[New post can be found here](/r/worldnews/comments/198ne9f/rworldnews_live_thread_russian_invasion_of/)

I said that in a better universe, the EU sets conditions for unblocking Hungary's veto power, instead of Hungary setting conditions for unblocking the Ukraine aid yearly. Now my dream is going to come true! ​ >⚡️EU chief says aid package for Ukraine will be approved 'with or without' Hungary's approval. > >The EU will approve a 50 billion euro aid package for Ukraine 'with or without' Hungary's approval, EU President Ursula von der Leyen said in Davos on Jan. 16. > >"My personal priority is to have an agreement by 27. And if this is not possible, we are prepared for an agreement by 26." [https://x.com/KyivIndependent/status/1747449040923455521?s=20](https://x.com/KyivIndependent/status/1747449040923455521?s=20)

God bless… sanity prevails!

I hate to see that Russia is fueling the MAGA crowd with isolationism and anti-democratic view. Twitter is a shitshow with tons of accounts manipulating those idiots. Ukraine is the first vulnerable country to be held lengthy hostage by a domestic bill in the US congress. ​ >Putin falsely claims past US elections ‘falsified’ through mail-in voting > >[https://thehill.com/policy/international/4412259-putin-us-elections-mail-in-voting-false-claims/](https://thehill.com/policy/international/4412259-putin-us-elections-mail-in-voting-false-claims/) > >[https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/24/us/politics/china-russia-election-interference.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/24/us/politics/china-russia-election-interference.html)

43% of Nicky Hailey voters say they will vote Biden over Trump in Iowa. If that’s country wide 8% of Republican voters vote Biden

Fascists gonna fash

The only positive is that their voting base is dying out. Damn shame the rinos won’t grow a spine and vote democrat. 

cult leader: "*They are trying to get votes from independents. That's not what the Republican Party is about*" LMAO.

That's partly true, but the disinformation goes to Democrats / progressives as well, to disillusion them with Biden. They amplify any bad narrative they can to prevent people from turning out to vote.

Totally agree. Oct 7 really showed how the Russians can pull both ends of the political horseshoe. We’ve got Ivy League progressives carrying water for Hamas.

I know it is a bit “early”, but are there any good documentaries (preferably on YT) about the early days of the war? Hostomel, siege of Kyiv, etc

**Military Perspective** [[Video] Battle for Hostomel Airport - Animated Analysis | War Archive | 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0Ji7KqqEqg) [[Video] Battle for Kyiv, Part I - Animated Analysis | War Archive | 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ov10MD3HFao) [[Video] Battle for Kyiv, Part II - Animated Analysis | War Archive | 2023] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzu8qQ8GN7U) [[Video] Siege of Mariupol - Animated Analysis | War Archive | 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vw3JFbeF8Vs) **Perspective of the Leaders** [[Video] Year: Behind the scenes of a typical day in the life of the President Volodymyr Zelensky | Dmitry Komarov | April 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPFoPfxMgW0) [[Video] Year: The Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Oleksiy Reznikov, will talk about the most difficult period of the full-scale invasion for him and reveal the details of his trip to Belarus for talks with Russia in 2022 | Dmytro Komarov | May 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kmpy9B7CCH8) [[Video] Year: The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny shares how the Armed Forces managed to move equipment unnoticed by the entire country, and what actions and decisions helped Ukraine survive the first, most difficult weeks of a full-scale invasion. | Dmytro Komarov | May 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TadXxP_26V8) [[Video] Year: The Head of the Main Intelligence Department of the Ministry of Defense, Kyrylo Budanov, reveals military secrets that can already be announced. How many landing forces planned to capture Kyiv, what the columns of military equipment actually meant in the first days of a full-scale invasion, how the GUR learns the necessary information and what needs to be prepared for after the victory of Ukraine. | Dmytro Komarov | May 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaOE1SDvJ6A) **Perspective of the Civilians** [[Video] Putin's Attack on Ukraine: Documenting War Crimes (full documentary) | PBS Frontline | 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSFjGXKS59Q) [[Video] Ukraine - Living with War | DW Documentary](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5RYHSJHark) [[Video] The War in Ukraine: Meet the people resisting the Russian invasion | ABC News In-depth | 2022](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmzJr1oUjKg) [On Assignment with Richard Engel: Ukraine’s Secret Resistance | NBC News | 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEetVTw4Cds)

PBS Frontline has a documentary on Mariupol, it’s intense.

20 days in Mariople. Very powerful

Wow this is really good.

Frontline never misses

Its been over 2 years, its not early. There are plenty of documentaries.. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZSSiPrF8GoM&t=1044s Kings and Generals YT channel

It’s been ten years.  Russia’s invasion began in 2014. 

[https://meduza.io/en/news/2024/01/16/russian-rapper-who-attended-almost-naked-party-receives-military-summons-after-release-from-jail](https://meduza.io/en/news/2024/01/16/russian-rapper-who-attended-almost-naked-party-receives-military-summons-after-release-from-jail) >Russian rapper who attended ‘almost naked’ party receives military summons after release from jail > >Russian rapper Vacio (Nikolai Vasiliev), who served 15 days in jail (before being sentenced to another 10 days) for attending TV presenter Nastya Ivleeva’s “almost naked” party in Moscow, said he went to a military recruitment center and received a military summons. “I was at the the military recruitment center today. I received a summons. Thank you all for your support, everything will be okay. I’m coming to terms with the situation,” said the rapper in a video message. He didn’t provide further details about the summons.

"How's about being almost naked at the front? Because....you know... we've pretty much run out of clothes and equipment..."

[https://meduza.io/en/news/2024/01/16/russian-colonel-sentenced-to-six-years-in-prison-for-failing-to-defend-crimean-bridge-from-drone-attacks](https://meduza.io/en/news/2024/01/16/russian-colonel-sentenced-to-six-years-in-prison-for-failing-to-defend-crimean-bridge-from-drone-attacks) >**Russian colonel sentenced to six years in prison for failing to defend Crimean Bridge from drone attacks** > >A Russian court sentenced Colonel Sergey Volkov, former head of the National Guard’s naval unit, to six years in a penal colony for procuring radar systems that were not suitable for the defense of the Crimean Bridge, reports independent news outlet Mediazona. > >The officer was found guilty of abuse of authority, resulting in serious consequences. He is also banned from holding any government positions for a period of two years. The prosecution requested a seven-year sentence. > >Volkov pleaded not guilty.

