Kiev Is Burning

[Sardaukar]

https://mil.in.ua/en/news/a-damaged-russian-tank-was-brought-to-finland-for-an-exhibition/

A Russian T-72B3 tank, damaged in Ukraine, was brought to Helsinki for public display in the city center.

It is for fund-raising. 

[ink]

2 hours ago, urbanoid said:

Ukrainian and Georgian formal bids to join were rejected and they weren't granted the MAP, looks like 'blocking' to me.

Perhaps we can meet halfway and agree that there was a delay, since the Bucharest Summit declaration states:

NATO welcomes Ukraine’s and Georgia’s Euro Atlantic aspirations for membership in NATO. We agreed today that these countries will become members of NATO. 

(emphasis mine)

https://web.archive.org/web/20200714204022/http://www.summitbucharest.gov.ro/en/doc_202.html

It's possible that this was down to German opposition, although it should also be borne in mind that Georgia, in particular, was not far enough along in it's military (not to mention political) reforms to initiate a membership accession plan... However, the fact that they submitted an application for one is also indicative of internal machinations within the Alliance, for they would never have done so had they not got a green light of some sort.

[ink]

2 hours ago, urbanoid said:

Small change compared to total prewar exports but yeah, I knew about that. It's gas for Slovakia, Hungary and Austria.

Isn't it... you know... A little unusual that the Ukrainians are letting the gas through, given that the money made from it goes into Russia's war chest (or, at least, that's what we're told about all of Russia's other exports)?

[urbanoid]

7 minutes ago, ink said:

Isn't it... you know... A little unusual that the Ukrainians are letting the gas through, given that the money made from it goes into Russia's war chest (or, at least, that's what we're told about all of Russia's other exports)?

They're letting it through so they don't have to deal with several pissed off EU/NATO members which may delay/veto some things.

[glenn239]

3 hours ago, ink said:

 

By my calculation, that translates to about 15bn m3 annually... Assuming the same rate of shipments. I mean, it isn't Nord Stream, but damn! Who knew that much Russian gas was passing through Ukraine to go to Europe?

 

Roman has mentioned this many times.

[ink]

48 minutes ago, glenn239 said:

Roman has mentioned this many times.

Wouldn't surprise me too much if there was also some cross-selling of artillery shells too.

[urbanoid]

I don't think Russia sells artillery shells to anyone while they need them themselves, so there should be no opportunity.

[Josh]

5 hours ago, ink said:

They definitely did not "block" anything. They just voiced concerns. Nothing was actually blocked.

The fact that it never even came to a vote is more or less blocked.

[Stuart Galbraith]

 

[ink]

1 hour ago, Josh said:

The fact that it never even came to a vote is more or less blocked.

@mkenny originally said:

"It was the inexorable aim of western machinations."

Now, I don't know what period he was talking about but when NATO officially says*, "these countries will be NATO members" at a summit where that was apparently "blocked" my first thought is, 'the lad might have a point'.

 

* One should also pause to consider this. These end-of-sumit statements are as wrangled over as policy. And yet, it's there in black and white. A positive and assertive statement about the future. 

Btw, back then, the majority of Ukrainians were opposed to NATO membership.

[Markus Becker]

10 hours ago, Stuart Galbraith said:

What German threat? That they will export superior beer, luxury cars and Teufesrad to Russia? Truly the end of Russian civilisation.

 

What is that supposed to be? 

[Roman Alymov]

Old WWI-era tactics with new tools: video from Avdeevka "promka" starts with explosion of 500-kg charge in 170m tunnel secretly dug by pro-Russians ("Pyatnashka" brigade) under pro-Ukr positions. Next day, after clearing the tunnel, pro-Russians use it to infiltrate into pro-Ukr fortifications (constructed for almost 9 years) and are taking them in close combat assisted by FPV drone strikes, forcing enemy to retreat abandoning at least one wounded soldier

https://t.me/NeoficialniyBeZsonoV/31042

 

[wendist]

1 hour ago, Markus Becker said:

What is that supposed to be? 

