International Russia/Ukraine Megathread V12

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The tankie ideologue: America did bad things therefore it is and always will be the bad guy in all instances.

It's such a geopolitically naive standpoint it's almost adorable if it weren't so potentially dangerous.
He almost seems to be an apprentice working under Spin Marino and took the torch from his hand.
 
There was nothing organic about Donbas war. Russia brought its operatives to destabilize the region. Russia then bankrolled and recruited more people to push this war.

Wanting closer ties with Russia pre 2014, getting cheaper oil and gas, etc is not the same thing as supporting Russian invasion either overt or covert.

You're like a trope movie character who takes some strange position to convince others he's smart. It is epicly backfiring here.
I think the evidence is clear that the Russian operatives came in a few months after the uprising started. It obviously would have failed had they not supported it, but it definitely started off organically- normal civilians were storming police stations and the like, disarming cops, putting up barricades.
 
I think the evidence is clear that the Russian operatives came in a few months after the uprising started. It obviously would have failed had they not supported it, but it definitely started off organically- normal civilians were storming police stations and the like, disarming cops, putting up barricades.
And this happened before Girkin was involved right?
 
Bridges will soon be a thing of the past for the Russians.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/video-shows-russia-fail-stop-161025851.html

New video shows Russia fail to stop a Ukrainian drone boat named 'Sea Baby' from blowing apart a key bridge with nearly 2,000 lbs of explosives
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New video shows Russia fail to stop a Ukrainian drone boat named 'Sea Baby' from blowing apart a key bridge with nearly 2,000 lbs of explosives
Jake Epstein
Updated Wed, August 16, 2023 at 1:37 PM PDT·3 min read
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A Ukrainian surface drone called "Sea Baby."Screengrab via the Security Service of Ukraine Telegram
  • A Ukrainian sea drone attacked a key bridge in Crimea last month, damaging the structure.

  • New footage obtained by CNN shows the moment when the drone actually hits the bridge.

  • Kyiv has made increasing use of sea drones in the Black Sea, striking different Russian targets.
A new video from Ukraine's intelligence agency shows how one of its drone boats managed to strike a key bridge in the occupied Crimean peninsula last month without facing any obvious resistance from Russia.

The Security Service of Ukraine, or SBU, provided exclusive footage to CNN of the moment when an experimental drone called "Sea Baby" attacked the Kerch Bridge with over 1,850 pounds of explosives on July 17, killing two civilians, damaging parts of the bridge, and temporarily suspending traffic.

The video obtained by CNN includes a first-person view from a thermal camera on the drone, which is what the operator saw, as well as the view from a security camera on the bridge. CCTV footage captures a massive explosion, which Russia failed to prevent, despite Moscow claiming that it has the capabilities to disrupt such attacks.


The 12-mile-long Kerch Bridge, also known as the Crimean Bridge, connects mainland Russia with Crimea and is an important route for Moscow's economic and military activity in the occupied territory. It also represents a prized accomplishment of Russian President Vladimir Putin and is a symbol of the Kremlin's hope to maintain an enduring occupation of the peninsula.

The July incident marked the second time that the bridge has been attacked, raising question's about Russia's ability to actually defend the massive structure. Before the latest incident, a truck bomb detonated on the bridge in October 2022, killing three people and forcing a shutdown of rail and vehicle traffic for months.

Ukraine has made increasing use of sea drones to strike critical Russian targets around the Black Sea, using the weapons to compensate for its lack of a strong navy and even launching a crowdfunding campaign for what Kyiv calls "the formation of the world's first naval fleet of drones."

On Wednesday, Ukraine's SBU published several photos and videos of the "Sea Baby" drone used in the Kerch Bridge attack on its Telegram channel. The system can be seen cruising through open waters.


"Sea surface drones are a unique invention of the Security Service of Ukraine," Vasyl Maliuk, the head of the SBU, told CNN, adding that "none of the private companies are involved." He said Ukraine began developing the drones shortly after Russia launched its February 2022 full-scale invasion and that they have been used in recent attacks on a Russian naval ship and a merchant tanker.

Earlier this month, Ukrainian drone boats hit the Russian warship Olenegorsky Gornyak at the port of Novorossiysk, badly damaging the vessel. And like the Kerch Bridge strike, the drone that struck the landing ship did so without meeting any obvious resistance. A day later, sea drones hit the Sig tanker, which has been used to transport fuel and military supplies between Russia and Syria.

Britain's defense ministry wrote in an August 9 intelligence update that these recent attacks show how Ukrainian drone boat operations "are increasingly a major component of modern naval warfare and can be turned against the weakest links of Russia's sea supply lanes."

Tensions in the Black Sea have been particularly high in recent weeks after Russia killed a crucial grain deal and moved to militarize the region by declaring that ships sailing to Ukrainian ports will be considered as potential carriers of military cargo. Moscow appeared to follow through on its threat for the first time this week as Russian forces raided a cargo ship bound for Ukraine and interrogated the crew. Following the raid, the vessel was allowed to proceed to its intended destination.
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Yeah this is the core of the dispute. You don't even acknowledge the existence of pro Russian forces in eastern ukraine. Your response to my talking points is "it's not real". There's nowhere for discourse to go when we literally don't agree on the history.

