fry30

As well as reassuring folks that I'm not taking a break on this project again, posting updates serves to keep me actively working on this. If I didn't post my progress, I'd probably take a break from it and 'forget' for a few weeks. I REALLY want to get this finished preferably by the end of the year but as long as I keep working on it, it will get finished either on time or a bit later. Having said that, there probably will be a short break in updates from tomorrow for a day or two for obvious reasons.
Predictably, I couldn't leave Neuville alone. I've already made some small but important changes to the German forces that will make them a little bit more effective. The defending force is TINY as well so I can assign each unit to its own AI group with some to spare so it would be foolish not to take advantage of the new tools to make the defence more responsive to the player's moves. That's the point of making this revision after all.

Merry Christmas gents 

Merry Christmas gents 

Merry Christmas all! Slava Ukraine!

Merry Christmas gents 

Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year to all!

Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas everyone!  Thanks for such a civil discussion.

I couldn't directly access the NYTs article either, but did find this, free to me at least.
https://kyivindependent.com/nyt-putin-open-to-ceasefire-if-russia-keeps-occupied-territories/
NYT: Putin open to ceasefire if Russia keeps occupied territories
Share Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn Share via Email by The Kyiv Independent news deskDecember 23, 2023 5:40 PM2 min read   Russian President Vladimir Putin (C) leaves the hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace as officers of the Presidential Regiment (R) look on during an award ceremony marking the Heroes of Russia Day on Dec. 8 in Moscow. Putin said after the ceremony that he would run for president again in the 2024 election. (Contributor/Getty Images)
Listen to this article     0:00 / 2:41 1X BeyondWords This audio is created with AI assistance Russian President Vladimir Putin has been reportedly signaling behind closed doors that Russia would be open to a ceasefire along the current frontline, the New York Times reported based on its sources.
Putin's sought ceasefire would mean Russia would keep the territories it illegally occupies in Ukraine, where the population is subject to abductions and summary executions.
“He really is willing to stop at the current positions,” a former senior Russian official told The New York Times.  “He’s not willing to retreat one meter,” the former official added.
The New York Times wrote that some American officials say that Putin's alleged willingness to end the war, that cost the lives of tens of thousands, could be an attempt to influence opinions and "does not reflect genuine willingness" to end the war.
Ukraine laid out its 10-point "peace formula" in November 2022. One of the key points as a precondition for starting peace talks is the full withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory, including the regions illegally annexed by Russia in 2022.
Russian officials have previously reiterated that this would be considered a nonstarter for any negotiations.
According to the New York Times article, Putin also reportedly sent out feelers for a ceasefire deal in the fall of 2022 after Ukrainian forces liberated Kharkiv Oblast, according to American officials, indicating that he was satisfied with Russia’s captured territory and ready for an armistice.
The signals came through multiple channels, including via foreign governments with ties to both the U.S. and Russia. Unofficial Russian emissaries have reportedly spoken to interlocutors about the contours of a potential deal.
“Putin and the Russian army, they don’t want to stretch their capacity further,” an undisclosed international official told the New York Times.
Dmitri Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesman, said Russia was ready for talks, but only for “the achievement of its own goals.”
There is no reason to start peace negotiations with Ukraine at this moment, Peskov earlier said to reporters on Dec. 20.
The prospect of peace negotiations, including exchanging territory for peace or other significant concessions, is widely unpopular among the Ukrainian population.
A poll released in December 2023 found that 74% of Ukrainians were against such territorial concessions with Russia in exchange for peace.
Ukrainian and Western leaders have also repeatedly said that they do not believe Russia is interested in good-faith peace negotiations.