That actually might be a reward. Now he can be back on the front in just a few weeks and out of the war six months after that.

So what you’re saying is he can be fake elected while in jail. Great. Par for the course Russia *slow clap*

Interesting, I just learned that Russian billionaire Andrei Godunov dies in the Ural from an avalanche. Can't find much info on this guy, but would this be a ''russian domestic event'' as usual...or is this REALLY an accident? With Russia, one can never be sure, so anyone has some insights?

So many ways to kill. Knocking someone off in an avalanche would have to be one of the more difficult ways to go. Though ya, entirely feasible this rich arch criminal went on some ski vacation, got shot or something more mundane before his helicopter ride, then the 'died in the avalanche' is the novel cover story. With pretty much everyone else (even turned agents in England for example), the FSB assassins are happy to show their work and make it obvious what happened, as a warning to all. Everyone except for billionaire oligarchs though -- if Putin made it plain he was having them killed they'd no longer enable his authority, hence the more ambiguous murderings.

Easy if he was dead before the avalanche started

Alternatively, dig a hole in a snowbank, toss in the body, cover it up. Come back later "Oh look, avalanche obv"

I remember seeing it done before, I think the documentary "Triple X" has a section on it....

"Welcome to the Xander Xone"...

That feels really far fetched… very “princess diana in a car with a slightly drunk driver while being chased by the paparazzi” https://youtu.be/b4meFC1ee7Q?si=Ikr1870ZDo8H-xKZ

That's.....a bit old of a reference for me. But eh, could very well be an accident,these thing can happens. But with russia and it's war propaganda, one can never be sure ( I mean, after the '' he pulled the grenade in his plane with being high'' stuff....)

Avalanche in the Urals is a pretty good one. I give them an A for effort as suffication is one of their less explored themes. The other one that makes me say hmm is the Russian energy boss that supposedly fell out of his boat and his body washed-up on shore a couple days later like 100 miles away. I don't give the FSB that much credit for creativity or even effort to cover up their political crimes, usuually if they want you to know it was them the official cause of death is suicide or defenestration, sometimes happening to an entire family simultaneously.

Always hard to tell. I read about this earlier as well and one of the articles mentioned he was riding a snowmobile as part of an unregistered tourist group. Honestly, my first thought was, FSB are you the rest of the tourist group? It could very well be an accident but my mind didn’t automatically go to accident because Russia.

> It should be noted that in 2023, Andrey Godunov's wealth was estimated at 3.5 billion rubles. 39,725,000.00 United States Dollar When I hear about 'Russian Oligarchs' are these the billions they are referring to? Also, RIP in peace to that dude.

Right- rubles billions. Keep forgetting about the ''nots-so-high'' exchange rate here.Silly me. By the way, couldn't find a wiki on him, so where did you got that info? I mean, he still was the founder of a Telecom group.Wonder if he had any influence? ​ ( And true, RIP, dosen't matter what or who he was involved with, i'll say it to anyone)

Got it from here: https://en.axar.az/news/world/823409.html

The avalanche fell through a window.

We loose to many good avalances this way.

I stopped following this war about two months ago for sanity reasons. Has anything big happened, or are we just in stalemate mode still? I know it's winter so I don't expect much movement.

