Russia

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Originally Posted by dawg80

Wow! Ukrans destroy a Russian oil refinery! It is gone, kaput! And they also destroyed a Russian powder factory that makes powder for both bullets (gunpowder) and the powder for artillery shells. It too is completely destroyed. The Ukrans attacked another oil refinery located close to St. Petersburg but failed to do substantial damage. So, they will just try again. The two destroyed plants were located close to the Ukrainian border, within easy reach. St. Petersburg is a lot further away and thus a tougher challenge for Ukrans' drones to strike.

This is what we need to do to Iran. Destroy all their oil refineries and ammo-producing plants. They have factories building drones, which they sell to Russia and other malcontents.

Anyway, good show Ukrans!

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Kaboom! they got it! Ukrans nailed the facility near St. Petersburg, which is (or was) also an LNG/oil transfer facility for loading/unloading tankers and a storage facility for LNG/oil. A tanker registered to Greece with LNG bound for The Netherlands caught on fire and was damaged, the extent of which is unknown as of now. The Ukrans are upset that an EU nation, Holland, is buying Russian LNG in violation of the agreed-upon boycott of Putin's money-making resource.

Putin propagandists are spinning the attack as an act of terrorism and are claiming the damage is minimal and the facility will continue to operate. But released video of it shows large fires burning and in one area, the fire put out, substantial damage. As always, in a few days, the truth will come out.

Anyway, this is a big hit by the Ukrans, using their domestically-built drones. Shows the Ukrans' engineering\innovation is improving and that Russia has new concerns, as the interior of their territory is within reach of Ukran attacks.

Good job, Ukrans!

Russkies strike apartment complexes in three Ukranian cities. At least 7 reported deaths, many more injured. Death toll is expected to rise. There are no military or industrial facilities even close to where these missiles struck. Another act of terrorism and criminal activity by the Putinites. The Ukrans attack military and industrial sites which support the Russian war-effort, while Putin deliberately attacks civilians. He is an international criminal who needs to be arrested, given a fair trial, and then hung in a public square for all to see what happens to thugs.

Most of these missiles passed over Poland, as in the past. Again the Poles scrambled interceptors that could have shot down the slow Russian cruise missiles, but instead they merely escorted them to the Ukrainian border and issued a warning to the Ukrans of their speed and direction. According to reports there were 62 Russian cruise missiles in this attack and the Ukrans managed to shoot down only 22 of them before they reached a populated area. If 40 missiles struck populated areas it's a miracle only 7 people were killed.

Reports are the Ukrans are running low on critical ammo and supplies. Howitzer shells are the most important of these that are needed. US-built howitzers like the 155mm M777 have been the great equalizer allowing the Ukrans to stand toe to toe with the Russians.

Russian infantry gained some ground east of Avdiivka, occupying some abandoned buildings and driving out the light Ukran defenders who had been holding that area. The Russians lost more armored vehicles in this advance, reportedly a tank and several APVs which drew the attention of the Ukrainians allowing Russian infantry to sneak in unmolested. Because of this "success" the spin-masters pro-Putin propagandists are having orgasms celebrating this advance and proclaiming Avdiivka is about to fall to Russian forces. Later today two YouTubers I trust will release their latest news and will provide the reality of this. I suspect this will be like so many other Russian "successes" and its "much ado about nothing."

Bradleys not fairing well in the extreme cold weather, apparently. Experiencing mechanical issues with parts freezing up. Ukrans have said they know what the problems are and are taking steps to deal with them. The Bradleys sent to Ukraine by the US are all older models, none of our recent versions have been sent to Ukraine. Whether the newer ones address the cold-weather issues, IDK, but that's the implication from the report from the Pentagon.

Speaking of recent versions of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle (BFV), the army is trying out a 50mm cannon to replace the current 25mm main gun. But, given how well the 25mm automatic cannon is working vs. Russian equipment, they may wish to stick with it. Of course, while it is slaughtering inferior Putin junk, it may not be sufficient against real armored vehicles.

First, at Avdiivka, Russian infantry gained access to a storm drainage pipe system and used that to advance into the outskirts of the town. But the Ukrans have located them and have them bottled up. Above ground the Ukrans have counter-attacked and are close to encircling those Russians who made the advance. Situation is under control.

