danfrodo

Taranis is back! Magnificent ! Beautiful !

That is amazing drone video of dead LDNR fighters. So many caught by artillery. What happened that so many were standing in relative open? Some though were in trenches, but most it seems in open. Well, those that wanted to join Putin's lovely Russian empire are getting the consequences they deserve. For those that didn't want Putin's rule I have some sympathy. But in wrong place at wrong time and armed to kill Ukranians so this sad outcome was what was best for humanity going forward, sad as it is. And what the holy hell is going on w the raids into Russia? Seems these are causing a lot more trouble than I would've imagined. Meanwhile, supposedly UKR attacks west of Vuledar and still some attacks around Bakhmut. The plot thickens.....

I saw this and was thinking there might come a time when a new regime in Moscow starts handing over war criminals in order to reduce sanctions. Now that would be hilarious! Girkin in the dock at The Hague. Why not? He's a nobody, really. Free meat handed out to placate the west. And a Melitopol traitor is blown up. Another life-affirming assassination. And another day where UKR talks and talks about imminent attacks...... and we wait. I am still hoping for some raids across the Dnieper, but that is so very dangerous if not done extremely well.

One side gets continually weaker while one side gets continually stronger. Putin maybe wishing he hadn't wrecked so much of his army over the winter.

Now, this subject is worth discussion. We all think it's a feint. But what if UKR puts a force across that starts raiding behind RU? Like the russian-volunteer force is doing in Belgorod? Mobile units w high ISR (is right term) that know where they can 'safely' cause trouble but can get out of town before they are outgunned or trapped. Just gotta keep the retreat lines open for reasonably short time using roadblocks & arty from across the river. Return to a safe area, either across the river or in a bridgehead around nova kahovka. Risky but dang that could cause some serious over-reaction. 300 soldiers in HUMMVs could end up getting RU to move 3000. And arty ambush them along the way. I don't think I would do this, but dang it would be a wild ride!

Jesus, Artkin, can you just f-ing stop? This discussion is over, you win, yay, you were right, you are smartest, king of the hill. For those of us trying to catch up w the 5 or more pages since last night it's really annoying to see 50 posts on this pointless 'get the last word over nothing' discussion.

How long can RU keep this up? They are burning thru a lot of missiles and I recall they didn't have a lot left, while production was supposedly slow. I guess they have lots of shaheds though.

So sounds like I should tally your vote under the column marked 'suicide'. Great posts, folks. I do think the target most likely to cause overthrow of Putin would be to target vodka supplies. And cigarettes. Not sure about the UKR drone strikes on Moscow. As long as UKR doesn't lose the international moral high ground. But as was mentioned above, if RU can do serial mass murder for a year and not be called a terrorist state, then maybe the high ground is not as hard to hold as one would think.

I am open to more info completely changing my thinking, but I really don't like the hitting of civilian residences by design. I'd much rather have drones hitting the kremlin or some other highly visible RU property. If these civilian hits were by accident, then UKR needs to say that they were aiming for something else and also learn a lesson on how to path the drones so this doesn't happen. UKR needs to keep the high ground, this is important in short term but also in the longer term when (hopefully) RU leaders are in the dock at The Hague.

Yeah, I guess my main point still stands -- RU would be able to do a lot more damage to UKR if so much of their long range ordnance was not spent trying to simply terrorize & murder civilians.

This conflicts w my preconceived notions and wishful thinking. Therefore it is clearly not true.

Not that anyone wants this, but here's my thoughts since the fronts are relatively quiet today. 1. How will Prig die? We should start a poll on this. He's rather high profile for a balcony accident. 'Heart attack' is possible. But why not get some popular outrage going? I think an FSB bomb that is then claimed to have been planted by UKR 'terrorists' to take a out a great RU hero. That's my vote. 2. Where will the main effort be? We all think the south, it certainly is the richest target, and I think so also. But UKR doing a nice job of trying to pull RU forces away from there w attacks in RU proper, plus attacks around Bakhmut. Meanwhile, UKR doing deep strikes on HQs, barracks, & logistics very far behind RU lines. Putin's head has to be spinning, assuming someone is telling him. 3. The strikes on Kyiv are dreadful and despicable but militarily it does have a positive side: all those missiles weren't hitting things that could disrupt the UKR campaigning season. So in the end it's just more murder but does not hinder what's coming. 4. videos are anecdotal, of course, but we're seeing lots of videos showing that warfare is still up close and personal like WW1. All the fancy weapons give one side huge advantages but in the end still gotta did the rats out of the holes. Why don't they surrender??? RU soldiers just cowering in holes like that will save them when the trench is clearly overrun?? Dude, wave a white flag!!! 5. what happens to RU prisoners upon return to the motherland? there's been lots of exchanges. Why exchange if RU is just going to shoot or jail them? So I am guessing they are put right back into the line? 6. Sunflowers are sprouting in my yard, multiple locations, some unexpected. Clearly this is an omen, presaging the fulfilling of prophecy.