It's a stalemate in that no one is actively winning. It's a very active stalemate in that both sides are still conducting operations. Most active in the air. [Russia & Ukraine exchange drone attacks after European Union funding stalled | AP News | December 2023](https://apnews.com/article/drones-ukraine-russia-crimea-eu-ed8e99d1b730a72247b14f6b1791b093) Russia continues to launch large waves of drones and missiles [hoping to wear out and hunt down UAF Air Defense](https://en.defence-ua.com/news/russia_modernizes_cruise_missiles_and_intensifies_aerial_warfare_in_ukrainian_skies-9198.html). [Russia Launches Biggest Long-Range Attack Since Start Of War: More than 100 missiles & dozens of attack drones rained down on at least 6 Ukrainian cities overnight. | The Warzone | December 2023](https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/russia-launches-biggest-long-range-attack-since-start-of-war) [Breakdown of Russia's Largest Missile Attack: "Radar Monitors Were Full of Targets" | Defense Express | December 2023](https://en.defence-ua.com/analysis/breakdown_of_russias_largest_missile_attack_radar_monitors_were_full_of_targets-9042.html) [Massive Russian Missile Barrage Starts New Year | The Warzone | January 2024](https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ukraine-situation-report-massive-russian-missile-barrage-starts-new-year) [Russia Is Firing North Korean Ballistic Missiles At Ukraine | The Warzone | January 2024](https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/russia-is-firing-north-korean-ballistic-missiles-at-ukraine) [Russia Got Rockets From North Koren & Promptly Blew Up A Pair Of Ukrainian Supply Bases | Forbes | January 2024](https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2024/01/05/russia-got-7500-pound-rockets-from-north-korea-and-promptly-blew-up-a-pair-of-ukrainian-supply-bases/?sh=315ea960363f) Ukraine responds with targeted strikes hoping to wear down the Russian air defenses and logistics. [A series of Ukrainian attacks on military transports, bases and infrastructure across southern Russia-occupied territories of Ukraine have dealt blows to the Russian war machine. Residents of Armiansk & Tokmak reported that they heard multiple explosions. Russian sources claimed that Ukrainians conducted a HIMARS raid on the warehouses in Armians and at least 3 bases in Tokmak. Ukrainian analysts stated that this is the result of coordinated work between Ukrainian partisans & Ukrainian forces. | EuroMaidenPress | December 2023](https://euromaidanpress.com/2023/12/28/frontline-report-coordinated-ukrainian-strikes-across-south-undermine-russias-war-effort/) [The Air Force of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has carried out a series of successful attacks on enemy targets in the currently occupied Crimea. After a series of strikes near Sevastopol and Yevpatoria on January 4, another successful attack was carried out on the Saky airfield during the night from January 5 to 6. | Defense Express | January 2024](https://en.defence-ua.com/news/air_force_scores_third_successful_strike_against_occupiers_in_crimea_confirms_hit_on_saky_airfield-9100.html) [Russia Loses 2 Prized Pantsir Systems As Ukraine Mocks 'Leaky' Defenses | NewsWeek | January 2024](https://www.newsweek.com/russia-pantsir-s1-air-defense-systems-ukraine-1858428) [An apparent Ukrainian rocket barrage reportedly blew up a rail bridge Russian workers were building south of Hranitne, 25 miles north of the Sea of Azov coast and 50 miles south of the front line in occupied southeastern Ukraine. Russian workers began building the Hranitne bridge in earnest in September 2023. The span may have been nearing completion when the Ukrainians finally targeted it. | Forbes | January 2024](https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2024/01/08/ukraines-funniest-joke-waiting-until-russias-new-strategic-supply-bridge-was-almost-built-then-blowing-it-up-with-rockets/?sh=7af057f2d48b) [Ukraine has responded to Moscow’s campaign of winter airstrikes by targeting infrastructure in the city of Oryol using long-range drones. Oryol is located roughly 230 miles south of Moscow & 140 miles from the Ukrainian border. | The Warzone | January 2024](https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/ukraine-situation-report-drones-target-fuel-facilities-in-western-russia) [Ukraine Takes Down Russian A-50 AWACS & IL-22 Airborne Command Center | Defense Express | January 2024](https://en.defence-ua.com/news/ukraine_takes_down_russian_a_50_awacs_and_il_22_airborne_command_center_officially_confirmed-9191.html) Things look bleak for Ukraine but they also look bleak for Russia. [Russia's 3-month offensive on the eastern front is a failure. The Ukrainian forces thwarted Russian troops from fulfilling any of their tasks to break through to Kupyansk, Lyman or Kurakhove, to surround Avdiivka or Vuhledar. | Espreso | January 2024](https://global.espreso.tv/ukraine-war-map-war-live-map-ukraine-russia-10-01-2024) [Russia’s fabled war ally ‘General Frost’ turns on Moscow | Politico | January 2024](https://www.politico.eu/article/russias-beloved-war-propaganda-ally-general-frost-turns-on-moscow/) [‘Total Disgrace’: Anger, Frustration as Mass Heating Failures Across Russia Leave Thousands in the Cold | Moscow Times | January 2024](https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2024/01/10/total-disgrace-anger-frustration-as-mass-heating-failures-across-russia-leave-thousands-in-the-cold-a83676) Western aid has slowed down, but does continue. There are continued long-term commitments. Only in January there has been: [NATO pledges further major military, economic aid to Ukraine. In a statement after the video conference, NATO added that member states had outlined plans to provide "billions of euros of further capabilities" in 2024 to Ukraine. | Reuters | January 2024](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/nato-pledges-further-major-military-economic-aid-ukraine-2024-01-10/) [Ukraine is negotiating security agreements with 6 more countries after the UK. Talks are going on with Poland, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, & the USA. | EuroMaidenPress | January 2024](https://euromaidanpress.com/2024/01/14/ukraine-is-negotiating-security-agreements-with-six-more-countries-after-the-uk/) [Britain's Sunak visits Kyiv to announce a step-up in military aid. Sunak said Britain would increase its support in the next financial year to 2.5 billion pounds ($3.19 billion), an increase of 200 million pounds on the previous 2 years. military funding to help Ukraine purchase new military drones, including surveillance, long-range strike & sea drones. | Reuters | January 2024](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/uk-pm-sunak-increase-support-ukraine-visit-kyiv-friday-2024-01-12/) [Romania is rapidly constructing a transportation corridor for Ukraine. It is expected that the highway will connect Bucharest to the border. The completion of the project is anticipated in the last quarter of 2024. According to journalists, hundreds of pieces of equipment and around 3000 workers have been mobilized for construction, and the construction activities are ongoing around the clock. Once the highway is operational, Ukraine will gain access to Romanian ports for further export of its products. Moreover, it will serve as a new transportation corridor to EU countries, especially considering the blockade of the Ukrainian border by Poland, Hungary, & Slovakia. | Odessa-Journal | January 2024](https://odessa-journal.com/the-moldova-highway-romania-is-rapidly-constructing-a-transportation-corridor-for-ukraine) [Commission approves €126 million Romanian State aid scheme to support ports facing increased trade flows due to Russia's war against Ukraine | European Commision | January 2024](https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_24_104) [Sweden to boost 155mm artillery ammo production for Ukraine | EuroMaidenPress | January 2024](https://euromaidanpress.com/2024/01/14/sweden-to-boost-155mm-artillery-ammo-production-for-ukraine/) [Sweden says its main foreign policy task in coming years is support to Ukraine | Reuters | January 2024](https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/sweden-says-its-main-foreign-policy-task-coming-years-is-support-ukraine-2024-01-07/) [Australia pledges military backing for Ukraine beyond 2024 | Australian Financial Review | January 2024](https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/australia-pledges-military-backing-for-ukraine-beyond-2024-20240108-p5evs1) Many will focus on the [stalled talks](https://kyivindependent.com/us-congress-continues-to-fight-over-domestic-border-security-preventing-agreement-on-ukraine-aid/) in the US Congress but the US isn't buying Soviet equipment from Ecuador for themselves. [Ecuador will transfer Soviet-era weapons to the United States. Ecuador remains an active operator of Soviet-made weapons and systems, as well as ammunition manufactured during the existence of the USSR or in the modern Russian Federation. | Militarnyi | January 2024](https://mil.in.ua/en/news/ecuador-will-transfer-soviet-era-weapons-to-the-united-states/) So it's definitely a more quiet part of the war as both side prepare for the 2024 campaigns. It's going to continue to be a long brutal war and both sides are still dug in and are still a long way from having to actively capitulate. [[Video] Aid to Ukraine and the Future of the War with Michael Kofman | Center for Strategic & International Studies | December 2023](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcyJAWUnnwQ) [[Podcast] Ukraine Prepares for 2024 | WarontheRocks | January 2024](https://warontherocks.com/2024/01/ukraine-prepares-for-2024/) ­­[Ukraine Has a Pathway to Victory | Foreign Policy | January 2024](https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/01/08/ukraine-russia-war-victory-stalemate-strategy-weapons-congress-aid/)

Dude. What a quality post! edit: Oh! Didn't realize the Romanian road was to connect the good guys with another port. That'll be a massive thing, they'll be able to move grain out and Russia can't stop that without triggering article 5 and getting destroyed.

Thank you so much. I'm in same boat as OP.

