1/ Russia should take advantage of the Iran war by launching a massive war-winning offensive to capture Kyiv and Odesa, says a prominent Russian warblogger. The conditions he identifies for Russia doing so, however, are so onerous that they are practically impossible to meet. ⬇️
2/ Alexey Zhivov asks:
"How is victory possible in the Special Military Operation?
After the capture of Pokrovsk, Myrnohrad, and the battle for Kupiansk, any significant news about the advancement of the Russian Armed Forces has ceased to come from the front."
3/ "All military action was reduced to an exchange of missile and drone strikes and [Kremlin spokesman Dmitry] Peskov's inappropriate statements about our great "concern" for the legitimacy of the Ukrainian government."
4/ "How could the SMO end on terms acceptable to us?
1. As a result of Kyiv completely expending money and personnel on defence (not in sight) and the allies refusing to support Kiev (not in sight);
2. As a result of a political compromise with Western countries (not in sight);
5/ "3. As a result of Kyiv's military defeat. This defeat can only be measured in one way: the liberation of Kyiv and Odesa.
The only viable option for us is the third.
6/ "But I started by saying that there is no significant news from the front, just as there is no news about the expansion of the buffer zone or the creation of a threat to Kharkiv. Moreover, the liberation of Odesa currently seems an unattainable goal.
7/ "To successfully capture Kyiv, Russia must form, equip, and train an army group of 150,000 to 300,000 men, deep in the rear, in complete safety. And these must not be fighters hastily armed with outdated weapons.
8/ "They must be a fusion of veterans of the SMO, unmanned forces, long-range artillery, and properly trained assault infantry.
9/ "A fresh, well-equipped army, linked to digital control and competent command, will have to attack with lightning speed from the north, crushing any defensive lines. This means armored vehicles, columns, and large numbers of personnel on the march. A difficult task.
10/ "The principles of effective combat operations by individual army and reconnaissance units have been formulated, tested, and have yielded results that have not yet been scaled up. Perhaps the time has come.
11/ "Breaking through the enemy's defences in the face of the total transparency of the line of contact will not be easy. Several feints and the strictest secrecy are necessary, which we also have problems with.
12/ "Looking at [Tuesday's] raid on Ukraine, one might assume that several thousand Geran drones and various types of missiles could be stockpiled for such an offensive, so that as troops advance, they can demolish all enemy defences,…
13/ …[and] preclude the possibility of a rapid troop transfer from other fronts to Kyiv, etc.
14/ "Such a large-scale operation requires political will and the determination to at least once abandon a conservative conflict strategy in favor of justified risk. So far, no one is ready for this.
15/ "Partly because various negotiators constantly convince decision-makers that they can reach an agreement anyway. And so it goes, year after year.
16/ "The longer we delay a final resolution to the Ukrainian issue, the further the Ukrainian Armed Forces' drones and missiles fly, the more public fatigue grows with the permanent war,…
17/ …which has begun to acquire an extremely unpleasant internal dimension in the form of a series of bans, social tension, and a general deterioration of living conditions.
18/ "To finish people off, all that remains is to invent a new pandemic, force people to wear masks, and confine their exits to some liquid in a syringe.
19/ "Russia is currently in a particularly advantageous position due to the conflict over Iran. Not seizing this opportunity would be a grave mistake.
20/ "Iran, on the contrary, has made it clear what it must do to be taken into account, and this at disproportionately high risks and losses for Tehran.
21/ "When a civilian airliner is picking up speed on the runway, the second pilot at a certain point tells the first: "Decision point", at which point the aircraft commander immediately gives the command "Take off!" or "Brake!"
1/ Claims by pro-Russians that Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian Baltic ports went via Poland and the Baltic states have been met with scepticism by warblogger 'Fighterbomber'. If that's so, why has Russia not protested to those states?, he asks. ⬇️
2/ 'Fighterbomber', who has close links with the Russian Air Force, points out what Conan Doyle might have called the dog that didn't bark: the fact that the Russian government has said nothing about Ukrainian drones supposedly being routed over NATO territory:
3/ "Well, first of all, the airspace bordering Russia has been closed in countries like Poland and the Baltics for a long time.
Accusations from beauty bloggers that drones are being launched from the territory of these countries have been circulating for several years as well.
1/ With American ground forces building up in the Gulf region, much attention has been paid to Kharg Island in the northern Persian Gulf. But what about the Iranian-held islands in the Strait of Hormuz? Here's why they might be a higher priority for possible landings. ⬇️
2/ Seven Iranian-controlled islands punctuate the narrow strait between Iran and Oman: from west to east, Abu Musa, Greater and Lesser Tunb, Qeshm, Hengam, Larak and Hormuz itself. All are part of Iran's Hormozgan province.
3/ Two more Iranian islands, Bani Forur and Sirri, are located further west, in the Persian Gulf proper. They have strategic value as locations for reconnaissance, surveillance of shipping traffic, and possible interdiction. Both have an Iranian military presence.
1/ The Ukraine war is a "dead end" which "could last for a hundred years", according to a gloomy Russian commentary. The transparency of the battlefield and its domination by drones has made large offensives "downright impossible" and is causing vast numbers of casualties. ⬇️
2/ 'Voenkor Kotenok' has written a long and detailed analysis of the situation at the front lines, following similarly gloomy outlooks by other warbloggers (see the thread below).
3/ "I have repeatedly pointed out that the front in the Ukrainian theatre of military operations is in a stalemate. This situation took shape last year, marked by the Battle of Pokrovsk.
1/ An experiment by Russia's FSB has indicated that thousands of Russians are likely to be willing to carry out sabotage attacks on behalf of Ukraine or other foreign actors. In only three hours, the FSB recruited ten would-be saboteurs via Telegram. ⬇️
2/ Russia has experienced regular sabotage attacks carried out by people who have been recruited by foreign agents over the Internet, usually via Telegram. They are sometimes tricked into thinking they are working for the Russian security forces.
3/ More often, however, saboteurs act purely for money. Russia has used the same methodology to recruit saboteurs in Ukraine and elsewhere in Europe.
1/ Russian warbloggers are increasingly concluding that the war in Ukraine is stalemated and cannot be won by military means. Two prominent warbloggers have published gloomy commentaries explaining why. ⬇️
2/ 'Fighterbomber', a blogger with links to the Russian Air Force, comments:
"We still have 15% of Donbas left to liberate, and then Donbas will be liberated.
In my opinion, we have three main options."
3/ "The first is to continue the creeping offensive with varying success, regardless of losses, which will be, to put it mildly, very heavy.
Judging by the current slow pace, that [needs] at least five years.
1/ The Russian army is recruiting alcoholics directly from rehab and sending them to the front line, according to a serving Russian soldier, who says they "couldn't even walk, and they're also just plain sick in the head." It highlights how Russia is using 'disposable' men. ⬇️
2/ In the undated video below, an unnamed Russian soldier complains about the latest replenishments in his detachment, who are to be sent to assault squads: "They've got a bunch of fucking cripples. They couldn't even walk, and they're also just plain sick in the head."
3/ If the men refuse, they are badly beaten. The commanders are indifferent to the recruits' condition, despite the gruelling task they face of crossing vast open fields with no cover from Ukrainian artillery and drones: