Thread by @ChrisO_wiki

1/ Russia's continuing difficulties in the war in Ukraine is leading to multiple warbloggers admitting that the war effort is failing. The latest entry in the genre comes from Alexander Karchenko, who says that ordinary Russians are more concerned about the "price of a latte". ⬇️

2/ Writing on his Telegram channel 'Witnesses of Bayraktar', Karchenko admits:

"Yes, we’re struggling. We’re all in this together. Me, you, and everyone reading this. For four years, we’ve been living in limbo."

3/ "The army is fighting, but the rest of us might not have been affected. The regrouping in the Kharkiv direction gave a push for change, but it fizzled out.

4/ "After repelling the 2023 counteroffensive, we convinced ourselves that victory would just fall into our laps. All we had to do was wait.

5/ "No, it didn’t. The enemy mobilised its modest resources. It switched to drone technology and is striving with all its might toward a robot war. Well, that’s when we’ll have to trade a living human for a flying machine.

6/ "The Ukrainians have another strong trait. They’ve shifted to total war. In recent months, they’ve ramped up mobilisation exponentially. Now they’re even weaving religious narratives into their propaganda.

7/ "You can laugh all you want, but the Ukrainian leadership is preparing to win this conflict. They’ve discarded all other options and staked everything on a military solution.

8/ "I can’t say the same about us. We’re still worried about the price of a latte. This is a dangerous trend. In war, between pragmatism and fanaticism, the latter will prevail.

9/ "They’re luring us with negotiations while simultaneously increasing the costs of military operations. But what will we do if we fail to reach an agreement this year?

10/ "For now, everything points to the Ukrainians not withdrawing from Donbas. They can only be defeated on the battlefield. You can throw stones at me, but under the current circumstances, we won’t be able to break their back.

11/ "Let me say it again: they’re leading us down the path of controlled escalation. That’s a sure path to the gallows. It’s time to turn the tables. Mobilisation and a shift to total war by any means necessary is a perfectly logical decision.

12/ "Yes, our lives will get harder, but we’ll survive. Don’t kid yourselves—no one is going to leave us alone.

13/ "So go ahead and sip your banana lattes while the politicians discuss peace. If the talks fail, we’ll pack our backpacks and learn how to operate drones on the fly. There are no other options.

14/ "P.S. In my view, total war isn’t about blocking the internet. Total war is the mobilisation of all available resources and their most effective use. Without the internet and communications, we won’t be able to wage a robot war." /end

Source:
t.me/bayraktar1070/…