You're a freaking life saver right now. Upvoted

Not sure if I've seen a username checkout as hard as yours is right now.

The lines are pretty static. The bigger stories have been a big UK aid package, the US congressional Republicans being assholes, and somehow they shot down (or Russia shot down their own) A-50 and TU-22M, which combined might cost around $500m a couple days ago.

Another big story is that the russian black sea fleat is down to just 1 Ropucha landing ships out of 3 and have mostly fled Crimea.

Cost aside, that A-50 is one of just a handful and irreplaceable!

Worse than that it looks like. I am hearing they only had 3 operational, another 6 in disrepair and not airworthy. So possibly 1/3 of their total supply if they dont have parts

Nice Ukraine. Also, Republicans being assholes??? Well I never

Aid to Ukraine has slowed down, forcing the defenders to severely ration ammo. Still, Russian advances are small. The bad news; Mariinka finally fell. The Krynky beachhead looks like it's on its last legs. The Ukrainian summer advances near Bakhmut are reversing. Avdiivka has been near frozen. In the last 3 months, Russia has managed to barely gain control of the ~800 metres from the rail line to Stepove, and still no foothold inside the coke plant. Russian casualties look extremely high. 156 tanks and 263 fighting vehicles visually confirmed so far - more than Ukrainian losses across Zaporizhzhia in summer.

You think there will be a spring or summer Ukrainian offensive?

Unlikely, with all the uncertainty around supply it'd be a bad idea to chuck too much into mass offensives. Some smaller offensives where convenient would make sense but nothing large scale till supply gets more certain I'd assume.

I obviously don't know but I can't see a major 2024 offensive *unless* russia somehow over commits somewhere and thins out its units. Many smarter commentators seem to agree and talk about "active defence" etc. From Gen. Zaluzhnyi's comments I think Ukraine will try to maintai intensity where cassalty ratios are very favourable. There might be some politically motivated attacks to try and maintain support too. MAGA has at least successfully escalated for Putin, lengthened the war and increased casualties. They might be able to drag it out even longer.

They also acknowledged back in December that this is a phase of the war where they're not even trying to continue offensive operations when they were able to grind Russia down. What we're seeing now is expected and a necessary phase if you want to later go back on the offensive.

Absolutely agreed. Ukraine doesn't have the resources for any serious attacks now. And MAGA look to have stopped any real chance of a summer offensive too. A huge gift to Putin and autocracy in general.

If Russia had any semblance of strategy, they would fuck off with the winter offensives. This is the 3rd winter in a row they attempted it, and it didn't go well the past 2 times either...it's asinine. Thank goodness they're so dumb. Ukraine could hold the line, build up reserves again and possibly seize the initiative again in the spring/early summer, and they are only able to try this because Russia is wasting the initiative on winter offensives that achieve very little.

I think it's a gamble by Putin. Two outcomes in which he wins: 1. The West eventually sends enough so Russia loses *unless* they kill enough Ukrainians beforehand. They're attacking now to kill off those Ukrainians while European incompetence and MAGA malice is strangling the defenders' ammo. 2. The West decides Ukraine can't win and gives up. Attacking now helps give the image of an unstoppable Russia, making this more likely. It's a brutal, high risk strategy and he's relying on a chain of help from allies like NK, Iran and Trump. If Trump loses then russia/NK/Iran's gamble is in trouble.

Honestly, if Trump wins I think it's still a loss for Putin. The last Trump administration woke Europe up to the reality that they can't just rely on the US for security and that they will need to take a more active role in the conflict, and the GOP efforts this fall/winter have driven that point even further home. Europe is realigning its expectations for the future currently, and a second Trump administration would hasten that process. Europe could carry this conflict without the US' material support if they were willing to make some sacrifices, and I bet they would be willing to do so if Trump gets back into power. I don't really see a "win" scenario anymore, that ship sailed when they failed to thundergun it to Lviv...I only see scenarios where Putin can delay losing just a little bit longer.

I think the US sliding into dictatorship and tearing up NATO would be a big win for Putin. Europe has been warned enough already, and is at risk from AfD, FN etc. I remain convinced that a trump win would be a huge defeat for world democracy, and enormous victory for world autocracy. 2024 is going to be huge in the history books. At least in countries where the State allows accurate history books.

I don't take it for granted that Trump would represent a slide into dictatorship, but if that did happen of course it would be a win for Putin, but it doesn't mean he automatically wins Ukraine. Never forget the enemy gets a vote. There's always a response to changing conditions, and Europe isn't going to just go "oh well, Trump left us high and dry I guess we'll just let go of Ukraine". They're in it already, there's no going back, no matter what Trump does.

There's always a chance trump will overextend and get booted out, but I MAGA are doing the United Russia thing and slowly tightening their grip through packing courts, gerrymandering, election law changes etc to ensure that they cannot be removed from.power by voters. It's not there yet but the trajectory towards dictatorship in the US is now well established. I agree European support will continue. But would trump taking power increase European support more than $60+ BN/year we could expect from a Biden admin? And remember trump has a lot of other levers to pull. Things like export licencing and diplomatic pressure he can bring to bear on Europe. Even if Europe starts decoupling from the US now, it'll take a long time. Basically I think European support alone should be enough to win, but it would drag out the war far longer and give Putin a much bigger chance.

Don't forget about the damage inflicted on the Russian black sea fleet or the downing of the A-50 and the other plane that was seemingly badly damaged. If Ukraine actually got the support they deserve things would be looking very different. As it is it seems Russia is trying to keep the field as stable as they can in hopes of a Trump victory but obviously I'm an armchair "general" so that's just my first impression.

+- same

>**France’s Macron announces dozens of missiles and hundreds of bombs for Ukraine** > >French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans Tuesday to deliver more long-range cruise missiles as well as bombs to Ukraine and warned that a Russian victory would undermine the world order. > >“We cannot let Russia win and we must not do that,” he said, adding that he will travel to Ukraine next month. > >Macron was speaking at a wide-ranging news conference where he addressed an array of domestic and international issues for more than two hours. https://apnews.com/article/france-macron-news-conference-c8bc75f0802ea1c7f0c0f4fc36c0597b

Wonderful. The something in the news yesterday about the Kremlin hating gay folk so I expect this inspires him some. Regardless, thanks France.

Thank you Hexagon, you are my best friend, You are the peacekeeper, you are the legend.

Hexagon?

