Russia invades Ukraine

[bones]

As expected the donbass offensive has stalled

Ukraine is now striking targets in Russia blown up a massive oil facility.

Once those heavy weapons get delivered in particular artillery and tanks you will see russians on backfoot again.


This is turning into an afghanistan for russia but much worse.

Putin looks worried and in ill health from recent appearances on camera I think he knows deep down he has been set up trapped by the west and he has sealed his fate and Russias that's why you have noises of nuclear response and icbms by russia they have lost.

To save this war the only way is to use chemical weapons and mini tactical nukes russia cannot win conventionally.

What's your source that they have stalled? Is it the BBC and CNN?

They haven't stalled at all. They are fighting a well fortified army that has had 8 years to shore up defenses. But if you look at the live maps and follow all coverage you'll see that the Russians are taking out positions all the time. Now it doesn't make the western news because it doesn't suit the narrative. The idea that Russia is stalling because they're not making 20km forward moves every day is ridiculous. This is a war between two professional armies, so things will move slowly.

Those heavy weapons won't even make the frontline and if you have a look much of that equipment is what the Ukranians have used and lost already during this war. This is not game changing yet. To get to the frontline the Ukranians would have to send it by land or rail over 1000km from the west or even 1400km if coming from Poland. If these vehicles come en-masse they'll get seen and blown up easily as has been done a few times in and around Lviv and Rivne. If they come one by one, then it's slow and inefficient and given the fuel supply issues that's not an option.

Putin looks in a better health condition than Biden and Zelensky. One with dementia and the other with a drug addiction. Putin if he doesn't have the rumoured cancer some say, will outlast both of them.

You mention about the oil facility blown up, well done to Ukraine - great job, well executed and embarassing/humiliating for Russia. But what about the numerous oil facilities that the Russians have blown up this week alone? 9 missile attacks in Kremenchuk in the last few hours. More missile attacks in Vinnytsia, Zhemrynka, Poltoa and Cherkasy. Explosions heard in Mykolaiv and Odessa again this morning but this could be anti air. But the point is, whilst Ukraine is celebrating it's 2nd strike on a Russian oil depo, the Russians are destroying bases, depos and other military assets almost on an hourly basis - stuff that never makes main news in western media.

 

[bones]

On the BBC:


Air strikes hit Ukrainian rail stations

Toby Luckhurst

Reporting from Lviv

As we reported earlier, Russian strikes have hit a number of stations in central and western Ukraine.

One of those hit was Krasne, east of Lviv. Maksym Kozytskyi, head of the Lviv region, has posted on his Telegram channel that a missile hit an electrical substation there around 08:30 local time (06:30 BST).

“There is no information about casualties yet,” he wrote. Emergency services are at the scene and are working to put out a fire.

Footage posted online shows a thick black plume of smoke rising from the site.

We’re en route to to the station now and as we set off another air raid siren has sounded in Lviv. We’ll provide any updates as we get them.

Kind of emphasises the point I meade earlier.Ukraine take out 1 depo and it makes the headlines - almost like they're winning the war. Russia take out multiple key positions including depos and it's hidden away unless they can sell it off as Ukranian propaganda.

 

[silentkiller187]

Russia is failing in its war aims following the invasion of Ukraine, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said after a visit to the capital Kyiv.

Speaking at a news conference on the border with Poland after meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mr Blinken added that a "sovereign, independent Ukraine" will be around "a lot longer than Russia's Putin is on the scene".

He said the US had approved a $165m (£130m) sale of ammunition to Ukraine, along with $322m (£251m) in foreign military financing.

New Kremlin tactic to 'hide' war casualties from its citizens emerges - live updates

"The strategy that we've put in place - massive support for Ukraine, massive pressure against Russia, solidarity with more than 30 countries engaged in these efforts - is having real results," he said.

"When it comes to Russia's war aims, Russia is failing, Ukraine is succeeding.

"Russia has sought as its principal aim to totally subjugate Ukraine, to take away its sovereignty, to take away its independence. That has failed."

He said Russia "sought to assert the power of its military and its economy" but "we, of course, are seeing just the opposite: a military that is dramatically underperforming, an economy - as a result of sanctions, as a result of a mass exodus from Russia - that is in shambles".

Russia's attempt to "divide the West and NATO" has also failed, he said.

Mr Blinken confirmed that US diplomats will start returning to Ukraine next week.

It was the first visit by a senior US official since Russia invaded Ukraine 61 days ago, with Mr Blinken joined by Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.

Key developments:
• Ukraine has proposed talks with Russia over the fate of civilians and troops who remain in Mariupol
• No humanitarian routes were established out of Mariupol on Sunday - Ukrainian officials hope to try again on Monday
• Boris Johnson described Vladimir Putin's actions in Ukraine as "nauseating" and "blatant aggression" during a call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
• An unspecified number of civilians were killed by Russian shelling in Ukraine's Luhansk region on Sunday, local officials claim
• The war in Ukraine is entering its third month with no end in sight - with many thousands of people killed, millions becoming refugees, and cities reduced to rubble


Russian attacks continue in Ukraine, this time targeting infrastructure far from the front line, according to Ukrainian and Russian reports.

Five train stations were hit by Russian strikes in central and western Ukraine within the same hour, according to Oleksandr Kamyshin, the head of the state-run Ukrainian Railways. Casualties were reported.

One railway facility was in Krasne, outside of the western city of Lviv, which caught fire after it was hit by a missile, according to the region's governor.

Russia has said it will open a humanitarian corridor on Monday to allow civilians to leave the besieged Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, where the city's last defenders are holed up, according to the Russian Interfax news agency.

Mr Blinken praised the strength of Ukrainians in the face of Russia's attempts to "brutalise" parts of the country.

"Ukrainians are standing up, they're standing strong, and they're doing that with the support that we are co-ordinating literally around the world," he said.

"They can win if they have the right equipment," he said, pledging to do "everything we can" to provide it.

Asked about reports of weapons falling into the hands of Russian-backed forces in the eastern Donbas region, Mr Austin said it is "difficult" for the US to track the weapons they give Ukraine.

He said Ukrainians are "focused on this issue, and they know we are concerned about it".

The new financing brings the total US security assistance to Ukraine since the invasion began to $3.7bn (£2.9bn).

The US State Department said new funding "will provide support for the capabilities Ukraine needs as Russia's forces train their focus on the Donbas" and said the assistance will help Ukraine's armed forces transition to more advanced weapons and air defence systems.

A further $400m (£312m) in new foreign military financing will also be shared among 15 other nations in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as the Balkans.

US President Joe Biden will also soon announce his nominee to be ambassador to Ukraine - Bridget Brink, a career foreign service officer.

Embassy staff to gradually return

The US State Department has vowed to reopen the embassy in Lviv as soon as the situation allows.

"There's no substitute for that face-to-face engagement, and of course there is a symbolism to being back in the country," an official said.


Follow the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

While the West has funnelled military equipment to Ukraine, Mr Zelenskyy has stressed repeatedly that his country needs more heavy weapons, including long-range air defence systems and warplanes.

Mr Austin said the "nature of the fight has evolved because the terrain they're now focused on is a different type of terrain" and the US understands the need for long-range fires and tanks.

He said the US is "doing everything that we can to get him the types of support - the types of artillery and munitions - that will be effective in this stage of the fight".

https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-...its-kyiv-to-meet-volodymyr-zelenskyy-12597776

 

[mazkhan]

Bones mate you need help , ukraine is a hodge podge military living of aid , volunteers,criminals nazis ,mercenaries and collecting chanda their basically taliban or hezbollah on steroids .

Russia is meant to be a military superpower

For this war to have dragged on so long , russian losses plus heavy casualties of senior officials and Elite troops show this special operation has turned into a special disaster .

Donbass is a flat terrain it was ideal terrain for an armoured cavalry assault unlike the North kiev where the forest and mud and swamps made it hard for tanks.

Russia should be steamrolling over donbass steppe.

Like I said only way now is if they use chemical weapons and tactical nuke strikes , conventionally they are not up to the mark alongwith most of the Russian hardware is good as scrap metal now we know why indians have been moaning about russian weapons and their flying coffins .

 

[silentkiller187]

TikTok has emerged as one of the leading platforms for snappy false videos about the war in Ukraine which are reaching millions.

With a user base of more than one billion people - more than half of whom are under 30 - TikTok is where many young people have been getting updates about the conflict, as the platform struggles to stem the flow of misleading information.

And you don't need to look that hard to find dubious content. According to an investigation by NewsGuard, a website that monitors online misinformation, new users could be recommended false content about Ukraine within 40 minutes of joining the network.

While platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter have been labelling false or misleading viral videos about the war, TikTok seems to be playing catch-up.

The company insists it has stepped up its efforts to combat misinformation.

Here are some of the most common categories of misleading content the BBC has identified on the platform.

Fake livestreams

From the early days of the war, fake livestreams have drawn some of the highest numbers of views on TikTok.

The recipe is simple: a user finds a dramatic video of an old conflict or some military drill, dubs fake audio of a huge explosion or an intense shootout, starts a livestream, and once a sizeable audience tunes in, asks for donations to their channel.

One such account had drawn nearly 30 million views by mid-March. All but three of the account's livestreams up to that point were short clips taken from a YouTube video of old Ukrainian military training, dating from 2017.

At one point, a fake audio track of gunshots became so popular that it appeared in more than 13,000 videos.

Users can react to livestreams by sending the accounts points that can be converted into cash.

"It seems like a lot of the looped scary livestreams were likely created with the hopes of earning money via TikTok's gifting system," says Abbie Richards, an independent researcher who creates videos with a focus on the dangers of misinformation.

Most of the fake livestreams can be easily found under popular hashtags such as #Ukraine or #UkraineWar.

"The content is intended to blend in with all the other information available on the topic," says Ms Richards.

Video games

Dramatic footage of military video games or computer-generated imagery (CGI) has been regularly used as a substitute for real war videos.

Scenes from video games such as Arma 3 and Call of Duty have flooded TikTok. Fake aerial battles, including footage appearing to show fighter jets being shot down, have proved particularly popular.

Some accounts try to make the action more realistic and use clips from war films, TV series or real-life games.

One video, which was viewed 24 million times, shows a man appearing to drop an explosive item on a tank. It was taken from a video of an Airsoft match - a team combat game similar to paintball - and uploaded to YouTube in January.

A separate fake livestream, viewed by 2.3 million users, is made up of CGI footage of missile strikes and has been circulating on the internet since last year.

Ms Richards says she has seen instances of users warning in the comments section of such videos that they are taken from video games or are made up. But the people behind the accounts can disable comments - and the warnings disappear.

Old videos

Videos of old conflicts are typically used when a new one is under way. The BBC has seen videos from wars in Libya, Syria and Chechnya being used as though they show the current conflict.

A video purporting to show intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces outside a block of flats has racked up 7.7 million views.

But the footage was in fact recorded in 2014 in the Chechen capital, Grozny, during a deadly attack by an armed jihadist group. Fake breaking news and live captions were overlaid on the original footage to hide the real source.

Some have posted videos from the conflict between Russia and Ukraine in 2014, which could easily be mistaken for the current one, or footage of military exercises or parades in either country.

A video of a column of Ukrainian tanks in central Kyiv was presented as if they were on their way to defend the capital against a Russian offensive. It received nine million views. But it was filmed during an independence-day military parade several years ago.

And a video of a tank with a Ukrainian flag, speeding down a residential street - viewed four million times - also dated back to the Russia-Ukraine conflict of 2014.

Ms Richards says TikTok could address the problem of viral old videos by taking simple measures, such as making the date a video was posted clearer.

Limited transparency

Like Facebook and Instagram parent Meta, TikTok collaborates with independent fact-checkers, albeit on a smaller scale. But while Facebook and Instagram have been labelling false and misleading content about Ukraine on their platforms, such labels are rare on TikTok.

Unlike some of its rivals, TikTok does not provide transparency or analytics tools to academics, researchers and journalists, which Ms Richards says misinformation experts like her have been "desperately" demanding for some time.

What that means for independent fact-checkers is a time-consuming process of manually researching a huge volume of content on a regular basis.

Another issue, according to Ms Richards, is the absence of a community of TikTok users willing to debunk falsehoods on the platform.

"When TikTok fails to ensure the accuracy of information receiving millions of views on its platform, that burden is falling on outside researchers and everyday TikTok users."