The Russian IL-76 cargo plane, which the Russkies claimed was carrying 65 Ukranian POWs, was apparently shot down by their own anti-aircraft weapons, another such incident, as it passed within 50 miles of the Ukrainian border headed for Belgorod. But, local fire rescue crews reached the crash site first, before the Russian military could, and they report they found only three bodies, that of the crew, and No! there were no other bodies found. The Russian military ushered the local responders away putting up barriers and posting guards around the crash site. But, too late, video released by the Fire Chief from Belgorod of the site clearly shows there are no 65 dead Ukranian POWs. The Putin propagandists on their state-owned TV network made fools of themselves reporting the loss of 65 POWs, who Putin had agreed to return to Ukraine in a prisoner exchange, and the bad ole Ukrainians shot the plane down...tch, tch. But...there are no bodies at the crash site, save for the three crewmen.

And, the Ukrans struck another Russian oil/LNG storage facility, this one on the Black Sea, causing damage to storage tanks, fires are still burning this morning. The site is nearly 400 miles from where the Ukrans hold territory, so the drones launched for the attack had an 800-mile roundtrip and they were successful. They used 4 of their large drones, carrying bombs, in the attack. One of the drones experienced mechanical problems on the return trip and was lost in the Black Sea, but the other three returned to base safely.

Some potentially good news from Turkey and Hungary as both of those parliaments have voted to admit Sweden into NATO. But, Erdogan in Turkey and Oran in Hungary have yet to sign off on this. Both are trying to win concessions from NATO, really the US, before finalizing Sweden's membership. Erdogan of Turkey wants US-built F-16 Falcons, and so far we have refused to sell him any. A bipartisan commission in the Senate wants guarantees that Turkey will stop attacking the Kurds in Syria, but Erdogan has labeled them as "terrorists" and has thus far, refused to agree to those terms.

Turkey, under Erdogan, who just won reelection for another term as president, is quite the paradox. Turkey is a member of NATO, but they put their own interests ahead of NATO's best interest in affair after affair. The Turks recently turned back British warships bound for Ukraine, for instance, citing their constitutional policy of "not taking sides in an armed conflict." But...that is exactly what NATO membership requires. Yes, neither Ukraine nor Russia are members of NATO, so technically they are not violating their NATO pledge. However, NATO is supporting Ukraine in this conflict and Turkey needs to get with the program. The Turks have not been helpful to the Putinites either, and in fact, Erdogan has really pissed off Putin with his actions, such as denying crippled Russian warships access to a Turkish port, and the return of those Azov officers to Ukraine. Putin blew a gasket on that one!

In the big picture, even with all its faults, Turkey needs to remain an "ally" of NATO and the US. Having them as an enemy would greatly, and I mean GREATLY alter world affairs.

"Hell...we can't even get close to the front lines to engage the Ukrainians," says a Russian colonel, who is tired of seeing his troops shot to pieces by Ukran artillery and drones, while still miles away from their intended target. His brigade is operating in the Kherson region, trying to retake Krinky. But his sentiments would be echoed by all Russian commanders who have been stymied by the relentless and very effective counter-measures employed by the Ukrainian defenders.

According to one source, a German-based military think tank, the Russians had in their inventory 12,500 tanks of all types/models/age prior to the invasion in February, 2022. Now, two years later, are down to fewer than 3,000 still-operational tanks. Not to say Russia has suffered 9,500 combat losses of their tanks, but rather that combined with the combat losses has been the depletion of spare parts to repair damaged tanks, thus rendering more of their fleet inoperable. Putin's vaunted T-14 Armata tank is a total joke. Recently three T-14s took place in a celebratory parade and two of the Armatas broke down and later had to be towed back to their base. LOL! Reportedly, last year, several T-14s made an appearance in Ukraine, in the Kharkiv region, but were used like howitzers for long range artillery strikes, and not allowed to actually engage in any tank vs. tank combat, out of fear of more embarrassment for Putin.

The losses in their tank fleet is typical of what Putin has lost in artillery pieces, other armored vehicles, like their BMPs, helicopters, fight-bombers, radar units, etc... (proportionally, I mean, not in raw numbers). Those supporting our efforts to support Ukraine point out that for a mere 3.5% of the Pentagon's budget, we have aided the Ukrans in totally wrecking Putin's military. A very good ROI. Another source says Russia was #4 in the world with the most powerful military (some had them 2nd), but two years later, their present capability makes them no higher than 12th in the world and dropping fast. China is going to invade Russia...actually, they already have seized a huge chunk of former Russian territory. Putin needs to stop posturing about Alaska and worry about Russian ground, LOL!

