Russia

Turning their own propaganda/lies against them! A YouTuber used Putin's mouthpieces and their lies to embarrass the hell out of them and to drive home a point. Two days ago the Putin spin masters claimed Ukraine was done as a glorious, massive Russian offensive was about to overwhelm the hapless Ukrainians defending the small village of Avdiivka, south of Bakhmut. They said a huge force of 8,000 infantry, supported by 200 tanks, other armored vehicles, artillery, and air support was launching an offensive against the village.

Yes, it was BS, an exaggeration of the size of the force, but the Putinites made a big deal about it. They were even high-fiving on their live TV network telecast, which is a nightly propaganda show. Now, 48 hours later...what has happened? Well, the "hapless" Ukrans are still holding the village and have in fact counter-attacked driving back the Russians who did attack. The Ukran "spinners" (if they can be called that) are laughing at their Putin counterparts. One said, well since 8,000 Russian soldiers attacked and it is clear from proven video evidence that there are only about 300 or so still near the village, that must mean 7,700 Russians have been killed. Likewise with the 200 tanks. Only about a dozen or so are still operational, so 188 must have been blown up! And etc.

How have the goofballs on the Putin propaganda show respond? Well, they changed the subject and did not mention the fight at Avdiivka at all. Instead, they spent an hour saying the world no longer cares about Ukraine as everyone is focused on Israel. They said even the US has turned their (our) back on Ukraine in favor of aiding Israel, so poor ole Kyiv is now left totally abandoned and alone. They even showed video from a city square in Kyiv, a large video screen showing the Israeli flag and expressing prayers for Israel as proof that even Ukrainians have turned their backs on Ukraine. Say what!?? Stoooopid!

Why do ALL Putin supporters have to lie to try to paint a good picture for Putin/Russia? You know why...

Oh, forgot to mention, even IF it was true that Russia had such a force and did capture Adviika, it would be only a minor setback for the Ukrans. The villlage holds no particular strategic value, certainly not enough to change the course of the whole war! It would be a tactical setback, at worse, causing the Ukrans to send troops to retake it, making offensive actions on the rest of the front idle for a while. So, even if the Putinite propagandists were 100% right, it would have been nothing more than a speedbump on the road to an ultimate Ukran victory. As it is, the Russkies have already lost that fight anyway.

Latest news...

Silly Russkies sent a second wave to attack Adviika. Ukran YouTubers call them kamikaze tankers/APCs. Reportedly the Russians lost 30 tanks and 90 APCs in a matter of a couple of hours, almost all of them hitting mines or struck by artillery. There is drone video footage of the Russian vehicles striking mines, and others getting shelled, although the total numbers shown do not add up to 120 armored vehicles. That is the claims though.

A Russian navy minelayer, a brand-new ship, blew itself up with one of its own mines. This occurred in the Black Sea as it appears they were attempting to mine an international shipping lane to stop commerce between Ukraine and the rest of the world. No details on how the accident happened, but it is being investigated. There is agreement this was an accident and not as a result of an Ukran attack. Reports say the ship is gone, sunk, and casualties are high among the crew. Good job, comrades!

The British have sent some high-tech anti-aircraft rapid-fire cannons to Ukraine. The gun is designed to deal with drones, cruise missiles, helicopters, and jets. It's a self-contained system that can be mounted on a truck to make it mobile or placed on the ground as a stationary defense weapon. It has one operator who sits in front of a computer. Of course, reloading the belts of the thousands of rounds requires a crew.

Belgium is sending $2 billion of seized Russian money to Ukraine. Said funds were frozen in Belgian banks when the evil invasion started last year. The Ukrans will use the money to buy weapons/ammo. Belgium is the first of the NATO coalition to do this, but many (most?) of NATO has some Russian funds in their banks and it is hope they will all follow the Belgians' lead on this.

A THIRD WAVE attack at Adviika, this one concentrated south of the village. Reports say it is mostly local militia loyal to Putin/Russia, the 1st Corps of the DNR Army, which is the Donetsk Army militia. Men who have resided in Donbas but are loyal to Russia and want to see the eastern provinces annexed by Russia. Early reports also say there are 60 Russian tanks supporting this attack. No report on the number of infantry troops involved.

