Ukraine - somebody explain to me

[Bo Diddley]

Слава Україні!

[Bo Diddley]

Ukraine is setting up HIMARS as decoys for Russian cruise missiles.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato...ssiles-wp.html

"If the Russians think they hit a HIMARS, they will claim they hit a HIMARS," said George Barros, a military researcher at the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington think tank. "Russian forces very well may be overstating their battle damage assessments after hitting HIMAR decoys."

"They’ve claimed to have hit more HIMARS than we have even sent," one U.S. diplomat observed.

I was wondering why Russia keeps claiming they've hit HIMARS in Ukraine. Now I know why.

[Pelado]

Ukraine is setting up HIMARS as decoys for Russian cruise missiles.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato...ssiles-wp.html



I was wondering why Russia keeps claiming they've hit HIMARS in Ukraine. Now I know why.

Just in case there are any here that are not familiar with HIMARS:

High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems

[Commando]

Ukraine is setting up HIMARS as decoys for Russian cruise missiles.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato...ssiles-wp.html



I was wondering why Russia keeps claiming they've hit HIMARS in Ukraine. Now I know why.

omg Russia is a clown show right now. How does Putin not commit seppuku at this point?

[Goatnapper'96]

It is being reported that the Ukraine is also beginning a counterattack north of Kehrson in the Donbass region. In the long run Russia will have to dedicate enormous resources to maintain their conquered territory in East & Southern Ukraine. The West appears still united and consolidated behind the idea that all of Ukraine's territory is defined by the borders of the country before Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014. This proxy war between the West and Russian in Ukraine will become more and more costly to Russia and as long as the West maintain's its resolve, and since it is not sending its own soldiers to fight I expect it will, Russia will be bled. In addition to the international scorn, sanctions hurting their economy over the long haul and the loss of blood (not something that Russia has historically been bothered by) and treasure one outcome of this struggle will be severely limiting Russia's orbit to its west. When this war is over Ukraine will have systematically built up a modern Army with donated Western equipment and vast numbers of experienced soldiers. For another generation at least the West will likely continue to work with Ukraine to build up and maintain a modern Army ready to repel the gawdless commies should they choose to go all Russian on the world again.

I am interested in how these counteroffensives develop. My understanding is that most of the weapons we have sent Ukraine are defensive in nature and not maneuver based. Stopping the enemy is much easier than dislodging the enemy. When the gawdless commies attacked the Ukrainian intelligence estimated the gawdless commies numerical advantage at 7-1. Now the estimation that through attrition it has been decreased to 3-1. In US Doctrine we believe that given equal capacity in weapons, morale and battlefield competency you would need greater than a 3-1 advantage to dislodge an enemy while you ought to be able to maintain held territory if your force is 1/3 your enemy. Depending on what maneuver capacity we have provided Ukraine, and I think it is mostly anti-tank weapons that light infantry can carry (also primarily a defensive weapon but can be used to destroy enemy tanks and APCs though light infantry maneuvers-crucial to collapsing gawdless commie defensive positions and putting the gawdless commies back on the run towards Gorky Park listening to the winds of change), it will be interesting how well Ukraine can dislodge the gawdless commies from their entrenched and fortified defensive positions. Ukraine has significant morale advantages and with the help of the Western technology/intelligence and their experience in the past 6 months and since 2014 in the Donbass they have significant battlefield expertise advantages (my bias that the gawdless commies still don't really know how to fight other than throwing huge amounts of Russians into the meat grinder and trying to overwhelm you with numbers). If they had tanks and APC's I think they would roll through the gawdless commies like the German blitzkrieg in early WWII.

Time will tell.

[PaloAltoCougar]

I guess it doesn't belong in this thread, but it's interesting that the head of Russia's second-largest oil and gas company fell to his death out of a sixth floor hospital window today. The fact that his company spoke out against Russia's attack on Ukraine is irrelevant. Putin's regime is spectacularly corrupt and evil.

[Bo Diddley]

In US Doctrine we believe that given equal capacity in weapons, morale and battlefield competency you would need greater than a 3-1 advantage to dislodge an enemy while you ought to be able to maintain held territory if your force is 1/3 your enemy.

