Correction: Their placement with the VDV is most likely to minimise desertions - @VDV_Textbooks recently talked about them being used as barrier troops for demoralised Russian infantry. So not integrating with the unit directly.
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Against the backdrop of new laws in 🇷🇺 being passed to deal with refuseniks, a video surfaced yesterday of what appears to be stacks of resignation letters to the commander of the 5th Separate Guards Tank Brigade.
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The 5th Separate GTB were sent into 🇺🇦 on Feb 24th and were never rotated out. Video reports in 🇷🇺 media about their families Buryatia begging commanders for their return surfaced in June and the UK MOD reported on it shortly after.
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Open sources indicate they fought all along the Northern axis of the invasion and ended up in the Izyum area after the failure to take Kyiv.
One of the letters visible is dated June 20th which lines up with the reports of friction in the unit.
1/4 Ukraine struck Millerovo air base with ballistic missiles in the first days of the war. They blew up fuel trains in Crimea around the same time. 7 months ago. They’ve spent the past month lighting up Crimea.
2/4 The idea that there will be some sort of demarcation line drawn along the parts they temporarily occupy that if crossed will trigger nuclear war, is fanciful at best.
If someone can pull it off @TheStudyofWar will probably pay them 6 figures to draw their maps.
3/4 Most importantly people are still treating Putin like he needs excuses to act.
If he could have mobilised already he would have. If he could have held referendums in Donbas already, he would have.
If he thought he could get away with WMD in Ukraine - he would have.
The most interesting evidence so far that Ukraine may have the capability to strike targets at a range of 280km+ with domestic systems has come from an unlikely source: a high profile espionage case involving an employee of Ukraine's Pivdenne Design Bureau.
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KB Pivdenne is the state owned design bureau that works with PA Pivenmash, the state owned aerospace manufacturer that famously built the Soviet R-36M or "Satan" nuclear ICBM. Post 1991 they have continued designing and manufacturing missile and space launch vehicles.
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Russian born Reseda Perkova was arested on September 7th for leaking documents related to the "Sapsan" missile system to FSB agent Yevgeny Zykov.
Sapsan is one of many working names for the Grom/Grim-2/Hrim-2 ballistic missile being developed by the Pivdenne Design Bureau.
An important piece of woodland next to the settlement of Dovhenke was held by the 36th MRB. Dovhenke is 20km South of Izium and lies right on the frontline. Recently they were moved to the South to counter UA offensives.
But...
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There are no forces in the area to take over their positions. None.
This strategically important area right on the Southern tip of the Izium front was just abandoned.
And after that? Well Ukrainian forces simply moved in.
Unsure of the extent of the fire but Shavbe manufacture all sorts of interesting things like thermal sights for modernised T-72s, T-90s and various others, laser detection systems for naval purposes, CBRN reconnaissance devices and thermal/NV binoculars for Ru MOD
To a Tutsi in 1994, "We can't label all Hutus the same way, that would make you as bad as them."
To a European Jew in 1942, "Listen, I'm not going to sit here and have you tell me how all Germans are responsible for this. I know a German and they're not very happy about what's going on."