Your talking point is that we should care about the people who betrayed their country by siding with an invading force?
 
Number of millionaires doesn't resemble total shape of economy....rich and smart ppl always might earn with speculations during crisises etc, why not. Plus previously not declared money might had been laundered with intent to declare it later.

Ukraine doesn't have crude oil refinery in working condition. So will not purchase unprocessed crude oil....
Yeah, Zelensky is doing business with russia....for example allowed transit for natural gas and crude oil to Hungary and ukr is purchasing diesel fuel, gasoline etc : hungarian refineries products.
It is just business, nothing personal.

Not to mention number of millionaires was counted on the artificial ruble exchange rate which is experiencing a correction right now.

In a few years everyone in Russia will be a millionaire, just like people in Zimbabwe and Venezuela they will own millions...
 
More suspected reason is currency manipulation by Moscow, I mean Venezuela was at one point one of the "richest countries" under Chavez, until it wasn't because it was all just smoke and mirrors.

Correction is happening right now with Ruble collapsing.

Your right about the smoke and mirrors thing, Putin will lie and deny till the end....until he cant anymore.
 


At 1:31 we see why things are going VERY carefully with the Ukrainian advance.




Ukrainians gaining ground?
 
What a clown...

https://www.yahoo.com/news/russias-top-general-sergei-shoigu-061853820.html


Russia's top general Sergei Shoigu bragged that the Kremlin's war in Ukraine has 'debunked many myths' that NATO weapons and military standards are superior


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Russia's top general Sergei Shoigu bragged that the Kremlin's war in Ukraine has 'debunked many myths' that NATO weapons and military standards are superior
Matthew Loh
Updated Wed, August 16, 2023 at 8:40 AM PDT·3 min read

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Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.Contributor/Getty Images
  • Sergei Shoigu says the war is "debunking many myths" that NATO military standards are superior.

  • He bragged that even Russia's Soviet-era weapons fared better in some cases than Western equipment.

  • Shogiu said Russia would share findings about the "weaknesses" in NATO weapons with its partners.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu bragged on Tuesday that the Kremlin has shown the West's military technology is not all it's chalked up to be.

"The Russian army debunked many myths about the superiority of Western military standards," Shoigu said at a security conference attended by Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu.

He said it was now "obvious" that NATO weaponry, modern war doctrine, and training "cannot ensure superiority on the battlefield," per a transcript posted by Russia's Defense Ministry.

"In many cases, even Soviet-made equipment surpasses Western models in its combat qualities," Shoigu boasted further, though he cited no detailed information or evidence to support his claim.

Shoigu added that through the war, Russia has obtained data on the destruction of weapons systems like German tanks, US armored vehicles, British long-range missiles. He did not go into further detail.

"We are ready to share assessments of the weaknesses of Western technology with our partners," he said.

It's true that Russia has managed to destroy or obtain some advanced NATO equipment during the war, but Shoigu also failed to mention any of the Kremlin's heavy losses in Ukraine when making his comparison.

Ukraine lost around 20% of its US-provided equipment in its summer counteroffensive, The New York Times reported, citing US and European officials.

The losses were highlighted in July when reports showed that nearly a third of the Bradley armored vehicles sent by Washington to Kyiv have either been damaged or destroyed.

Russia has also been claiming that it's routinely destroying German-supplied Leopard tanks, though it once claimed to have footage of such an incident — only for the video to show an attack helicopter blasting farm equipment.

In June, Russia claimed to have shot a separate video of a Leopard tank being destroyed, which open-source networks believed was credible.

The Kremlin also said in July that it managed to seize a downed UK-provided Storm Shadow missile, as its bases behind the frontlines received repeated strikes from such munitions.

On the other hand, Moscow has continually been reported to be losing high-value equipment, such as dozens of Ka-52 Alligator gunships and more than 2,000 of its 3,400 tanks. The Kremlin is said to be reactivating its vast supply of Soviet-era tanks to fill the gap.

A UK Defense official and military advisor assessed in July that Russia has lost half of its combat effectiveness since the war began.

Meanwhile, Ukraine lost some 550 of its initial 987 tanks, per open-source analysis site Oryx. But it has also captured hundreds of Russian tanks, and its Western allies continue to send equipment and vehicles to the battlefield.
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This Shoigu speech actually more had been designed for mainstream media customers and journalists not interested in technique.
Also ofc to met russian propagandists version that russia is fighting vs xx countries etc.

Usually in such cases, when technique is sent to third countries it is ....stuff allowed to sell for non NATO countries and if without payment, then it isn't new stuff.
:p:p
Ofc in some cases Ukr had get new and modern stuff but it is... small % from stuff they had get.

The same Leopard 2A4 tanks had been produced till 1992 th...:p.
Additionally tracks are tracks and doesn't matter is this Armata or T-34 vs anti tank mine under track.

The same Bradleys scheduled to be replaced, manufactured in 1980 ies and early 1990 ies;).
Not likely US had sent something super secret for these.
 
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