could walk after suffering an injury, and when the man replied he could not, the officer killed him instantly.

*  *  *

Source:  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10820515/Putins-commanders-slaughtering-wounded-soldiers-captured-Russian-troops-reveal.html

In that cold calculus, one wounded trooper will require between two and four others to evacuate and care for them. That slows an army down, reduces its effective numbers, and takes up transport and supplies for those who cannot fight. One dead soldier is one less, one wounded is five less on the battle front.