There is an l missing (Teufelsrad). Try YouTube 

[Roman Alymov]

Rare video of RusArmy S-300 operations in combat zone https://t.me/milinfolive/111251

[Stuart Galbraith]

1 hour ago, wendist said:

There is an l missing (Teufelsrad). Try YouTube 

 

[Roman Alymov]

Stridsvagn 122 in snow somewhere in Kremennaya / Krasny Liman region 

https://t.me/milinfolive/111256

[Roman Alymov]

Naval attack drone boat washed ashore in Crimea

https://t.me/boris_rozhin/104483 

 

 

[Roman Alymov]

Video of cluster bombs now in use by RusAF

https://t.me/voin_dv/6020

https://t.me/nm_dnr/11301

[bojan]

Cluster bombs were used early on by Su-25s (while those still carried bombs), but those are UMPK guided glide version.

[seahawk]

7 hours ago, Roman Alymov said:

Video of cluster bombs now in use by RusAF

https://t.me/voin_dv/6020

https://t.me/nm_dnr/11301

Wow, must be bad to be on the receiving end. It will need a lot of force to avoid the Ukrainians troops to not run, especially as most have been forcefully pressed into service!

[Roman Alymov]

Gallery of field armor upgrades https://t.me/dva_majors/29294

[mandeb48]

M2 for Kubinka :

https://t.me/lost_armour/1862

[txtree99]

Key Takeaways:

Russian President Vladimir Putin reframed the Kremlin’s stance on the Israeli-Hamas war to a much more anti-Israel position in an attempt to demonstrate the supposed hypocrisy of Western condemnations of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Putin also reiterated boilerplate rhetoric falsely portraying Russia as willing to engage in meaningful negotiations, likely to pressure the West into prematurely pushing Ukraine to negotiate with Russia.

US National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby reported on November 21 that Iran is supplying Russia with glide bombs and that Iran may be preparing to transfer short-range ballistic missiles to Russia.

The Kremlin appears to be inexplicably concerned about the outcome of the upcoming March 2024 Russian presidential elections, despite apparent widespread Russian approval of Putin.

Russian Investigative Committee Head Alexander Bastrykin called for Russia to codify an unspecified state ideology in the Russian constitution, suggesting that some Russian officials may want to explicitly end nominal constitutional protections for civil rights, democratic pluralism, and ethnic equality.

Bastrykin has yet to detail what a potential Russian state ideology should be, although the Kremlin’s support for Russian ultranationalism would likely heavily influence any potential Russian state ideology.

Bloomberg reported on November 21 that the European Union (EU) proposed a plan to strengthen security commitments from EU member states to Ukraine.

Russian forces conducted a series of missile and drone strikes against Ukraine on the night of November 21 to 22.

Russian milbloggers appear to be focusing renewed complaints against the Russian military command for what milbloggers perceive as poor choices that contribute to Russian casualties.

Russian forces continued offensive operations along the Kupyansk-Svatove-Kreminna line, near Bakhmut, northwest of Horlivka, near Avdiivka, west and southwest of Donetsk City, in the Donetsk-Zaporizhia Oblast border area, in western Zaporizhia Oblast, and in east (left) bank Kherson Oblast and advanced east of Synkivka.

The Russian Federation Council approved the Russian 2024-2026 federal budget on November 22, and Russian officials continue to emphasize social spending over defense expenditures.

The Russian government and occupation authorities continue to forcibly deport children in occupied Ukraine to Russia under medical treatment schemes.
 

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-assessment-november-22-2023

[Roman Alymov]

Lancet vs. unidentified SPG. Note how fresh snow and no leafs on trees are making hiding in forest belts difficult

https://t.me/anna_news/59477

[Roman Alymov]

Life imitiating art: Ukr agent arested in Voronezh when preparing to plant IED to kill high-ranked military officer, note agent was using imitation face mask 

https://t.me/boris_rozhin/104550