Quote:As Ukraine enters its third day of Russian bombardment following President Vladimir Putin’s invasion this week, a senior defense official said Saturday that Moscow has become "increasingly frustrated" by the lack of momentum.

"We have indications that the Russians are increasingly frustrated by their lack of momentum over the last 24 hours, particularly in the north parts of Ukraine," the senior defense official said. "We also continue to see indications of viable Ukrainian resistance."

"We continue to believe, based on what we've observed, that this resistance is greater than what the Russians expected," the official added.

Russian forces have entered Ukraine from the north, south and east, and defense officials believe Putin is attempting to encircle the capital city of Kyiv.

Russia launched a successful amphibious assault from the Sea of Azov Friday and its forces continue to make advancements, but the defense official said Russia has been unable to gain air superiority or take control over any Ukrainian cities.

Despite attempted advances, Russian forces have been unable to successfully penetrate Kyiv and remain approximately 20 miles outside the city.

Though the official noted the situation in Ukraine is a "battlefield" and remains "very dynamic and will change hour by hour."

The United Kingdom's defense ministry said Saturday that the capture of Kyiv remains Putin's primary objective, but said strong Ukrainian resistance and logistical difficulties have hindered Russian advancements.

Overnight clashes that did occur in Kyiv are believed to have been carried out by small numbers of pre-positioned Russian sabotage groups.

Intermittent internet outages persist in Ukraine and civilian housing have been hit largely by Russian shelling and explosives.

Russian troops are "bypassing" areas with large populations and are instead leaving forces behind to "encircle and isolate them," the U.K. defense ministry said.

Defense officials estimate that of the 150,000 troops Russia amassed along Ukraine in the months leading up to the incursion that more than 50 percent of those forces have already entered Ukraine.

President Biden approved the distribution of another $350 million in military aid to Ukraine to help its continued fight against the Russian incursion – pushing U.S. defensive aid for Kyiv over the last year to $1 billion.

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters Saturday this aid would come in the form of anti-armor, small arms, various munitions, body armor and "related equipment in support of Ukraine's frontline defenders."

"We, along with our allies and partners are standing together to continue to expedite security assistance to Ukraine," Kirby said. "Our commitments and deliveries continue as a sign of our unwavering support for Ukraine sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Link

Russia Suffers Heavy Losses and Hits Ships of Other Nations (Including NATO Members)

Quote:The Ukrainians have put up a brave fight, taking out a lot of Russians and their equipment in the process. While it’s difficult to confirm the numbers and they may be exaggerated, it’s clear that the Russians suffered more casualties than they had hoped on the first day. If even half of it is true, the Russians are getting a drubbing and facing much more resistance than they thought.

As we previously reported, it sounds like Vladimir Putin is getting desperate with his latest remarks, calling on the Ukrainian military to join him because the leaders are “Neo-Nazis and drug addicts.” That’s not happening anytime soon.

Fox contributor Gen. Jack Keane said Putin has chosen the most difficult plan (meaning moving in from multiple directions in the country), and “he’s struggling with it.”

There are even persistent, although unconfirmed, reports that some of the Russian units are out of food, and are asking for food or taking it, suggesting they may be spread too thin.

Not good for public opinion: there’s the possible war crime of bombing a kindergarten.

But maybe the most problematic of all for world opinion is that they have attacked the ships of nations other than Ukraine in the Black Sea — they hit a Japanese ship and a ship from Moldova. They may be attacking them to prevent food from getting into Ukraine, in the hope they can cut off food to the population.

Among those attacked were ships from NATO countries — one Turkish ship and one Romanian the day before. Needless to say, this is not good. This could draw NATO into it, if this doesn’t stop.