Russkies still pushing in four key places, but failing in all of them. Yesterday was another big attack at Avdiivka which resulted in the Russians taking a patch of woods outside of the city at the price of heavy losses (again). Three tanks, eight APCs, and about 200 Russian soldiers KIA and dozens more wounded. The Ukrans are now targeting that patch of woods with artillery causing more losses on the Russians hunkered down there.

There are rumors of a massive switching of sides by elite Russian troops, but there is still no independent confirmation of this, and official Russian (Putin) sources have not commented one way or the other about it. But, just in case there is some truth to it, here's the rumor: A prominent Russian general, General Surokinin, in command of a 20,000 man division of elite infantry, has reportedly met with NATO operatives and struck a deal to defect to the West and take as many of his men with him willing to go. Surokinin is best known for his effective and brutal operations in Syria in support of Assad. The rumor concluded with stating Surokinin and about 800 of his soldiers have defected. Again...all unconfirmed.

Ukrans crush Russkies in a counter-attack at Tabaivka. A small village, of no real value other than it was the site of some heavy combat the past 48 hours. The Russians launched an attack of tanks and infantry and pushed the Ukran defenders out of the village but suffered huge losses in doing so. Then the Ukrans attacked with drones and artillery the reserves that were coming forward to shore up the Russian gains, leaving the depleted Russian units alone in the village. Seeing an opportunity, the Ukrans counter-attacked and completely obliterated the Russians now stranded forward. But the Ukrans did not stop there but pushed forward taking ground the Russians had held since the 2022 invasion began. It is not clear if the Ukrans can hold this ground they retook. Will depend on if they even want to and then if they can rush reinforcements forward quickly enough. Regardless how this plays out in the days ahead, this was a clear and concise Ukran tactical victory. Reports say the Russians lost 3 tanks, 5 APCs, 10 trucks and about 150 soldiers KIA and many more wounded, and those still alive in the village taken prisoner. The Ukrans suffered 2 killed and 8 wounded, no loss of equipment.

This incident points out something that is repeating itself all along the front, even when the Russians "win" they lose, and they lose big!

Croatia is sending 100 tanks, designated as M84A tanks, which are enhanced Soviet-built T-72s. The Croatians have been watching what has been happening in Ukraine and has, according to their sources, built in improvements to further protect these tanks from drones. They have also improved the shoddy Soviet engineering to the mechanics of the tanks improving the engine and drive-train, making them more dependable. Ukraine needs every tank it can get.

And, Switzerland has finally cleared the diplomatic hurdles with Germany and is sending, or has sent already, 25 Panzer 87 tanks, which are German-built Leopard 2A4s. These are the very, very latest, most up-to-date version of the Leopard IIs, designated by the Swiss as "Panzer 87" tanks. The Germans were uncomfortable with their very best tanks being sent to Ukraine, for whatever reason they might have had. Maybe they feared the tanks wouldn't live up to the hype, who knows? But, what we do know is the Ukrans have been VERY GOOD in tank battles, besting the Russians again and again, and the older version of the Leopard IIs operating in Ukraine have proven to be BETTER than advertised.

It is good to see NATO countries continuing to support Ukraine in their righteous defense of their country against the evil invaders. Even as the US remains the single largest supporter of Ukraine, with that at risk given the political rhetoric, the combined efforts and support of all the NATO countries surpasses the US support. And this...

just in case you need reminding, the Ukrainians did not start this war. They were not the aggressors, instead they were brutally attacked by a larger, more powerful neighbor. Supporting Ukraine in their gallant effort to stave off this invasion makes sense for all freedom-loving nations, and IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO.

Ukrans struck four Russian bases on Crimea, two airfields and two army bases. The Ukrans sent in drones first, which attracted the attention of the Russian air defenses, meanwhile Ukran cruise missiles came in from a different direction, striking the bases. According to credible sources the Ukrans sent 29 drones and 8 cruise missiles, four of the drones and all eight cruise missiles got through to strike targets. Early reports indicate two Russian fighter jets were destroyed, on the ground, and some vehicles, a radar unit, and 20 soldiers killed, plus two ammo dumps at the bases.

Russians lost 15 armored vehicles, 7 tanks and 8 APCs, and an unknown number of soldiers today south of Bakhmut. The column was advancing along a road many miles behind the front lines and all 15 vehicles were struck and completely destroyed by a wave of Ukran drones. Actually, two waves of drones were sent. A Ukran major, in command of a drone unit, was videoed shaking his head and asking why the Russians continue to drive vehicles across open fields in daylight. "Are they brainwashed zombies?" he asked.

