1/8 One more miserable failure: the window of opportunity for russia to achieve anything on the front in 2024 is steadily narrowing. Analysis by @joni_askola
2/8 russia had its prime opportunity in a long time, from October 2023 to the autumn of 2024, to make gains on the front, as Ukraine faced shortages in manpower, shells, and fortifications.
3/8 Despite its best efforts, russia miserably failed to achieve anything significant while Ukraine was at its weakest. Its only accomplishment was the capture of Avdiivka, at the expense of tens of thousands of casualties.
4/8 russia's diversionary offensive north of Kharkiv did not achieve its objectives, but it compelled Ukraine's allies to permit Ukraine to launch strikes into russian territory.
5/8 As russia squandered its opportunity, Ukraine has been mobilizing, fortifying, boosting production, targeting russian energy infrastructure, and ultimately receiving shells and equipment from its allies.
6/8 russia has yet to capture the small but important town of Chasiv Yar, and its time for launching a decisive offensive is running out. By the year's end, Ukraine will have become too formidable for russia to achieve significant successes on the front.
7/8 For Ukraine to maintain its advantage in this war, the best approach is to refrain from large-scale offensives and concentrate primarily on defense. Ukraine's success will not come from reclaiming territory, but from conveying to the russians that the war is unwinnable.
8/8 It may take years for the average russian to recognize in their imperialistic, revanchist, and materialistic mindset that the war is unwinnable and futile, but that realization will eventually occur. For that day to arrive sooner, Ukraine needs to defend itself.
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The outgoing Biden administration will be remembered in history as an example of failed U.S. security assistance policy. Enormous sums allocated by the United States for aid to Ukraine have remained uncontracted. Of the many billions of dollars provided through the USAI 1/5
program, only $13 million were committed to contracts. Approximately $10 billion remains unused, and its allocation will be handled by the new administration. For comparison, $4.6 billion in replacement funds were obligated during the same period. While the United States 2/5
continues to declare itself Ukraine’s strongest ally, its delays lead to significant losses among Ukrainians. Ukraine depends on international aid, and without the support of its allies, it would not have been able to hold back Russia’s advance for so long. However, 3/5
Russia exploits the energy crisis in Transnistria to escalate tensions in the region and shift blame onto Ukraine. Moldova offered assistance with fuel and gas supplies, but the government of the unrecognized republic refused the help. Playing the victim and portraying
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Ukraine in a negative light now serves their interests much better. The same tactics are employed by other allies of Putin and Moldova's neighbors - Hungary and Slovakia. The Kremlin uses these situations as part of a massive information campaign against Ukraine, aiming
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to influence public opinion across Europe. Propagandists are on the ground, producing videos showing freezing, impoverished residents left without gas. Although Hungary and Slovakia secured gas supplies through the TurkStream pipeline, costs have risen significantly.
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Happy New Year! So many events have unfolded during the break that it’s hard to choose a topic for an article. Perhaps the most pressing issue today is the new offensive in the Kursk region. Since the operation has just begun, and naturally, the Armed Forces of Ukraine
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keep their plans secret, reports on Telegram suggest the offensive is progressing successfully. Ukrainian forces are actively using electronic warfare systems. Regarding the Donetsk region, Russia continues its advance, though the pace has noticeably slowed, which does not
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make the AFU’s job any easier. In Pokrovsk, Russian drones are operating intensively. Multiple sources have noted that the main issue on the Pokrovsk front is internal problems within the Ukrainian army, as reported by numerous military insiders. There are shortages of
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This week, we received an answer on how effective the Korean troops are and how much they are helping Russia in the Kursk region. Footage of North Korean attacks demonstrates that they lack the skills to conduct modern warfare, which was not a surprise. They managed to
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capture several trenches, which were eventually recaptured by Ukrainian forces. The North Koreans became easy targets as they advanced through open fields in large groups. They proved to be ineffective, but it should not be forgotten that Ukrainians still have to repel these
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attacks, incurring their own losses. The situation remains difficult on the Pokrovsk direction as well. However, there have been some changes and personnel reshuffles. For a long time, reports from the area highlighted inadequate command, which led to the advancement of
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No dictatorship lasts forever, and all dictators are mortal. Putin, due to his age alone, may "kick the bucket" very soon, although, unlike ordinary Russians, he can afford proper medical care. The events in Syria are clearly a significant blow to his nervous system and 1/9
heart health. Such a scenario is now easy to imagine within Russia itself. The fall of Assad created a power vacuum in Syria, and now several countries are advancing their interests. Sunnis backed by Turkey, Kurds supported by the U.S., factions supported by Israel, Iran and 2/9
remnants of Hezbollah, along with the remains of Russian units — all of it has become a chaotic mix. It's far too early to speak of an end to the crisis. Stability in Syria will not return soon. Over the years, Assad destroyed the moderate opposition, leaving only the most 3/9
Russia continues to advance and achieve local successes in the areas of Pokrovsk and Kurakhove. However, it is difficult to call this a success, as it comes at a huge cost in Russian losses. In this sense, the report differs little from previous ones from this section of the
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front. But the main events of recent days are, of course, in Syria. The regime of Bashar al-Assad has fallen, and it took only a few days for this to happen. Bashar al-Assad was the last dictator from the era of the Arab Spring. Ben Ali, Hosni Mubarak, Abdelaziz Bouteflika,
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Muammar Gaddafi – for various reasons, they are no longer in power. Among all the countries of the Middle East and North Africa, Syria saw the highest number of casualties and destruction. Protests, which escalated into a civil war, began in 2011. Losing power and control,
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