A TikTok spokesperson told the BBC: "We continue to respond to the devastating war in Ukraine with increased safety and security resources to detect emerging threats and remove harmful misinformation.

"To support our efforts to help keep TikTok a safe and authentic place, we've added more resources to our moderation and fact-checking for content in Russian and Ukrainian, including local language experts and partnerships with independent fact-checking organisations."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/60867414

 

[bones]

Bones mate you need help , ukraine is a hodge podge military living of aid , volunteers,criminals nazis ,mercenaries and collecting chanda their basically taliban or hezbollah on steroids .

Russia is meant to be a military superpower

For this war to have dragged on so long , russian losses plus heavy casualties of senior officials and Elite troops show this special operation has turned into a special disaster .

Donbass is a flat terrain it was ideal terrain for an armoured cavalry assault unlike the North kiev where the forest and mud and swamps made it hard for tanks.

Russia should be steamrolling over donbass steppe.

Like I said only way now is if they use chemical weapons and tactical nuke strikes , conventionally they are not up to the mark alongwith most of the Russian hardware is good as scrap metal now we know why indians have been moaning about russian weapons and their flying coffins .

Unffortunately you continue to type stuff which is false. You were unable to dispute any of my previous points to you so instead you refer to hyperbole.

Ukraine are NATO trained, they have the 2nd largest in Europe and they have a huge inventory of equipment which includes much from the soviet era. If you have any dispute as to whether Ukraine is well trained by NATO or not, then please explain why there were NATO "peacekeeping" bases in the country. One of which was taken out during the first month by more than 1 precision missile.

Russia is a military superpower and they are winning. You haven't come up with a single fact to back your claim they are losing. If you think they are losing, look at the statements coming from both sides and look at the map.

You also seem to think this war has dragged on for too long - you have no idea what the Russians are trying to achieve here or how long wars take. This isn't like America in Iraq or Afghanistan where they bomb absolutely everything out of sight. Here Russia are looking to minimise damage because they know they'll have to rebuild a lot of it. Ukraine is a massive country and using 200k troops you have to move slowly and methodically if trying to minimise civilian casualties.

You keep mentioning chemical and nuclear weapons, but what is this based off? Do you have any evidence that they are planning this?

 

[bones]

Ukraine has a NATO trained army:

https://www.wsj.com/articles/ukraine-military-success-years-of-nato-training-11649861339

 

[MenInG]

Russia has hit rail and fuel facilities in attacks in central and western Ukraine - as the US Secretary of State said Russia is failing in its war aims.

In a spate of attacks, Russia targeted infrastructure far from the front line, according to Ukrainian and Russian reports.

Five train stations were hit by Russian strikes in central and western Ukraine within the same hour, the head of the state-run Ukrainian Railways said.

 

[mazkhan]

In hitting rail targets they have lost a state of the art su34 fighter bomber which is russian junk lidl aldi version of the f15 e strike eagle.

The video is on daily mail of the jet being shot down and the pilot's bailing out.

It happened near kharkiv

But we all better believe bones that russia is winning and everything is going to plan.

 

[bones]

In hitting rail targets they have lost a state of the art su34 fighter bomber which is russian junk lidl aldi version of the f15 e strike eagle.

The video is on daily mail of the jet being shot down and the pilot's bailing out.

It happened near kharkiv

But we all better believe bones that russia is winning and everything is going to plan.

The Russians have lost a lot of expensive equipment, of that there is no dispute and no one with a sane mine would argue otherwise. But the point is how much damage is being inflicted before these losses.

Today, the Russians have hit the Ukranian rail infrastructure hard, next it will be the bridges and then it'll be the highways to prevent any of these western provided vehicles reaching the front line in Donbas any time soon.

So you tell me, who has had a greater day today. The Ukranians who have hit an oil depo and shot down a jet or the Russians who have taken out part of the rail infratructure delaying Ukraine by several days any chance of re-enforcing the front line.

Have a watch of this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIHOXSwDjuI

 

[KingKhanWC]

The Nazis in Mariupol have taken a serious hiding. Chechen forces alongside their Russian commrades have completed what has been a remarkable victory in the Nazi stronghold. From street to street fighting where Nazis were hiding in civilian buildings as snipers to outright straight shoot outs, its been very impressive.

Now the steel works is totally surrounded. Its very poor of the Ukranians for not allowing them to surrender as almost all supplies are now depleted. Yesterday some tried to escape but were gunned down while running, this will only become more common as the days continue.

People need to understand Russia is in no rush to end this operation. While Nato keep sending in heavy weapons and more foriegn fighters the Russians are tracking them & wiping them out once in Ukranian land.

Britain should be very careful and remove their SAS elite forces who are training these Nazis. If any SAS are caught or killed with body taken it could cause a major esclation. We in the UK should be not be involved at all let alone sending in the SAS to help.

 

[bones]

Russia are moving slowly and methodically in Donbas to reduce civilian casualties and losses of their own. According to Jacob Drysen, Colonel Douglas MacGregor and Scott Ritter the war is over for all intents and purposes.

These units in Donbas are all that stand in the way of Russia taking over huge portions of Eastern Ukraine. They are about to be defeated but because there is no rush for the Russians the final big assault could be a few weeks away still. The Russians have shored up supply lines so all is in their favour.

 

[James]

Britain should be very careful and remove their SAS elite forces who are training these Nazis. If any SAS are caught or killed with body taken it could cause a major esclation. We in the UK should be not be involved at all let alone sending in the SAS to help.

Elite forces soldiers sign away most of their rights when they take on the job. If they are ever captured or killed then they have been rigorously trained to resist interrogation for long enough for their information to become useless and outdated, and they have already been made well aware in advance of this that their governments will just deny / disavow / etc. I have no doubt that US and British black operatives are currently deployed across Ukraine in abundance.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Elite forces soldiers sign away most of their rights when they take on the job. If they are ever captured or killed then they have been rigorously trained to resist interrogation for long enough for their information to become useless and outdated, and they have already been made well aware in advance of this that their governments will just deny / disavow / etc. I have no doubt that US and British black operatives are currently deployed across Ukraine in abundance.

I dont think Russians will care about info. They will have a moral victory just by showing of captured SAS. Imagine the embarrasment for Boris, when he has to beg Russia for the release, prisoner exchange.

Imo there is also a chance of a senior Nato commander or some Nato special forces are being holed up in the steelworks. There have been a few attempts to rescue someone or a few via choppers but all have been shot down by Russia.

UK is a tiny island with a small army a few elite forces. Its biggest power remains with Trident and being a permanent member of the UNSC. Other than this, nobody worries about the UK anylonger as any type of great military force, this isnt the 1800's. After leaving the EU, UK should have also left Nato, made good relations with Russia to buy cheap gas, wheat and other goods. Instead the clowns are mere Nato Zionist puppets, harming their own populations for imperial needs.

 

[cpleigh]

The UK has a very powerful military. Its airforce and navy are amongst the most powerful in the world

 

[mazkhan]

There you go bones Sergey lavrov threatening the west and warning of nuclear war .

So whose bringing nukes into the equation, further proof russian invasion has gone pear shaped.

The usa did the same in ww2 in Japan, they had to nuke the Japanese to surrender who would have inflicted massive casualties on allied troops Because the Japanese troops were crazy enough to go in suicidal mode , even if the US won conventionally they would have sustained unstainable casualties of both man and material .

 

[bones]

There you go bones Sergey lavrov threatening the west and warning of nuclear war .

So whose bringing nukes into the equation, further proof russian invasion has gone pear shaped.

The usa did the same in ww2 in Japan, they had to nuke the Japanese to surrender who would have inflicted massive casualties on allied troops Because the Japanese troops were crazy enough to go in suicidal mode , even if the US won conventionally they would have sustained unstainable casualties of both man and material .

So you take a quote out of context to come up with the same hyperbole. Read the question and read the answer and then come back here and tell us he's threatening escalation.

MazKhan, you haven't responded to my multiple previous posts where I pick apart your baseless comments one by one. You didn't even bother to answer the question about who had the bigger strategic victries yesterday. My question was, Ukraine took a fighter Jet down and launched missiles against an oil depo in Russia. Russia took out all of the key rail links to the west of the Dniper river. Which is more important?

You didn't answer if in history anyone has been able to take a city of millions with 50k soldiers. You didn't answer if you knew about manouvre warfare. You didn't answer about why it is the Ukrainians if winning, are begging for more and more heavy weapons. You didn't answer about why we're seeing less and less footage of this dead russian soldiers but loads and loads of dead Ukranian soldiers.

 

[silentkiller187]

The head of the United Nations has said his priority is to "minimise human suffering" in Ukraine as he begins talks in Russia today, while the US said it would "move heaven and earth" to keep supporting Kyiv.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a ceasefire "as soon as possible" ahead of a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, with the two men due to hold a news conference afterwards.

During initial comments, Mr Guterres said there are "different interpretations about what is happening in Ukraine".

But that does "not limit the possibility to have a very serious dialogue to minimise the suffering of people", he added.

Russia says it wants to reduce 'considerable' risk of nuclear war - follow latest updates

Ahead of the meeting, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Mr Guterres should "focus primarily" on one issue - the evacuation of Mariupol - and could be vulnerable to falling into a "Kremlin trap".

Elsewhere on Tuesday, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Ukraine's allies would "keep moving heaven and earth" to aid the country's security.

He has convened a meeting at America's Ramstein air base in Germany, with defence ministers and top military leaders from approximately 40 countries participating.

"We believe (Ukraine) can win if they have the right equipment, the right support," Mr Austin said in Poland on Monday.

Key developments:

Germany's defence minister confirms delivery of anti-aircraft tanks to Ukraine
Moldova convenes security meeting following blasts
City of Kreminna falls to Russian troops
US secretary of state Antony Blinken says the "battle for Kyiv has been won"
The UK says it is sending armoured vehicles, ambulances and further funding to train Ukrainian doctors

Ukraine doubts value of Mr Guterres's visit

Igor Zhovkva, deputy head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office, told NBC it was "not a good idea" for Antonio Guterres to go to Moscow, adding that he doubted it would "end up with any result".

Mr Guterres is "not really" authorised to speak on behalf of the Ukrainian government, he added.

The UN chief will also meet Russian President Vladimir Putin before travelling to Ukraine on Thursday.

Mr Guterres' trip comes hot on the heels of incendiary comments from Sergei Lavrov, who has claimed Moscow is effectively at war with NATO and that the threat of a nuclear conflict "should not be underestimated".

Weapons supplied by Western countries "will be a legitimate target", Mr Lavrov said, adding: "Everyone is reciting incantations that in no case can we allow World War Three."

Accusing Ukrainian leaders of provoking Russia by asking NATO to become involved in the conflict, he went on: "NATO, in essence, is engaged in a war with Russia through a proxy and is arming that proxy.

"War means war."

But Dmytro Kuleba said Mr Lavrov's comments showed that "Moscow senses defeat in Ukraine".

He tweeted: "Russia loses last hope to scare the world off supporting Ukraine. Thus the talk of a 'real' danger of World War Three."

Germany sends tanks to Ukraine

In what may be a change of heart from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a German weapons-maker is expected to be given permission to sell refurbished Gepard anti-aircraft tanks from German Army stock, according to local media.

Mr Scholz had said he was trying to avoid a nuclear war with Russia, although he has come under mounting pressure from international leaders and some in his own country.

Germany's defence minister also said the country will deliver self-propelled armoured anti-aircraft guns to Ukraine.

Capture of Donbas 'not inevitable'

Russian forces have now fully withdrawn from around Kyiv and much of northern Ukraine.

The port city of Mariupol is mostly under the control of Russian forces and a large-scale Russian offensive in eastern Ukraine has begun, aiming for the "complete liberation" of the Donbas - the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk.

But UK armed forces minister James Heappey said it is not inevitable that Russia will take parts of the Donbas.

He told Sky News the region will be an "extraordinarily difficult nut for the Russians to crack" and there is "every chance the Ukrainians can see them off".

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has said his country wants to see Russia "weakened to the point where it can't do things like invade Ukraine".

On Monday, the US said it will again ramp up the amount of military kit it is sending to Kyiv.

The State Department used an emergency declaration to approve the potential sale of $165m (£129m) worth of ammunition, including artillery ammunition for howitzers, tanks and grenade launchers.