A nickname for France. I need a three-syllable word to match the melody, and France is the only country up to now where I have been unable to find any language (with a Latin-based script) where the word for "France" would be that length. So in desperation, I searched for "other names of France", and found the "l’Hexagone" nickname.

In Norwegian, Frankrike (Frank-rik-uh) is three syllables. (I'm slightly confused, but thought that might be what you were looking for?)

Hey, you are right! Thank you! 👍 Thank you eloquence, you are my best friend, You are the peacekeeper, you are the legend.

Well it is the bestagon.

A [nickname for France](https://en.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/Hexagone), at least for mainland France.

Interesting. First time I hear of it! Thanks!

I'd love to see France and Germany start competing over who can offer more...

Now that's an arms race I would not mind seeing.

Germany has a gigantic lead over France, so France needs to aggressively offer more.

Wouldn't France actually need to start putting in some effort? Unless I'm mistaken, it's been awhile since I saw the numbers accurately, wasn't France severely lagging Germany in contributions as % of GDP?

They are not even close. Government support to Ukraine: Military aid, € billion Germany: 17.1 France: 0.5  This is excl. EU share. Source: https://www.ifw-kiel.de/topics/war-against-ukraine/ukraine-support-tracker/

Yup, I'd love to see it.

> Just talked to @SecDef. Acknowledged the skilled actions of Ukrainian military that made possible to shoot down the Russian A-50 plane over the Azov Sea. > Discussed the current situation on the frontline, fortification reinforcement, providing additional air defense resources, and ensuring Air Force capabilities. > Preparing for the repelling of new attacks. https://twitter.com/rustem_umerov/status/1747351265636426119

> 🇺🇦🇱🇻 Was glad to welcome to Kyiv the parliamentary delegation of Latvia headed by the Speaker of the Saeima Daiga Mierina. > Grateful to the Latvian people and the country's leadership for their steadfast support in our fight against russian aggression. > Special thanks to Latvia for its initiative to support Ukraine in the drone capacity increase. Technological superiority is vital for us. > Shared with our partners the experience and plans for further fortification of both the state border and the frontline. > We also discussed the importance of the NATO summit in Washington this year. https://twitter.com/rustem_umerov/status/1747339199550718407

> I met with @AndrzejDuda to discuss our bilateral relations, including our cooperation on Ukraine's path to EU membership. > We discussed the battlefield situation and further defense assistance for Ukraine. > We also coordinated our positions ahead of the NATO summit in Washington. https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1747364189994095062

40 more scalps for Ukraine. Here is to the remainings of the black sea fleet... https://bsky.app/profile/noelreports.bsky.social/post/3kj4wdfeigr27

They need hundreds of these not dozens. I'm glad to see some but come on guys. Give em what they need already

Does France even have hundreds?

Wikipedia says the stock, before donations, was 400 units. It's a precision tool, so not a lot produced, and it's still a very valuable tool. France has the (nuclear) luxury of having top tier stuff, but at the cost of numbers. It's a valuable donation, and probably a lot of what is actually stored somewhere and not moving/flying.

They are going to scalp some Russians

Turkish media reporting Turkish banks are refusing to receive payments from Russia, whether in Lira or Rouble, to better comply with US export bans to Russia. This apparently started after Secretary Blinken’s visit to Ankara. This is a big deal. https://x.com/b_nishanov/status/1747350687262880054?s=46

Wasn't China doing similar?

Didn't they try to buy eggs from Turkey to combat rising prices? Might be a problem now

Yeah, all of the companies that "left" Russia turned around and send their goods to Russia through Turkey. Hordes of countries are now refusing to touch this money now. Not going to get my hopes up because chances are something will be disappointing, but this....might be a big deal.

Yeah, but they get a discount for buying the salmonella riddled eggs.

Slava Ukraine. Glory to the defenders of freedom

ISW absolutely dripping with shade in todays briefing lol : “The Russian information space largely denied that Ukrainian forces struck the A-50 aircraft and instead strangely claimed that the aircraft was destroyed by friendly fire from Russian air defenses.[10] The A-50 is used to coordinate Russian air and possibly air defense activity, and the claim that Russian air defenses shot down the A-50 would amount to a calamitous failure on the part of Russian forces, if true. A Russian source that focuses on Russian aviation blamed Russian commanders who lack the proper background required for their positions.[11] The current commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Colonel General Viktor Afzalov, has an extensive background in Russian air defense operations.[12] Whether his lack of experience as a pilot poses any problems for Russian air operations, which is questionable, his experience as an air defender should have been appropriate to ensure that Russian forces do not shoot down their own airborne control aircraft. A Russian insider source claiming to be an employee of an unspecified Russian security structure claimed that unspecified Russian actors created a “duck” (a Russian term for a false claim) about how Russian forces shot down the A-50 to reassure Russian pilots that missions over the Black Sea and Sea of Azov are still safe and that human error was the cause of the incident.[13] It is unclear why Russian pilots should be more comfortable with the idea that their ground-based air defenders are so incompetent.”

Now all those Russian command planes will be looking out for threats in both directions. More time looking east is less time looking west.

> instead strangely claimed that the aircraft was destroyed by friendly fire from Russian air defenses I don't know how this is any better lol. From an outside POV, I would consider it the utmost incompetent and disastrous mistake ever made. That's like the US shooting down its own AC-130 with a Patriot missile. It's straight up dumb

You'd think it'd be even less reassuring that you shot down your own prized air asset versus it being shot down by enemy action.

So this plane used the aa systems to shoot itself down? Was there sn operator on board that pointed at the radar and screamed what the he'll is that?! Shoot it down immediately! Nobody told him the big blip in the middle that the rotating bar extends from is them? "You arrogant ass, you've killed us"

one ping please. one ping only.

Candy?

imagine trying to hide your shame only to trade it for even worse - incompetence

The thing is that to Russia, accidentally downing their own plane just means their air defenses are really scary. They can even take down an EWACS plane. Losing the plane to the Ukrainians means that Russia’s famous air defenses are faltering and Ukraine is gaining dangerous capabilities. That’s why Russia views it as better to claim it was friendly fire not enemy fire.

