For months, the 'Battle for Bakhmut' has been a main point in Zelensky's fundraising pitch, as he gallivanted across NATO territory in search of more lethal aid. But now that the Russian Wagner Group has taken control of the city, the "fortress" Zelensky once touted that was supposed to "change the trajectory of the war" is no more, and he refuses to acknowledge that he knowingly sent thousands of men to their death, while he used their lives to increase his own wealth..
More indications that, one, Russia is slime, as is anybody who sides with them, and, two, this hasn't exactly been the mop up job they anticipated over a year ago.
Soooooo, YOU think your country should just be able to invade another country, any time they want, but if the attacked country has the GALL to attack your country in return, on, no, we can't HAVE that. Gotcha.
https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boston-celtics-miami-heat-2023052314/
https://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/vegas-golden-knights-dallas-stars-2023052309/
Tue, May 23, 2023 at 3:51 AM PDT
An army service recruitment desk in Moscow displays a poster that reads: 'Our profession is to defend fatherland'
Moscow on Tuesday voiced deep concern on the second day of the most serious armed incursion to date over its border with Ukraine, after explosive strikes forced civilians to flee.
Russia said the Belgorod border region had come under sustained artillery and mortar fire during fighting with a group that it claimed had crossed from Ukraine.
Belgorod's governor said civilians have been evacuated from nine border villages in the region, which has previously faced shelling attacks that have killed dozens of people since Moscow launched its offensive last year.
"What happened yesterday is a cause for deep concern and once again confirms that Ukrainian militants continue their activities against our country," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.
Members of the anti-Kremlin Freedom of Russia Legion have claimed responsibility for the incursion into Belgorod, while Ukraine's deputy defence minister Ganna Malyar said "we are not waging war on foreign territories."
In a video released by a Telegram channel claiming to represent the anti-Kremlin group, a camouflaged spokesman, surrounded by armed men in fatigues, said: "Russia will be free!" -- a slogan frequently used by Russian opposition activists.
"We want our children to grow up in peace and be free," the spokesman added, with the channel claiming that two settlements including Graivoron had been attacked.
- Too soon to return -
Security operations were ongoing Tuesday in the border areas, said governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, who previously reported eight people had been injured.
Several drones struck houses and a government building overnight but no one was killed or wounded, said Belgorod's governor as Ukraine's leader visited the eastern front line.
Gladkov added on Tuesday that it was too soon for residents who fled to return to their homes and said that authorities would give the all-clear when it was safe.
On Monday, Russia said its troops were battling a "sabotage" group that entered from Ukraine and introduced an "anti-terror regime" in Belgorod, a first since the start of Moscow's campaign in Ukraine in February 2022.
Britain's Ministry of Defence noted that "Russia is facing an increasingly serious multi-domain security threat in its border regions, with losses of combat aircraft, improvised explosive device attacks on rail lines and now direct partisan action."
Ukrainian presidential advisor Mikhaylo Podolyak suggested that Russian "guerrilla groups" could be responsible.
"The only driving political force in a totalitarian country of tightened screws is always an armed guerrilla movement," he said on Monday.
- Zelensky visits front -
The "anti-terror regime" gives special powers to security services and entails the enforcement of a number of restrictions and measures including beefed-up security and communications surveillance.
A similar regime was in place in Chechnya between 1999 and 2009, when Russian authorities battled insurgents during Moscow's second military campaign in the mountainous region.
The attack on Russia's region was reported ahead of a widely expected Ukrainian offensive, though President Volodymyr Zelensky has said his country is not yet ready.
The timing and focus of Ukraine's offensive have been the subject of months of speculation, while Kyiv has said almost nothing except that it needs more weapons from its backers.
At the same time, Russia has been reinforcing hundreds of kilometres of front line with tank barriers, trenches and troops.
Zelensky on Tuesday visited Ukrainian troops on the frontline in the eastern region of Donetsk, where Russian forces have concentrated their efforts to capture territory.
"Every day on the battlefield, Ukrainian marines prove that they are a powerful force that destroys the enemy, liberates Ukrainian land and performs the most difficult tasks in the most difficult conditions," Zelensky said.
"And we need more of this force. So, from today, we are significantly increasing the potential of the marines and creating a marine corps," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian troops held back Russian forces around Vugledar during Moscow's winter offensive that gave the Kremlin only limited gains in the battle-scarred Donetsk region.
