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ChrisO_wiki Profile picture
ChrisO_wiki
@ChrisO_wiki
Independent military history author and researcher. Coffee tips are appreciated! https://t.co/t1EjNrIZ2c Now also at https://t.co/4qGQ2ffHJJ
Jun 19 • 16 tweets • 3 min read
1/ Why do Russian anti-drone units fail shoot down drones? Russian drone developer Alexey Chadayev says they have numerous deficiencies, including bad communications, coordination, training, and drunkenness, that are undermining Russia's drone defences. ⬇️
2/ Chadayev writes on his Telegram channel:

"You can surround yourself with all sorts of equipment – radars, machine guns, state-of-the-art interceptors – and still miss an incoming aircraft simply because of a problem with the ‘padding between the steering wheel and the seat’.
Jun 19 • 22 tweets • 5 min read
1/ Russian warbloggers are celebrating one piece of collateral damage from yesterday's drone attack in Moscow – a shot-down Ukrainian drone which set the huge Sadovod market on fire. Their comments highlight ingrained Russian anti-immigrant sentiment. ⬇️
2/ Ukraine's attack targeted the oil refinery in Kapotnya, south-east of central Moscow. The surrounding area is heavily polluted and is one of the cheapest areas in Moscow in terms of housing costs. This has encouraged large numbers of immigrants to settle there.
Jun 19 • 12 tweets • 3 min read
1/ In the aftermath of yesterday's Ukrainian attack on Moscow, many Russian warbloggers are calling for Russia to "start fighting for real" and are blaming the Kremlin for not prosecuting the war with sufficient ferocity. One warblogger explains why this is a fantasy. ⬇️ Image 2/ Roman Yuneman writes:

"In the wake of today's attack on Moscow, I'm again seeing many comments along the lines of "well, are we going to endure this again?", "when are we going to start a real war?", "why are we showing them any mercy?" and so on."
Jun 19 • 11 tweets • 3 min read
1/ How did Ukraine strike Moscow yesterday? A Russian commentary provides a useful overview of the munitions that were used in the attack on the Moscow oil refinery. ⬇️
2/ "What drones were heading to Moscow?

To strike the Russian capital, the enemy deployed a wide range of long-range fixed-wing UAVs. Ukrainian public groups report that these included, in particular, the AN-196 "Lyutyi," FP-1, "Bars," and "Bobr" drones.
Jun 18 • 12 tweets • 3 min read
1/ Crimea is falling into a critical situation, says Igor 'Strelkov' Girkin, while in the war as a whole, Russia is "very close to the line beyond which lies military defeat". He lambasts the Kremlin for "lethargy" and living in fantasy on the "Planet of the Pink Ponies". ⬇️ Edited photo of Igor Girkin holding a plush pink pony 2/ Writing to a friend from his jail, Girkin comments on Ukraine's drone offensive:

"– The situation in Crimea. It is grave now, but promises to become critical in just a few weeks if the enemy continues its strategic air offensive against it at an increasing pace.
Jun 18 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Much worse is to come in Moscow, warns Russian warblogger 'Intelligence Diary'. An AI analysis shows that the city is full of strategic targets that Ukraine may try to hit as its drone offensive increases in scale and scope. ⬇️
2/ 'Intelligence Diary' writes:

"Drones have struck the Moscow oil refinery in Kapotnya for the third time since May. The question isn't whether the attacks will continue, but what will happen next."
Jun 18 • 36 tweets • 8 min read
1/ Ukraine's massive drone strike against Moscow – with a reported 555 drones and missiles fired, and 180 claimed to have been shot down over Moscow – has prompted anger, defiance, and resignation from Russian warbloggers. "Tehran is safer", one says. ⬇️
2/ In a since-deleted comment, 'Fighterbomber' writes:

"The strikes on Moscow are alarming and concerning, primarily because, over the past four years, an air defence system has been built around Moscow that is unrivaled anywhere in the world."
Jun 18 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Everything's fine, there's nothing to worry about, says Russian political scientist Sergey Markov. Only minor damage has been inflicted by today's Ukrainian strike against Moscow and the most powerful air defence system in the world has been effective. ⬇️ 2/ In a masterpiece of minimisation, Markov writes:

"Moscow Mayor Sobyanin stated that Moscow suffered another attempted air strike today, with 180 Ukrainian Armed Forces drones shot down as they approached Moscow."
Jun 18 • 20 tweets • 5 min read
Moscow's instantly-iconic exploding fuel storage tank is resulting in a flood of memes. I'll add a selection below... Image Image
Jun 18 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Prominent Russian warblogger Maxim Kalashnikov has been arrested on suspicion of assisting Ukraine's drone strikes against the Moscow Oil Refinery. Other warbloggers are gloating. ⬇️ Image 2/ 'Alex Parker Returns' is gleeful:

"The dick has played his violin too much. Political blogger and publicist, and dare I say it, war correspondent, Maxim Kalashnikov, was summoned to the police for publishing the aftermath of a Ukrainian drone attack in Moscow."
Jun 18 • 17 tweets • 3 min read
1/ A Russian Army inspection of forces in eastern Ukraine is reported to have found evidence of "flagrant corruption", false reports, looting, drinking, embezzlement, theft of supplies, and fraud at all levels. A Russian warblogger calls for senior officers to be punished. ⬇️ Image 2/ 'War Zone' writes:

"On 19 May 2026, an inspection was carried out in units of the ‘Vostok’ Army Group, led by Colonel-General Andrei Ivanayev: the commission uncovered evidence of the falsification of combat performance results and the submission of false reports by…
Jun 17 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Summer vacations in Crimea are definitely off, in the face of constant Ukrainian drone attacks and worsening fuel shortages across the peninsula. The Crimean economy is said to be in deep trouble, with factories and amenities closing, and workers being laid off en masse. ⬇️ Image 2/ 'Your News' laments:

"Comrades from Crimea report: the resort season on the peninsula has been almost completely cancelled.

