Russia

[LFC]

The Russian Embassy in the UK tried to take a swat. Yeah, not a good look.

[LFC]

Vlad continues to destroy Russia's future.

One out of three Russian students have expressed a desire to leave the country in an unpublished Kremlin survey, the iStories investigative outlet reported Thursday.

Forty-four percent of the polled students described the state of affairs in wartime Russia as a “crisis,” while 32% described it as a “collapse/breakdown.”

Fear and anxiety ranked first at 36% when the students were asked to associate an emotion with Russia, according to iStories.

Just one-quarter named hope as the emotion they associate with Russia, while one in five chose resentment and disappointment and 12-14% chose respect, pride and trust.

Between 14-24% of students at most of the surveyed universities expressed the wish to leave Russia, iStories reported. This figure jumped to 58% at Moscow’s top-ranked Higher School of Economics (HSE).

[pnwguy]

May 24, 2023 14:24:35 GMT LFC said:

Vlad continues to destroy Russia's future.

One out of three Russian students have expressed a desire to leave the country in an unpublished Kremlin survey, the iStories investigative outlet reported Thursday.

Forty-four percent of the polled students described the state of affairs in wartime Russia as a “crisis,” while 32% described it as a “collapse/breakdown.”

Fear and anxiety ranked first at 36% when the students were asked to associate an emotion with Russia, according to iStories.

Just one-quarter named hope as the emotion they associate with Russia, while one in five chose resentment and disappointment and 12-14% chose respect, pride and trust.

Between 14-24% of students at most of the surveyed universities expressed the wish to leave Russia, iStories reported. This figure jumped to 58% at Moscow’s top-ranked Higher School of Economics (HSE).

I'd expect some similar polling in the US if a Trump 2.0 presidency happens.  But fear and anxiety might go higher than 36%.

[andydp]

As we have seen throughout this invasion the RUS Army has done an abominable job.  In this report, misuse of specialized, highly trained units as infantry was a major mistake which will affect the RUS Army for a long time.  As explained in the article, Spetsnaz units are slightly different  US Green Berets.  But they all have one common denominator: they are elite units with the best soldiers.  

Russia's brash invasion plan for Ukraine wasted special-operations units on missions they weren't meant to do

Special forces are highly-trained troops reserved for high-value missions. But using them as assault infantry? That's a wasteful way to use a scarce and precious resource.

Yet that is precisely the mistake Moscow made during its invasion of Ukraine, according to a recent report on Russia's planning for the war.

The problem wasn't just that Spetsnaz commandos and other special-operations forces were assigned missions that should have gone to conventional units. The Russian military's focus on creating those elite formations, which pre-dated the war, also stripped the regular infantry of its best soldiers.

The February 2022 invasion assigned key roles to Spetsnaz commando units. Under current Russian doctrine, special forces should have gone in first to disrupt Ukrainian defenses, alongside covert operations carried out by agents of Russia's main intelligence agency, the FSB, who were already in Ukraine, including in the Ukrainian government and military.

Instead, the invasion began with airborne units attempting to seize key locations from which the paratroopers were to fan out and secure Kyiv before being relieved by mechanized columns.

Russian leaders were so confident of a quick victory that their support elements had already rented apartments near key sites in Kyiv were their special forces were supposed to operate, the report said.

When the airborne assault on Kyiv failed and the tank columns stalled, the special forces were left adrift. "When the occupation of much of the target territory failed, these troops were neither in position to fulfill their traditional role nor able to fulfill the role specified in the invasion plan," the RUSI researchers wrote.


www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/russia-s-brash-invasion-plan-for-ukraine-wasted-special-operations-units-on-missions-they-weren-t-meant-to-do/ar-AA1bBcU8?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=b99951cab52f4548805db50e5352eaf0&ei=13

Personal experience:  Combat Engineers have a secondary mission to act as infantry.  BUT... using them as Infantry rather than Engineers means they can't adapt or change the battlefield to our advantage.  In military speak: Engineers are a "combat multiplier".  

[goldenvalley]

The war comes to Moscow.  

At least eight drones targeted Moscow early Tuesday, according to the Russian authorities, the first attack to hit civilian areas in the Russian capital and a potent sign that the war is increasingly reaching the heart of Russia.

The assault came after yet another overnight bombardment by Russian forces of the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, which has faced a barrage of attacks in recent weeks that have put the city on edge and tested the country’s air defenses. Kyiv was attacked with at least 20 drones early Tuesday, leaving one person dead and unnerving exhausted residents.