It also said it will provide more than $300m (£235m) in financing to buy more supplies.

https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-...ffering-as-he-begins-talks-in-moscow-12599238

 

[90MPH]

Bones mate you need help , ukraine is a hodge podge military living of aid , volunteers,criminals nazis ,mercenaries and collecting chanda their basically taliban or hezbollah on steroids .

Russia is meant to be a military superpower

For this war to have dragged on so long , russian losses plus heavy casualties of senior officials and Elite troops show this special operation has turned into a special disaster .

Donbass is a flat terrain it was ideal terrain for an armoured cavalry assault unlike the North kiev where the forest and mud and swamps made it hard for tanks.

Russia should be steamrolling over donbass steppe..

Like I said only way now is if they use chemical weapons and tactical nuke strikes , conventionally they are not up to the mark alongwith most of the Russian hardware is good as scrap metal now we know why indians have been moaning about russian weapons and their flying coffins .

Good analysis but I will add some observations.

One of the main reasons this “operation” is turning into a strategical disaster from Russia’s POV is the rampant corruption that has been happening on every level in Russia but especially their defence department.

Putin either turned a blind eye to it or worse was encouraging it. Now apparently (so I have read) Russian generals and those below may have eaten at least $10 Billion in their budget since 2014 that was supposed to go to improve the Russian millitary and upgrade their equipment.

This was clearly evident when Russian millitary vehicles got totally stuck in the soft Ukraine terrain as they invaded from the north and Belarus in the early part of the war. During the first 3 days they had a chance to storm Kyiv but they blew it due to their own incompetence, poor planning and ultimately rampant corruption.

Even if the Russian military wasn’t motivated to fight they still could have had more success with better military equipment but it’s evident now it has become rotting junk and not fit for purpose in this age of war.

Lobbing tons of sophisticated cruise missiles might look good on tv but this is very costly way to wage a war for a sustained amount of time.
It also hasn’t hurt the Ukrainian defences as they are either not been accurate enough or they are getting bad intelligence, barring hitting a few army barracks at the start of the war.

I will say once the heavy weapons start getting transferred to the Ukrainian military from western countries it will become a war Russia can not win and could turn to be a humiliation worse than the soviet war of Afghanistan.

The only way the Russians can turn this around is targeting the supply lines of these heavy weapons before getting into the hands of the Ukrainians - ironically this is what the Ukrainians did very effectively during the start of the war by consistently targeting the Russian supply lines and totally stalled their progress in the west and north.
The Russians have started to this recently by targeting the train lines but it maybe too late now as the equipment is flooding in Ukraine in all direction from the west side.
Even Germany today has approved 50 anti aircraft missile tanks today.

 

[bones]

Good analysis but I will add some observations.

One of the main reasons this “operation” is turning into a strategical disaster from Russia’s POV is the rampant corruption that has been happening on every level in Russia but especially their defence department.

Putin either turned a blind eye to it or worse was encouraging it. Now apparently (so I have read) Russian generals and those below may have eaten at least $10 Billion in their budget since 2014 that was supposed to go to improve the Russian millitary and upgrade their equipment.

This was clearly evident when Russian millitary vehicles got totally stuck in the soft Ukraine terrain as they invaded from the north and Belarus in the early part of the war. During the first 3 days they had a chance to storm Kyiv but they blew it due to their own incompetence, poor planning and ultimately rampant corruption.

Even if the Russian military wasn’t motivated to fight they still could have had more success with better military equipment but it’s evident now it has become rotting junk and not fit for purpose in this age of war.

Lobbing tons of sophisticated cruise missiles might look good on tv but this is very costly way to wage a war for a sustained amount of time.
It also hasn’t hurt the Ukrainian defences as they are either not been accurate enough or they are getting bad intelligence, barring hitting a few army barracks at the start of the war.

I will say once the heavy weapons start getting transferred to the Ukrainian military from western countries it will become a war Russia can not win and could turn to be a humiliation worse than the soviet war of Afghanistan.

The only way the Russians can turn this around is targeting the supply lines of these heavy weapons before getting into the hands of the Ukrainians - ironically this is what the Ukrainians did very effectively during the start of the war by consistently targeting the Russian supply lines and totally stalled their progress in the west and north.
The Russians have started to this recently by targeting the train lines but it maybe too late now as the equipment is flooding in Ukraine in all direction from the west side.
Even Germany today has approved 50 anti aircraft missile tanks today.

Here is an armchair expert who has feasted off Ukrainian social media and the BBC.

How can you try to explain what is happening in this war when you 1. haven’t bothered to get the opinion of military experts and 2. done some research on military history and strategy?

You still think that the Russians planned to conquer Kyiv with a force of 50k lol.

The Russians are not just winning this war, they are grinding Ukraine’s best army into the ground in this proxy war. An army trained by NATO and a conflict run by America. If anyone has any doubt that this is not a war being waged by America, just look at the statements that came from the Biden administration with their Kyiv meeting and when they returned to Washington.

The Washington Post last night ran with the headline “President Biden ready to accept Ukrainian neutrality”.

You mention the west will be supplying weapons to Ukraine, please tell me how these weapons are going to make the 1000+ km trip to the frontline? The Russians are taking out all the rail connections and destroying depo after depo.

If anyone thinks I am feeding off propaganda, I say you do some research. Watch and read independent military experts. Look at military forums they know this stuff better than armchair experts like 90mph. Indian, Pakistani and Chinese defence forums were predicting that Kyiv was a fixing move in early March. The same forums have guys who have vast knowledge about modern and historical warfare and they all say the same thing Russia are winning the military war and winning it easy. They are laughing at how mainstream media is presenting these lies to the public.

Once you have done that then look at independent economic blogs to understand how the economic situation is, again the Russians are doing ok. The forecast is a deep recession for Russia but they will recover. Europe will suffer economically for much longer as a result of the self inflicted damage. Fuel and food shortages will hit hard in 4-6 months - this is guaranteed. Russia and China won’t have fuel and food shortages.

 

[MenInG]

Western allies appear to have calculated Putin can only be stopped if his forces are beaten in Ukraine
By Deborah Haynes, security and defence editor

A new US-led coalition of willing, western allies is forming to help Ukraine fight and – they hope – defeat Russia's invading forces.

The group of more than 40 countries, many of them European, including the UK, but also from further afield such as Kenya, Australia and South Korea, is gearing up for the long haul, with plans to sustain a vital flow of weapons to the Ukrainian military for months if not years.

They know that their involvement – albeit from a distance – in Russia's war in Ukraine raises the risk of a direct military confrontation between the two nuclear-armed sides.

Such a prospect jangled western nerves in the early days of the conflict.

But the evolution in the types of arms being gifted to Ukraine, moving from ammunition to tanks, underlines a hardening of the West's resolve to stand up to Russia's actions and to leave Moscow weakened so it may not again be able to wage the same kind of war against a neighbour.

Lloyd Austin, the US Defence Secretary, gathered the allies together at a sprawling US air base in Germany for an initial meeting on Tuesday. It's a forum that is set to meet monthly – a signal that this is a long-term shift in Europe's security environment.

"Ukraine clearly believes that it can win, and so does everyone here," he told attendees.

As for the threat of escalation leading to a nuclear confrontation – something Russia has threatened – Mr Austin told reporters afterwards: "Nobody wants to see a nuclear war. Nobody can win it."

He added: "There's always a possibility a number of things can happen, but I think it is unhelpful and dangerous to rattle sabres and speculate about the use of nuclear weapons."

General Mark Milley, the top US military officer, stressed the need to supply Ukraine with ever more conventional weapons as it faces a new offensive by Russia in the east after successfully beating Russian forces back from an attempt to seize the capital, Kyiv.

Speaking in the closed-door session, he called the coming weeks "critical" and said time "is not on Ukraine's side".

General Milley said: "The outcome of this battle, right here, today, is dependent on the people in this room. The Ukrainians will fight. We need to make sure they have the means to fight."

Offering a similar perspective, Liz Truss, the UK foreign secretary, is set to say that allies will never feel safe again if Russian President Vladimir Putin achieves his goal of conquering Ukraine.

"We cannot be complacent – the fate of Ukraine remains in the balance," she will say in a speech at Mansion House in London, according to pre-released remarks.

"And let's be clear – if Putin succeeds there will be untold further misery across Europe and terrible consequences across the globe. We would never feel safe again. So we must be prepared for the long haul and double down on our support for Ukraine."

Ms Truss is set to push for countries to gift heavy weapons, tanks and planes "digging deep into our inventories, ramping up production. We need to do all of this".

It is already a fact that western weapons fired by Ukrainian troops are killing Russian soldiers in Ukraine.

James Heappey, the Armed Forces Minister, on Tuesday even went as far as to say it would be "entirely legitimate" for Ukraine to hit military targets on Russian soil with western weapons if it wants to go after logistics and supply lines.

It is no surprise, therefore, that Russia has said the West's support for Ukraine means it is effectively in a war with Russia by proxy.

"War means war," Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said in a television interview this week.

The bloodshed, carnage and uncertainty caused by Russia's war in Ukraine is, for now, contained within Ukrainian borders. Yet there are signs emerging of unrest in next door Moldova, amid fears that could become a new front for Russia.

Ultimately, Western allies appear to have calculated that President Putin can only be stopped if his forces are beaten in Ukraine – something that can only happen with western support, even if that ultimately means risking a wider war in Europe in the process.

SKY

 

[MenInG]

Russian missiles 'destroy hangar containing European and US weapons'

Russian missiles have struck an arms depot housing weapons from the United States and European countries, Moscow has claimed.

The Russian defence ministry said its Kalibr missiles destroyed hangars in the Zaporizhzhia region which contained "a large batch of foreign weapons and ammunition supplied to Ukrainian troops by the United States and European countries".

Yesterday, Russia accused the West of "pouring oil on the fire" with weapons deliveries fuelling the nine-week-old conflict.

The United States and NATO have ruled out sending their own forces to Ukraine, but Washington and its European allies have supplied large quantities of weapons to Kyiv, including drones and anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles.

 

[bones]

Russia in phase 2 is losing between 10-15 soldiers a day. That's a combination of killed and wounded. The Ukranians are losing over 100 a day and this is a conservative figure. Unfortunately the Ukranians are not going to release a true number of deaths until after the war. Each day the Russians are showing footage of more and more Ukranian positions being destroyed. Some Ukranian soldiers are captured but many are killed. These positions are heavily fortified because they have had 8 years to build them up. The number of Ukranians dying is going to turn from hundreds to several hundreds if not thousands very soon.

The Russian attitude towards the war has changed since the first two weeks where they suffered huge losses, in the thousands. But after the sanctions and the behaviour of the Ukranians towards them, especially the POW, the attitude has changed. Now the Russians are fighting Ukraine as they would fight any other country. The change in attitude has resulted in a change in the number of casualties - mentioned above.

The Ukranians are running extremely low on equipment and supplies to the Donbas cauldron. This is confirmed by some of the captured POW and many experts. The weapons being supplied are far too little and far too late. Ukraine have perhaps a couple hundred armored vehicles in a region of 200 sq miles that is closing each day. These vehicles are so low on fuel they are having to ration it. They are also having to ration ammunition. Whilst they sit in their positions they are being bombarded by heavy artillery that has air support. The Russians don't have any of these issues with supply. The Ukrainians are sending young and old men who have no training with warfare or weapons capable of repelling Russian assaults. These men are being sent to their deaths. The Ukranians have no airforce and navy left and soon they'll have no heavy armor or artillery.

The Ukranians are still winning the information war but the mood is changing, you can fee it and most know they will lose. What the Russians have done during this war is overcome a huge numerical disadvantage and defeat a valiant opponent. The Russians set out to claim Crimea, a southern corridor to Donbas and independence for the Donbas republics. They are going to end up taking all of the south and leaving a landlocked Ukraine. Ukraine in years to come will not remember NATO or Zelensky's regime kindly. They had an opportunity to negotiate a good settlement but what will they be left with?

The actual strategy from the Russians in Donbas is mapping the Ukranian positions using superior surveillance. Surrounding the position and launching heavy artillery with air support. If a position is very heavily fortified they have used some of their extremely powerful weapons such as the UR77 or TOS-1. The Ukranians have no counter to this and every day umpteed villages and huge territory are being taken.

The war is won - of that there is no dispute. The only question remains, will the Ukranian puppet regime have the common sense to come to the negotiation table or not.