Reminds of the time a world leader showed a hurricane-track probability map. That had been hand altered w a flippin' sharpie. Yeah, A-team work, there. But the bigger point is yet again another preposterously amatuerish Putin-team propaganda stunt. If I read this stuff in a novel I'd probably think "yeah, no one is that incompetent". Yet here we are. From the start he should've been sticking to a storyline of "This is an internal dispute, foreigners stay out. Ukraine is a break away region of the Russia and we are simply putting down a local rebellion since the rebels have refused to stand down". A local rebellion by 44M people who have been independent for 30 years, we would all say. And Putin team would simply repeat their big lie, over and over, everywhere. This aint rocket science (I did study a little bit of rocket science, this definitely aint it).

Yes, FancyCat, those are risks. The hope was that the operation would be able to hold the ~5 towns along the RU road long enough for UKR to bust thru RU lines, which would be cut off and hopefully retreating. Also would be nice opportunity to ambush RU reinforcements trying to hit UKR flanks.

A few months ago I suggested UKR taking a short loop thru RU territory to outflank RU defenses east of Kupyansk. Prykolatne (UKR) to Valukyi-Aidar-Rovenki (RU), re-cross UKR border heading south toward Starobilsk. I have no interest in holding RU territory, just was hoping to cross relatively undefended territory to unhinge the bad guys.

Fun stuff here today: Prig & Girkin shootout. Prig does his best Ludendorf impersonation, calling for total war to hold on to the territory they've 'snatched'. Bascially stop everything except war efforts and get everyone either mobilized or making ammo. Good lord, what a rambling nut. Meanwhile Girkin calling Prig a threat to RU, which implies he should be taken out of course. And the icing on the cake, Taliban attack Iranian border. Taliban leader thinks that if Tali leaders unleash him that he can take over Iran -- what a flippin' looney. Yes, I am sure the Shia of Iran want some smelly, bearded, illiterate Sunni from the middle ages lording over them. They already have smelly, bearded, literate Shia clerics from the middle ages lording over them. Already the majority of populace, especially the very large young population, wants those clerics dead. https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/5/27/2171729/-Ukraine-Update-The-battle-of-the-worst-Russians-thus-begins

Yet another reason to never F w BillBinDC. He'll have your car towed.

I am still having a hard time seeing how Wagner could threaten RU power structure. Putin surely has plenty of Wagner officers on discrete payroll and would know well in advance of any naughty ideas Prig had. Would they just drive to Moscow & attack the Kremlin??? Coup kinda requires some level of surprise I would think. Plus all RU army has to do is not send food & ammo and it's game over pretty quickly. Wagnerites could live off the land (sacking grocery stores) I suppose for a while. I would be shocked if Putin let Wagner army anywhere near anything important in RU.

What are you talking about? Both jets successfully engaged the empty field, though one did come dangerously close to hitting those buildings over there.

Thanks HeirloomT, I have fortunately been given a reprieve by a (this time thorough) cleaning the current old beast. GREAT tip, thx

Dangit, BillBinDC & Beleg85 beat me to it. Domestic optics will trump military needs if this gets to be embarrassing. Putin will be shouting on the phone "hunt them down and kill them! I don't care what it takes but you have one week or you'll be in a front line trench!". Maybe Prig will volunteer to have Wagner hunt them down, for some price. Then he'll just kill whoever and put them in a uniform and pretend problem solved. Heck, he's got enough dead bodies laying around, he just needs to dress them up right. This is quite the psyops, though. Hopefully everyone in the oblast will think they're under attack, as many of them clearly already do from the traffic jam.

kinda off topic, but I wonder if BFC is planning any offensive actions now that the ground it dry? As in new releases? In support of UKR offensives. There's probably lots of influential military minds in RU that would be very distracted by new CM content, just in time for UKR to strike. (hopefully UKR military minds would show more restraint). And the RU folks would be on the forum constantly saying that RU capabilities are being underestimated. They could be engaged there as a further distraction from planning & events at the front.

Whatever this incursion is, whether it's a raid or 'Tet offensive', it's certainly creating uncertainty for RU command. If I am RU command right now, I don't know which way is up.

quick driveby, just got caught up. Some really fun anecdotes here from various tankies, including from Adolf Musk sideman. NATO has fallen! The evil US global empire is destroyed! Because Bakhmut captured by the Putin's gallant heroes! Hard to believe people actually believe this stuff. https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/5/22/2170641/-Ukraine-Update-The-pro-Russian-world-unconvincingly-celebrates-its-pyrrhic-victory

Ya know how when you are playing CM & your men are in wooded area w shrubbery and you just can't believe your men can't see the bad guys? Always frustrating. Then I go out in the woods or see a video like above and say "oh, yeah, can't see nuthin'.