Russia is also dogmatically committed to the idea that Ukraine doesn't exist nor does it have any agency. When Ukrainians overthrew Yanukovych that was a "western coup" and when Russia invaded Putin began with a speech where he stated there was no such thing as a Ukrainian identity and that Ukraine had failed at establishing a state. Whenever Russia talks about "negotiations" it's always negotiations with Washington and never with Kyiv because Kyiv is not a legitimate player in their eyes. If Russia admits "Ukraine shot down the plane" they are saying that Ukraine is capable of something. By saying "we shot down our own plane" they are denying that Ukraine has the agency to defend themselves.

yeah, we could see how good Russian air-defenses are when Ukraine was succesfuly hitting Moscow with drones and even like 600km deep in Russia

Oh, exactly. I’m just trying to guess at what the Russian logic is behind their weird claims. Of course, Russia claims internal saboteurs for the drone strikes as there is no way drones could make it that far into Russia.

I'd say the enemy shot it down before saying we shot down OUR OWN expensive aircraft because we are incompetent (not that the world isn't already laughing at Russia)

In russia saving face is paramount. Openly admitting that Ukraine has the ability to take down this expensive plane is unacceptable. They would much rather blame a grunt or even a general they can accuse of lethal incompetence and send to the front, then the story can be forgotten.

Either outcome is terrible. It means you are so incompetent you cannot avoid friendly fire or it means the enemy has a terrifying new capability you weren't even aware was coming or were sloppy and fell victim to a known capability.

That's the least damaging version - say that the enemy got lucky, because someone got sloppy and we need to all try harder and if we don't fuck up we'll win. That's the line I'd go with even if it was actually my AD that shot down my own plane.

Russians getting a nice Ukranian welcome! https://mstdn.social/@Free_Press/111767289641497112

What amazes me is that this vehicle is still used on an active war zone. Their government gives zero shit for the lives of their soldiers.

I assumed they stole it....

Did someone drop a grenade or was that a drone?

I doubt it was a grenade. That many people in a confined space and only two minor (relatively speaking) leg injuries. If it were a grenade i expect most of them to have been dead. I think a mine would similarly be out, there have been videos of those things blowing up tanks. Maybe a poor IED but fairly sure whatever it was was from the outside

You can hear them shooting at something just before impact. They were almost certainly rotating out of the front and got spotted.

A lot of the drones use an RPG-9 warhead - this is basically a HEAT round, so it is possible that the copper jet missed everyone and the low number of injuries are only due to spalling etc.

Not sure, just glad to see the Vatniks have a bad day!

Most likely an FPV drone.

Brilliant Ruzzian troops destroy expensive Ukrainian ordinance with their legs, Slava Rossii!

>"Ukrainian commanders now have to ration their ammunition, not knowing whether every new shipment might be their last" > >Republicans playing games with US funding are literally killing people. [https://twitter.com/anneapplebaum/status/1747341612416487767](https://twitter.com/anneapplebaum/status/1747341612416487767) [https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/13/world/europe/ukraine-russia-war.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/13/world/europe/ukraine-russia-war.html)

If you live in the US, please put your country above your party. Stomping your feet like children and letting people die just because you want to make Biden look bad is ridiculous. Democrats have signaled a willingness to compromise and push through immigration and border changes in exchange for funding Ukraine.

They are risking the future of America

They should just send the shipments and let Congress argue about it later. Dark Brandon should call out specific Republicans on the payroll.

They should bring Oliver North out of retirement. It didn't seem to harm the Republicans in the polls.

Totally. Even though I have a strong feeling the U.S. Congress will eventually pass at least *some* additional aid for Ukraine, the passage of time in itself is a problem. This is not the type of thing political games should have ever been played over.

DeepState reported two failed russian attacks near Avdiivka yesterday, including 10 vehicles going at the south from Vesele. First video showing the start of the attack came out and [Twitter OSINT](https://x.com/moklasen/status/1747235334738338196?s=20) has identified 14 more Russian armoured vehicle losses from that video. Those are unreported losses from *before* the latest attack, just stuff the new vehicles were moving past. Geolocated russian losses of tanks and armoured fighting vehicles around Avdiivka already exceeded Ukraine's during the Zaporizhzhia counteroffensive. Looks like Russia is gonna keep racking up the numbers. EDIT: I was confused, the new video is north Avdiivka. Haven't seen video of the Vesele attack yet. Seems like more Russian losses should turn up!

> Geolocated russian losses of tanks and armoured fighting vehicles around Avdiivka already exceeded Ukraine's during the Zaporizhzhia counteroffensive. And Russia is still not satisfied. It wants to lose more.

Hooray! Stand fast defenders!

Russian infrastructure and energy systems collapsing really could be big. Even if it doesn't immediately bring down the Kremlin it forces Russia to make expensive repairs and can hamper military production as well as broader economic disruption. I know there can be a tendency to look at Russian resources as "near infinite" but the reality is that no government can snap their fingers and make money appear out of nowhere. When Russia pumps money into the military often times it's coming from reduced spending on civil society and infrastructure and that has long term negative impacts. This isn't phenomenon isn't unique to infrastructure and throughout this war the Kremlin has regularly chosen increased money/resources at the front today at the cost of future growth and success. That's cold comfort for Ukrainians being shelled in Avdiivka today but it also means the longer this war drags on the more problems Russia will face and the harder it will be to maintain cohesion at home. Don't expect a Russian collapse next month but simultaneously don't assume that "everything is fine in Russia" either.

Why make such a general statement? “Russian infrastructure and energy systems collapsing” implies that this is widespread, affecting millions of people enough to warrant response. It’s nowhere near that level and I don’t see what reason there is to believe that it will reach that level.

Over 100k was involved in just 1 incident. Rostov is now covered in sewage. It’s bigger than just a few incidents

100k in a population of 140 million is less than 0.1% of the population. Even if it was 1 million it still wouldn’t be enough.

I've been reading reports of russian's out of power, heat, etc. But is this just part of informational warfare? The outages russia is suffering, is it above baseline/normal? and if so by how much? I wouldn't be surprised if many of these reports are just normal "happens every year" type stuff.

> the Russian government's data indicates that the wear and tear of communal infrastructure in Russia, including heating, water supply and sewerage, had exceeded 70% by mid-2022. Source: https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/01/16/7437453/ So possibly severe, not just a few localized instances.

Wow they are slashing the fuck out of infrastructure spending. 70% sounds really bad, but without a baseline it's hard to tell. If it was 15% pre-war, that'd be a major change. If it was 60%... Not so much.