 

[MenInG]

Putin claims 'all objectives will be met' in Ukraine war - and warns of 'lightning fast' retaliation if countries interfere
Russian President Vladimir Putin told politicians that "all the objectives will definitely be carried out" in the conflict with Ukraine before warning that countries interfering would be met with a "lightning fast" reaction from Moscow.

Speaking to the Council of Legislators in St Petersburg, he said what he called the "special military operation" in Ukraine would "guarantee the safety" of people in the Donbas and Crimea.

The Russian leader went on to say: "If someone intends to intervene into the ongoing events (in Ukraine) from the outside and creates unacceptable strategic threats for us, then they should know that our response to those strikes will be swift, lightning fast."

Mr Putin also had words of caution for the West, saying its plans to "strangle us economically have failed".

Earlier, Russia imposed sanctions on more than 200 British MPs and former MPs.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Russian ruble continues to increase. Meanwhile Russia cuts off gas to Poland and Bulgaria, who are now crying because they wont pay in rubles.

Europe is facing a recession, even worse to come in the US. Meanwhile Russia is building up a new monetary system which will be used by nearly 50% of the worlds population soon.

Its clear now the western nations and Nato have made a huge miscalculation. Not only is Russia on the road to achieving its objectives in Ukraine , its sending the west in too deep dark economic waters.

When you a senial old man like Biden in charge this was to be expected.

 

[90MPH]

In case people didn’t know it’s spring, not just in the UK but also in the Eastern European countries like Poland and Bulgaria.
And Summer is coming so these countries don’t need the gas for heating in the next 6 months.
Regardless Poland has around 80% in storage so they were prepared but maybe not so much Bulgaria who only have 20% storage.
It’s another gimmick by Putin because these countries refused to pay in rubles otherwise they were paying for the product they were getting. Anyway the EU is going make an announcement to ban Russian oil next week so I guess they will flog it off cheaply to China and India then.

On the war itself eh no, it’s not going well for Russia, despite the insane ludicrous propaganda we are reading by the Putin apologists.
When Russia has lost a minimum of 10,000 soldiers but more likely 15,000 soldiers killed in 2 months of war this been disastrous on all fronts for them. And it doesn’t seem to be getting better in the near future either as Ukrainian special forces and saboteurs/intelligence agents are destroying Russian oil and chemical depots inside Russian territory.

 

[JaDed]

I wonder if Russia has even highlighted their objectives of this war, it’s not very clear.

Irrespective $ is already up as expected and EU is bothered about twitter, what a joke.

 

[bones]

On the war itself eh no, it’s not going well for Russia, despite the insane ludicrous propaganda we are reading by the Putin apologists.
When Russia has lost a minimum of 10,000 soldiers but more likely 15,000 soldiers killed in 2 months of war this been disastrous on all fronts for them. And it doesn’t seem to be getting better in the near future either as Ukrainian special forces and saboteurs/intelligence agents are destroying Russian oil and chemical depots inside Russian territory.

If you keep saying it’s a disastrous war it doesn’t actually make it true.

You have ignored pretty much all of my posts where I take apart all your claims one by one. Instead you are left to use these childish descriptions such as Putin apologists.

Read up on the Minsk agreements and who broke the terms. Read up on how Zelensky came to power. Read up on how the Ukrainians see Bandera. When you do you’ll understand Russia had a more legitimate cause to invade Ukraine than almost anyone has in several decades.

I told you many times the Russians went into this war soft, that is why they lost thousands of troops. They aren’t being soft anymore. If you dispute this consider that only on day 60 did they decide to take out the railroads. There was nothing to stop them from taking this out on day one. Why didn’t they take out this key infrastructure early on? They wanted to reduce civilian casualties and damage to non military infrastructure. But the Ukrainians and NATO allies are continually trying to push weapons into the country so they had no choice.

At the start the Russians were losing many soldiers they aren’t anymore.

Consider this, Chinese and Russian journalists are travelling with the troops on the Donbas frontlines. There isn’t a single western journalist who is travelling with the Ukrainians in Donbas. Why do you think that is? If these western journalists reported the actual situation on the ground it would destroy morale.

Every day the Russians show evidence of taking western small arms, dead Ukrainians in the dozens and destroyed positions. Other than the odd minor successes what are the Ukrainians showing?

The Ukrainians have fooled the west into thinking that the Russians were interested in Kyiv, you still think that and you refuse to read up on military history to under this was a fixing move.

Ukraine have lost their navy, Air Force and almost all of their heavy weaponry. They have no way to repel the assaults in the Donbas and the cauldron is closing by 2km, 5km all the time. Read up on why the Donbas is so important to this war and what it means in the next phases.

The Ukrainians are defeated - every independent and trustable military/intelligence expert has said this. Only people feeding on western mainstream media are unable to see the truth.

I look forward to your next post because I’m sure you will come back to tell us about these minor victories Ukraine makes ignoring the huge territorial and armed forces losses that they have.

For anyone else interested please research for yourselves and stop feeding on western mainstream media.

 

[bones]

I wonder if Russia has even highlighted their objectives of this war, it’s not very clear.

Irrespective $ is already up as expected and EU is bothered about twitter, what a joke.

The objectives were given very clearly by Putin and Lavrov. Crimea, Donbas and a land corridor between Russia and Crimea. Demilitarisation of Ukraine and denazification. This means eliminating the potential for Ukraine to attack ethnic Russians by military means. This also means annihilating the bases of the far right wing.

They will achieve these objectives and much more. I have explained in numerous posts why.

 

[JaDed]

The objectives were given very clearly by Putin and Lavrov. Crimea, Donbas and a land corridor between Russia and Crimea. Demilitarisation of Ukraine and denazification. This means eliminating the potential for Ukraine to attack ethnic Russians by military means. This also means annihilating the bases of the far right wing.

They will achieve these objectives and much more. I have explained in numerous posts why.

Lol@Denazification, Russia itself has some of the worst racist gangs .

Only the first point makes sense.

 

[MenInG]

Western allies must "double down" on support for Ukraine with both heavy weapons and air power, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said.

In a keynote foreign policy speech, Ms Truss said the international architecture intended to guarantee peace and prosperity had failed Ukraine in the face of an attack by a "desperate rogue operator" and now Kyiv must be given what it needs "to push Russia out".

Speaking at Mansion House in London said: "The war in Ukraine is our war - it is everyone's war because Ukraine's victory is a strategic imperative for all of us.

"Heavy weapons, tanks, aeroplanes - digging deep into our inventories, ramping up production. We need to do all of this."

NATO nations have supplied Ukraine with military supplies including missiles and armoured vehicles. But so far they have been reluctant to send fighter planes for fear of escalating the conflict.

She appeared to address this by saying: "Some argue we shouldn't provide heavy weapons for fear of provoking something worse.

"But my view, is that inaction would be the greatest provocation. This is a time for courage not for caution."

In this special programme we speak to experts in Russia and the UK about what will happen next in Ukraine.
Her speech came after a 63rd day of fighting, which saw Kherson particularly badly hit.

At one point, Russian television channels were knocked off-air following a series of explosions in the southern city which has been occupied by Russian troops since early in the war.

Its state news agency RIA Novosti said missiles and rockets were fired from the direction of the Ukrainian forces to the northwest.

Ukrayinska Pravda, an online newspaper, said the strikes set off a fire and knocked the Russian channels - which began broadcasting from Kherson last week - off the air.

Mykola Nahornyi tries to recover what remains of his belongings at his house destroyed, he says, by Russian shelling
Meanwhile, President Vladimir Putin warned of a "lightning fast" retaliation against any country that interferes in the conflict.

In an address to the Council of Legislators in St Petersburg, the Russian leader said "all the objectives will definitely be carried out" in the Ukraine war.

He said: "If someone intends to interfere in what is going on from the outside they must know that constitutes an unacceptable strategic threat to Russia.

"They must know that our response to counter-strikes will be lightning-fast."

He also vowed the goals of his military operation in Ukraine will be achieved.

"I want to emphasize again that all the tasks of the special military operation we are conducting in the Donbas and Ukraine... will be unconditionally fulfilled."

In key developments:

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrives in Ukrainian capital Kyiv ahead of talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Russian missiles have struck an arms depot housing weapons from the US and European countries, Moscow has claimed
The commander holed up inside Mariupol's Azovstal steelworks calls for a Dunkirk-style evacuation saying the situation there is dire
The frontline Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk has become a key target for Russian forces
The UK has now sent more than 5,000 anti-tank missiles to Ukraine - MoD
Russia expels eight Japanese and three Norwegian diplomats
Russia cut off natural gas to NATO members Poland and Bulgaria - and threatened to do the same to other countries
There are growing concerns for some 100,000 civilians still living in the besieged city of Mariupol.

Following a meeting between UN Secretary-General António Guterres and President Putin it has been agreed in principle that the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross should be involved in the evacuation of civilians from a besieged steel plant in the south eastern city.

U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that during their one-on-one meeting, Guterres and Putin "discussed the proposals for humanitarian assistance and evacuation of civilians from conflict zones, namely in relation to the situation in Mariupol."

The sprawling Azovstal steel plant has been almost completely destroyed by Russian attacks but it is the last pocket of organized Ukrainian resistance in Mariupol.

An estimated 2,000 troops and 1,000 civilians are said to be holed up in bunkers underneath the wrecked structure.

SKY

 

[James]

A British national has been killed in Ukraine and a second is missing, the UK Foreign Office has said.

Sources in Ukraine told the BBC the dead man is Scott Sibley, who is understood to have been fighting for Ukrainian forces.

He is the first British national confirmed to have been killed in the conflict and has been described as a "friend like no other".

The Foreign Office has not released the identity of either person.

But a spokesman said it was supporting both their families.

Details of Mr Sibley's death and how or when the second person went missing have not been given.

Diplomatic sources have said it was most likely the two individuals were foreign volunteers serving with Ukrainian armed forces in either Mariupol or elsewhere in Donbas.

Tributes have been paid online to Mr Sibley, who is understood to be a former member of British armed forces.

 

[James]

President Biden is asking Congress for $33bn (£27bn) in military, economic and humanitarian assistance to support Ukraine - although he insisted that the US was not "attacking Russia".

Mr Biden said it was "critical" for US lawmakers to approve the deal, which he said would help Ukraine defend itself.

The proposal includes more than $20bn in military aid, $8.5bn in economic aid and $3bn in humanitarian aid.

"It's not cheap," Mr Biden said on Thursday.

"But caving to aggression is going to be more costly if we allow it to happen."

Although the US has already announced help for Ukraine, the proposals are a significant ramping up of aid.

President Biden said US military support to Ukraine has so far amounted to 10 anti-tank weapons for every tank that Russia has deployed to Ukraine.

But despite his strong rhetoric, he said the US was not attacking Russia. "We are helping Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression," he insisted.

On Thursday, a spokesperson for Russia's Foreign Ministry said Western military support for Ukraine threatens "the security of the continent".

In his speech on Thursday, Mr Biden also addressed concerns over a nuclear confrontation.

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned of a "serious" risk of nuclear war over Ukraine which "can't be underestimated".

"No one should be making idle comments about the use of nuclear weapons," Mr Biden said.

Additionally, Mr Biden took aim at what he termed Russian "gas blackmail" to threaten European energy supplies.

This week, Russia cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria.

"We will not let Russia intimidate or blackmail their way out of these sanctions," he said.

“We will not allow them to use their oil and gas to avoid consequences for their aggression."

 

[MenInG]

Around 8,000 British soldiers are due to be sent to eastern Europe to take part in military exercises designed to combat Russian aggression.

The deployment - which is one of the largest to take place since the Cold War - will see troops placed in countries from Finland to North Macedonia.

Dozens of tanks and more than 100 armoured fighting vehicles will also be sent to the locations this summer under plans that have been bolstered since the war in Ukraine began.

Live updates on the war in Ukraine

The armed forces will be joined by tens of thousands of troops from NATO and Joint Expeditionary Force allies, which include the likes of Denmark, Iceland and Norway.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the planned exercises will improve the ability of UK and Finnish troops to work alongside each other, "deterring Russian aggression in Scandinavia and the Baltic states".

Key developments:

Ukraine names 10 Russian soldiers suspected of human rights abuses
Biden to ask Congress for additional $33bn to help Ukraine
Russian forces used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse a pro-Ukraine rally in Kherson
Tributes paid to former British soldier killed in Ukraine
Russia accused of preventing wounded Ukrainian soldiers from being evacuated from steel plant
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the move will show "solidarity and strength".