There has also been a general "attack" of sorts at 90 separate points along the whole front, north to south. These are obviously just "demonstrations" designed to pin down Ukran troops who then can't be sent to the Adviika area. None of these 90 attacks have been successful but then they were only meant to cause the Ukran troops to stay put.

It is now midnight in Ukraine (4PM local time here), but the fighting has continued into the night. We'll know more in the morning there.

Another Russian ship has been hit. This one a Buyan Class corvette, a new ship, launched in 2019. It is 1 of 4 in the Russian Black Sea fleet. These corvettes have a rapid-fire cannon and a variety of rockets/missiles. Based on drone video this ship was struck in the stern, probably by a sea drone. The ship is underway under its own power, but it is trailing black smoke and is obviously damaged.

As one YouTuber pointed out, the Ukrans are defeating the vaunted Russian navy and they don't even have a navy themselves!

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Originally Posted by dawg80

A THIRD WAVE attack at Adviika, this one concentrated south of the village. Reports say it is mostly local militia loyal to Putin/Russia, the 1st Corps of the DNR Army, which is the Donetsk Army militia. Men who have resided in Donbas but are loyal to Russia and want to see the eastern provinces annexed by Russia. Early reports also say there are 60 Russian tanks supporting this attack. No report on the number of infantry troops involved.

There has also been a general "attack" of sorts at 90 separate points along the whole front, north to south. These are obviously just "demonstrations" designed to pin down Ukran troops who then can't be sent to the Adviika area. None of these 90 attacks have been successful but then they were only meant to cause the Ukran troops to stay put.

It is now midnight in Ukraine (4PM local time here), but the fighting has continued into the night. We'll know more in the morning there.

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Early reports, one from The Journalist YouTube channel, are claiming a HUGE Ukran victory around Adviika. The Journalist is one of those sources known to report the truth BUT! they often embellish or at least accept rumors/unconfirmed reports as accurate. So...with a grain of salt, they report the following:

The 3rd Assault (Azov) Brigade attacked from the north, the Russians' right flank and inflicted heavy losses on the invaders. They report 820 Russians KIA, 19 tanks, and 34 other armored vehicles destroyed overnight. To the south, against the Russians' left flank, the 79th Assault Brigade attacked inflicting fewer losses on the Russians, but still enjoying a successful attack.

First, since this combat has just ended how would the YouTubers get such numbers? Even with drones, which do a great job of documenting all operations and their results, it still takes time to investigate a battlefield to account for dead/wounded soldiers, destroyed vehicles, etc.. The 3rd and 79th brigades did launch attacks against the Russian flanks, but the true results have yet to be determined, especially since the battlefields in question are still very dangerous as the Russians, even beaten, still have a presence close by.

Secondly, as mentioned, too many of these YouTubers like to publish positive news as has been demonstrated many times. Only two sources, I use, will actually publish updates/corrections when they first reported some result. One, Dennis Davidoff, makes it a point to offer disclaimers stating he is not 100% sure but here is some news and he will always issue corrections, when appropriate. He actually says here is a report, but I have my doubts because.... then offers a reason he is questioning the details. NONE, and I mean NONE of the Putin spinmeisters do anything like this. All they do is lie. Davidoff waits till later in the day to publish his reports, so he will weigh in on last night's action this evening.

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Originally Posted by dawg80

Latest news...

Silly Russkies sent a second wave to attack Adviika. Ukran YouTubers call them kamikaze tankers/APCs. Reportedly the Russians lost 30 tanks and 90 APCs in a matter of a couple of hours, almost all of them hitting mines or struck by artillery. There is drone video footage of the Russian vehicles striking mines, and others getting shelled, although the total numbers shown do not add up to 120 armored vehicles. That is the claims though.

A Russian navy minelayer, a brand-new ship, blew itself up with one of its own mines. This occurred in the Black Sea as it appears they were attempting to mine an international shipping lane to stop commerce between Ukraine and the rest of the world. No details on how the accident happened, but it is being investigated. There is agreement this was an accident and not as a result of an Ukran attack. Reports say the ship is gone, sunk, and casualties are high among the crew. Good job, comrades!

The British have sent some high-tech anti-aircraft rapid-fire cannons to Ukraine. The gun is designed to deal with drones, cruise missiles, helicopters, and jets. It's a self-contained system that can be mounted on a truck to make it mobile or placed on the ground as a stationary defense weapon. It has one operator who sits in front of a computer. Of course, reloading the belts of the thousands of rounds requires a crew.

