Russia v Ukraine

[TheHowieLama]

Vladimir Putin’s former chief space engineer — an accused embezzler — has died at age 74, the fourth person in the Russian president’s orbit to pass away within a week.

Vladimir Nesterov was the former general director of the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and spearheaded the development of Russia’s Angara rocket.

The Russian state news agency Tass reported Nesterov’s death Wednesday, citing information confirmed by the Khrunichev Center’s press service.

Nesterov’s cause and manner of death have not been disclosed

[J-V]

10 minutes ago, TheHowieLama said:

Vladimir Putin’s former chief space engineer — an accused embezzler — has died at age 74, the fourth person in the Russian president’s orbit to pass away within a week.

Vladimir Nesterov was the former general director of the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center and spearheaded the development of Russia’s Angara rocket.

The Russian state news agency Tass reported Nesterov’s death Wednesday, citing information confirmed by the Khrunichev Center’s press service.

Nesterov’s cause and manner of death have not been disclosed

Death by balcony.

[polymerpunkah]

Upstairs Downstairs

[TheHowieLama]

I guess Tom has thrown in the towel - in other news:

 

Anger has erupted in Russia as prisoners who were recruited by the Wagner Group six months ago to fight in Ukraine are set to be released back into society.

It comes after Yevgeny Prigozhin, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and founder of the mercenary Wagner Group, announced on Thursday that the first batch of prisoners who participated in the war in Ukraine completed their six-month contracts and have received a pardon.

 

https://www.newsweek.com/russia-anger-wagner-group-prisoners-pardoned-prigozhin-1771477

[SasaS]

It's Scarface all over again.

[Red Phoenix]

Bakhmut in serious trouble now unless Ukrainians start reversing losses.

[TheHowieLama]

10 hours ago, Red Phoenix said:

Bakhmut in serious trouble now unless Ukrainians start reversing losses.

Russians casualties on the field at Bakhmut

 

[M_B]

Bakhmut is just a russian meat grinder.

 

What"s interesting is the delivery of Bradleys, self propelled armour, and the possible Polish donation of tanks. The Ukrainians are gearing up for a spring offensive that includes fast moving armour.

[Section_31]

Why do Russian troops always wear those t shirts that look like Spectrum loading screens and have heads like Jimmy Sommerville.

[Red Phoenix]

1 hour ago, TheHowieLama said:

Russians casualties on the field at Bakhmut

 

 

There's probably going to be a lot of casualties on both sides when it comes to Bakhmut and the surrounding area.

[DJLJ]

1 hour ago, Red Phoenix said:

 

There's probably going to be a lot of casualties on both sides when it comes to Bakhmut and the surrounding area.

In these kind of situations the losses will always be higher or much higher on the attackers side. Esspecially now when they aren’t using as much artillery to help cover their advances. Due to running out of shells. That being said, there is going to be many casualties on both sides. 

[Rico1304]

3 hours ago, M_B said:

Bakhmut is just a russian meat grinder.

 

What"s interesting is the delivery of Bradleys, self propelled armour, and the possible Polish donation of tanks. The Ukrainians are gearing up for a spring offensive that includes fast moving armour.

When the Russia anti tank weapons will be fired by Igor who 2 weeks ago was doing a 10 stretch for armed robbery. 

[Red Phoenix]

2 hours ago, DJLJ said:

In these kind of situations the losses will always be higher or much higher on the attackers side. Esspecially now when they aren’t using as much artillery to help cover their advances. Due to running out of shells. That being said, there is going to be many casualties on both sides. 

 

I'm often skeptical of them running as low as what's being reported but yeah if that's the case even mostly and they're using them less it's going to cost them.

 

Either way Ukrainians have defended that area well for most of the last year, even if they have gradually lost ground.

[SasaS]

After a couple of rather rambling, stream of consciousness summaries, Tom Cooper is back with some more up to date reports.

 

https://medium.com/@x_TomCooper_x/ukraine-war-9-january-2023-44f3591d64e6

[DJLJ]

#Ukraine. Russian general sacked after three months in charge of Ukraine invasion and slaughter of civilians. The Kremlin seems to have the same management style as certain Premiership football teams. #PutinOut
 

https://mastodonapp.uk/@bantams56/109671690304350868

[SasaS]

They will be clipping Prigozhin's wings next. He should be careful around windows.

[TheHowieLama]

 

Three months ago, General Sergei Surovikin was tapped by the Kremlin to take the helm of the lurching Russian invasion of Ukraine, becoming the overall commander of the operation and taking over at a time when Russian forces had recently suffered one major retreat and were on the verge of a second.

'General Armageddon': Who Is The Brutal Russian Commander Charged With Winning The Ukraine War? 

Praised by nationalists and hard-line Russian critics of the military’s performance, Surovikin heralded his promotion by ordering a campaign to bomb Ukraine’s power infrastructure and plunge its population into darkness and cold. He also withdrew Russian troops from the only regional capital they had seized since the invasion, a tactical retreat that gave Ukraine a victory but also helped fortify Russian lines.

In recent weeks, Russian forces, alongside soldiers from the notorious private military company Vagner, had embarked on a blunt-force, frontal assault to capture the Donbas cities of Bakhmut and Soledar, with reports of World War I-style infantry charges that left fields carpeted with Russian corpses.

On January 11, Surovikin was demoted.

[SasaS]

Tom finally accepts Soledar is lost in today's report (he has been very active over the past week with his summaries).

 

https://medium.com/@x_TomCooper_x/ukraine-war-13-january-2023-16776827f0fe

The problem for me is, I don't believe the crisis has "culminated", as several analysts deemed, the Russians continue to push on and I doubt Ukrainians expected this or that the situation is under control and within some of the predicted tactical scenarios. They have been losing momentum ever since Russia shorten the frontlines and began applying some of these mobiks. Who may not be such a useless cannon fodder many described them and quantity does have its own quality.

Hope is that Ukraine is stockpiling and preparing troops and Russia has exausted itself like in June / July so another rurnaround will shortly follow. Somehow, it doesn't feel that way.

 

[M_B]

The Ukrainians planned to pause for the winter. Let's wait to see what they have planned for the Spring before we write them off. 

[SasaS]

They sadly neglected to check with Russia if they were OK with the pausing.

[TheHowieLama]

1 hour ago, SasaS said:

They sadly neglected to check with Russia if they were OK with the pausing.

I think Putin's Christmas pause when they got shelled immediately might have them figuring that part out on their own.

[M_B]

2 hours ago, SasaS said:

They sadly neglected to check with Russia if they were OK with the pausing.

The Russians haven't broken through anywhere.

[SasaS]

30 minutes ago, M_B said:

The Russians haven't broken through anywhere.

 

Have you been round Soledar recently?

[Rico1304]

 

[M_B]

1 hour ago, SasaS said:

 

Have you been round Soledar recently?

It's not a breakthrough is it. The Ukrainians have been pushed back, which happens in war, but they still hold a line else the Russians would be exploiting that gap and pushing through.

 

And Soledar has come at great cost. Russia can't continue to gain ground at that expense.

 

The real battles will start in the spring. Bakhmut is just a Wagner PR exercise. And an expensive one.