Fuel is hard to come by, or not available at all."
Jun 17 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Ukrainian operatives inside Russia are reportedly acting as forward air controllers, according to a Russian source, using infrared laser beams – invisible to the naked eye – to guide drones to targets. This is likely being done to defeat Russian electronic warfare. ⬇️ Image 2/ 'UAV developer' writes that "in many cities (probably all of them), there are pigs that illuminate targets with infrared lasers. These lasers are invisible to the naked eye, but cameras can see them."
Jun 17 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
1/ A Ukrainian attack in December 2025 which almost certainly caused serious damage to a Russian submarine in Novorossiysk was reportedly facilitated by an extraordinary security breach by the Black Sea Fleet's commander, Admiral Sergei Pichuk. ⬇️
2/ At the time of the attack, it was noted that the Ukrainians had managed to record it using an image-recognising security camera with a view over the military port in Novorossiysk. This indicated a major security breach, given the sensitivity of what it could see.
Jun 17 • 16 tweets • 3 min read
1/ The commander of Russia's Unmanned Systems Forces, Lt Col Yuri 'Toilet' Vaganov, has reportedly been caught in an apparently major corruption scandal by a federal sting operation. His career now faces being flushed away. ⬇️ Image 2/ Vaganov has been the head of the Unmanned Systems Forces (BPS) since November 2025. A former plumbing salesman, from which he earned his unofficial callsign (his real one is apparently 'Thunder'), he was a monopoly supplier of drones to the Russian army before his appointment.
Jun 16 • 20 tweets • 3 min read
1/ Sevastopol is effectively under siege from Ukrainian drones, prompting some Russians to make comparisons with the sieges of 1855 and 1942. Others compare it to J.R.R. Tolkien's Minas Tirith. However, unity is lacking among the inhabitants, says a Russian warblogger. ⬇️ Image 2/ 'Near the War' describes a recent visit to Sevastopol:

"I confess, I thought several times before driving from Donetsk to Sevastopol. Military acquaintances had long warned me that the enemy might attempt to blockade the Crimean Peninsula."
Jun 16 • 13 tweets • 3 min read
1/ Former Roscosmos CEO and current Russian Senator Dmitry Rogizin has a novel suggestion for deterring Western countries from seizing 'shadow fleet' tankers. He advocates turning them into giant bombs by rigging them to explode if they're captured. ⬇️ Image 2/ Commenting on the British seizure of the Russian shadow fleet tanker SMYRTOS at the weekend, Rogizin – like many other Russian commentators – likens it to an act of piracy. He suggests:
Jun 16 • 56 tweets • 12 min read
1/ Russian warbloggers have rushed to disclaim blame for the attack on the historic Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. They claim the Ukrainians did it themselves, argue that the church isn't sacred to the Ukrainians, and say Ukraine just wants Russia to look bad. ⬇️
2/ Damage, what damage?, asks Andrey Medvedev, claiming that the whole thing was faked for the cameras:

"There's no need to restore anything in general. There's no damage. It's just a vivid night picture. Which suggests a deliberate arson for the sake of a photo."
Jun 15 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Iran has reportedly assessed that Donald Trump is "mentally incompetent" and has incorporated psychologists into its negotiating team to adapt the wording of the proposed agreement "as if the recipient were a [mental] patient ... whose capacity is limited." ⬇️ Image 2/ The Russian 'Political Report' says that "Iranian authorities have included leading psychologists in the negotiating team to review drafts of all messages before sending them to Trump."
Jun 15 • 19 tweets • 4 min read
1/ The news at the weekend that the British Royal Marines have seized a Russian shadow fleet tanker in the English Channel has aroused anger and expressions of shame from Russian warbloggers. They demand that the Russian government should take action. ⬇️
2/ 'Alex Parker Returns' characterises the seizure as "Captain Price landing on a tanker of the Russian shadow fleet. I remind you that you can get revenge on the Brit who is causing trouble by voting for United Russia and rallying more strongly around the president. Be good!"
Jun 15 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
1/ Russian commanders routinely make false claims to have captured territory, in order to win awards and personal bonuses. However, the army is reportedly stepping up efforts to uncover instances of "painting over" the map of the front line in Ukraine. ⬇️
2/ Russian warblogger Vladimir Romanov highlights how the practice is causing mass casualties among Russian soldiers, with some commanders maintaining two parallel maps – one of the true line of contact, and a more flattering 'painted over' version to show to their superiors.