"The security of Europe has never been more important. These exercises will see our troops join forces with allies and partners across NATO and the Joint Expeditionary Force in a show of solidarity and strength in one of the largest shared deployments since the Cold War," he said.

British Army Attack Helicopters operated by 4 Regiment Army Air Corps (AAC) 664 Squadron prepare to deploy onto EXERCISE SWIFT RESPONSE located in North Macedonia. ..The deployment of the Apache AH-64 British Army Attack Helicopters into the region will build on the existing relationships with our NATO allies, and promote interoperability with NATO Aviation equivalents. It will also allow pilots, ground support crews, and maintenance technicians to hone their skills in forward locations in order to promote efficient practices, and increase the operational scope of the 1st Aviation Brigade Combat Team (BCT).

"Operating across Europe, the British Army will stand alongside partners, combining our capabilities and shared values, promoting peace and security."

The UK deployment is expected to build to a peak of around 8,000 personnel operating in mainland Europe between April and June.

Some of the exercises are set to involve parachute drops, helicopter-borne air assaults Challenger 2 tanks.

The drills aim to "showcase the scale and significance of the British Army's contribution to the defence of Europe", the MoD added.

Commander Field Army Lieutenant General Ralph Wooddisse explained: "The UK makes a significant contribution to the defence of Europe and the deterrence of Russian aggression. The British Army's series of exercises is fundamental to both.

"The scale of the deployment, coupled with the professionalism, training and agility of the British Army, will deter aggression at a scale not seen in Europe this century."

Exercises alongside American troops are also taking place in Poland.

SKY

 

[cpleigh]

Poland just confirmed it has delivered 200 tanks to Ukraine and will guarantee Slovakia's airspace if they transfer their MIGS to Ukraine.

Looks like Europe and the West have had enough of Putins bluster and either don't believe him or don't care.

Dr Mike Martin (a professor in warfare) gave a speech this morning at Kings college London, he thinks Russia has missed it's chance of the Donbass, the war will peak in 2-4 weeks and then the Ukrainian will go on the offensive and drive Russia out

 

[bones]

The west are sending a couple hundred pieces of artillery. To put things into context the Russians have deployed over 2000 pieces to the East. The Russians are actually capturing a lot of the equipment too. The Russians have been given the order to go very slowly by Putin, he does not want to lose soldiers in a battle where the result is inevitable.

Right now apparently 1 Ukranian battalion up to 1000 soldiers is surrounded near Izyum. They have nowhere to go because they are pinned near Oskil river.

 

[cpleigh]

Bones.... sorry but the west aren't sending a couple of hundred pieces of artillery.

Where are you getting that crap from? Tanks, Armoured vehicles etc are soon to pour into Ukraine. Even the germans have / are sending tanks.

The Russians haven't been given any order, they are fighting against dug in Ukranians who are fighting a defensive war. That will change as soon as the Russian lines either get stretched or they run out of ammo, fuel or men.

 

[silentkiller187]

Two British aid workers Paul Urey and Dylan Healy reportedly captured by Russian forces in Ukraine


Two British aid workers who have reportedly been captured by Russian forces in Ukraine have been named.

UK non-profit organisation Presidium Network said Paul Urey, 45, and Dylan Healy, 22, were captured on Monday.

They are understood to have been captured at a checkpoint south of the city of Zaporizhzhia in south-eastern Ukraine.

Mr Urey has been described as a "family man with children" who "didn't make the army" so decided to work in the humanitarian sector and travels lots.

Mr Urey's family said in a statement: "My family and I are extremely worried. We know Paul and his friend who are humanitarian aid volunteers in Ukraine have been captured by the Russians.

"He was out there on his own accord. We want everyone's support to bring him home and pray he is safe."

They said Mr Urey was Type 1 diabetic and needs insulin.

Meanwhile, Mr Healy was previously a kitchen manager at a hotel chain in the UK.

Presidium Network said the pair were working as volunteers and were known by the organisation but not linked to them.

It said the pair were working to evacuate a woman and two children from the region when they were captured at a Russian military checkpoint.

Mr Urey last contacted the Presidium Network at 4am. Since then, they have received messages from someone claiming to be the volunteer, but who was unable to provide personal details to confirm their identity.

Three hours after they were captured, the house of the woman who the pair were evacuating was stormed by Russian soldiers who made her husband lie on the floor and asked her how she "knew these British spies".

Dominik Byrne, one of the founders of the Presidium Network, said: "Our concern for these individuals is that the Russians will paint them as British spies which is untrue. They are civilian volunteers."

Earlier International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan told Sky News the Foreign Office was "doing all it can to support" them.

It comes after a British army veteran was killed and another British man went missing after they were believed to have travelled to Ukraine to fight against Russian forces.

Scott Sibley, 36, was confirmed as the first British national to have died in the war.

Earlier this month, two British fighters, Shaun Pinner and Aiden Aslin, were captured by Moscow's forces.

The pair have been held in Ukraine and appeared on Russian state TV. They asked to be swapped for Viktor Medvedchuk, a Ukrainian politician who is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

https://news.sky.com/story/two-brit...aptured-by-russian-forces-in-ukraine-12601624

 

[bones]

Bones.... sorry but the west aren't sending a couple of hundred pieces of artillery.

Where are you getting that crap from? Tanks, Armoured vehicles etc are soon to pour into Ukraine. Even the germans have / are sending tanks.

The Russians haven't been given any order, they are fighting against dug in Ukranians who are fighting a defensive war. That will change as soon as the Russian lines either get stretched or they run out of ammo, fuel or men.

The information I'm getting is from both sides and journalists on the ground there, but most importantly military experts who know what they're talking about.

The west are trying to send equipment to Ukraine, I don't doubt that. They've been sending equipment in already and before the Russian invasion. The thing people don't realise is that it's too little and too late. None of this equipment is getting to the frontlines. They need to get it transported around 1000km. Only possibly by train or road, well the Russians have taken out the railway connections and the Ukranians will never get it across by road without being detected.

You are feasting on western propaganda so you only see things through one side. The Russians suffered huge losses earlier on due to the fast pace of the attacks and trying to minimise civilian casualties. Putin has given the order that the Russian forces are prevent losses and they can do this because they are in no hurry. The entire battlefield is their's they have all the advantages. Supply and comms lines are established, they have air supremacy and the most important thing, Ukraine have no way of launching counter offensives in this region at anything above a tactical level.

Ukraine will run out of ammo long before Russia does.

Seriously stop watching BBC and Sky news and get some proper independent of what's happening.

 

[cpleigh]

The information I'm getting is from both sides and journalists on the ground there, but most importantly military experts who know what they're talking about.

The west are trying to send equipment to Ukraine, I don't doubt that. They've been sending equipment in already and before the Russian invasion. The thing people don't realise is that it's too little and too late. None of this equipment is getting to the frontlines. They need to get it transported around 1000km. Only possibly by train or road, well the Russians have taken out the railway connections and the Ukranians will never get it across by road without being detected.

You are feasting on western propaganda so you only see things through one side. The Russians suffered huge losses earlier on due to the fast pace of the attacks and trying to minimise civilian casualties. Putin has given the order that the Russian forces are prevent losses and they can do this because they are in no hurry. The entire battlefield is their's they have all the advantages. Supply and comms lines are established, they have air supremacy and the most important thing, Ukraine have no way of launching counter offensives in this region at anything above a tactical level.

Ukraine will run out of ammo long before Russia does.

Seriously stop watching BBC and Sky news and get some proper independent of what's happening.

You have literally swallowed every piece of Kremlin propaganda they have given.. from the ludicrous 'special operation to De nazify Ukraine' to 'we have pulled back from Kiev for the sake of peace talks' to the 'Bucha was staged' nonsense. Hook... Line... and sinker.

You keep going on about the BBC and Sky news, they also have people in Ukraine, you keep calling out the west for propaganda but seem oblvious to Russia crap.

 

[bones]

You have literally swallowed every piece of Kremlin propaganda they have given.. from the ludicrous 'special operation to De nazify Ukraine' to 'we have pulled back from Kiev for the sake of peace talks' to the 'Bucha was staged' nonsense. Hook... Line... and sinker.

You keep going on about the BBC and Sky news, they also have people in Ukraine, you keep calling out the west for propaganda but seem oblvious to Russia crap.

The BBC and Sky don't have a single journalist in Donbas and if they do they're not reporting anything.

So we should believe what they say even though no one is on the ground and no one has a clue of the reality at the frontline.

 

[cpleigh]

The BBC and Sky don't have a single journalist in Donbas and if they do they're not reporting anything.

So we should believe what they say even though no one is on the ground and no one has a clue of the reality at the frontline.

odd that... just watched a report os Sky news from a journo who is in the Donbass, Luhansk to be precise.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Bones.... sorry but the west aren't sending a couple of hundred pieces of artillery.

Where are you getting that crap from? Tanks, Armoured vehicles etc are soon to pour into Ukraine. Even the germans have / are sending tanks.

The Russians haven't been given any order, they are fighting against dug in Ukranians who are fighting a defensive war. That will change as soon as the Russian lines either get stretched or they run out of ammo, fuel or men.

This is actually an act of war. I assume you would be ok with Russia targetting Nato nations where these weapons are oringally sent? Russia has every right.

You are in cuckoo land if you think Russia is losing this war. lol

Putin spoke to the UN chief who was begging for(civilians) those in the Azovsteel works to be given a corridor. Putin replied over 140,000 have left the town, they are also free to leave. Why arent the Nazis allowing them to leave? UN chief had no answer. Imo there is a Nato commander or some high level western person who they want to hide.

Supporting Nazis and Nato together must a be low for any sane person.

 

[cpleigh]

Countries have every right to buy weapons to defend themselves. Russia attacked and invaded Ukraine. Not the other way round.

How is it an act of war? Those countries havent attacked Russia have they?

Russia can target NATO... if it wants a quick destruction of themselves.

lay off the Nazi garbage, they received around 2% of the votes in Ukraine

 

[KingKhanWC]

Countries have every right to buy weapons to defend themselves. Russia attacked and invaded Ukraine. Not the other way round.

How is it an act of war? Those countries havent attacked Russia have they?

Russia can target NATO... if it wants a quick destruction of themselves.

lay off the Nazi garbage, they received around 2% of the votes in Ukraine

You are so clueless, I would suggest you read this thread from the start to understand the basics of this conflict instead of blindly cheerleading Nazis and Nato.

If Russia was providing tanks, jets, missiles to Mexico who was at war with USA, it would be seen as an act of war. There are also SAS and other Nato troops inside Ukraine. NAto has been training them for years now.

Nazis are ingrained into the whole Ukranian system. Do you know what the National guard is?

If you think Russia is losing what happened to your Nazi heros in Marioupol? lol

 

[Technics 1210]

1 USD now 71 Rubles.

Keep in mind, the USD has gained in strength of late.

So much for the sanctions, Russia has won the real war - the war of economies.

 

[JaDed]

https://www.reuters.com/world/europ...r-bond-payments-bid-avoid-default-2022-04-29/


Russia makes last-gasp dollar bond payments in bid to avoid default

————

Russia should show how powerful it is and make the payment in Roubles challenge the US $ lol

 

[bones]

Every single day now video after video of dead or captured Ukrainians. Hardly any of Russians. It’s only going to get worse.

 

[mazkhan]

You are so clueless, I would suggest you read this thread from the start to understand the basics of this conflict instead of blindly cheerleading Nazis and Nato.

If Russia was providing tanks, jets, missiles to Mexico who was at war with USA, it would be seen as an act of war. There are also SAS and other Nato troops inside Ukraine. NAto has been training them for years now.

Nazis are ingrained into the whole Ukranian system. Do you know what the National guard is?

If you think Russia is losing what happened to your Nazi heros in Marioupol? lol

The only troops doing well are the muslim ones like chechens and those Mongolian Chinese face type soldiers russia has I don't know whether they are Muslim or mixture of Muslims or other religions .

But the ethnic Russian themselves are struggling they are struggling to kill their own ukranian Christians brothers they have no heart for the fight hence why putin is looking for mercenaries like chechens Syrians etc

 

[KingKhanWC]

The only troops doing well are the muslim ones like chechens and those Mongolian Chinese face type soldiers russia has I don't know whether they are Muslim or mixture of Muslims or other religions .

