1/ Citizens of the puppet 'Donetsk People's Republic' (DNR) are complaining en masse that they are not being paid their promised compensation for deaths and injuries caused to local residents by the war. The DNR itself admits that it owes more than 38 billion rubles ($467m). ⬇️
2/ Relatives and soldiers of the DNR's armed forces – which have been decimated due to being used as so-called 'meat waves' against Ukrainian positions – have been posting numerous videos complaining about the lack of compensation payments and appealing to Putin for help.
3/ In one video, a wife says: "Starting from September 2022, funding for lump-sum compensation for wounded and killed DNR servicemen for 2022 was terminated. We submitted documents to the commission of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy of the DNR.
4/ "There are a lot of us. We applied to all authorities. From the presidential administration to the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation.
5/ "All our appeals are forwarded to the government of the DNR, which redirects them to the Ministry of Labour, and the answers come from there that there is no funding. We write to the deputies and there are no results."
6/ According to the wife of one wounded soldier, his unit "collected all the necessary documents promptly, the medical examiner issued a conclusion of a severe injury.
7/ "In November we submitted all the documents for payment, and for seven months there have been no payments, the allowance during treatment is 30,000 rubles ($371). The answer is the same, there is no funding."
8/ People seeking compensation have complained to the DNR state prosecutor's office, which admitted that an audit had "established the fact of lack of funding for this type of payment, which requires an amount of more than 38 billion rubles."
9/ It's very unlikely that the DNR will be able to pay the sums it owes, as its finances are precarious, its economy is a mess and it's kept afloat only by Russian government funding.
10/ The Russian government has shown little concern previously for the welfare of DNR soldiers and their families, so there seems to be little likelihood that the relatives' video appeals will achieve much. /end
1/ Ukraine's campaign against Russian shipping is claimed to have hit 159 vessels in only 12 days. Numerous vessels have been crippled, knocking out a significant fraction of Russia's maritime exports. A Russian commentary describes how it's being done. ⬇️
2/ The Russian political analyst Igor Dimitriev assesses the tactics being used in the campaign, and how 'Operation “MoLoChKa' is affecting Russia's oil exports:
"They don't sink the vessels, they immobilise them."
3/ "Initially, they fired at the crew in the wheelhouse—the vessel would be blinded, but the engine would still work, and the crews learned to steer from the wheelhouse using a compass and telephone.
1/ Reports from Crimea say that Ukraine's drone blockade is causing prices to soar, electricity and water supplies are intermittent or absent, and mobile phone access is down. Shelves are empty and supplies aren't arriving for lack of fuel. ⬇️
2/ 'Alex Parker Returns' summarises what a reader of his Telegram channel says about the situation in northern Crimea:
"There's no electricity at all, water supply is intermittent, mobile phone service is only at certain times."
3/ "There's nothing to even restore at the substations. They need to be rebuilt. As a result, northern Crimea is abandoned. It's only a matter of time before the rest of Crimea collapses.
1/ Russia's fuel crisis is causing gas stations to go out of business en masse. At least 150 have been put up for sale, including some belonging to major distributors, in a further sign of how the fuel crisis caused by Ukrainian drone strikes is impacting daily life in Russia. ⬇️
2/ Adverts offering gas stations for sale across Russia have been appearing on marketplaces, commercial real estate websites, and corporate resources, for prices of between 1 and 150 million rubles. An entire chain of 13 gas stations in Ufa is being offered for 350 million.
3/ National chains such as Gazprom and Lukoil are also offering stations for sale. However, the great majority of those currently on offer are independently owned. Around 60% of Russia's 27,700 gas stations are independently owned, with the rest belonging to large oil companies.
1/ Russian Telegram channels are celebrating President Zelenskyy's ouster of Mikhailo Fedorov as Ukraine's Defence Minister. Commentators depict him as a dangerous and effective opponent, and suggest that his departure will make Russia's war effort easier. ⬇️
2/ Assessing Fedorov's achievements, Svyatoslav Golikov calls them "significant and impactful". He welcomes Fedorov's ousting:
3/ "I view the personnel changes in the enemy's military department as very positive news, because, as historical practice shows, the role of an individual in certain systemic processes is often crucial, and the changes already achieved may well be reversible."
1/ Russian warbloggers are wondering how it was possible for Ukraine to destroy the Russian border patrol ship Izumrud while it was at anchor. The vessel was reportedly hit by two Ukrainian Sargan-3000 uncrewed surface vessels (USVs). ⬇️
2/ The attack is said to have caused several "200 and 300" (deaths and injuries). The big question, as 'Informant' comments, is "How the unmanned hull craft reached the ship at its berth."
3/ 'Evil Sailor' has "some very unpleasant questions for the border guards:
1. Why was the ship stationed in one place for so long when it was necessary to constantly change its base?
2. Why was the ship stationed in a completely unprotected area?
1/ Ukraine's dominance of the 'lower sky' and its widespread use of 'waiting drones' has made large-scale Russian vehicle assaults virtually impossible. A Russian video shows numerous Ukrainian drones sitting on a road, waiting to carry out attacks on Russian forces. ⬇️
2/ Commenting on the video, the Russian medical warblogger 'Visiting Doc' dedicates it "to fans of tank breakthroughs and brutal assaults" and comments: "Low-altitude superiority is one of the main reasons why evacuation becomes a nearly impossible task."
3/ The tactic is used by both sides, but Ukraine's current dominance in drones has made it the principal user of the tactic. Both vehicles and individual soldiers are regularly targeted by 'waiters'.