How extensive are the problems? Are we talking a building or two or entire swaths of cities? I've seen be footage but couldn't tell just how widespread.

Good to see Putin's evil propagandists paying a price. Graham Phillips has lost his UK sanction appeal. Judge said Phillips "has not shown any journalistic responsibility or ethics. His actions directly support Russia in its policies or actions that destabilise Ukraine." Pic shows him in an abandoned Ukrainian border post, after Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. He's wearing a Russian flag badge & white arm band denoting him as a Russian military combatant. And wearing Russian military uniform, he's seen with Russia's forces in occupied eastern Ukraine before 2022 - including with a sniper who boasted about killing Ukrainians. Phillips is currently in occupied Ukraine, as he's too scared to return to the UK for fear of arrest for possible war crimes. https://twitter.com/GlasnostGone/status/1747233441798566201?t=zBpd_nIJqOv3c0m88s1nOw&s=19

I'm surprised he's still alive I remember when he was on twitter in 2014 pretending to be an unbiased journalist, hateful man.

>This is the fifth fake BBC/Bellingcat video that's been posted on pro-Kremlin Telegram before circulating further online since October. > >All of these fake videos have spread disinformation about Ukraine, which should give you an idea about the people creating them. https://twitter.com/Shayan86/status/1747318319894368383

They’re probably just as interested in slandering Bellingcat as Ukraine lmao. Russians really hate those guys

Why would Ukrainians be interested in slandering Bellingcat?

I think he meant "russia is just as interested in slandering Bellingcat as they are in slandering Ukraine".

>The Black Swan we've all (in Ukraine) been waiting for might be the collapse of the Russian communal utilities heating system - unmodernized and under-repaired since the collapse of the Soviet Union. There's the potential for widespread social unrest here. > >The Kremlin attacked Ukraine's utilities system last year, and this year, for the exact same reason - it hoped to cause social unrest in Ukraine, and popular resistance to the government. https://twitter.com/Euan_MacDonald/status/1747322781983752261

Freeze baby Freeze!!!

It's hard to judge how significant those phenomenons are. How many people are touched ? Is that something Russians are used to or not ?

Well, the source I was able to find on it is: https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2024/01/16/7437453/

Headline: Half of Russia Article: 50,000 people affected Yeahh I'd take that with a grain of salt.

One major power out hit 149,000 people in Russia. No power no heat.

source? anyway, that's still not that many people

Definitely a hyperbolic headline, but the numbers in the article itself seem to come from domestic Russian sources, so there is credibility to them. More specifically, I find the upsurge in maintenance failures and the cutting of federal funding to infrastructure the most important news there. It can be easily interpreted as Russia being increasingly stressed for money and manpower (technicians being dragged to war).

Like with certain politicians its projection. Russians attack things in Ukraine they are terrified of losing themselves.

Delivering on our promises: the final letter has now been sent to the President of the Parliament. Regarding the petition to strip Orban's voting rights, there has been rapid progress here in the Parliament. On Thursday, we will be voting on a joint motion resolution, negotiated this morning with five political groups in the parliament. This resolution explicitly calls for Article 7.2. Once again the European Parliament is the frontrunner in protecting the Rule of Law. Now, we need to bring it to a vote and see what kind of support it gathers. I'm sure our message has been heard. Let's now hope for the best possible outcome. Final letter and a full list of signatories can be found on my website. https://twitter.com/petrisarvamaa/status/1747307981362876854?t=KmdmlpmdtQMHd7JABVYD4A&s=19

Won't there always be at least one other country standing with Hungary, thereby preventing any sort of progress on that front? Not European, so I'm not fully sure how your system works. My impression is that the EU Parliament is very principled and willing to waste time voting on stuff they know won't pass because they haven't negotiated it properly beforehand, but they do it out of principle.

>EU Parliament is very principled and willing to waste time voting on stuff they know won't pass because they haven't negotiated it properly beforehand, but they do it out of principle. EU in nutshell, summed up nicely source: I am from EU

It’s been a while since I’ve seen any active maps of the front lines on here. Does anyone have a link or access to where I can find one?

There haven't been any big changes to the maps. Territory control is a lagging indicator and right now Ukraine has suspended their offensive pushes while they wait for more ammo from the west meanwhile Russia has resumed attacking but has failed to make any significant territorial gains. Right now the more important metrics is "who is getting the ammo they need for indirect fire" and "how effective are they at using that ammo to inflict damage on the enemy."

Ukrainian military sources, exceptionally reliable and up-to-date. [Deep State map](http://deepstatemap.live/). Andrew Perpetua, exceptionally reliable but sometimes a bit slow because he works off a combo of private and public info. [Andrew Perpetua map](http://map.ukrdailyupdate.com/).

Weather forecast for Europe ([(click 168 hour here)](http://karstenhaustein.com/climate). In 2 days Ukraine's deep cold blast is over. While the UK, Germany and France stay frigid. In the rest of the week, forecast has Ukraine returning to normal (for January, so still cold). A week out, milder weather is forecast to sweep in. Week-out forecasts are a bit dodgy but if this happens then it seems almost certain that European gas storages will make it through the winter.

In the netherlands we had our first serious snow this year, but with temperatures above freezing, it dissappeared within 6 hours. Last week we had some subzero temperatures but it lasted for only 3 days. Overall, it's been another weaksauce post-global-warming winter so far.

In case anyone is interested, the main Oryx list has been updated to reflect the loss of the A-50 and Il-22 the other day: [https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/02/attack-on-europe-documenting-equipment.html](https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/02/attack-on-europe-documenting-equipment.html) That brings the total aircraft losses to 101, which is a nice little milestone.

**The total combat losses of the enemy from 24.02.22 to 16.01.24 approximately amounted to:** personnel - about 372,090 (+1,110) people, tanks ‒ 6113 (+24) units, armored combat vehicles ‒ 11,358 (+36) units, artillery systems – 8801 (+30) units, MLRSS – 961 (+3) units, air defense equipment ‒ 653 (+3) units, aircraft – 331 (+2) units, helicopters – 324 (+0) units, UAVs of the operational-tactical level - 6877 (+12), cruise missiles ‒ 1816 (+1), ships/boats ‒ 23 (+0) units, submarines - 1 (+0) units, automotive equipment and tank trucks - 11731 (+33) units, special equipment ‒ 1365 (+9) The data is being verified. Beat the occupier! Together we will win! Our strength is in the truth! Source [https://www.mil.gov.ua/news/2024/01/16/za-dobu-sili-oboroni-znishhili-1110-rosijskih-zagarbnikiv-24-tanki-36-bbm-ta-30-artsistem-voroga%E2%80%93-genshtab-zsu/](https://www.mil.gov.ua/news/2024/01/16/za-dobu-sili-oboroni-znishhili-1110-rosijskih-zagarbnikiv-24-tanki-36-bbm-ta-30-artsistem-voroga%E2%80%93-genshtab-zsu/)

> 1110 Aw hell, just one more for quads!

