Independent military history author and researcher. Coffee tips are appreciated! https://t.co/t1EjNrIZ2c Now also at https://t.co/4qGQ2ffHJJ
488 subscribers
2/ The Telegram channel 'Marmot of the burning steppes' writes of a Russian soldier's experiences in an occupied frontline Ukrainian village under the constant threat of drones:
2/ A female military doctor serving in the 19th Tank Regiment (military unit 12322) recorded a video about what she saw and experienced since joining the unit in June 2023. There are around 40,000 women in the Russian armed forces, mostly in medical roles.
2/ The Alliance of Democracies has published its annual Democracy Perception Index, the world's largest annual survey on democracy. 111,000 respondents across 100 countries were surveyed between 9-23 April 2025.
2/ '13 Tactical' shows off a patch which he says is popular in the Russian army:
2/ The state-owned railway monopoly has been facing a worsening staffing and financial crisis, brought on by a combination of a lack of spare parts caused by sanctions, economic problems and staff leaving for much better-paid jobs in the army or factories.
2/ In previous years, the Russian president and other VIPs have been seated in an open-air stand adjacent to the Kremlin's outer wall, overlooking Red Square. This has been the case in 2020, 2021 and 2023 (pictured here). 
2/ The badge "For Assault" ('Za Shturm') was reportedly created by order of Defence Minister Andrei Belousov earlier this year, and has already been awarded to an unnamed recipient in the Moscow region.
2/ As part of its security measures to prevent disruptions to tomorrow's Victory Day events in Moscow, the Russian government is shutting down mobile phone and Internet communications across the city.
2/ Russia has by far the worst record on modern slavery of any country in Europe, with an estimated 1.9 million people living in servitude. This reflects a combination of extreme corruption, weak enforcement of anti-slavery laws, and government collaboration with slavers.
2/ Problems with equipment supply have long been documented in the Russian army, where soldiers often complain that they have to buy everything themselves as the military gives them so little. However, the Aerospace Forces seem to be having similar problems.
2/ The Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter reports that the Stockholm city planning office has received a letter from the US embassy explaining that every organisation doing business with the US government must sign a contract within a few days and agree to end their DEI programmes.
2/ This is the final instalment of a 6-part series of threads. For the first part, describing events leading up to the missile strikes that sunk Moskva on 13 April 2022, see below. 
2/ For part 1, describing events leading up to the missile strikes, see the thread below. 
2/ For part 1, describing events leading up to the missile strikes, see the thread below.
2/ These threads are based on a newly published dossier compiled by Dmitry Shkrebets, the father of a conscript sailor who died in the attack on Moskva. For part 1, describing events leading up to the missile strikes, see the thread below.
2/ On the afternoon of 13 April 2022, Moskva was struck and set on fire by two Ukrainian Neptune missiles. A day later, the ship sank. Russian authorities said that 396 crew members had been evacuated, with one sailor killed and 27 missing. 