Share this page!

Kyle Orton Profile picture
Twitter logo
May 11 • 34 tweets • 20 min read
Thread: 11 May 2022: Day 77 of #Russia's invasion of #Ukraine
#Croatia alarmed by #Hungary's irredentist noises. Have been similar problems with #Ukraine.
The equivalent of the whole population of Estonia has been deported from Ukraine to Russia.
Ugh, the decline of everything
Thread. In the way that the Allies fighting the Nazis were also fighting for the Germans, it can be said Ukraine is also fighting for Russians - even if, in both cases, the populations did not see it at the time.
Rough map of the situation in #Ukraine as of midnight by @War_Mapper.

#Russia's attempt to take Kyiv ended in total defeat, and now the Russians have been forced back from Kharkiv. Some Russian advances into Zaporizhzhia; so far, Mykolayiv seems mostly out of reach.
#Britain doing its duty by European security
Unsure why #Sweden's diplomacy insists on being a meme, but it'll be great to have them in #NATO nonetheless
Interesting
#Britain's intel:

- #Russia is trying to reinforce the "exposed garrison" on Zmiinyi Island ("Snake Island")

- Russian air defences and resupply vessels have been taken out with Bayraktar TB2 drones and the vessels remain vulnerable in the Black Sea
The collaborationist authorities in Kherson led by Kirill Stremousov have called for Putin to annex this area of #Ukraine to #Russia.
#Russia's energy sector being disrupted
The #US House of Representatives passed (368-57) legislation to send $40 billion in emergency aid to #Ukraine and other allies in the region, but "objections from Republicans in the Senate could slow its progress to President Biden's desk." wsj.com/articles/house…
#Putin's placeholder president Dmitri Medvedev taking a firm line on #US debt policy
"An estimated 4.8 million jobs have been lost in Ukraine since the start of the Russian aggression, according to a new brief by the International Labour Organization (ILO)." If fighting ceases, 3.4 million jobs would likely be recovered quickly. ilo.org/global/about-t…
The #Baltic states have performed heroically for the Alliance during this crisis
Further evidence things not going well for #Russia in this eastern offensive in #Ukraine
Kremlin signals it is open to annexing Kherson: spokesman Dmitri Peskov said "residents of Kherson should decide" their fate, though "must have absolutely clear legal grounds ... just as it was in the case of Crimea". nytimes.com/live/2022/05/1…
#Finland saying what is obvious: #Russia protests about Helsinki joining #NATO are entirely hollow; this would not have happened except for Russia's own behaviour.
#pt
Volunteer from #Sweden fighting for #Ukraine heading to the front in Kharkiv, where the #Russians have been pushed back in recent days.
#Britain has signed security pacts with #Sweden and #Finland to come to their support if they are attacked, i.e. by #Russia. @BorisJohnson emphasised this is "not a short-term stop gap" to cover the #NATO accession period but an enduring commitment. bbc.com/news/uk-614087…
Once Best Friends, #Bulgaria Takes a Stand Against #Russia nytimes.com/2022/05/11/wor…
The #Russian Army is not a learning organisation
Notable casualty for #Russia's military intelligence (#GRU)
#Russians keeping up the patrols of Snake Island
"Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed"
Another attack from #Ukraine into #Russia
Dire situation in the #Ukraine-conrolled part of Luhansk oblast, which is under assault from #Russia's eastern offensive
It is interesting for power dynamics within the Putin system that GRU got the nod over the FSB, but there is a danger of over-reading it: this is a criminal syndicate that knows - now more than ever - it had better hang together, or they'll hang separately
Bit sceptical of all this, to be honest: can just about believe #Russia has pulled troops out of #Syria to deploy in #Ukraine, but the Israeli interpretations of what that means vis-a-vis Iran are basically demented; the reality is it changes nothing timesofisrael.com/russia-said-to…
Been the same debate for half-a-decade and more kyleorton.substack.com/p/why-putins-r…
CCTV footage from an area around Kiev during #Russia's attempt to storm #Ukraine's capital shows Russian soldiers speak to two civilians and then shoot them in the back as they walk away. One was murdered; the other played dead until the Russians moved.
Not an opportunity missed to do the best for his country

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with Kyle Orton

Kyle Orton Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @KyleWOrton

Kyle Orton Profile picture
May 13
One of the defensive responses to #Germany's policy on #Ukraine has been: "Look at how many refugees we have taken". God bless those who shelter refugees. The problem with this as a policy metric, though, is that it doesn't register success, but very nearly the opposite.
Should say: in conversation with someone from #Britain, this is usually a not-so-subtle counter-attack on our policy in this area, and there is a point. But it doesn't alter the fact: taking refugees from #Ukraine is not a measure of how this is going.
Taking in refugees is something that has to be done when a country has been devastated - or during the process of that happening. Most people who flee would like to go home; many #Syrians certainly would, and the fact so many cannot is a measure of our failure since 2011.
Read 5 tweets
Kyle Orton Profile picture
May 13
Thread: 13 May 2022: Day 79 of #Russia's invasion of #Ukraine
The BBC doing in #Russia the kind of journalism its "impartiality" doctrine often keeps it from doing at home
- Russian airstrikes in the south, inc Mariupol, but hesitant beyond that in bad weather
- Ukrainian airstrikes on Russian-held zones
- Russian force around Izyum showing signs of strain
- Ukraine pushing back in Mykolaiv
- Some explosions north of Kherson
Read 10 tweets
Kyle Orton Profile picture
May 12
Protais Mpiranya, the most-wanted war criminal in Africa, leader of #Rwanda's presidential guard during the genocide, has been found, buried in Zimbabwe under a false name. He has been there since 2006 courtesy of a tuberculosis-induced heart attack. ft.com/content/1cbe90…
Protais Mpiranya fled into Cameroon and then the Congo, where he fought against Kagame's Rwanda after it invaded in 1996 to uproot the genocidaire encampments like Goma, and fought under Mugabe's sponsorship during the African World War (1998-2003).
With Mpiranya's death confirmed, there are now five of #Rwanda's genocidaires who are wanted by the UN Tribunal, though their prosecutions would take place in Rwanda itself:

1) Fulgence Kayishema, a Judicial Police Inspector from Kibuye
Read 6 tweets
Kyle Orton Profile picture
May 12
Thread: 12 May 2022: Day 78 of #Russia's invasion of #Ukraine
#Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz knows from experience of living in a country ravaged by #Russia that #Ukraine will have to deal with scattered unexploded munitions for a long time, and his message on stopping the evasion of the sanctions is good, too.
#Finland's President and Prime Minister sign a joint statement: "Finland must apply for #NATO membership without delay"
Read 30 tweets
Kyle Orton Profile picture
May 10
Thread: 10 May 2022: Day 76 of #Russia's invasion of #Ukraine
Grim that #Russia's messaging has such a hold over the émigrés, who do not have to make the horrible calculations those inside the country do about personal safety when deciding how far they will or won't deviate from the state narrative.
#US on the electronic warfare capacities it has supplied to #Ukraine
Read 27 tweets
Kyle Orton Profile picture
May 4
Thread: 4 May 2022: Day 70 of #Russia's invasion of #Ukraine
#Belarus is to stage a "combat-readiness check" with its whole army, though assures one and all they mean no harm, despite the state being virtually annexed by #Russia several months ago and being the launchpad for the attack on #Ukraine's capital
#Russia even seems to have alienated "brotherly" #Serbia
Read 43 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

:(