The dueling strikes reflected the dialed-up tension and shifting priorities ahead of Ukraine’s expected counteroffensive. Ukraine has increasingly been reaching far into Russia-held territory, while Moscow has been adjusting its tactics in an effort to inflict significant damage on Kyiv.

Tuesday’s aerial assault on Moscow — in which at least three residential buildings sustained minor damage — comes weeks after a pair of explosions over the Kremlin, a bold strike aimed at President Vladimir V. Putin’s seat of power. U.S. officials said the attack was most likely orchestrated by one of Ukraine’s special military or intelligence units.

The Russian Defense Ministry blamed Ukraine for Tuesday’s assault, describing the strike as a “terrorist attack” and saying that the drones had been intercepted. Mr. Putin briefly commented on the attack, telling a reporter that Russia’s air defenses had proved adequate. “We have stuff to do,” he said in a video clip published by state news media. “We know what needs to be done.”

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, said Kyiv was not “directly involved” but was “happy” to watch. A spokesman for Ukraine’s Air Force, which typically maintains a policy of strategic ambiguity over attacks in Russia, declined to comment.

[jackd]

I really wish they would refrain from targeting civilian areas. I know the Russians "deserve" whatever they get but Ukraine can make its point by targeting military objectives and shouldn't sink to the level of the Russians.

[LFC]

May 30, 2023 18:38:58 GMT jackd said:

I really wish they would refrain from targeting civilian areas. I know the Russians "deserve" whatever they get but Ukraine can make its point by targeting military objectives and shouldn't sink to the level of the Russians.

They didn't. They targeted a Russian military basis. It wasn't essential to the war effort but it was a legitimate military target, and it was definitely selected because it was close to both Moscow and right next to an area where many of Moscow's elites have very expensive homes. It was reported that many of the regular Russian folks didn't care and some mocked the wealthy online for having to face the war, something that hasn't gone over well with the Kremlin.

Russia admitted that they knocked out some of the drones using electronic countermeasures. These caused them to go off course and hit residential areas. No word on what they actually hit as the Kremlin has been completely buttoned up about it. The only reports coming out of Russia are from locals posting videos on social media.

[LFC]

Moldova is drifting towards the EU so it's a good time to review the Moldova / Transnistria issue. Russia can't supply them natural gas anymore, their one big carrot, and they actually have very few Russian soldiers there. The number is likely less than 100, with the rest being locals who were given Russian passports. The situation there, however, is shifting as well. Moldova entered into a trade agreement with the EU and made sure not to exclude the Transnistria region, so now 70% of their exports go to the EU.

3. Is Transnistria loyal to Russia?

While free gas has helped ensure Transnistria’s allegiance to Moscow, the European Union has also provided an economic lifeline to Transnistria with new trade deals.

Russia’s annexation of Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula, in 2014, as well as Russia’s 2014 war with Ukraine over the Donbas region, transformed Transnistria’s economic orientation from Russia to Western Europe.

The fighting in Ukraine prompted Ukraine to reevaluate and tighten its border policy. This resulted in a crackdown on routes in and out of Transnistria that had been used for illegal trafficking of goods for nearly three decades.

The squeezing of contraband routes came at an opportune moment for Transnistria.

Moldova signed a free-trade deal with the European Union in 2014, also allowing trade to be conducted from Transnistria. Transnistria’s trade with Western Europe has since continued to grow, as its trade with Russia declines.

Today, more than 70% of Transnistria’s exports go to Western Europe.

[goldenvalley]

Jun 2, 2023 18:24:26 GMT LFC said:

Moldova is drifting towards the EU so it's a good time to review the Moldova / Transnistria issue. Russia can't supply them natural gas anymore, their one big carrot, and they actually have very few Russian soldiers there. The number is likely less than 100, with the rest being locals who were given Russian passports. The situation there, however, is shifting as well. Moldova entered into a trade agreement with the EU and made sure not to exclude the Transnistria region, so now 70% of their exports go to the EU.

3. Is Transnistria loyal to Russia?

While free gas has helped ensure Transnistria’s allegiance to Moscow, the European Union has also provided an economic lifeline to Transnistria with new trade deals.

Russia’s annexation of Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula, in 2014, as well as Russia’s 2014 war with Ukraine over the Donbas region, transformed Transnistria’s economic orientation from Russia to Western Europe.

The fighting in Ukraine prompted Ukraine to reevaluate and tighten its border policy. This resulted in a crackdown on routes in and out of Transnistria that had been used for illegal trafficking of goods for nearly three decades.

The squeezing of contraband routes came at an opportune moment for Transnistria.

Moldova signed a free-trade deal with the European Union in 2014, also allowing trade to be conducted from Transnistria. Transnistria’s trade with Western Europe has since continued to grow, as its trade with Russia declines.