But the ethnic Russian themselves are struggling they are struggling to kill their own ukranian Christians brothers they have no heart for the fight hence why putin is looking for mercenaries like chechens Syrians etc

You do realise Russia has sent in conscript soldiers into Ukraine? Along with a few different regiments of elite troops such as the Chechens.

The aim of Nato the worlds biggest terrorist was to weaken/break Russia in a proxy war which Nato members have now admitted. It was never because they cared for the Ukranians. lol.

But Russia and Putin are not stupid, they wont allow all their elite forces to be targetted in a proxy war when Nato troops arent doing the fighting & keeping safe. Russia has held back its elite forces in case the war escalates into a war with Nato.

Elite troops are sent to come in and destroy the enemy, the rest then seal off/keep control of the territory.

Remember the Nazis lining pigs fat to their weapons in Mariupol? Chechens didt vaparise , they instead vaparised the Nazis to hell. Its one of the greatest victories in modern warfare.

Russia hasnt used even 5% of its army or weaponary. If Russia wished it could have destroyed all of Ukraine in a week but no need as the puppet PM of Ukraine will soon enough flee with his family and close aids esp now since UK have given him British citizenship according to some reports. He was never in danger, has been paid over $1 billion to be the actor in this soap opera and just like the Afghan puppets will run like a dog when its nearly over or over.

 

[bones]

If Russia wished it could have destroyed all of Ukraine in a week.

Precisely. Many people don’t even realise that Russia have gone in soft. Hardly any bombers used, hardly any use of their thermobaric weapons and they haven’t even bothered with latest tank and fighter jet.

The Russians left the trains running in Ukraine until day 62!

If the Russians wanted to, then there was literally nothing to stop them from sending Ukraine in the Stone Age like America does.

If Nato wants to escalate then good luck because the Russians have hypersonic missiles too.

 

[MenInG]

Russia is attempting to "empty" the Donbas of people and peace talks are in danger of collapsing, Ukraine's president has claimed.

Speaking in his nightly address, Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of carrying out "constant brutal bombardments" on buildings and residential areas of the eastern region of his country.

He compared the barrage of attacks as similar to the situation in Mariupol - a key port city that has been largely destroyed after being hit by almost daily strikes since the Russian invasion began in February.

 

[cpleigh]

Precisely. Many people don’t even realise that Russia have gone in soft. Hardly any bombers used, hardly any use of their thermobaric weapons and they haven’t even bothered with latest tank and fighter jet.

The Russians left the trains running in Ukraine until day 62!

If the Russians wanted to, then there was literally nothing to stop them from sending Ukraine in the Stone Age like America does.

If Nato wants to escalate then good luck because the Russians have hypersonic missiles too.

there is a world of difference between the US military and Russia. Even you must admit that... right?

They didnt think they had to attack the rail infrastructure, they thought Kyiv would fall in 3 says. They still havent gained air superiority.. unbelivably.

I see someone has swallowed the Hypersonic missile brief from the kremlin. If NATO wished to escalate, which they don't Russia would become the worlds largest wildlife reserve.

The 2 just dont stack up, NATO has access to far far more troops and weapons

 

[bones]

there is a world of difference between the US military and Russia. Even you must admit that... right?

They didnt think they had to attack the rail infrastructure, they thought Kyiv would fall in 3 says. They still havent gained air superiority.. unbelivably.

I see someone has swallowed the Hypersonic missile brief from the kremlin. If NATO wished to escalate, which they don't Russia would become the worlds largest wildlife reserve.

The 2 just dont stack up, NATO has access to far far more troops and weapons

Your position is typical of people who have no ability to think outside the messages from mainstream media.

Firstly the Russians went in soft they did not want to damage civilian infrastructure and they wanted to avoid civilian casualties. This idea simply hasn’t registered in your head. Now that the west is trying to send weapons to Ukraine and across to the frontlines the Russians have taken out the rail links. The only reason the railway system was working until day 62 was because the Russians allowed it.

NATO are just as terrified of Russia as Russia is of them. That’s why we have this proxy war and not an actual one. Russia has hypersonic missiles and there is evidence they have used them twice in this war so far, once in the west on a NATO base and once somewhere in the east at another base.

The Americans through former military leaders have said that they don’t have any such missiles and they don’t have a counter. These former military men are furious about how they have fallen behind here. These missiles are highly advanced and can change direction and from Moscow they can reach many European cities in minutes. There are also confirmed reports that Russia have now tested a hypersonic missile capable of travelling up to 18000km. The bottom line is Russia can escalate to a level that is not good for anyone.

Scott Ritter, Jacob Dreiser, Colonel Doug MacGregor & Larry C Johnson are all former American military men and you should listen to them. As they don’t give messages which fit western propaganda they are not given airtime on mainstream media. But the message is clear and unanimous, Russia has already won this war but the puppet regime is needlessly continuing because their masters have told them.

To prove the point please have a look at social media and see the number of destroyed Ukrainian positions every day, the dead soldiers all over and many captured. Then compare to how many you see of the Russians. It’s like night and day.

Please provide evidence of the Russian plans and timelines. I would love to see them since you happen to know they are “behind schedule” or “changing the objectives”.

 

[cpleigh]

plenty of evidence. Russia actually published a victory of Kyiv report in the Russian press, that had to be taken down. Russian troops and tanks captured also had victory uniforms.

You keep saying you look at reports from both sides, what you actually mean is you watch Russian propaganda reports mixed with with idiots like Scott Ritter. (a convicted Peado, with very outspoken anti US views, like.... the US had no hope of invading Iraq).

Russia has lost 20,000 soldiers and an unbelievable amount of hardware. Do you honestly believe that was in Putins plan? Did Putin want to fail at capturing Kyiv and get bogged down in a war in the Donbas? Interesting tactics if true.

Keep believing NATO are terrified.... but all recent evidence suggests they aren't.

 

[90MPH]

Bones is one of the most deluded propagandists I have ever seen.

He is literally just projecting and repeating authoritarian talking points of a regime - the defeats and the casualties that the Russians have suffered and switching it around to say it’s all happening to the Ukrainians. Yeah good one dude.
No one is going to believe the nonsense you is spewing (other than those already converted to this baloney) as there is documented video and photographic evidence of Russian equipment loses happening in Ukraine.

Just to infrom people more clearly on here there are 2 people on twitter who are not Ukrainian but of Turkish and British decent named as Oryx and Ukraine Weapons Tracker.
They are keeping just a visual illustrated loss of Ukrainian and Russian Military equipment loses since the start of the war.
Oryx said that Russia was losing so much millitary equipment during the start of April that he and other weapon monitors couldn’t catch up to document it in time.
Remember these are just the Visual loses - the actual loses are obviously much higher.
There are tons and tons of videos and pics of Russian armour just becoming twisted metal junk. Yet some are trying to fool who exactly thay this is going swimmingly well for the Russian forces ? Too bad for them it’s now 2022 and not 2002 as mobile photographic technology didn’t exist back then.

I will add a breakdown later of the total visual loses that are documented and can’t be disputed but it’s staggering with those figures alone how much of a disaster and mess Russia has tangled themselves in.

 

[bones]

plenty of evidence. Russia actually published a victory of Kyiv report in the Russian press, that had to be taken down. Russian troops and tanks captured also had victory uniforms.

You keep saying you look at reports from both sides, what you actually mean is you watch Russian propaganda reports mixed with with idiots like Scott Ritter. (a convicted Peado, with very outspoken anti US views, like.... the US had no hope of invading Iraq).

Russia has lost 20,000 soldiers and an unbelievable amount of hardware. Do you honestly believe that was in Putins plan? Did Putin want to fail at capturing Kyiv and get bogged down in a war in the Donbas? Interesting tactics if true.

Keep believing NATO are terrified.... but all recent evidence suggests they aren't.

As expected no evidence, no source. I'll wait for some actual links of containing the Russian battle plans. Please share those plans with the rest of us.

Russia suffered huge losses at the start - no one is denying that but you have to understand why. They went in too soft, so they were open to lots of ambushes and artillery fire. They aren't losing many troops now. I tell you who is losing lots of troops - the NATO trained Ukranian army. There are so many videos, fresh videos coming out of the Donbas where scores of Ukranian soldiers are being killed or are surrendering. Russian forces are capturing all sorts of equipment, tanks, missiles, artillery, western supplied small arms etc. You don't see many videos of Ukranian farms towing anything now do you?

Do you have any idea of what a fixing move is? It's been used many times in many wars before. You move your troops somewhere so you can split the enemy and strengthen your position. The Kyiv move was brilliant - the rewards of it are now being seen in the Donbas as the Russians slowly and methodically ground the Ukranians down.

Let's ignore Scott Ritter for a moment - as always people target the messenger rather than the message. So I saw a video where Colonel Douglas Macgregor said when he discussed the Russian strategy with his colleagues who have experience in actual wars - his conclusion was that the Russians simply didn't have enough troops to mount a successful assault in Ukraine so they had to manouvre. They suspected the manouvre would be to Kyiv because of the distance to the Donbas and also it's a very threatening posture. No sane military man expected Russia to take Kyiv, it's too big and 50k is nowhere near enough forces. If Russia deployed just 10k to the Kyiv fixing move, the Ukranians wouldn't have been as threatened and redeployed trools to their positions in the Donbas. Only when Mariupol had been taken and only when supply and comms lines had been established in the Donbas did the Russians withdraw. These military men laugh at the notion it was a defeat of the Russians.

If you disagree with these military men, then please tell us how you would have taken a city of 3 million with huge rivers and reservoirs with just 50k troops. I'd love to here your thoughts.

Bottomline you have no military expertise - I have no military expertise. So we should listen to those who has expertise to make informed conclusions.

 

[bones]

Bones is one of the most deluded propagandists I have ever seen.

He is literally just projecting and repeating authoritarian talking points of a regime - the defeats and the casualties that the Russians have suffered and switching it around to say it’s all happening to the Ukrainians. Yeah good one dude.
No one is going to believe the nonsense you is spewing (other than those already converted to this baloney) as there is documented video and photographic evidence of Russian equipment loses happening in Ukraine.

Just to infrom people more clearly on here there are 2 people on twitter who are not Ukrainian but of Turkish and British decent named as Oryx and Ukraine Weapons Tracker.
They are keeping just a visual illustrated loss of Ukrainian and Russian Military equipment loses since the start of the war.
Oryx said that Russia was losing so much millitary equipment during the start of April that he and other weapon monitors couldn’t catch up to document it in time.
Remember these are just the Visual loses - the actual loses are obviously much higher.
There are tons and tons of videos and pics of Russian armour just becoming twisted metal junk. Yet some are trying to fool who exactly thay this is going swimmingly well for the Russian forces ? Too bad for them it’s now 2022 and not 2002 as mobile photographic technology didn’t exist back then.

I will add a breakdown later of the total visual loses that are documented and can’t be disputed but it’s staggering with those figures alone how much of a disaster and mess Russia has tangled themselves in.

The delusion is on the part of people who feast on western propaganda and don't bother to do their own research. I actually am watching independent journalists and military men in the west. I could watch Russian propaganda with subtitles, but there's no need because the message coming from honest guys in the west is the same. Russia are winning and winning decisely.

You missed all of my previous messages so I will repeat again. The Russians suffered huge losses in phase 1. In the thousands, but so did the Ukranians. The Russians went in soft but fast. If you do that you risk huge losses and there were. There was plenty of footage of destroyed or abandoned Russian vehicles. The Ukranians were losing a lot of equipment too, loads. But the Russians were smart, they took the mobile phones away from their soldiers so we saw very little footage from their perspective. Despite these huge losses one side was making gains all over and the other side was calling for military aid. That should tell you how things have been going from the outset.

The strategy has changed in phase 2, this is because they have established supply lines and comms lines. The Russians aren't losing many soldiers now and they aren't losing a lot of equipment. When was the last time you say a Ukranian farmer towing an abandoned/destroyed tank? How many videos are coming about captured Russian soldiers? There are so few that the narrative has changed to how evil the Russians and all these false flag incidents.

You spend a lot of time going on and on about the Russian losses. But very little about Ukrainian losses and Russian gains. If you think I'm biased, then please spend 5 mins on social media and look at it from a Russian perspective and then from a Ukranian perspective and then come back and tell me the Ukranians are winning.

 

[bones]

Can I ask our resident military experts the following question.