""What happened yesterday is a cause for deep concern and once again confirms that Ukrainian militants continue their activities against our country," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday."
Soooooo, YOU think your country should just be able to invade another country, any time they want, but if the attacked country has the GALL to attack your country in return, on, no, we can't HAVE that. Gotcha. 
https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boston-celtics-miami-heat-2023052314/
https://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/vegas-golden-knights-dallas-stars-2023052309/
Civilians flee, Kremlin 'concerned' after Ukraine border clashes
Tue, May 23, 2023 at 3:51 AM PDT
An army service recruitment desk in Moscow displays a poster that reads: 'Our profession is to defend fatherland'
Moscow on Tuesday voiced deep concern on the second day of the most serious armed incursion to date over its border with Ukraine, after explosive strikes forced civilians to flee.
Russia said the Belgorod border region had come under sustained artillery and mortar fire during fighting with a group that it claimed had crossed from Ukraine.
Belgorod's governor said civilians have been evacuated from nine border villages in the region, which has previously faced shelling attacks that have killed dozens of people since Moscow launched its offensive last year.
"What happened yesterday is a cause for deep concern and once again confirms that Ukrainian militants continue their activities against our country," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday.
Members of the anti-Kremlin Freedom of Russia Legion have claimed responsibility for the incursion into Belgorod, while Ukraine's deputy defence minister Ganna Malyar said "we are not waging war on foreign territories."
In a video released by a Telegram channel claiming to represent the anti-Kremlin group, a camouflaged spokesman, surrounded by armed men in fatigues, said: "Russia will be free!" -- a slogan frequently used by Russian opposition activists.
"We want our children to grow up in peace and be free," the spokesman added, with the channel claiming that two settlements including Graivoron had been attacked.
- Too soon to return -
Security operations were ongoing Tuesday in the border areas, said governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, who previously reported eight people had been injured.
Several drones struck houses and a government building overnight but no one was killed or wounded, said Belgorod's governor as Ukraine's leader visited the eastern front line.
Gladkov added on Tuesday that it was too soon for residents who fled to return to their homes and said that authorities would give the all-clear when it was safe.
On Monday, Russia said its troops were battling a "sabotage" group that entered from Ukraine and introduced an "anti-terror regime" in Belgorod, a first since the start of Moscow's campaign in Ukraine in February 2022.
Britain's Ministry of Defence noted that "Russia is facing an increasingly serious multi-domain security threat in its border regions, with losses of combat aircraft, improvised explosive device attacks on rail lines and now direct partisan action."
Ukrainian presidential advisor Mikhaylo Podolyak suggested that Russian "guerrilla groups" could be responsible.
"The only driving political force in a totalitarian country of tightened screws is always an armed guerrilla movement," he said on Monday.
- Zelensky visits front -
The "anti-terror regime" gives special powers to security services and entails the enforcement of a number of restrictions and measures including beefed-up security and communications surveillance.
A similar regime was in place in Chechnya between 1999 and 2009, when Russian authorities battled insurgents during Moscow's second military campaign in the mountainous region.
The attack on Russia's region was reported ahead of a widely expected Ukrainian offensive, though President Volodymyr Zelensky has said his country is not yet ready.
The timing and focus of Ukraine's offensive have been the subject of months of speculation, while Kyiv has said almost nothing except that it needs more weapons from its backers.
At the same time, Russia has been reinforcing hundreds of kilometres of front line with tank barriers, trenches and troops.
Zelensky on Tuesday visited Ukrainian troops on the frontline in the eastern region of Donetsk, where Russian forces have concentrated their efforts to capture territory.
"Every day on the battlefield, Ukrainian marines prove that they are a powerful force that destroys the enemy, liberates Ukrainian land and performs the most difficult tasks in the most difficult conditions," Zelensky said.
"And we need more of this force. So, from today, we are significantly increasing the potential of the marines and creating a marine corps," Zelensky said.
Ukrainian troops held back Russian forces around Vugledar during Moscow's winter offensive that gave the Kremlin only limited gains in the battle-scarred Donetsk region.