Today, more than 70% of Transnistria’s exports go to Western Europe.

Keep it up Putin.  You're making Russia an island with only one customer...China.

[LFC]

Jun 2, 2023 23:45:11 GMT goldenvalley said:

Keep it up Putin.  You're making Russia an island with only one customer...China.

China is playing it smart, not getting too involved but making a weakened Russia more and more dependent on them. Xi sees this opportunity to make Putin his bitch, getting a steady supply of cheap gas and oil while making Russia dependent on them for tech and arms.

I find it interesting how various leaders over time, including Putin, were described as evil geniuses when in fact they were just psychopaths who lied casually and continually with no qualms about destroying norms, agreements, or anything else. Putin has made his most strategic move ever and it's a non-stop clusterf***.

[andydp]

This is starting to play out like a neo Tolstoy drama.

Wagner chief claims Russian defense ministry placed mines on group's exit routes from Bakhmut

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner private military company, claimed in a Telegram post on Friday that the representatives of the Russian defense ministry had placed mines on Wagner Group's fighters' exit routes from Bakhmut.

Prigozhin didn’t provide any evidence that supports his claim.

“Shortly before our departure, we detected suspicious activity along our exit route. [...] we called law enforcement and began to investigate our exit routes along the roads,” Prigozhin said. “We found about a dozen places where various explosive devices were placed, ranging from hundreds of anti-tank mines to tonnes of plastic explosives [...] Those who rigged those areas with explosives were representatives of the Ministry of Defense.”

“When asked why they did it, they point their fingers up,” Prigozhin said referring to pointing at the Russian leadership.


www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/russia-ukraine-war-news-06-02-23/h_93f77b709c8ebf957585a3d0767807f9#:~:text=Yevgeny%20Prigozhin%2C%20the%20head%20of%20the%20Wagner%20private,on%20Wagner%20Group%27s%20fighters%27%20exit%20routes%20from%20Bakhmut.

[AnBr]

Jun 2, 2023 23:45:11 GMT goldenvalley said:

Keep it up Putin.  You're making Russia an island with only one customer...China.

And Xi will eat his lunch. And isn't China putting a huge effort into shifting to renewables? Welcome to the third world, Putie.

[AnBr]

[andydp]

This just in from "Putin is a Genius Land".  This person has become a trusted source for RT.  I have to ask what criteria he uses to determine Putin is a genius and Russia is "Thriving".

Scott Ritter finds new audience: Putin’s Russia

Scott Ritter just spent 26 days touring Russia, where — predictably enough — he was asked what he thought of its president.

“Vladimir Putin will go down in history as one of the greatest leaders of all time,” Ritter said, waiting patiently for a translator to convey his words. “It’s only because of Vladimir Putin that Russia exists today. But Russia doesn’t just exist — Russia thrives.”

Nobody who has been paying attention to Ritter since the invasion of Ukraine would be surprised by the answer. The former United Nations weapons inspector has emerged as a strident Putin defender who has compared Ukraine to a rabid dog that needs to be put down, and claims Russia’s invasion was an act of preemptive self-defense.

Those who remember the Scott Ritter of 20 years ago might be surprised. Here was a man who rose to national prominence as an opponent of war and a critic of invasion — arguing that President George W. Bush’s rationale for going to war against Saddam Hussain was based on fear and lies, including the one about Iraq possessing weapons of mass destruction.

Turns out, Ritter was largely right.

This measure of vindication was followed by his downfall. In 2011, Ritter was sentenced to up to five-and-a-half years in prison for masturbating in view of a Pennsylvania police officer who was posing online as a 15-year-old girl. It wasn’t Ritter’s first such brush with the law: Ten years earlier, he had been arrested for attempting to lure a 16-year-old girl — actually a Colonie undercover officer — to a Burger King. The misdemeanor charge was later adjourned in contemplation of dismissal.

(Snarky Comment:  Perfect husband material for Lauren Boebert.)

That history has largely made Ritter an invisible man in the United States, despite his foreign policy expertise and his prolific writing on the subject since being released from a Pennsylvania prison in 2014. Not so in Russia, where Ritter found work on state outlets such as RT News and is presented as “a trusted expert,” one of the few Americans willing to tell the truth about his government.


digital.olivesoftware.com/olive/odn/albanytimesunion/default.aspx

[goldenvalley]

Jun 5, 2023 13:34:57 GMT andydp said:

This just in from "Putin is a Genius Land".  This person has become a trusted source for RT.  I have to ask what criteria he uses to determine Putin is a genius and Russia is "Thriving".

