Sanctions against Russia

[willedoo]

Some more unorthodox gear. A Ukrainian UAZ-452 with an M-60 machine gun. Welders, fitters and turners and sheet metal workers would be in high demand in Ukraine with all the innovation going on. Added to that, all the engineering work repairing battle damaged equipment, including captured Russian gear.

[willedoo]

1 hour ago, facthunter said:

Just WHO would want to operate under his regime, given a free choice.

From what I've seen, Russian bogans are his main public support. They are the morons running around wearing 'Z' T shirts and calling for more war.  Most educated, urban Russians and those that are capable of independent thought are horrified at what's happening to their country.

[onetrack]

The Ukrainians are heading in the wrong direction with this pseudo-military stuff. It's too easy to ID it, it stands out like dogs nuts - but it doesn't have any ability to resist weapons fired at it.

What is better is complete sleeper units, looking like ordinary, everyday vehicles or items - then, KAPOW! - it suddenly produces a weapon that hits with finality.

 

The Germans on the Kormoran had this worked out. They fooled the destroyer Sydney - the epitome of naval destructive ability - into coming close for a better look, thinking they were simply looking at a merchant ship with a bit of freight on board - and within 6 seconds, the Germans had the tarps off their hidden guns, and had destroyed the bridge, and half the guns on the Sydney.

 

I'd like to see the Ukrainians do something similar to a premium Russian Naval vessel - a Russian flagship sunk would be great, morale-boosting news. Putin needs some losses that really, really hurt.

[willedoo]

One problem is that the line gets blurred. The Ukrainian soldiers have been using a lot of civilian cars for transport and to move small squads around, some with volunteer civilian drivers. The downside is that the Russians know this and tend to shoot first and ask questions later, hence a lot of innocent civilians with no military involvement have been killed just driving down the road. It's always a grey area when military embed among civilians. Both sides are doing it.

[willedoo]

[facthunter]

THAT dog is not in uniform.   Nev

[Marty_d]

Maybe he's just wearing his dog tags.

[pmccarthy]

He's black ops.

[Marty_d]

Maybe he's in disguise.  When the enemy gets close he turns in to a Rottweiler.

[Jerry_Atrick]

From my linkedin fed:

Robin Horsfall • 3rd+ Former SAS Soldier. Writer, Veterans Campaigner and Public Speaker. 7h • Edited •

7 hours ago

He must blink first - and he will!

Vladimir Putin and his puppet politician are raising the volume. 'London will be the first to be bombed' - '‘They want to beat us on the battlefield – let them try!’ This is drum beating and sabre rattling at its most obvious. Raising the threat level has one purpose, to make those supporting Ukraine worry about their own safety and consider sacrificing a friend for their own benefit. It only takes one weak country to waver and others will follow. Some will call this 'cowardice', 'appeasement' or worst of all 'real politic'. There is one important thing for politicians to acknowledge. Kowtowing to Vladimir Putin will have catastrophic long term consequences.

The bully does not desist when one surrenders, he takes more. The blackmailer does not ask for less when you pay him he demands more. Surrender in Ukraine means surrender in Europe!

The time is now, the place is Ukraine. This is the moment when the future of the 21st Century is decided. The choice is between Democracy or Dictatorship.

We made the same decisions in 1939 and the free world must make them again today. If we waver, if we shake in our shoes and submit to terror then we will get the future we deserve, with Rulers, Sultans, Kings and Tyrants and our recent century of liberal freedoms for all men and women will be a simple footnote in history.

Putin is playing the mind games he learned in the KGB he wants to know how far we will go to defend freedom. Will we follow the example of Ukraine and fight? Or will we follow the examples of Neville Chamberlain and Daladier in 1938 and kneel to the tyrant today in the hope that he will go away tomorrow?

We cannot and must not back down. Putin's noise does not come from confidence it comes from fear. His munitions are being expended, his soldiers are dying, the advantage of his artillery is diminishing. Now is the time to stand strong. It is the time for all free nations to find their courage and stand on the wall.

He must blink first and he will.

Slava Ukraine!

------------------

 

For me, I have never trusted Putin's Russia. Europe cosied to him, and I think it was George Bush who said he would be a good partner for NATO. Well, history has no shown he hasn't changed his spots. I feel for the ordinarty Russian - yes many will blindly follow him and in trying to understand why, I guess in the face of perceiving the world had been against Australia in the same way as Russia, and with a slick internal propaganda machine, I may well have a different view to the rest of the world if Australia was in the same position as Russia.