If Russia is losing so badly and losing so much equipment. Why are Ukraine the ones pleading for more military support?

I mean surely if they are winning and surely if they are capturing or destroying so much Russian equipment they don't need to plead for outside help and more equipment right? So...

If Russia is losing so badly and losing so much equipment. Why are Ukraine the ones pleading for more military support?

 

[cpleigh]

Can I ask our resident military experts the following question.

If Russia is losing so badly and losing so much equipment. Why are Ukraine the ones pleading for more military support?

I mean surely if they are winning and surely if they are capturing or destroying so much Russian equipment they don't need to plead for outside help and more equipment right? So...

If Russia is losing so badly and losing so much equipment. Why are Ukraine the ones pleading for more military support?

have you ever heard of ratios? Seriously??? Russia started off with a ridiculous advantage of hardware. So much so that Ukraine could only fight a defensive war.

Its really very simple. The more weapons Ukraine now receive the more they can go on the attack.

BTW i didn't say Russia was losing, but they certainly aren't winning.

 

[bones]

have you ever heard of ratios? Seriously??? Russia started off with a ridiculous advantage of hardware. So much so that Ukraine could only fight a defensive war.

Its really very simple. The more weapons Ukraine now receive the more they can go on the attack.

BTW i didn't say Russia was losing, but they certainly aren't winning.

The Ukrainians haven’t been able to mount a counter offensive since the start, not at the battalion level. So why do you think they can do that now? The Russians have destroyed much of the Ukrainian equipment so far, what difference will a couple hundred additional equipment make?

 

[cpleigh]

The Ukrainians haven’t been able to mount a counter offensive since the start, not at the battalion level. So why do you think they can do that now? The Russians have destroyed much of the Ukrainian equipment so far, what difference will a couple hundred additional equipment make?

what?... They have counter attacked around Kyiv, Kharkiv and Kherson. 1000 Russian tanks gone. Ukraine now has more tanks than it started with, thats without the tanks coming from NATO.

Of course you wouldn't know that, according to the Kremlin everything is going to plan

 

[bones]

what?... They have counter attacked around Kyiv, Kharkiv and Kherson. 1000 Russian tanks gone. Ukraine now has more tanks than it started with, thats without the tanks coming from NATO.

Of course you wouldn't know that, according to the Kremlin everything is going to plan

Everything is going to plan for the Russians in Donbas without question.

The counter offensives you talk about are either withdrawals from Russia or at a low level. A meaningful counter offensive would be at the BTG level or higher.

If you want to believe that Kyiv was a counter offensive then feel free to. If the Ukrainians have so many tanks why are they losing territory all over Donbas?

A trustable journalist covering events in Donbas recently said that things started to change around the 4-5 weeks mark when supply lines for Russia had been established. Up until then it was balanced on the ground even if the Russians had air superiority. Since then the sheer volume of vehicles that Russia has brought to the frontlines is massive. This massive force has turned barrages from a near 1:1 ratio to 20:1. There is literally nothing Ukraine can do.

The situation is so bad in Donbas for Ukraine.

 

[Pakpak]

Russia has done very poorly, even the most honest Russian supporters should admit that. They DID try and take Kyiv; the evidence is them paratrooping Spetsnaz commandos during the first 2-3 days of the war in Kyiv, who were then routed. They then attempted to punch their way through with the massive 40km military convoy which fizzled into nothing.

Their performance has been garbage and it has been catastrophic for their military image.

BUT

Saying all that

Not sure why people compare it to Iraq.

Iraq was smashed in 1991 by a coalition of about half a world. After their military was dismantled they were then starved with sanctions and humiliated with no fly zones for one and a half decade. When their military was nothing but a paper number, the US went all in with first flattening all their major cities with air strikes and then went in. When all of this was happening noone sanctioned the US or UK. Noone provided Iraq daily intelligence of US and UK's units. Noone provided Iraq with state of the art weapons by the day.

Kyiv was not flattened. Ukraine has the best intelligence from the West. They're getting weapons on an insane level, infact those weapons like the Javelins are the reason the tide turned in the North Ukraine. Russia is also sanctioned deep into their eye balls.

While Russia has done horrendously in the war, there is no comparison of Iraq and Ukraine.

 

[bones]

Russia has done very poorly, even the most honest Russian supporters should admit that. They DID try and take Kyiv; the evidence is them paratrooping Spetsnaz commandos during the first 2-3 days of the war in Kyiv, who were then routed. They then attempted to punch their way through with the massive 40km military convoy which fizzled into nothing.

Their performance has been garbage and it has been catastrophic for their military image.

Kyiv was not flattened. Ukraine has the best intelligence from the West. They're getting weapons on an insane level, infact those weapons like the Javelins are the reason the tide turned in the North Ukraine. Russia is also sanctioned deep into their eye balls.

I have handled nonsense like this numerous times already. But if you want to get an analysis of the Russian performance why not listen to military experts?

Russia’s economy believe it or not is coping with the sanctions the ruble is at pre war levels.

 

[jaf348]

Bones is one of the most deluded propagandists I have ever seen.

He is literally just projecting and repeating authoritarian talking points of a regime - the defeats and the casualties that the Russians have suffered and switching it around to say it’s all happening to the Ukrainians. Yeah good one dude.
No one is going to believe the nonsense you is spewing (other than those already converted to this baloney) as there is documented video and photographic evidence of Russian equipment loses happening in Ukraine.

Just to infrom people more clearly on here there are 2 people on twitter who are not Ukrainian but of Turkish and British decent named as Oryx and Ukraine Weapons Tracker.
They are keeping just a visual illustrated loss of Ukrainian and Russian Military equipment loses since the start of the war.
Oryx said that Russia was losing so much millitary equipment during the start of April that he and other weapon monitors couldn’t catch up to document it in time.
Remember these are just the Visual loses - the actual loses are obviously much higher.
There are tons and tons of videos and pics of Russian armour just becoming twisted metal junk. Yet some are trying to fool who exactly thay this is going swimmingly well for the Russian forces ? Too bad for them it’s now 2022 and not 2002 as mobile photographic technology didn’t exist back then.

I will add a breakdown later of the total visual loses that are documented and can’t be disputed but it’s staggering with those figures alone how much of a disaster and mess Russia has tangled themselves in.

I take what I see on CNN or BBC with as much a grain of salt as what I see on RT. It's hilarious seeing some of the names being thrown out there as trusted and reliable sources.

Scott Ritter - convicted pedophile
Douglas MacGregor - Fox News regular lol. Quoted on 5th March that the war would be over within 10 days
Patrick Lancaster - a blogger at best posing as an "independent" Western journalist
Graham Phillips - sex tourist that used to write reviews of brothels in Ukraine now posing as another "independent" Western journalist

 

[Noman]

We could have gotten cheaper oil and gas deals from Russia, if these corrupt people had any love for Pakistan and Pakistani people. Imran Khan went to Russia for cheaper oil and gas in future, but USA keeps destroying and interfering in pakistan economy and keeping us dependent on them and IMF will in the end destroy common Pakistani citizens economy, we need better relations to India but the Army and Indian B

 

[bones]

I take what I see on CNN or BBC with as much a grain of salt as what I see on RT. It's hilarious seeing some of the names being thrown out there as trusted and reliable sources.

Scott Ritter - convicted pedophile
Douglas MacGregor - Fox News regular lol. Quoted on 5th March that the war would be over within 10 days
Patrick Lancaster - a blogger at best posing as an "independent" Western journalist
Graham Phillips - sex tourist that used to write reviews of brothels in Ukraine now posing as another "independent" Western journalist

Instead of debating the message everyone seems to love going after the messenger.

 

[Pakpak]

I have handled nonsense like this numerous times already. But if you want to get an analysis of the Russian performance why not listen to military experts?

Russia’s economy believe it or not is coping with the sanctions the ruble is at pre war levels.

Your trash has been dismantled many times by other posters.

Russians have been humiliated and booted out of Northern Ukraine and have been a total embarrassment so far. Its dire how other than Kherson they haven't been able to take anything. They're still blundering around Kharkiv.

As for ruble, this is what the convict Ishaq Dar used to do. Burn reserves to keep the currency artificially high. It won't last

 

[Pakpak]

I take what I see on CNN or BBC with as much a grain of salt as what I see on RT. It's hilarious seeing some of the names being thrown out there as trusted and reliable sources.

Scott Ritter - convicted pedophile
Douglas MacGregor - Fox News regular lol. Quoted on 5th March that the war would be over within 10 days
Patrick Lancaster - a blogger at best posing as an "independent" Western journalist
Graham Phillips - sex tourist that used to write reviews of brothels in Ukraine now posing as another "independent" Western journalist

According to bones these are military experts

 

[bones]

Your trash has been dismantled many times by other posters.

Russians have been humiliated and booted out of Northern Ukraine and have been a total embarrassment so far. Its dire how other than Kherson they haven't been able to take anything. They're still blundering around Kharkiv.

As for ruble, this is what the convict Ishaq Dar used to do. Burn reserves to keep the currency artificially high. It won't last

When clowns keep typing nonsense like Russia aimed to take Kyiv with 40-50k soldiers against a Nato trained army is it worth debating with them?

The Russians have used 190-200k units to take an area the size of England and Wales and that too with one arm tied behind their back. History tells us you need 4 or 5 times that too conquer a territory the size of Ukraine.

It’s quite funny on this forum we have so many fools who preach western propaganda, yet on the Pakistani Defence Forum they are most praising the Russians for shaping the battlefield.

Just look at the Indian and Pakistani defence forums, going to early March they were calling the move around Kyiv a fixing move.

As for the economics I’m no expert but the experts have said Russia will be fine. They will suffer a deep recession but as production ramps up they will come out of it. Russia will look to the east for trade and the ball is set in motion.

 

[bones]

According to bones these are military experts

These guys have fought in wars and held positions of authority in either the UN or US government. They’re more qualified to talk about the strategy on the battlefield than you or I. They also have contacts who have equally high positions.

Colonel Douglas MacGregor was part of the establishment that tried to push for Ukrainian neutrality but they didn’t have enough time or influence to see it through under Trump.

The sad part is no one listens to the message, it’s always a case of trying to target the messenger instead.

 

[bones]

Anogher point that everyone overlooks. The Ukrainians have had 8 long years to fortify their positions in the Donbas. So dismantling these positions which are often in civilian areas takes time. America couldn’t do it Afghanistan and most of the soldiers there had nothing more than some assault rifles and grenade launchers.

 

[bones]

Regarding the economic aspect. Russia might not be doing well but what about Europe? Farmers can’t afford fertiliser, inflation is sky rocketing and we’re going to have massive food and energy shortages by late summer if not sooner. Russia isn’t going to have any food or energy shortages- but we are.

 

[James]

Feels like this “war” might end up being linked to a great deal of losses and not many victories to speak of, and could be historicised as a disputed outcome.

 

[Maher96]

Russia is reportedly ramping up its attacks ahead of a possible renewed offensive in the east of Ukraine 66 days into the war.

"Russian troops are gradually increasing the intensity of their offensive in eastern Ukraine," Ukrainian defence ministry spokesman Oleksandr Motuzyanyk warned.

"There are signs that the aggressor is preparing for an even bigger activation of military actions."

The warning comes as Western officials painted a picture of the invading forces facing serious problems.

The UK Ministry of Defence said on Saturday that Russia has been forced to merge and redeploy "depleted and disparate units" from its failed attempt to seize territory in Ukraine' north-east, combining them into its renewed focus on the east of the country.

But what Russia calls its "special military operation" is "proceeding strictly according to plan", according to the Kremlin.

Meanwhile, about twenty civilians have left the besieged Azovstal industrial complex in Mariupol - the first such release since Russia's President Vladimir Putin announced he was locking down Ukraine's last bastion in the city.

Women's plea to help trapped Mariupol fighters

Hundreds remain at the steelworks in Mariupol.

Wives, sisters and mothers of Ukrainian fighters trapped there have come to Kyiv to plead with the government to do more to get the men out. They say they're even ready to act as a human shield, if that helps evacuate the men to safety.

"When they talk about green corridors or extraction, they talk about civilians not military, and I am really worried. The military are also people," Olga, one of the women, told the BBC.

"They're in the real hell there, and it's so much worse than simple war."

Sometimes, surviving a bombing isn't the end of the ordeal. Ukrainians lucky enough to escape serious injury might still find themselves dealing with unexploded ordnance on their property.