Zelensky went to Hiroshima, where he had the audacity to claim that Bakhmut today reminds him of photos of the Japanese city after it was attacked by an ATOMIC BOMB THAT KILLED HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF CIVILIANS in 1945 dropped by the U.S., aka Zelensky’s richest donor, which is still the only government to use nuclear weapons. It’s no secret that Zelensky is trying to distract from the fact that Bakhmut—the city he once called a “fortress” that will “change the trajectory” of the war—is now fully under the control of the Russians, but this may his most insensitive comparison yet, made IN Hiroshima, of all places
In Kyiv, they announced the hopeless situation of Zelensky Zelensky cannot rule the country in a conflict, says Oleg Soskin, a former adviser to Leonid Kuchma. “ The escalation in all directions is starting to go off scale. Zelensky is no longer up to the speed of the situation. It can be seen that he cannot fulfill the tasks that Ukraine faces ,” said the Ukrainian economist and political scientist. He noted that Zelensky should resign. Otherwise, mass demonstrations against the authorities may begin in Ukraine. “Zelensky is hanging by a thread, if there is no counteroffensive, then he will no longer be needed. He has no other choice, ” summed up Soskin.
Russia’s 'invincible' hypersonic missiles prove anything but, as Ukraine utilizes U.S. Patriot defenses 
Russia’s hypersonic Kinzhal has been shot down repeatedly by U.S.-supplied air defenses.
299
Michael Weiss and James Rushton
Thu, May 25, 2023 at 2:40 PM PDT
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the Supreme Economic Eurasian Council at the Grand Kremlin Palace on Thursday in Moscow. (Contributor/Getty Images)
It was meant to be the Russian “wonder weapon,” but it turned out to be just another example of Vladimir Putin’s military over-promising and under-delivering.
The Kh-47M2 “Kinzhal” — which means “dagger” in Russian — was billed as a state-of-the-art hypersonic missile, “invincible,” in Putin’s words, to Western air defenses. For the early months of Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine, it seemed to be just that. The missile had been used in the first year of the war to successfully strike several targets across Ukraine, no doubt causing significant damage.
Turning point
Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder addresses a news briefing at the Pentagon on Wednesday in Arlington, Va. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
That all changed when Ukraine received U.S.-manufactured Patriot PAC-2 and PAC-3 air defense systems in April. The PAC-3, the latest version of the venerable American system, was originally developed as part of America’s Strategic Defense Initiative, nicknamed “Star Wars” by its critics, first introduced in the early 1980s by President Ronald Reagan to counter ballistic missiles.
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Over a little more than two weeks, Ukrainian-manned Patriots shot down seven out of seven Kinzhals launched at targets throughout Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian Air Force. Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder confirmed the first shoot-down at a press conference on May 9, and another administration official speaking to the New York Times on May 16 confirmed the other interceptions.
During the May 16 attack, which directly targeted the Patriot system, part of the platform suffered “minor” damage, according to U.S. officials, that was repaired within a day. The Kremlin, of course, has maintained the fiction that all its missiles successfully hit their targets. “The fake report that a Kinzhal was allegedly intercepted is a wishful thinking attempt,” a Russian Ministry of Defense source told the state media outlet TASS.
Even if the Ukrainian military is overstating its defensive capability, a Russian missile falling anywhere in Kyiv would have been detected by locals and recorded on social media. Since the arrival of the Patriot missile batteries, that has not happened.
Assessing the hypersonic threat
A 9K720 Iskander-M is displayed at a fair within the ARMY-2019 International Military and Technical Forum in Moscow on June 25, 2019. (Sefa Karacan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
The Kinzhal entered service in December 2017. Two years later, Putin declared that it and other Russian hypersonic weapons proved that Russia was leading the world in hypersonic capability. The boast was reminiscent of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev’s bravado in the late 1950s, when he claimed that Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles were rolling off the factory floor “like sausages,” feeding the false perception in the United States that the U.S. was at a disadvantage and suffering from a missile gap with Moscow. “We have a situation that is unique in modern history when they are trying to catch up with us," Putin said. “Not a single country has hypersonic weapons, let alone hypersonic weapons of intercontinental range.”
He was wrong.