I'll file this right next to the folder that says "Hitler wants peace for 1943 and with great generosity & compassion agrees to stop fighting and freeze the conflict at the current boundaries"

WP, NYT and some other influent media in last time fulfilled with scepticism and defeatism about development of war for Ukraine. It seems "party of appeacement" on the West and Russia achieved some touch points and now actively push agenda about "peace for any cost", "Ukraine must agree to freeze the war to not lose more territories".
Ukrainian information field on background of failed offensive and current crawling advance of Russian army overflowed with bots and real accounts, who sow panic and defeatism moods, call to open the borders and resist to mobilisation measures, pushing the takes about "Ukraine is slavery state with force mobilization like in N.Korea" (most of these bots and useful idiots you can spot via N.Korean flag near nickname in twitter), many posts "why we have to die for corrupted dictatorship of Zelenskiy?" or "We are free people and the state hasn't any right to force us go at the war"
These two sides invested huge money in powerful media and PsyOps campaign to dismoral UKR society and force Ukrainian politics to sit at the negotiation table on Russian formula "peace in exchange for refuting from occupied territories". And they already achieved some successes. Coming large mobilisation already seriously scare many people. Percent of population, who would agree to freeze a war even by the cost of territories rised almost on 10 %  (bigger growth in western and central oblasts) and now is about 19 %
And these Putin's offers of peace is just a cunning turn for public opinion and taxpayers: "Look - Russia offers a peace for Ukraine, which inevitable will be defeated anyway. How this generously! How Putin is great! How he wants to stop this bloody war! But look at this pathetic Ukraine! They want to continue this hopeless war. Their president doesn't spare own nation and will fight to last Ukrainian for own illusions to defeat Russia! So, why we have to pay for these new deaths! Let be a bad peace, than a good war! Let make friendship and make money togrther again!"  

It's officially announced the first batch of 16 Dutch F-16s will be delivered to Ukraine. A second batch will probably follow. Wilders or no Wilders.

You need to think more bigly

 
https://www.boringcompany.com/prufrock

Flemfire, the way you argue invites criticism. In fact, all you seem to do is argue and pat yourself on the back. I enjoy lurking this thread, maybe you should do the same. 

Flemfire, the way you argue invites criticism. In fact, all you seem to do is argue and pat yourself on the back. I enjoy lurking this thread, maybe you should do the same. 

Ironic that you, of all people, are now using the term strawman. 

Ironic that you, of all people, are now using the term strawman. 

Flemfire, the way you argue invites criticism. In fact, all you seem to do is argue and pat yourself on the back. I enjoy lurking this thread, maybe you should do the same. 

Flemfire, the way you argue invites criticism. In fact, all you seem to do is argue and pat yourself on the back. I enjoy lurking this thread, maybe you should do the same. 

Ironic that you, of all people, are now using the term strawman. 

Flemfire, the way you argue invites criticism. In fact, all you seem to do is argue and pat yourself on the back. I enjoy lurking this thread, maybe you should do the same. 

Ironic that you, of all people, are now using the term strawman. 

I seriously wonder about the tone of the NYT.
There is reporting, and there is opinion shaping. I think this stuff is very much in the latter. Just the language being used and purposefully repeated through the article is very much not objective.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/16/world/europe/ukraine-kherson-river-russia.html
Their next article is called "people snatchers"
No mentioning of russia, their conditions, the 300 vehicles they burnt through this month, if UA did that, oh how many sob stories would they write?
Also it irks me they call it "russia-Ukraine war" instead of invasion, or russias war on Ukraine. But Im sure thats just coincidence

No, that's the standard way of referring to riverbanks BECAUSE rivers meander all over the place, and different rivers flow in different directions. The Left refers to the left side of the river if you were standing in it looking downstream. In the case of the Dnepr that's generally - but not always - to the north and east. The right refers to the right side of the river if you were standing in it looking downstream. For the Dnepr that is generally - but not always - to the south and west.
Where ever you are on the river, regardless of which way it twists and turns, the left is always the left and therefore always refers the same side of the river.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_(geography)

What does this actually mean?
The UK, its Dominions, and France entered a war against Germany in September 1939 to - amongst other things - guarantee the independence of Poland. Six years later that war ended. Had Poland's independence been secured? Can the UK be said to have 'won' in those terms? What about France, or even Poland?
If they didn't win, does that mean Germany did?