Belgium is sending $2 billion of seized Russian money to Ukraine. Said funds were frozen in Belgian banks when the evil invasion started last year. The Ukrans will use the money to buy weapons/ammo. Belgium is the first of the NATO coalition to do this, but many (most?) of NATO has some Russian funds in their banks and it is hope they will all follow the Belgians' lead on this.

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$200 billion is the figure being reported. That's the total of Russian assets held in European banks and now frozen due to Putin's criminal invasion of Ukraine. That will buy the UKrans a lot of weapons/ammo/supplies. Give Kyiv all of it...that should relieve some of the pressure on the US (taxpayers) and maybe placate those GOP hardliners, at least for a while.

Watched 6 different YouTube channels and got similar, but different in the details, reports about the failed Russian offensive at Adviika. That is one of the things they all have in common, Putin lost again.

The Russkies gave up the RR berm without a fight. They just packed it in and retreated. Could have been (and probably was) because those troops got word the Ukrans were behind them. A major concrete bridge on a highway was totally destroyed by Ukran special forces. This cut the only supply line to the Russian units north of the village. The 3rd Assault Brigade, together with elements from another Ukran brigade, the 110th, which I gather is the special forces unit, have gotten in the rear of those advanced Russian units north of Adviika. To the south of the village the Russians have been obliterated. One report claims the Russians lost 1,100 infantry KIA and 75 tanks/armored vehicles in a single day of fighting. These numbers come from a YouTuber known to embellish Ukran successes, so FWIW. What is certain is the Russian attempted offensive has completely failed. In the south the terrain greatly favors the defenders, the Ukrans, as the attacking Russians have to cross 5 miles of flat, open fields. Ukran artillery and drones had a field day. The 79th Assault Brigade struck the flank of the Russians on Thursday, and they reported limited contact, limited resistance, saying they killed 35 Russians, took 25 prisoners and destroyed a total of 9 vehicles, 2 tanks and the rest trucks and APCs. Then as they advanced toward Adviika they encountered only scattered Russian troops, thought to be scouts. There was no large Russian formation. Now, it is true the 79th's avenue of approach was from the west in only one portion of the Adviika battlefield, so it is possible the reports of large Russian units are true. The Putin propagandists claimed there were earlier in the week, before the whole offensive collapsed. They aren't saying anything about the operations near Adviika now.

I've been following multiple sources for over a year and have learned how to piece together the real story. The truth, in this case, I think is this. The Russians did launch an offensive designed to capture the village of Adviika. They did so by not attacking straight at it, as such attempts have ended in disaster elsewhere, instead they tried the ole pincer movement hoping to encircle the village and the Ukran defenders. Sound tactics but the Russians are simply incapable of actually performing such complicated maneuvers. Putin's army is poorly led, mostly by aged generals from the Soviet era, and its ranks filled by under-trained conscripts who don't want to be there. Russian equipment has proven to be woefully inferior to western equipment, plus the Ukrans have been innovative, especially with the use of drones.

The situation in eastern Ukraine and in Crimea has developed into a WWI type stalemate with the defending side enjoying enormous advantage over the attacking side. Pundits are saying this war could last, well, forever, as neither side is capable of completely defeating the other so they will just spar along the front until such time as one side or the other or both decide to quit. Most importantly, Putin has lost. His wicked ambition to annex Ukraine and then threaten Poland and the rest of eastern Europe is over, kaput.

Anticipating the cold, hard reality of giving ground, the Russians have begun construction of a new railroad line designed to connect Russia to Crimea, by way of another RR connection that runs close to the Azov Sea. The RR further north, closer to the combat zone, is becoming untenable for the Russians and it will soon be in artillery range of the Ukrans' advancing army. This new RR spur will be 40 miles long and take until at least next summer to complete. The Ukrans responded to the news saying they will either capture it and use it themselves when Donbas is liberated, or simply destroy it denying the Russians its use. When asked why not attack it now and disrupt construction the Ukrans replied, why do that when we can allow the Russians to build it, including at least 8 major bridges across rivers and creeks, as we can knock out a section of it anytime with Storm Shadow cruise missiles, if we wish to.

It's AVDIIKA where the recent failed Russkie offensive was. Adviika is another small town on the front line. These names!