In reality, the Kinzhal is not that impressive. It is an upgraded version of Russia’s older, ground-launched 9K720 Iskander ballistic missile, modified so that it can be air-launched from Russian aircraft. As for Putin’s claim of the weapon’s hypersonic speed, this was true in the same way all ballistic missiles since the German V-2 rockets started pulverizing London in World War II have achieved hypersonic speeds at certain phases of flight.
Despite Putin’s grand claims, air-launched ballistic missiles are not new technology.
The GAM-87 “Skybolt” air-launched ballistic missile was developed by the United States in the late 1950s, and hit top speeds of Mach 12, well in excess of the speeds the Kinzhal can reach. However, the project was ultimately canceled in 1962, when U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara assessed that the system provided very little benefit over the United States’ existing arsenal of land- and submarine-launched ballistic missiles.
Russian scientists charged with treason
The 9K720 Iskander (NATO reporting name SS-26 Stone), a mobile theater ballistic missile system, is rolled out during the Victory Day parade, on May 9, 2011, in Moscow's Red Square. (Konstantin Zavrazhin/Getty Images)
Putin’s claims relied on confusion over the definition of “hypersonic” and also the conflation of the Kinzhal with the newer generations of hypersonic weapons. Hypersonic cruise missiles and hypersonic glide vehicles have the ability to maneuver — to evade air defenses, for example — at speeds in excess of Mach 5, something the Kinzhal cannot do. This makes new-generation hypersonic weapons much more difficult to intercept than traditional ballistic missiles traveling at hypersonic speeds.
Regardless of the exaggerated Russian claims, the Kinzhal was still an impossible target for Ukraine’s Soviet-legacy air defense systems to shoot down. A Ukrainian government source told Yahoo News that the provision of such air defense systems, while primarily providing an invaluable shield for Ukrainian people, is a cheap way for Ukraine’s Western partners to gain real life combat data on their performance against the latest Russian weapons.
Russian hubris that the system worked perfectly seemed even more incredible in light of the arrest of the third scientist responsible for the development of the Kinzhal on charges of “high treason.” On May 16, the same day Ukrainian Patriots shot down six incoming Kinzhals, Russian state media announced the arrest of Valery Zvegintsev. Zvegintsev joins Anatoly Maslov and Alexander Shiplyuk, two other high-profile Russian scientists who worked on the Kinzhal project and were arrested for alleged treason in the summer of 2022.
More Russian stuff blowing up
Friday May 26, 2023 · 5:21 PM PDT
UPDATE: Friday, May 26, 2023 · 7:58:13 PM PDT · quaoar
UPDATE: Nice-sized mushroom cloud. Maybe a JDAM strike on an ammo depot.
This T-90 literally dug its own grave.
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It’s the missile strike that keeps on giving.
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Payback’s a bitch.
Payback’s a bitch, Part 2
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But does it have cup holders and a heated steering wheel?
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Don’t we have some old 16-inch guns we can give them for these river boats?
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Such a cute little thing.
Ukraine’s new secret weapon. It flies over Russian armored vehicles and poops explosives onto the windshield.
Recon Cat.
Meanwhile, in Russia.
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This city is about 1,300 kilometers northeast of Moscow, unfortunately way out of suicide drone range. Maybe one day when Putin is gone and the war is over they can re-landscape.
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China demonstrates that it isn’t a serious peace broker. It’s more interested in driving a wedge between the US and Europe than it is in finding a solution to the war.
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On Russian state TV they discuss the merits of attacking Alaska.
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Speaking of colossal stupidity, what a raging asshole this guy has become.
For months, the 'Battle for Bakhmut' has been a main point in Zelensky's fundraising pitch, as he gallivanted across NATO territory in search of more lethal aid.
But now that the Russian Wagner Group has taken control of the city, the "fortress" Zelensky once touted that was supposed to "change the trajectory of the war" is no more, and he refuses to acknowledge that he knowingly sent thousands of men to their death, while he used their lives to increase his own wealth..
But now that the Russian Wagner Group has taken control of the city, the "fortress" Zelensky once touted that was supposed to "change the trajectory of the war" is no more, and he refuses to acknowledge that he knowingly sent thousands of men to their death, while he used their lives to increase his own wealth..
Ukraine Update: Russia goes into a fresh panic after drones strike around Moscow
by Mark Sumner for Daily Kos
Daily Kos Staff
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 1:15:12p PDT
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/20...ic-after-drones-strike-around-Moscow#comments
UPDATE: Tuesday, May 30, 2023 · 2:26:15 PM PDT · Mark Sumner
Russia has cleverly taken out a Storm Shadow by throwing a barracks in its way.