France has sent two mobile pontoon bridges, that can be deployed in less than 10 minutes and bridge rivers as wide as the Dnieper River. Some pundits think the Ukrans will use these in the Kherson region to support a large advance. There is video of the Ukrans training with them and they are really cool. The bridges unfold from a tracked-vehicle. Of course, it is easier to deploy these bridges in training vs. under fire in a real combat situation.

UNCONFIRMED by reliable, independent sources, but...

according to multiple YouTubers and other sources, some of which are usually accurate, the Ukrans have sunk another Putin warship on the Black Sea, the guided-missile cruiser the Ivanonets. Using their improved "sea drones" the Ukrans attacked the ship last night under the cover of darkness. Reports say the ship went down rather quickly and there were no survivors. Hmmm...that last part makes me question those reports. It is rarely, nearly impossible, for there not to be survivors in these modern times, especially on a body of water like the Black Sea. It's not the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean and the Russians have many assets capable of quickly responding to a ship sinking to affect a rescue of most of the crew. But, we shall see.

And, like I said, as I was typing the above I got an alert of a new post on a blog. This report says the Ivanonets is, or was, a corvette, which makes more sense; not a cruiser. And early reports say the ship is crippled, severely damaged, but still afloat at this time. This report I can believe.

Regardless, the Ukrans have struck yet another blow to Putin, further crippling his slowly disappearing fleet, hah!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dawg80

UNCONFIRMED by reliable, independent sources, but...

according to multiple YouTubers and other sources, some of which are usually accurate, the Ukrans have sunk another Putin warship on the Black Sea, the guided-missile cruiser the Ivanonets. Using their improved "sea drones" the Ukrans attacked the ship last night under the cover of darkness. Reports say the ship went down rather quickly and there were no survivors. Hmmm...that last part makes me question those reports. It is rarely, nearly impossible, for there not to be survivors in these modern times, especially on a body of water like the Black Sea. It's not the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean and the Russians have many assets capable of quickly responding to a ship sinking to affect a rescue of most of the crew. But, we shall see.

And, like I said, as I was typing the above I got an alert of a new post on a blog. This report says the Ivanonets is, or was, a corvette, which makes more sense; not a cruiser. And early reports say the ship is crippled, severely damaged, but still afloat at this time. This report I can believe.

Regardless, the Ukrans have struck yet another blow to Putin, further crippling his slowly disappearing fleet, hah!

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Yeppers! the Ivanonets was a guided missile corvette, crew compliment of 60, and it is kaput! the ship blew up, broke in half and sunk within 10 minutes of being struck by three Ukran sea drones.

Russian equipment, their soldiers/sailors are a joke.

Speaking of Russian equipment, they have these trenching machines, which are a combination bulldozer, excavator, ditch-digger thing that can build wide and deep trenches about 1/2 mile per day, depending on the terrain, soil type, etc...they are actually pretty cool. The Russians have been running these machines for two years now and have built miles of trenches all across eastern Ukraine. Well, they are not drone proof. The Ukrans discovered one digging trenches and attacked it with drones...kabluey! The machine is completely destroyed, and apparently the crew was able to escape...crew of three...unharmed. Scratch another Putin machine.

Next!

Confirmed reports that Putin has piled up a bunch of assets: 500 tanks, 900 APCs, 600 guns (artillery), 40,000 troops, and 6 attack helicopters for an assault along the eastern front, targeting a city named "K....[whatever]." The Russians have been trying to retake this city since they lost it last year, most of their effort has been targeted at a small town north of "K...." one of my favorite names of all Ukrainian places, town is called "Stinky." And the Russkies have been stinking it up there, losing countless tanks and men in failure after failure trying to capture it. But now, Putin is going all in massing an army aimed at going straight for the big prize in the region, "K......". The Ukrans know this, the Ukrans have even identified the brigades being massed, and the Ukrans have deployed another 3,000 drones and 100 more artillery pieces, plus additional tanks and infantry to the area to stave off this massive attack.

Kupiansk is what the area is called, I'll use that name. The city name is twice as long.

My bet is Putin will fail and fail miserably and thousands more moronic grunts will pay the ultimate price for Putin's evil stupidity.

At Avdiivka the Russians have gained more ground as their on-going attempt to encircle that city continues. It is also confirmed Russian troops have finally entered the city itself, for the first time, capturing some portions of the suburbs north of the city. Of course, the Russians lost more men and equipment doing this. Reports say 10 tanks, 19 APCs, and about 2,000 Russian soldiers all lost in the assault to capture several blocks of empty houses.

Meanwhile, the RINOs are still teaming with the left to print and send more money. This time in the name of border security.