That's where the bomb disposal unit - part of Ukraine's State Emergency Service - comes in.

The BBC's Carrie Davies followed the team on a run though the Black Sea city of Mykolaiv, which is subjected to near-daily shelling by artillery, as they check to make sure the remaining shells and debris are safe.

If you live in the UK, US, or most of Europe, you may be baffled at Russia's claims about what's happening in Ukraine - that it is there to protect people, and that Russia is a victim of Western aggression.

But it's not just Russia that flirts with this version of events. A UN vote to condemn the invasion passed by 141 out of 193 votes. That means more than a quarter of member nations didn't vote at all, abstained, or sided with Russia.
Why?

As the BBC's security correspondent Frank Gardner explains, "it would be delusional for Western leaders to believe that the entire world shares Nato's view - that Russia is entirely to blame for this catastrophic war - because it doesn't".

Late on Friday, US defence department spokesman John Kirby became visibly emotional during a press conference and accused the Russian president of "depravity" over his actions in Ukraine.

Today, Russia hit back, describing Mr Kirby's comments as "offensive and unacceptable". The Russian ambassador in Washington said the spokesman was "resorting to street insults".

"It has become a norm here that administration officials base their judgments on dirty lies of the Ukrainian authorities," Anatoly Antonov added.

Amid terse language on all sides, there are fears peace talks between Ukraine and Russia could collapse - read more about the war of words here.

Film star Angelina Jolie is visiting Ukraine, with locals posting video of her turning up to a cafe in Lviv and a railway station where displaced people from the hardest-hit regions arrive.

The actress has for many years worked as a special envoy for the United Nations, focusing on major crises that force people from their homes and spur the movement of refugees. This visit, however, is in a "private humanitarian capacity", her office says.

A statement says she met with orphaned and displaced children, including some evacuated from hard-hit Mariupol, as well as doctors and volunteers caring for them.

"I'm humbled to witness the resilience and courage and dignity of the Ukrainian people in the face of the terror and trauma of a war they did not choose," Jolie says. "The impact the war is having on a generation of Ukrainian children is devastating to see."

https://t.co/bZ6CXpKhIS

 

[bones]

Some of the equipment sent from NATO countries was being kept at the Odessa airport. 3 missiles were sent by the Russians and the airport and most of the equipment was destroyed. The Ukrainians managed get 2 MIG-29s off the ground.

Some of the tanks and artillery being provided by America are just as old as what the Russians/Ukrainians are using right now. To be frank much of this heavy weaponry looks like its just spare stuff. The Germans especially are scraping the barrel with their ancient tanks. Social media shows it being sent via train and yesterday it was in Stuttgart, Germany. It’s got one long journey to the frontline. I don’t know how anyone expects any of it to reach Donbas.

Yesterday the UN and Red Cross helped evacuate people from Azovstal in Mariupol. But the Russians are being very thorough with their checks to make sure it’s only civilians. Not a single neo-Nazi or Ukrainian soldier will go anywhere other than prison.

The establishment plans to hold a referendum in Kherson. It will ask the population whether they want independence or to join the Donbas republics. The Russians aren’t planning to ever leave this area its clear.

Up to 1000 Ukrainian soldiers are pinned in an area near Izyum called Oskil. There is no escape and behind them is a huge river/reservoir. They asked the Kyiv regime what should they do and they have been ordered to fight to the death. It seems evil to me because they don’t have the weapons to fight.

 

[SpiritOf1903]

Ukraine - the narrative the West doesn't hear[/B]"Ukraine and its allies, including London, are threatening Russia for the last 1,000 years, to move Nato to our borders, to cancel our culture - they have bullied us for many, many years."

That is what Yevgeny Popov, a member of the Russian Duma (parliament) and an influential TV host in Russia, told the BBC's Ukrainecast on 19 April. "Of course Nato plans for Ukraine are a direct threat to Russian citizens."

His views were both surprising and enlightening as to the very different narrative put out by the Kremlin, compared to the way it's viewed in the West. To European and Western ears, these pronouncements sound almost unfathomable, even amounting to a blatant disregard for carefully documented evidence. Yet these are just some of the beliefs held not only by Kremlin supporters in Russia and across the wider population there but also in several other parts of the world.

After Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, the UN held an emergency vote - 141 nations out of 193 UN member states voted a week later to condemn it. But a number of major countries chose to abstain, including China, India and South Africa. So it would be delusional for Western leaders to believe that the entire world shares Nato's view - that Russia is entirely to blame for this catastrophic war - because it doesn't.

So why are so many countries on the fence about Russia's invasion?

There are many reasons, ranging from straightforward economic or military self-interest, to accusations of Western hypocrisy to Europe's colonial past. There is no one-size-fits-all. Every country may have its own particular reasons for not wanting to publicly condemn Russia or alienate President Putin.

'No limits' to co-operation
Let's start with China, the world's most populous state with more than 1.4 billion people, most of whom get their news on Ukraine from the state-controlled media, just as most people do in Russia. China received a high-profile visitor to its Winter Olympics shortly before the Ukraine invasion began on 24 February - President Putin. A Chinese communique issued afterwards said there "was no limit to the two countries' co-operation". So did Putin tip off his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping that he was about to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine? Absolutely not, says China, but it's hard to imagine that there would have not been even just a hint of what was to come to such an important neighbour.

China and Russia may one day end up being strategic rivals, but today they are partners and share a common disdain, bordering on enmity, for Nato, the West and its democratic values. China has already clashed with the US over Chinese military expansion into the South China Sea. Beijing has also clashed with Western governments over its treatment of its Uighur population, its crushing of democracy in Hong Kong and its frequently repeated vow to "return Taiwan to the fold", by force if necessary.

A protester holds a Russian flag during a demonstration organised by the pan-Africanist platform Yerewolo to celebrate France's announcement to withdraw French troops from Mali, in Bamako, on February 19, 2022
IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES
Image caption,
A protester holds a Russian flag during a demonstration to celebrate France's announcement to withdraw its troops from Mali
So China and Russia have a common enemy in Nato, and their governments' worldview percolates down to both countries' populations with the result that, for the most part, they simply do not share the West's abhorrence of Russia's invasion and alleged war crimes.

India and Pakistan have their own reasons for not wanting to antagonise Russia. India gets much of its arms from Moscow and, after its recent clash with China in the Himalayas, India is betting that one day it may need Russia as an ally and protector.

Pakistan's recently ousted Prime Minister, Imran Khan, has been a fierce critic of the West, especially the US. Pakistan also receives arms from Russia and it needs Moscow's blessing to help secure trade routes into its northern hinterland of Central Asia. Prime Minister Khan went ahead with a pre-planned visit to see President Putin on 24 February, the very day Russia invaded Ukraine. Both India and Pakistan abstained in the UN vote to condemn the invasion.

Hypocrisy and double standards
Then there is the accusation, shared by many, especially in Muslim-majority countries, that the West, led by its most powerful nation - the US - is guilty of hypocrisy and double standards. In 2003, the US and UK chose to bypass the UN - and much of world opinion - by invading Iraq on spurious grounds, leading to years of violence. Washington and London have also been accused of helping to prolong the civil war in Yemen, by arming the Royal Saudi Air Force which conducts frequent airstrikes there in support of the country's official government.

For many states in Africa there are other, even more historic reasons at play. In Soviet times, Moscow poured arms into the continent as it sought to confront US and Western influence from the Sahara to the Cape. In some places, a legacy of western European colonisation in the 19th and 20th centuries is a lasting resentment of the West that plays out even today. France, which rushed troops into Mali in 2013 - to prevent an Al-Qaeda takeover of the whole country - is not popular in its former colony. So now the bulk of French troops have left, to be replaced by the Kremlin-backed Russian mercenaries of the Wagner Group.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attend the G20 Leaders' Summit in Buenos Aires, on November 30, 2018
IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES
Image caption,
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russia's President Vladimir Putin share a smile at the G20 Leaders' Summit in 2018
And where does the Middle East stand on this? No surprises that Syria - along with North Korea, Belarus and Eritrea - has backed Russia's invasion. Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad relies heavily on Russia for his survival after his country risked being overrun by ISIS fighters in 2015. But even long-time Western allies, like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) although they backed the UN vote, have been relatively muted in their criticism of Moscow. The UAE's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, has a good relationship with Vladimir Putin - his previous ambassador to Moscow has been on hunting trips with him.

It is also worth remembering that Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has a largely dysfunctional relationship with President Biden. Such is their mutual dislike, that the two men reportedly refuse to take each other's phone calls. Before that, when the world's leaders gathered in Buenos Aires for the G20 Summit - in late 2018, just weeks after the West accused the Saudi crown prince of ordering the grisly murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi - most Western leaders gave the Saudi prince the cold shoulder. Putin, by contrast, high-fived him. That's not something the Saudi leader will have forgotten in a hurry.


Media caption,
Vladimir Putin and the Saudi crown prince high-five
None of this means that all those countries mentioned actively support this invasion, apart from Belarus. Only five states voted in favour of it on 2 March at the UN, and one of those was Russia. But what it does mean is that, for multiple reasons, the West cannot assume the rest of the world shares its view of Putin, nor of the sanctions, nor of the West's willingness to openly confront Russia's invasion with ever more lethal supplies of weaponry to Ukraine.

Frank Gardner has been through extreme personal trauma as a result of war. This night be the most nuanced article in mainstream media. Short if saying it, he acknowledges nothing is back and white here. Stunning

 

[bones]

Ray McGovern former CIA analyst on a podcast I listened to earlier:

- Putin sees Ukraine as an existential threat, whether we believe it is or not is irrelevant he and the Russians do
- The west are going to have to prepare the public for the bad news, they are going to lose despite the promises of a win
- China may see an opportunity to make a move on their fronts if NATO escalates
- The west does not understand just how bad the Russians see Nazis
- The Russian population only need to be told they're fighting Nazis for the population to come on board with the war
- The Russians will flush out these Nazis out, there is no question of this

 

[Firebat]

Mariupol civilian evacuation begins to Ukraine and Russia-held territories

Dozens of civilians have been evacuated from Mariupol to both Russia-controlled and Ukraine-controlled territory after weeks under siege.

Some have left the Azovstal steelworks, the last hold-out of Ukrainian troops in the strategically significant city.

Russia said dozens of civilians have arrived in a village it controls.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said a large group is also on its way to Zaporizhzhia, which Ukraine maintains control of.

"The first group of about 100 people is already heading to the controlled area," he tweeted. "Tomorrow we'll meet them in Zaporizhzhia. Grateful to our team! Now they, together with UN, are working on the evacuation of other civilians from the plant."

The United Nations confirmed it was involved with the operation, alongside the Red Cross and the "parties to the conflict".

The evacuation convoy arrived on Saturday morning, the UN said - but did not give details on where people were being taken or how many had left, saying that sharing details could jeopardise the safety of the operation.

The first civilians managed to leave the Azovstal plant on Saturday, but their fate was unclear for most of the following day.

Now, the Russian defence ministry says some 80 civilians have left the besieged steelworks and were taken to Bezimenne, a village in Russian-held territory in Ukraine. They are being provided with medical care and supplies, it said.

In a statement carried by Russian media, the ministry also said that civilians who wanted to leave for Ukraine-controlled areas "have been handed over to representatives of the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross".

Reuters news agency reported that one of its photographers stationed in the village had seen more than 50 arrive in a convoy, and reported that UN staff were in the area.

Mariupol has come under intense bombardment from Russian artillery for weeks.

The Azovstal steelworks - where Ukraine's last defenders are holed up with some remaining civilians - is a vast industrial area with a network of underground tunnels, making its capture difficult for Russian forces.

Last month, after declaring that the southern Ukrainian city had been captured, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to seal off the steelworks "so that a fly cannot not pass through."

The devastation across Mariupol has been some of the most severe in the conflict, with much of the city reduced to rubble and a widespread humanitarian crisis. Fleeing residents have spoken about a lack of food and water, and bodies of the dead being left in the streets.

Speaking to the BBC on Saturday, Mariupol mayor Vadym Boychenko said: "The citizens who left the city say that hell exists and it's in Mariupol."

With most of the city now under Russian control, the focus remains on the conflict-hit steelworks.

Shortly after news of Sunday's wider evacuation project emerged, Mariupol officials said that evacuation from areas of the city other than the Avozstal industrial plant had been put on hold until Monday morning.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-61292951