UPDATE: Tuesday, May 30, 2023 · 1:22:07 PM PDT · Mark Sumner
Another round of drone attacks was launched at Kyiv in the last few hours. At least one drone struck the upper floors of a residential building, causing considerable damage. As Kyiv has moved into evening, the drone attacks seem to have stopped for the moment.
Russia has stepped up attacks on Kyiv over the past several days, employing both missiles and drones in numbers that had not been seen since early March. On Monday, it was reported that 11 of Russia’s hypersonic ”Iskander” ballistic missiles had been launched into the city in a rare daytime attack. Tens of thousands ran for shelters as others hunkered down in place, surprised by the fast-moving attack. The wave of missiles followed just hours after one of the largest drone attacks of the entire invasion, when Russia launched at least 59 Iranian-made Shahed drones at Kyiv on Sunday evening.
There have been multiple claims that Russia’s goal in these attacks was to destroy the Patriot missile battery that recently arrived in Kyiv, along with other Western air defense systems now guarding the city. If that’s the case, Russia’s success in this effort has been extremely limited. Ukraine reports that all of the Iskander missiles and 58 of the 59 drones were taken down by air defense systems. There were injuries reported due to debris and one large building was set on fire by the remains of a falling missile, but Russian attempts to cause significant damage in Kyiv failed, just as they did three days earlier when air defenses stopped a combined attack using 10 cruise missiles and 20 drones.
Shortly after the attack on Kyiv, there were explosions heard around Moscow. Russia reported that eight drones had entered the area around the capital, with all of them being either shot down or diverted using electronic warfare. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin immediately denounced the attack as “terrorist activity” and insisted that the drones were aimed at “civilian residences,” though how anyone could know this if not a single drone reached its target isn’t clear. What is clear is that after razing Ukrainian cities, launching daily missile attacks on sites across Ukraine, and striking homes, offices, schools, churches, hospitals, and infrastructure, the sight of drones around Moscow appears to be driving Russia nuts.
Air defense systems remain high on the list of Ukraine’s shopping list for Western military assistance. Considering the level of continued Russian assaults, that’s understandable. Between October and December of last year, Russia launched over 1,000 missiles into Ukraine. While the intensity of large-scale attacks has declined in 2023, the past week shows that Russia’s coffers are still a long way from empty.
More air defense systems, likely including the SAMP/T system, are expected to be at the core of a new package on the way from Italy on Tuesday. These systems also remain central to the requests made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. There are also reports that Zelenskyy is seeking to get new systems from emerging defense systems powerhouse South Korea.
The Ukrainian president seems to understand that the best way to keep people fighting on the front lines is to make them feel that their families back home are safe. Critical to that effort is seeing that Russia’s “missile terror” doesn’t mean a soldier fighting around Bakhmut has to worry that their spouse or children are threatened as they go about their daily lives. That means air defense, air defense, and more air defense.
There’s one very big factor that has surprised a lot of people over the past few weeks. Until it was actually tested, the assumption—even among a lot of U.S. military experts—was that Russia’s wave of hypersonic missiles would be essentially “unstoppable.”
A New York Times article from 2019 headlined “Hypersonic Missiles Are Unstoppable” was just one of many hyping the Russian Kh-47 “Kinzhal” missile. But earlier this month, Ukraine stopped one of those unstoppable missiles. Then it shot down six of them at once. The Iskander missiles that were launched on Monday were not thought to be as unstoppable as the Kinzhal, but as short-range ballistic missiles with a very high speed they were still thought to be difficult to take down. Ukraine went 11 for 11.
Earlier in the war, Russia was able to launch missile assaults and know that something like half of their attacks would find their way to the targets. Now it’s something closer to 5%—or less. How Ukraine changed that number is not hard to define.
Zelenskyy: “When Patriots in the hands of Ukrainians ensure one hundred percent downing of any Russian missiles, terror is losing.”