Anyway, there's a man-made mountain north of Avdiika, built from displaced dirt from nearby coal mines, and now heavily fortified by the Ukrans as part of their defensive line. The stupid Russians tried to take it with a frontal assault and those poor saps suffered 100% casualties. There is a video of a lone Russian soldier, literally one guy! who survived the movement across the open fields, and he is seen charging up the slope before a Ukran machinegun cut him down...100% loss for the Russkies. The Ukrans had mined the field in front of this "mountain" laying the large, anti-tank mines on the ground, in tall grass as is the practice by both sides, BUT! the Ukrans also buried some mines to the sides. So, when the Russian tanks and APCs entered the field and saw the mines on the surface they steered around those...kaboom! right into one of the buried mines. Then in the middle of that chaos Ukran artillery and drones attacked...it was a slaughter.

Best, most accurate account of Russian losses in this latest of the failed Russkie offensives, comes from a British source, an army intelligence unit. They place Russian losses as 1,100 KIA and another 250 wounded/captured, plus the loss of 15 tanks and 40 other armored vehicles, 20 artillery pieces. They also say the Russians attacked with a grand total of 2,500 infantry, 30 tanks and 65 APCs. So, in total about a 50% loss rate for the Russians in the whole attack, north and south of the town. Ukran losses, as usual, are unofficial, but the same British source places their losses as 22 KIA, 65 wounded, no losses of armored vehicles, but one artillery piece and one rocket launcher destroyed by Russian tank fire.

Another issue for the Russkies is the lack of a proper medical corps. Calls have gone out for private doctors and other medical personnel to contact the Russian Army HQ to volunteer to go to field hospitals near the front. Now, how many doctors are going to volunteer for that? Many wounded Russian soldiers die from their wounds due to a lack of care, when they could have/should have survived their wound. Pathetic.

The Putin tank is back! The T-14 Armata tank, said to have been designed with a lot of Putin's input, is back on the prowl. Well, three of them are. The Russkies have lost so many tanks in this war they are having to scrape the bottom of the barrel. Confirmed report of three T-14s, a tank platoon, together with some APCs, has re-entered Ukraine heading toward the combat zone. Months ago the Putin tank was withdrawn after its utter failure in combat. It proved no better than any other inferior Russian-built tank and was sent home to avoid further embarrassing Putin. Reportedly some of the flaws have been improved and the T-14 is back for another go. We'll see how they do.

A Turkish cargo ship struck a mine in the Black Sea, no injuries reported, and the ship was able to limp into port under its own power. (can ships "limp"? :shocked2:). This marks the third such incident this month and NATO is convening an emergency meeting to discuss establishing a coalition to clear the Russian mines from the Black Sea, at least in the most critical commerce sea lanes. Of course the Putinites will scream bloody murder saying this is an act of aggression, how dare NATO make international waters safe for shipping! Outrageous!

Recently the focus/news has been on the failed Russian offensive near Avdiika, but quietly the Ukrans have made some progress toward Verboze on the southern front. Elements of the 24th and 82nd brigades have captured another line of Russian defensive works and are now just one trench line away from the high ground along the ridges/hills southwest of Verboze. It is imperative that the Ukrans seize these positions before the worst of the winter weather sets in. If they do capture those works the Ukrans will hold the high ground in the region making the Russian hold on the village of Verboze untenable and positioning the Ukrans for a spring offensive to liberate the very, very important city of Tokmak.

The Ukrans have advanced 8 miles in this portion of their counter-offensive, as it is called. It has literally and figuratively been all up hill. The Russians have held the advantage of the high ground and fighting from prepared defensive works this whole time, yet they have steadily given ground. By taking the ridges southwest of Verboze, the Ukrans will hold the highest ground in the region and from there it is all downhill toward Tokmak. And, the Russians lack prepared defensive lines all the way to the city itself, which has been fortified. But, at that point the Russian garrison in Tokmak will have to make a decision whether to try to hold out, get surrounded and cut off, or simply retreat before the trap closes. It is also right at 8 miles from the ridges at Verboze to Tokmak.