Scott Ritter finds new audience: Putin’s Russia

Scott Ritter just spent 26 days touring Russia, where — predictably enough — he was asked what he thought of its president.

“Vladimir Putin will go down in history as one of the greatest leaders of all time,” Ritter said, waiting patiently for a translator to convey his words. “It’s only because of Vladimir Putin that Russia exists today. But Russia doesn’t just exist — Russia thrives.”

Nobody who has been paying attention to Ritter since the invasion of Ukraine would be surprised by the answer. The former United Nations weapons inspector has emerged as a strident Putin defender who has compared Ukraine to a rabid dog that needs to be put down, and claims Russia’s invasion was an act of preemptive self-defense.

Those who remember the Scott Ritter of 20 years ago might be surprised. Here was a man who rose to national prominence as an opponent of war and a critic of invasion — arguing that President George W. Bush’s rationale for going to war against Saddam Hussain was based on fear and lies, including the one about Iraq possessing weapons of mass destruction.

Turns out, Ritter was largely right.

This measure of vindication was followed by his downfall. In 2011, Ritter was sentenced to up to five-and-a-half years in prison for masturbating in view of a Pennsylvania police officer who was posing online as a 15-year-old girl. It wasn’t Ritter’s first such brush with the law: Ten years earlier, he had been arrested for attempting to lure a 16-year-old girl — actually a Colonie undercover officer — to a Burger King. The misdemeanor charge was later adjourned in contemplation of dismissal.

(Snarky Comment:  Perfect husband material for Lauren Boebert.)

That history has largely made Ritter an invisible man in the United States, despite his foreign policy expertise and his prolific writing on the subject since being released from a Pennsylvania prison in 2014. Not so in Russia, where Ritter found work on state outlets such as RT News and is presented as “a trusted expert,” one of the few Americans willing to tell the truth about his government.


digital.olivesoftware.com/olive/odn/albanytimesunion/default.aspx

Folks like Ritter are nothing if not resilient.  Eh a couple of arrests and a jail term...just start over again in another country.  If Putin gets tired of using him, I'm sure the Trump campaign will hire Ritter.  "Trump will go down in history as the greatest..."

[LFC]

Agreed. Russia signed a treaty. Now it's time to enforce it.

By any reasonable definition of the word, Russia’s Black Sea blockade of maritime trade with Ukraine equates to piracy, or at least the threat of it. The international community’s response has been dismal. By accepting Russia’s implicit threats to sink foreign-flagged merchant vessels in international waters, we have allowed the Kremlin to successfully blackmail the world.

That blackmail continues. Threats to maintain a Russian boot on the neck of food exports that supply the world, unless new concessions are made, is a constant theme for Russian spokesmen. On May 29, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said: “If everything remains as it is, and apparently it will, then it will be necessary to proceed from the fact that it [the deal] is no longer functioning.”

This statement came just 12 days after the two-month extension of a previously negotiated grain deal, under which tons of Ukrainian grain may be exported by ship to global markets, provided vessels follow a certain, specially designated “green” channel, and are subject to UN, Russian, Ukrainian and Turkish inspection before entering the Bosphorus Strait. Only “bulkers” and “tankers” – not container ships – are permitted.

Even when the grain deal operates normally, allowing a restricted flow of grain exports, it creates a legal façade that legitimizes Russia’s military actions in blocking all other Ukrainian sea-based exports. Russia’s threats are not just a form of words: Russian warships have laid sea mines and fired missiles at commercial vessels regardless of what flag they fly if they head for, or seek to leave Ukrainian ports.

The grain deal gives Russia an unprecedented role in overseeing Black Sea shipping, despite the fact it has a legal claim to only 10% of the Black Sea coastline and is a party to the Montreux Convention, which was designed to assure freedom of commerce through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits. The Convention assigns Turkey — not Russia — the role of ensuring that freedom of navigation is unimpaired.

It is time to break the Russian blockade. Here’s how:

[andydp]

Haven't heard much about Russia's battle losses lately.  Here's a fairly recent one about the loss of a Self Propelled Artillery Battery.  In the article you'll see "SPG" - Self Propelled Gun, they look like tanks, but they are not.  Plenty of links to videos in the main article.

'Artillery Destroyed’: New Ukraine Footage Shows Battery of Russian Howitzers ‘Wiped Out’

The Ukrainian counteroffensive seems well underway, at least five Russian 2S19 Msta-S 152mm self-propelled howitzers came under recent fire and were disabled or destroyed near the settlement of Novopetrykivka.

Video footage of the first two guns being targeted was posted on social media in the early hours of Wednesday.