Whether you want to believe Russian missiles are not as fearsome as thought, the Patriot is better than expected, or a little bit of both, the success of the Patriot in punching out Russia’s best has led to a reported mania in attempts to take it down. Russia has fired a bit of A, then tried some B, then C, then maybe A + C, all in an attempt to make that Patriot system stop knocking its missiles out of the sky. Two weeks ago, they even seemed to succeed to the point that U.S. sources reported that the Patriot system in Kyiv had been damaged, possibly by falling debris. However, if there was damage, it wasn’t enough to keep the system from defending the city in the next wave.
It’s not just the Patriot that’s working. Ukraine has received at least half a dozen different air defense systems from across NATO partnerships. In cities like Kyiv, many of these systems are working in tandem, making the successful use of any missile more difficult. The Iranian drones, which soon after their appearance seemed to plague Kyiv as well as other systems, have become vastly less effective as anti-aircraft gunners learned to deal with the relatively slow-moving devices.
Russia can still generate fear and disruption in Ukraine’s major cities, but its odds of getting a missile through against any target in those areas has sharply decreased. That’s why some of Russia’s most deadly attacks in recent weeks have come in smaller cities like Uman (pop. 82,000) where systems like Patriot aren’t yet in place.
With all the Russian attempts to attack Ukrainian cities, it would surprise no one if Ukraine was seeking a little reciprocity. It’s clear from images and demonstrations that have been seen on social media that Ukraine is creating an “army of drones” with hundreds, if not thousands, of devices ready to fly. They also have a good selection of larger, longer-range drones. That includes the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 as well as home-grown devices from companies like AeroDrone. There is no doubt about it: If Ukraine wanted to attack Russia with drones launched from inside Ukrainian airspace, it could definitely do so. The distance from Sumy to Moscow is less than 600 kilometers. There are plenty of drones capable of making that trip.
On Tuesday, Moscow was reportedly hit by an attack involving eight drones. That would make this attack barely bigger than the reported attack in which two drones were shot down over the Kremlin last month. Russia claims that, just as in the Kremlin incident, all eight drones were shot down.
Of course, Russia is also making claims like this one, which is totally ridiculous.
Civilian sources on Telegram have claimed the number of drones in the Moscow area on Tuesday was closer to 20 or 30, and that eight was just the number that Russia managed to shoot down. Considering what was aimed at Ukraine the previous two days, even the biggest estimate seems like a small number. There also seems to be a large amount of panic around these drones, so it would be unsurprising if the numbers reported by many accounts were inflated. However, there are also reports of damage in one of Moscow’s ritziest residential neighborhoods, with images showing explosions there as well as damage to a high-rise building.
Both Twitter and Telegram are now filled with fist-shaking, finger-waving, red-faced declarations from Russians that Ukraine has … has … well, it has gone over some kind of line here. Because it’s not like most of eastern Ukraine currently lies in ruin with tens of thousands of kilometers occupied by Russian troops. It’s not as if officials are still digging up mass graves filled with the bodies of children killed by Russian forces. It’s not as if Russia has been targeting and destroying civilian locations every single day since the unprovoked invasion began.
The “allegedly” in that last tweet is worth a second look. Officials in the Ukrainian government and Ukrainian military have denied any involvement in either of the two drone attacks in Moscow. News reports have indicated that U.S. intelligence believes Ukraine was actually behind the earlier flight of drones over the Kremlin, though they also believe that the drones were actually launched from within Russia, probably no more than a few miles outside Moscow.
In this latest attack, some of the debris recovered from the city looks suspiciously like a Russian Orlan-10 drone. This led Zelenskyy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak to quip that Russian drones were tired of being shot down over Ukraine and were now going after the people who sent them. “Even artificial intelligence is already smarter and more far-sighted than the Russian military and political leadership,” wrote Podolyak.
Why would Russia possibly launch a drone attack against its own capital when such an act is guaranteed to erode belief in Russia’s own air defenses, lower the standing of leadership, and generally enhance an already growing level of fear and chaos? Some sources claim that Putin is about to announce “full mobilization,” dragging hundreds of thousands more into Ukraine and finally stepping away from the language of “special military operations” to plain old “war.”
There is certainly at least one very good precedent for the idea that Putin would throw things into chaos and drive up fear to benefit his own agenda.