From Tokmak it is still some 40 miles to the important coastal cities/ports on the Sea of Azov. Western military pundits project if things continue as they have so far, the Ukrans will not reach the coast until sometime in 2025, probably the fall of 2025 after a summer offensive. The big question is will the world still care enough to continue to support Ukraine for two more years, and what about Russia? Might be that new leadership emerges, Putin is out, and they decide Ukraine is no longer worth the cost thus handing the Ukrans total victory before 2025. Or, a new hardline coaltion in Russia decides to turn up the heat making it even harder on the Ukrans. Those are unanswerable questions at this point.

What is amazing and factual is how well the Ukrans have performed standing toe to toe vs. the 4th largest/powerful military in the world. All glory to Ukraine!

Weapons...

First, the Ukrans used the US-built ATACMS missiles for the first time with great success! They attacked a Russian airbase in Luhansk destroying 9 helicopters, damaging 6 more, destroying two scout fixed-wing planes, damaged a cargo plane, and also destroyed/damaged two jet fighter-bombers, along with storage facilities, a fuel storage tank, and some barracks, and reportedly, knocked holes in the runway making it unusable until repaired. AND! all of this from a single ATACMS mobile missile launcher which was nothing but a test-run to train Ukran personnel on the use of the system. Some frickin' test run! Just wait until they are actually fully operational! Russian air-defense systems were totally ineffective and incapable of dealing with the very fast and accurate missiles.

Funny video! shows Russian soldiers with some recently acquired old Soviet weapons sent back by North Korea. The weapons are old and not very dependable. In one sequence two Russians are standing on a road near a field holding RPGs. One tries to fire, at a Ukran APC, probably a Bradley, and it simply doesn't work. The grenade doesn't leave the launcher. They gather around, look at it puzzled and scratch their heads. So, another soldier steps up with another RPG, takes careful aim at the target, fires...and then the grenade goes only about 5 feet and plops in the road. They realize their peril so the group of Russians dive for cover, the grenade does explode, and then you can see the goofy Russians emerging from a trench they dove into looking bewildered. The old Soviet-made equipment/weapons were inferior when they were new, now after some 40-50 years of being in a warehouse in North Korea, they are totally useless.

In a related story, just released, North Korea is pounding its chest threatening to attack a US aircraft carrier task force "too close" to their coast. Well, buds, better test out your Soviet-made weapons before attacking a powerful US task force. Our weapons actually work.

With Putin in Beijing begging Xi for help, and then announcing at a press conference that the Chicoms have floated a peace plan for Russia-Ukraine that Putin says "has merit" and he is open to it, it is being reported in just the last few minutes that the Russkies have launched a new attack at Avdiika, the 4th such wave of attack, if this is true. Reports say three armored battalions of Russians are on the attack. We shall see.

As for Xi's "peace plan" that Putin embraces, it probably calls for all of Ukraine to be annexed by Russia, in exchange for peace. Yeah, right.

The Ukrans have established a second beachhead in Kherson region south of the Dnipro River. This one much larger than the first and they have quickly expanded their reach all the way to the village of Poima, which sits on an important highway, a vital supply line for the Russians. The Ukrans surprised themselves as their strategic plan had called for capturing Poima before the onset of the worst of the winter weather, still some 6 weeks away. Didn't take them 6 weeks...only about 6 hours as elements of the 24th Assault Brigade pushed south down a main road and met only very light resistance, they kept going until they reached the village and the highway. A battalion of another brigade was then hurried across the river and sent to reinforce the Ukrans now holding Poima. And, in the process of reaching this village, the Ukrans captured...effectively cut off...a railroad line which was also a supply route for the Russians.

The Ukrans used German-made bridging equipment, mobile pontoon bridges that can be quickly assembled allowing combat units to cross a river. The Russians seemed totally unaware this crossing was coming and is probably because of all the Russian helicopters and drones destroyed by Ukran missile strikes, mostly the HIMARS rockets. The Ukrans have been carrying out a campaign to blind the Russians, which is why their missile strikes have been very pointed at Russian communications and vehicles capable of scouting.

Poima is about 70 miles from the border of Crimea. There are presently practically no prepared Russian defenses in that 70-mile stretch. And now the Russians will most likely be just trying to rescue their trapped units west of the breakthrough, rather than sending forces to defend the 70-mile open road to Crimea. This is still all happening in Kherson, not Crimea itself, so Putin will probably try to reinforce his defenses on the Crimean border and surrender this portion of Kherson, at least until next spring/summer.