Ukraine Scores a Major Hit, Proves a Big Putin Claim False

Quote:As RedState reported earlier on Friday, Vladimir Putin’s plan to overtake Ukraine is not going particularly well. The four-pronged attack has stretched supply lines thin and weakened Russia’s ability to strike the decisive blow it was looking for. Specifically, plans to take the capital city of Kyiv have fallen well short of expectations and the resistance there now represents a huge problem for Russian forces staring a bloody urban conflict in the face.

Multiple airborne assaults meant to take the city have been rebuffed since the invasion began, and Ukraine has now struck a major blow on that front, downing an Il-76 transport plane. With a capacity of 126 paratroopers and every reason to believe it was full, the number of deaths for Russian forces continues to far surpass pre-invasion estimates.

That followed video Friday showing that the Ukrainians had downed a Russian Sukhoi fighter (which variant was in question).

On the first day of the invasion, Putin declared that Russia had neutralized Ukraine’s air defense systems. That claim has now been proven false, not just by this shootdown, but by photographic evidence. And just as a point of clarity, Babak Taghvaee has been absolutely trustworthy regarding not just the Ukraine conflict, but also conflicts in Syria, Afghanistan, Iran, etc. If there’s one account to follow for on-the-ground updates during times of war and unrest, it’s this one.

The question is going to be how far Putin is willing to go to achieve his goals because it’s now obvious they aren’t going to come easy. The populace in Kyiv is armed, and there is no sign the Ukrainians are getting ready to capitulate.

How willing is your average Russian soldier to shoot large numbers of civilians? Because that’s what it’s going to take to capture Kyiv. Admittedly, I’m not sure what the answer to that question is. Russian forces are not the Taliban, and I don’t believe even Putin himself wants to further provoke the West by committing highly visible war crimes. While some like to describe him as irrational, nothing in Putin’s history says that. He’s dancing a fine line right now, but if he pushes too far, he could invite a response that he would not prefer to deal with.

Of course, the obvious caveats apply. Just because the Ukrainians appear to be scoring some victories and holding the line for now based on social media reports, that doesn’t mean Russia won’t eventually overtake them. In the end, I suspect this will end in some kind of negotiated settlement. Certainly, there won’t be a clean, decisive victory for either side.

I was poo pooed last week when I said the Russian troops would starve if they invaded. They are poor and not good invaders. Poison them.

Great news! Glad to know that we are still providing lethal aid in addition to just $. If Ukraine is going to turn this into another USSR-Afghanistan debacle over the long-term, a steady flow of weapons over Ukraine's western borders with NATO will be essential.

I'm sure it isn't going to happen, but reading that a Japanese boat was hit in the Black Sea made me think - this would be an ideal time for Japan to settle their unresolved WW2 era territorial dispute with Russia and reclaim the Kuril Islands.

(02-26-2022 12:51 PM)Gamenole Wrote:  Great news! Glad to know that we are still providing lethal aid in addition to just $. If Ukraine is going to turn this into another USSR-Afghanistan debacle over the long-term, a steady flow of weapons over Ukraine's western borders with NATO will be essential.

I'm sure it isn't going to happen, but reading that a Japanese boat was hit in the Black Sea made me think - this would be an ideal time for Japan to settle their unresolved WW2 era territorial dispute with Russia and reclaim the Kuril Islands.

More war mongering posts from our posters from the left.

You’re like neocons without fiscal responsibility.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

So they dont need our 6 billion dollars

They got this covered?

Yeah sure

Propaganda

“First casualty of war is truth”

I don’t know what to believe as a lot of people on all sides are using social media and news agencies to propagate specific narratives.

We are kicking their arse

Believe me

Only need 6 billion dollars

(02-26-2022 01:14 PM)BigTigerMike Wrote:  “First casualty of war is truth”

I don’t know what to believe as a lot of people on all sides are using social media and news agencies to propagate specific narratives.

believe this … your tax $$$ will line the elitists/defense contractors pockets … other than that, this conflict is meaningless …

Sounds as if the Russians thought this was going to be a cakewalk. It's turning into a clusterfck. If the Ukrainians can hold on until they get more equipment...they might have a fighting chance. Every ground campaign in history has faced the problem of re- supply and the Russians evidently are having huge problems supplying its invasion force. Logistics evidently is not one of Putins strong suits. It looks like NATO has an opportunity to help by simply opening and securing a supply corridor into Ukraine.