In one of his very first public acts, Putin almost certainly directed a massive false-flag operation that left 307 people dead in order to justify an attack and invasion of Chechnya. That gave Putin the excuse to launch the Second Chechen War. The ground offensive began one week after Putin made his speech about terrorists and ended with the capital city of Grozny looking remarkably similar to how Bakhmut looks right now.
Ukrainian forces may well have launched the drones that hit Moscow on Tuesday. If they did, no one could blame them. But the idea that Putin might invent such an attack as a means of creating the fear and confusion he needs to maintain control has a real basis in history. It’s also worth considering that some other oligarch may have recognized Putin’s weakened status and sees the current moment as a time when he might leverage some of the confusion to begin his own rise to power.
The U.S. Embassy has a whole page dedicated to other Russian false-flag operations, going back to the time Russia shelled its own forces in 1939 to justify launching the Winter War. Ukraine says they didn’t make this attack. Russia says they did. It’s worth considering some past events in evaluating the truth.
Oh, and of course there’s a Yevgeny Prigozhin response. If your day isn’t complete without listening to the Wagner Group CEO scream his hatred of Russian leadership: here you go.
On Tuesday, Oryx noted another big Russian milestone. With the latest documented loss of a T-90M north of Bakhmut, Russia has now exceeded 2,000 tanks verified to have been lost. Since the number has crept up on everyone at a bit over four tanks a day on average, it may not seem as jaw-dropping as it should. In that second Chechen War, the one that Putin started by murdering 307 people in Moscow and ended by leveling Grozny, Russia lost … 23 tanks. And not one of them was a newer T-80 or T-90.
Dimitri of WarTranslated has been doing the essential work of translating hours of Russian and Ukrainian video and audio during the invasion of Ukraine. He joins Markos and Kerry from London to talk about how he began this work by sifting through various sources. He is one of the only people translating information for English-speaking audiences. Dimitri’s followed the war since the beginning and has watched the evolution of the language and dispatches as the war has progressed.
More Russian stuff blowing up, plus lots of drones
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 3:21:01p PDT
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/20...stuff-blowing-up-plus-lots-of-drones#comments
This is supposedly an incident of a Russian drone attacking Russian soldiers in a trench — basically fragging. That may or may not be the case. But if it is, it wouldn’t surprise me. Actually it surprises me that this doesn’t go on a lot more.
Fragging refers to the killing of one of your own soldiers, usually an unpopular officer, with a fragmentation grenade. The term originated during the Vietnam War although killing fellow soldiers has been going on forever.
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It must have been HIMARS o’clock.
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This is the site where 100 Russians were reported to have been killed in a Storm Shadow strike near Mariupol.
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Russia’s defense minister claims they have destroyed 29 Storm Shadow cruise missiles, 196 HIMARS missiles and the Patriot battery in Kiev. All is going according to plan.
Many people will think this is just more Russian lies. But it’s true. Several of the Storm Shadow missiles were destroyed by ammo dumps, others were blown up by sudden contact with buildings.
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This is an informative thread that explains the differences between Ukraine’s use of drones and Russia’s.
It points out that targeting information obtained from Russian drones takes too long to get to commanders, long enough to be useless for mobile targets. By contrast, Ukrainian drones livestream to their operators and commanders.
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Interesting theory.
So the candidates so far are:
1. a Russian false flag operation
2. Ukrainian special forces
3. Russian partisans
4. Shit stirrers and coup plotters like Prigozhin.
I tend to agree that this probably wasn’t a false flag attack.
Also, there is no truth to the rumor that the remote operator of the drones was Mathias Rust.
How dare you poor huddled masses mock our filthy rich oligarchs!
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Anyone shocked by this?
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My birthday is in a few months. Just sayin’.
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The sanctions are starting to get real serious now.
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And finally, here’s a Russian agent being arrested after shooting someone in the middle of Fifth Avenue.
Note for the sarcasm challenged: This is just a joke.
Russia reports attacks on oil refineries and town near border with Ukraine
MOSCOW/KYIV (Reuters) -Russia said Ukrainian artillery hit a Russian town for a third time this week and drones struck two oil refineries in an uptick in attacks on Russian territory as Ukraine prepares a Western-backed push to end Moscow's invasion. Inside Ukraine, Russian-installed officials...
