1/ I wanted to briefly expand upon a post I made in yesterday’s daily tread regarding my decision to not place Ukrainian unit dispositions in future updates. Comments on this point have been received and appreciated. I did not come to this decision easily, let me explain.
2/ First, I want to make it clear that I am not impartial, I stand with Ukraine. I am after all the Jomini of the WEST. However, that does not mean I am incapable of being objective regarding the events and progress of the war in Ukraine. I assure you I am.
3/ My goal has been to present an accurate as possible report on the activities of both sides. I feel the exchange of information is critical in a free and open society. But I am a professional and understand that aggregating so much data can be harmful, that is not my intent.
4/ Western media, bloggers, etc. are generally observing the Ukrainian request not to depict unit locations. It is true that the Russians have way better intel on Ukrainian units (or at least one would think they do), but I must consider the liability of continuing to do this.
5/ To balance the scales, I feel the way forward is to generally depict a forward line of contact and not where I understand specific Ukrainian units to be. However, I think that mentioning Ukrainian units operating in a certain area is not harmful or beneficial to either side.
6/ The Ukrainian General Staff is already doing this through their Facebook page, making mention of units in an area but not a specific location. There are posts of the 72nd Mech Brigade in Kyiv or the 93rd Mech Brigade near Sumy; however, not specifically where in those areas.
7/ Therefore I will note what Ukrainian units are operating in a given Area of Operations and who is in contact as I understand it, but probably limit it to that for now. As the war enters a more steady phase, units in contact will become clearer.
8/ I think this is a good balance to still present an accurate picture of both sides, that does not endanger my ability to post future treads, and still answers much of this community’s desire for accurate information on where both armed forces are operating.
9/ I know this solution may not satisfy everyone, but I feel it is the best way for me to move forward. If you feel these threads are no longer value added because of this and desire not to follow any longer, I thank you for the time you did provide to these threads.
10/ I will personally be fine and will continue to present the most accurate information I can for awareness of events as they unfold on the ground. There is a tough road ahead. There will be victories and defeats on both sides. I will report on both. This war is far from over.
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