 

This sorry saga - as with many before in the so-called years of peace since WWII - shows that humanity has the capacity, but not the will to change.

[Bruce Tuncks]

Suppose Russia had joined NATO? As a defensive alliance, it should make no difference to their response.

The alliance only kicks in it one of their members gets attacked. Therefore if one of their number does the attacking, NATO is irrelevant.

I think that the US had no NATO support ( only some states which also happened to be NATO members ) in all its recent wars.

[Yenn]

Jerry I agree wholeheartedly with you except for one tiny point. Everyone denigrates Neville Chamberlain for his "Peace in our time" The truth is that Britain was in no position to take on Germany then. It needed time to build up its armament.

The present situation is that Russia is expanding arms and man at a great rate, which does not worry Putin, because he considers them expendable. It is up to the rest of the world to take on the challenge and so far all I see is a load of wimps, who put themselves forward as our leaders, but who in actual fact are taking us down the wrong path.

[willedoo]

I agree with the assessment that Putin is pushing the envelope as far as he can to test the will of the West. For him, it's the final defining test. His future behaviour will depend on what sort of a report card the West gets in their response to his aggression.

 

He is at the stage of make or break, and is desperately hoping the West will crack while he's still got some military capability left. At this stage, he's lost at least one quarter of Russia's land forces, and that could even be closer to 30% before long. The Russians have announced an operational pause to regroup and restock. It might suit the Ukrainians as they are just as exhausted as the Russian forces, but what a shame Ukraine didn't have the equipment they need to hit the enemy hard now.

 

When you look at the mood and demeanor of Putin and his cronies, it's obvious they are becoming increasingly angry and frustrated at the level of losses equated to their level of gain. They're cranky because it's not going their way, ie: getting a resolution before they lose much more of their forces. It's a big stare down and bluff contest between Putin and the West, and the only way to win is to stay united against him. Herding the European cats is the most challenging part of achieving that.

[willedoo]

This is really pathetic, and also sad to see. Here's a couple of photos of Dad's Army undergoing training before being sent off to die in Ukraine. It's a volunteer battalion of old codgers which will deploy to Ukraine as part of the Russian Pacific Fleet's 155th Naval Infantry Brigade. Note that 'volunteer' means poor as hell and needs the money.

 

I watched the rather cringeworthy propaganda video of them training on the shooting range, and it looked like the poor old buggers had never fired a rifle before in their whole lifetime. Just more of Putin's cannon fodder. They think they are going to Ukraine to win the war, and come home with $5,000 in their pocket. Talk about brainwashed.

 

Edit: since posting, I found out they were all practicing shooting left handed, maybe training for if they are wounded in the strong arm. It would explain why they looked so uncomfortable shooting. I didn't spot it the first time watching the video.

Edited July 10, 2022 by willedoo

[willedoo]

It's not independently verified, but there's reports of government workers in industries like shipyards etc., having their salaries reduced and delayed due to the war effort. They are then offered a contract by the Ministry of Defence to go and fight in Ukraine. It wouldn't surprise me if it was true. Putin is trying to avoid conscription for fear of public backlash, and is relying on contract soldiers that the government can spruik as brave volunteers fighting for the Motherland. Domestically, he needs to keep the illusion going as long as possible.

[willedoo]

One of Vladolph Putler's wannabe NATO foes: Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin today at the Ruisrock Festival.

[willedoo]

A couple more of Putin's volunteer Dad's Army. I wonder if they make walkers in olive drab.

Edited July 10, 2022 by willedoo

[Marty_d]

30 minutes ago, willedoo said:

One of Vladolph Putler's wannabe NATO foes: Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin today at the Ruisrock Festival.

Sorry NZ, Finland has just taken out "hottest PM".

[willedoo]

Putin must be getting desperate. The loss of manpower is starting to bite, going by some of the news reports. The Russian media is running footage at the training ground of the Northern Fleet’s 200th. Arctic Motorized Rifle Brigade preparing to deploy to Ukraine. It's a bit like the Dad's Army mentioned in above posts, made up of volunteers, reservists, military police, coastal defence units and sailors from ships.

 

Viewing the footage, most of the trainees appear to be old or to have come straight from desk jobs. Throwing them into front line infantry combat is like lambs to the slaughter, and just proves Putin cares not one bit about how many people die for his foolish vanity. The 200th. Brigade suffered badly early in the war, losing most of their equipment and a large percentage of their men in fighting near Kharkiv. Now they're resurrecting it as a rag tag bunch to get wiped out a second time. 200 is not their lucky number; Cargo 200 is the Russian military code word for transporting the KIA.