Russia reports hits on oil refineries and town near Ukraine
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Russia reports hits on oil refineries and town near Ukraine
Russia official says Ukraine shelling of border town injures four381
Guy Faulconbridge and Pavel Polityuk
Tue, May 30, 2023 at 8:28 PM PDT·4 min read
By Guy Faulconbridge and Pavel Polityuk
MOSCOW/KYIV (Reuters) -Moscow said Ukrainian artillery had hit a town inside Russia for a third time this week and reported drone strikes on two Russian oil refineries on Wednesday, while Ukrainian shelling in Russian-occupied eastern Ukraine killed five people.
There was no immediate comment from Ukraine on the Russian reports, in a week when both countries accused each other of spreading terror in their capitals with air attacks as Ukraine prepares a Western-backed push to end Russia's invasion.
Thousands of civilians have been killed in Ukraine since Moscow's forces invaded 15 months ago, but Tuesday marked only the second time Moscow had come under direct fire, although oil and military facilities in Russia have been hit.
In the Russian town of Shebekino, two of four wounded people were hospitalised and shells damaged an apartment building, four homes and a school, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.
On Monday, Gladkov said two industrial facilities in the town had been hit and on Saturday that he had come under artillery fire when trying to enter the town, about 7 km (4.5 miles) north of the border with Ukraine.
The Kremlin said it was concerned by the shelling.
Both sides say they are targeting the buildup of each other's forces and military equipment ahead of Ukraine's counteroffensive, which it says will come in days or weeks, to try to drive Russian forces out of its east and south.
Russian-installed officials in Ukraine's eastern Luhansk region - one of four Moscow claims to have annexed - said Ukraine had used U.S.-made HIMARS rocket launchers to attack a farm in Karpaty village overnight, killing five people and wounding 19.
Ukraine's general staff said its forces had fended off 22 Russian attacks in eastern Ukraine over the past day and Ukrainian aircraft had carried out 11 strikes on Russian personnel and military equipment, without specifying where.
Russia's defence ministry said it had pushed Ukrainian forces back around two settlements in Donetsk region, part of a 1,000 km front line that has barely moved despite months of gruelling battles that have cost tens of thousands of lives.
It also said it had destroyed Ukraine's "last warship" during a missile strike on Odesa, without providing evidence.
Oleh Chalyk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian navy, declined to comment, saying he would not respond to any assertions made by Russia.
He said the navy would not disclose any information about losses during the war.
Reuters was not able to verify either side's reports.
REFINERIES HIT
Drones attacked two oil refineries 40-50 miles (65-80 km) east of Russia's biggest oil export terminals on Wednesday, according to Russian officials who did not attribute blame.
A fire broke out at the Afipsky refinery but was later extinguished and a drone crashed into the Ilsky refinery without damaging it, they said, in what was the latest of several reported attacks there this month.
The skies over Ukraine were relatively quiet on Tuesday night, with no major air raids reported after waves of attacks over the previous 24 hours. Russian drone strikes killed one person and wounded four in Kyiv on Tuesday, according to Ukrainian officials.
Ukrainian drones struck wealthy districts of Moscow on Tuesday and two people were injured while some apartment blocks were briefly evacuated, according to Moscow's mayor. The Kremlin said Moscow's air defences worked effectively but had room for improvement.
Mykhailo Podolyak, a Ukrainian presidential aide, denied Kyiv was directly involved but said "we are pleased to watch events" and forecast more such strikes.
WAR OF WORDS
Russia's envoy accused Washington of encouraging Kyiv after the attack. The White House had said it was gathering information on the incident and reiterated that Washington does not support attacks inside Russia.
A senior Russian official also hit out at Britain after British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly was reported to have said Ukraine had a right to project force beyond its borders.
Any British officials who facilitated war in Ukraine could be considered legitimate military targets, Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev said.
Russia has noted "the lack of condemnation" by the United States and Britain of the attack on Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Washington and London are major suppliers of weaponry to Ukraine on the condition it uses it to defend itself and to retake Ukrainian territory occupied by Russian forces, which they say have launched an unprovoked war of conquest.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which it calls a "special military operation" to neutralise a threat from Kyiv's moves towards the West, has caused global economic turmoil and prompted fears renewed fighting will prompt a nuclear disaster.
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi laid out five principles at a U.N. Security Council meeting on Tuesday to try to safeguard the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine.
Neither Russia nor Ukraine committed to respect them.