I wonder if that ratio holds true when dealing with an unprofessional army like Russia's.

[Jeff Lebowski]

I guess it doesn't belong in this thread, but it's interesting that the head of Russia's second-largest oil and gas company fell to his death out of a sixth floor hospital window today. The fact that his company spoke out against Russia's attack on Ukraine is irrelevant. Putin's regime is spectacularly corrupt and evil.

Remember when Uncle Ted said that Ukraine was stupid to fight back and should have just let Russia/Putin roll in and take over? Good times.

[BigPiney]

I guess it doesn't belong in this thread, but it's interesting that the head of Russia's second-largest oil and gas company fell to his death out of a sixth floor hospital window today. The fact that his company spoke out against Russia's attack on Ukraine is irrelevant. Putin's regime is spectacularly corrupt and evil.

I finished Bill Browder's "Red Notice" last week. Par for the course.

[Moliere]

Remember when Uncle Ted said that Ukraine was stupid to fight back and should have just let Russia/Putin roll in and take over? Good times.

Which time?

[falafel]

Remember when Uncle Ted said that Ukraine was stupid to fight back and should have just let Russia/Putin roll in and take over? Good times.

The West was doing so much unnecessary damage to Mother Russia Ukraine!

[PaloAltoCougar]

I finished Bill Browder's "Red Notice" last week. Par for the course.

Excellent book. It was recommended to me a few year ago by my Ukrainian tutoree. She studied at the University of Moscow and is not a fan of Putin.

[BigFatMeanie]

I guess it doesn't belong in this thread, but it's interesting that the head of Russia's second-largest oil and gas company fell to his death out of a sixth floor hospital window today. The fact that his company spoke out against Russia's attack on Ukraine is irrelevant. Putin's regime is spectacularly corrupt and evil.

The Wall Street Journal details out some of the other interesting deaths in the industry:

• May 2022 - Alexander Subbotin, a former senior manager at Lukoil, was found dead in a house in a city on the outskirts of Moscow
• April 2022 - Vladislav Avaev, a former vice president at Russia’s third-largest bank, Gazprombank, his wife and daughter were found dead in their Moscow apartment
• April 2022 - Sergey Protosenya, a former deputy chairman at gas producer Novatek JSC, was found dead with his wife and daughter in their home near Barcelona, according to Catalan police
• January 2022 - A senior manager at Gazprom finance arm Gazprom Invest was found dead at his home in St. Petersburg. Reports later identified the executive as Leonid Shulman, the company’s head of transport

Sure seem to be a lot of Russian oil and gas folks dying of mysterious causes lately...

[myboynoah]

Not clear if this is really him, but if so, crazy development as Ukraine advances east of Kharkiv.

Embedded Tweet

[Uncle Ted]

Remember when Uncle Ted said that Ukraine was stupid to fight back and should have just let Russia/Putin roll in and take over? Good times.

I suggested that we give Ukraine the incentive to try a lot harder in coming to settlement agreement upfront by not committing to throwing a few trillion at them for their war...

Ukraine's military chief says 'limited' nuclear war with Russia can't be ruled out, warning it could raise the prospect of World War 3

• Ukrainian military officials said a "limited" nuclear war with Russia can't be ruled out.
• In an op-ed, they wrote that a nuclear conflict raises the possibility of World War III.
• Russia's invasion of Ukraine has shown it "neglects" the concept of global nuclear security, the officials wrote.

Ukraine's top military officials warned on Wednesday that that a "limited" nuclear war with Russia — which could potentially trigger World War III — can't be ruled out as fighting continues.
[...]

https://www.businessinsider.com/ukra...led-out-2022-9

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world...ttacks-crimea/


Biden's new "forever war"... Hunter's money laundering machine.

Ukraine war: US approves $2.6bn in aid for Ukraine and allies
[...]
President Joe Biden wants to end America's "forever wars", but he is pumping billions of dollars into one that could grind on for a long time.
[...]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62832881

Don't forget 10% for the Big Guy!

Maybe you will agree when this "limited" nuclear world war starts and it drags your grandkids into it in addition to your tax dollars.