"Two Russian 2S19 Msta-S SPGs have been destroyed what looks like precise GMLRS strikes. The SPGs were part of the Russian defense north of Novopetrykivka, and as such can be considered critical losses," open-source reporter @tendar first posted.

Hours later, Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@uaweapons) shared a subsequent video that purported to show the destruction of "At least three more Russian 2S19 Msta-S 152mm self-propelled howitzers" that were destroyed in GMLRS strikes.


www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/artillery-destroyed-new-ukraine-footage-shows-battery-of-russian-howitzers-wiped-out/ar-AA1cARoN?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=5f16ce4ccadc4762a2d3c6605728dc65&ei=48

[LFC]

Republicans love the joke about, "We're from the government and we're here to help", until the next disaster when they're whining and screeching about needing government help. In Russia it's more like, "We're from the military and we're going to take all your shit." Yes, they're robbing their own people.

Two residents evacuated from a Russian village that borders Ukraine in the Belgorod region have alleged to authorities that Russian soldiers looted their homes.

In public comments to regional Gov. Vyacheslav Gladkov, the two residents said that the Russian military sent to guard their village of Novaya Tavolzhanka had instead robbed their houses.

Several thousand people were evacuated from the area when Russian volunteers opposed to the rule of President Vladimir Putin launched cross-border raids late in May.

One of the residents, Natalya Chemerchenko, told the governor in a post Thursday on the VK social media site: "Military personnel of the Russian Federation break into many houses (although the state of emergency has not been introduced and they do not have the right to enter private homes)."

BTW, this is not the first report of Russian soldiers sent to the Belgorod region stealing from Russians' homes.

[andydp]

Jun 16, 2023 16:00:45 GMT LFC said:

This has been going on since at least WWII.  The Russian solders were renowned for taking "war booty" from German prisoners.  As detailed in the following photos. Apparently, there were two watches on his arm.  Not defending the pillaging of homes in any way shape or form.  I could understand if it was food and clothing, based on what we know of the RUS supply lines. 





The original photo (top) was altered (bottom) by editing the watch on Ismailov's right wrist[5]

[LFC]

Shit's gettin' crazy over there. (archive link)

Russia’s Federal Security Service late Friday announced a criminal case against Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeniy Prigozhin, accusing him of “incitement to armed rebellion” after he declared an open conflict with Russia’s military leadership and called on Russians to join 25,000 Wagner fighters against Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and other top commanders.

Prigozhin, whose private military company helped Russia seize the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, Moscow’s only significant territorial gain this year, accused the Russian military on Friday of carrying out a strike on a Wagner camp, and appeared to threaten Shoigu, declaring “This scum will be stopped!”

In a rare late-night statement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that President Vladimir Putin had been informed about the situation and that “all necessary measures” were being taken.

The announcement of the criminal case by the Federal Security Service, or FSB, signaled that Prigozhin could face imminent arrest for comments in which he declared that he would lead a “march of justice” against his enemies in Russia’s Ministry of Defense. The Wagner leader denied that he was attempting a military coup.

In a series of furious audio messages, Prigozhin accused Shoigu of flying to Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia specifically to launch a missile strike against Wagner, before fleeing the area late Friday.

The Russian Defense Ministry responded swiftly to Prigozhin’s extraordinary threats, denying his claim that the military had struck a Wagner camp, calling it “an informational provocation.”

“The armed forces of the Russian Federation continue to carry out combat missions on the line of contact with the armed forces of Ukraine in the area of the special military operation,” the ministry said.

Prigozhin posted a video purporting to show the strike on the camp where he said many of his fighters were killed. It depicted rising smoke and signs of destruction but no evidence of the large number of casualties that he claimed.

[indy]

Hard to tell what is real and what is not, but according to multiple sources Wagner appears to be in the process of taking over the city of Rostov. Rostov is Russia's 10th largest city and the main logistical hub for military supplies destined for Ukraine, in which case there is likely a whole lot of stuff there that they can immediately use.

[indy]

And just like that, it is already being reported they have completely taken the city and have engaged mainline Russian troops including shooting down some helicopters. It appears there was very little resistance to the takeover. If true, this is indeed a coup attempt and civil war and local forces look disinclined to put up a fight.  Already challenging logistics for supplying the effort in Ukraine may have taken a really significant hit and one has to wonder at what point it might totally collapse.

Allegedly there is a Wagner military convoy headed towards Moscow. Conflict in or near Moscow would make this real very fast for the country.

[indy]

[indy]

Not sure to what extent this can be trusted but Lukashenko may have fled Belarus.

[indy]