 

The Russians are pulling troops and resources from the Finland/Norway border region and from Kaliningrad to deploy to Ukraine, making a mockery of Putin's claim that Russia is threatened on their borders by NATO. If NATO is such a big threat, why is he reducing his border forces to feed the Ukraine meat grinder. Short answer might be that he's dug himself into a hole that he can't climb out of. I'd bet the U.S. and NATO can smell an eventual checkmate.

[onetrack]

I dunno. Putin just might know something. You know the old joke about how the military should just give up trying to train young men, and use old men?

 

"The Armed Forces only accepts those younger than 35. They've got it backwards. Instead of sending 18-year-olds to fight, they should send the old blokes.

You shouldn't be able to join until you're well over 55. Why?

Researchers say 18-year-olds think about sex every 10 seconds. Old blokes only think about sex every 15 minutes, leaving much more time to concentrate on the enemy.

Young blokes haven't lived long enough to be cranky and grumpy. A cranky and grumpy soldier is a dangerous soldier.

An 18-year-old doesn't like to get up before 8.00A.M. Old blokes always get up at 4:00A.M. because they need to have a piss.

If an old bloke got captured, he couldn't spill the beans because he's forgotten so much. Name, rank and serial number would be a real brainteaser.

Boot camp would be easier for old blokes; they're used to being screamed at. Plus, they actually like soft food.

Old blokes already have a deep appreciation for guns and rifles. They like them almost better than naps.

But the Army would have to lighten up on the obstacle course. Besides, there's not a single 20-foot wall with a rope hanging over it, in any combat zone I've seen.

They could also eliminate all the running training. That's a waste of good energy. No one has ever outrun a bullet, anyway."

[Jerry_Atrick]

1 hour ago, onetrack said:

Researchers say 18-year-olds think about sex every 10 seconds. Old blokes only think about sex every 15 minutes, l

Fantastic - I am forever young, then!

[Jerry_Atrick]

Pilphered from the sister site:

 

[Jerry_Atrick]

[willedoo]

It's interesting watching the war progress and how things change. There is a lot of constant adaptation by both sides. Russia's big improvement was bringing in one overall commander who knows what he's doing, which is a far cry from their earlier fractured and incompetent command structure. He's an experienced combat commander after heading up the operations in Syria. Their biggest change in tactics has been smaller, incremental goals and concentrating forces in one area at a time, producing small, gradual gains.

 

Russia might be running low on precision guided munitions but they have enough ex-Soviet stockpiles of artillery munitions to last decades. Ukraine estimates an artillery imbalance with Russia of at least 10:1, and recently they estimated Russia fired 45,000 artillery rounds in one day. So far, the Russian tactics have been to use a mass artillery barrage to destroy cities, then move in with infantry once the Ukrainians have strategically withdrawn. The Ukrainians are holding them back only long enough to degrade the Russian forces bit by bit.

 

Ukraine is continuing to fight smart, and one of the most important developments for them is the recent supply of American M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS). These long range systems have been hitting Russian command posts, logistics and ammunition storage depots way behind the front lines. Russia may have millions upon millions of artillery shells, but the Ukrainians are making it very hard for them to be delivered to the front line artillery units. Hitting supply trains means the Russians have had to slow down by offloading onto road transport to deliver munitions within the range of Ukrainian HIMARS and domestic Tochka-U missiles. Now that they have the U.S. supplied HIMARS, the are using more long range Tochka missiles. Previously, their use was more reserved due to limited stocks.

 

We are yet to see how Russia adapts to this problem. It's hard to see their tactics changing greatly; Russia might not have too many more rabbits in the hat to counteract the long range systems. Important to the Ukrainian long range systems is ensuring freedom of movement by having the air defences to protect them from Russian strikes by air. It appears the Americans and their allies are now understanding what equipment Ukraine needs to win this war. But they still won't supply Ukraine with the 300klm. range HIMARS munitions out of fear Ukraine will use them to attack Russian soil. I think the war would be over a lot quicker if they did supply them, and Ukraine used them only within their own territory. With those munitions, the Russian command, logistics and lines of communication would crumble to an unsustainable point.

 

It seems like Putin wants out, but he wants to negotiate from a position of strength where he can demand his gains. Ukraine, on the other hand, want to keep fighting until Putin is weakened to the point where Ukraine gets the better part of any deal.

[willedoo]

An interesting article on the sustainability of ammunition stocks:

https://t.co/aEDIFbabUo

Edited July 12, 2022 by willedoo