There are going to be some logistics officers in the gulag soon.

If the reports of the Ruskies not doing well in their invasion are true the only alternative for Russia to save face is to put a well placed bullet in Putin's head and stop the war. It would be bad for the rest of the world because if he feels that they didn't win he might just go for broke and start a major war with nukes as he wouldn't have anything to lose. He, like THE SOB don't like his people it's all about power and money to both of them.

The Ruskies should read upon their history and realize that Putin is another Hitler and they can stop it right now. Perhaps a military coup is in the future, afterall, he is only one man and the military has all the goods.

I've seen images for russian tanks and heavy armored vehicles that were annihilated on the streets. Almost certainly the mark of a javelin. Even anti-tank grenades would not have done that much damage to a tank.

Sounds like Putin decided to do a multi-front attack, which meant food supplies would have to be delivered after troops were positioned inside Ukraine. Now they cant get food to their troops and they are stealing food from stores and anywhere else they can get it from.

If this is true, and things are really foggy in war, but if they are true, then Putin is going to be humiliated to the point his mental state may turn into Hitler on us.

I can't read the whole article since it's behind paywall, but this excerpt from The Economist sounds encouraging. The fact that it is taking longer than anticipated and likely resulting in more deaths will only increase opposition -

Russians Greet Putin’s War with Dismay
February 26, 2022 at 8:19 am EST By Taegan Goddard 365 Comments

The Economist: “The sombre, shamed mood in Moscow could hardly be more different from the euphoria that gripped it in 2014 when Mr Putin seized and annexed Crimea. Then Russian society swelled with pride. Even those who recognised that the annexation was illegal admitted that the bloodless operation had been well executed. Mr Putin’s sagging popularity rating soared.”

“This time opinion polls by Levada, an independent pollster, show that the country is divided, with less than half of the population supporting Mr Putin’s recognition of two Potemkin republics in Ukraine–a precursor to the war. There are no public displays of support for Mr Putin’s invasion.”

(02-26-2022 02:19 PM)olliebaba Wrote:  If the reports of the Ruskies not doing well in their invasion are true the only alternative for Russia to save face is to put a well placed bullet in Putin's head and stop the war. It would be bad for the rest of the world because if he feels that they didn't win he might just go for broke and start a major war with nukes as he wouldn't have anything to lose. He, like THE SOB don't like his people it's all about power and money to both of them.

The Ruskies should read upon their history and realize that Putin is another Hitler and they can stop it right now. Perhaps a military coup is in the future, afterall, he is only one man and the military has all the goods.

That’s what worries me. If some of these rumors about him being sick or whatever are true and this ends well…I don’t think he’s going to accept dying after a complete embarrassment.

(02-26-2022 02:54 PM)BigTigerMike Wrote:  

The "no indiscriminate bombing" part is laughable.

The US is sending barrels of Ice Cream.

A senior defense official. Apparently he spent so much time time telling the “reporter” all of the negative assessments of the situation, they didn’t have time to get his name. These things happen I suppose. In fact, it seems like lately they happen in virtually every news article.

I cant figure out why these Russian naval vessels are firing on these unarmed merchant ships. Even if they are heading to Ukraine, the Russians control the ports. The goods on these ships have zero chance of landing in Ukrainian hands. I also wonder if that damage is from a missile hit. Anti-ship missiles are designed to sink warships--which are built to more robust standards than civilian vessels. I would think the damage would be more severe than that. I'd be surprised that if it would stay afloat for long after an anti-ship missile hit. My guess is it was probably hit with a shell (or shells) from a naval gun.