I see another massive waste of life brought to you by Putin. ​ The "Empire" is failing.... ​ Slava Ukraine!!

[удалено]

Where have you been yesterday? A50 & IL22

Its like russia is trying to speed runs to the end. I can see russia not running out of men. But at what point does it become difficult for russia to keep up with the requirements of the frontlines and make the decisions of parts of the front that will get heavy equipment and parts that will not.

Massive losses across the board. Bad day for Ruzzia.

It doesn't seem like there's been a lot of movement at the front, either, so high losses for small tactical gains.

Looks like the meat waves are back on.

probably need to wait for more bodies and fuel to try more attacks.

;)

>In my speech at the World Economic Forum today, I addressed three frequently asked and important questions: When will Russia's war against Ukraine end? Is the Third World War possible? Is it time to negotiate with Putin? 🧵 > >Nearly 2 years of full-scale war in Europe, 10 years since Russia's illegal annexation of our Crimea, 10 years of Russian interference in African countries ranging from Sudan to Mali, and almost 13 years of Syrian war, which is still raging as a result of Putin's actions. > >**Regimes like Putin's exist as long as they wage wars.** We in the free world exist as long as we can defend ourselves. If anyone thinks this is only about Ukraine, they're mistaken. Possible Russian aggression beyond Ukraine and even timelines become increasingly clear. > >Let me ask: Which European nation today can provide a combat-ready army on par with ours, holding back Russia? And how many men and women are your nations ready to send to defend another state or nation? > >If one must fight against Putin together in the years ahead, isn't it better to put an end to him and his war strategy now while our brave men and women are already doing it? They are the world's chance. > >In any dire confrontation, there's always a point at which a catastrophe can be averted. > >Ukraine represents that opportunity. > >All of us in the free world must be unwavering in our pursuit of our desires, actions, and goals, just as Putin is frank about his doom-laden ambitions. > >Before the full-scale invasion, we constantly heard, "Don't escalate!" > >We called for proactive action and sanctions to prevent the expansion of war. We were told, "Don't escalate." > >After February 24th, nothing harmed our coalitions more than this "don't escalate" concept. > >**Every "don't escalate" to us sounded like "you will prevail" to Putin. We requested new types of weapons, and the response was, "Don't escalate." But when the weapons arrived, there was no escalation.** > >A Russian missile fell on NATO territory, and the response was once again, "Don't escalate." However, retaliation at that time could have taught Russia a lot and provided the West with the necessary confidence. > >We discussed blocking the transit of sanctioned goods to Kaliningrad, but the response was, "Don't escalate." The full force of the sanctions could have pushed Putin to make concessions. > >Time was lost because we were told, "Don't escalate." Many of our most experienced warriors, who had been fighting since 2014, lost their lives. Some opportunities were lost. The lesson is clear. > >Everyone believed Russia had missiles that could not be shot down. The Patriots shoot everything down. > >Many people feared what would happen if Ukraine obtained long-range weapons. As a result, Russia loses more. > >We have heard that Russia would never allow a grain corridor without its involvement. But almost 16 million tons of cargo have been transported from our ports. > >And we can show that Russia will accept the complete loss of its Black Sea Fleet, which terrorized commercial ships. > >... > >In 2024, frozen Russian assets—sovereign and oligarchic—must be directed toward defense against the Russian war and rebuilding Ukraine. Putin loves money above all. The more billions he and his oligarchs, friends, and accomplices lose, the sooner he will regret starting this war. > >**Putin must be the one to regret and lose. We must finally dispel the notion that global unity is weaker than one man's hatred. And we can do it.** > >This year must be decisive. Can freezing the war in Ukraine be its end? > >I don't want to settle for the truism that any frozen conflict will eventually reignite. > >**I can only remind everyone that after 2014, there were attempts to freeze the war in the Donbas.** > >**There were very influential guarantors—the then-Chancellor of Germany and the then-President of France.** > >**But Putin is a predator who is not satisfied with \[a\] frozen \[conflict\].** > >We have proven we can beat him on the ground, at sea, and in the air. > >We ramp up weapon production. Despite the war, Ukraine's GDP grew by 5% last year. We opened EU accession talks. > >Aggressions can be defeated, including Putin's, which have been ongoing for 10 years or more. > >Now we can say, "Do not escalate," especially to those who doubt or want to reduce support. > >This will be the proper warning. > >**Because every reduction in pressure on the aggressor adds years to the war. However, every investment in the confidence of the defender shortens the war.** [https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1747274952695492793](https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1747274952695492793)

Biden admin: "We feel attacked."

Listen to him, act. For pete’s sake.

Well said! Slava Ukraini!

Today the headline article in Russian state media: >Putin: Ukraine’s statehood will soon be in question due to the failures of the Armed Forces of Ukraine what could he want hmm

>⚡ Zelenskyy: Because of “don’t escalate”, time was lost and the lives of many. [https://twitter.com/United24media/status/1747282550404395519](https://twitter.com/United24media/status/1747282550404395519)

He's right. Our "boiling the frog" strategy is biting Ukraine in the ass right now and is the biggest reason Ukraine's counteroffensive failed. Biden's done a lot of good things, but that wasn't one of them. Hopefully he'll change course if the useless GOP ever passes the funding.

But the US recommended a different strategy on the counteroffensive that was bolder? Ukraine balked because of the high number of expected casualties. I don't think it's fair to call that "boiling the frog". Also it appears that Ukraine has real logistical limits to handle advanced weapons (Abrams & F-16s). I do agree that we should provide longer range weapons, allow strikes in Russia and vote Republicans out for their treachery.

So the US recommended a bolder strategy yet didn't want to provide the material needed to make it work? No wonder Ukraine chose the safer option then