If Ukrainians are executing POWs, and Russians are showing everyone how well they are treating Ukrainian POWs, the Ukrainians will carry on executing them.
You need to match what they're doing and do worse. That's what has happened in every war ever.
Not really. It will speed up operations for Russia if Ukrainian troops surrender in higher numbers. Ukraine is making things harder for themselves by abusing Russian POWs.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaking to Ukrainian soldiers conducting training on switchblade drones in Biloxi, Mississippi.
Those drones use GPS to get to the target and it is alleged that Russia is now using GPS jamming in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government has been sending specialists abroad to learn about newly acquired systems for better integration within their forces; the same can be logically assumed for newly inducted British anti-ship missiles.
If Ukraine still has a coastline to shoot their missiles from by the time they finish training that will be great for them I guess.
If they are rich enough to afford four or five hundreds of each sub type, than sure. But we all know Russia is not that rich.
Russia already has a plan to use a common engine across Su-30, Su-35, Su-34 variants. And the same radar in Su-30, Su-35. This is supposed to be rolled out with Su-30M2, Su-34M variants.
The reason is Russia had since time immemorial customarily began any war with a considerable deficit in the actual combat effectiveness of her forces.
This does not apply just to Russia. Any army with units without combat experience typically fails on several degrees. Training helps but is no replacement for actual combat.
but Russia is in trouble now because neither the numerical superiority during offensive, nor an enemy that must live off the land that could be denied by scorch earth policy applies to probable future hostility with Europe. Yet at the same time, Russia has not broken the old habit of beginning any hostility was a considerable deficit in the combat effectiveness of her forces.
It is precisely because they see a conflict is inevitable, and that they lack both strategic depth, and troops with enough combat experience, that Russia had to attack first. As for your claims their old Soviet doctrine of mass of numbers can't apply anymore, this is true. And it is why you see weapons systems like the Su-57 or T-14. Or programs like Ratnik. Which are designed to maximize troop survivability.
This brings up a good point. So there's a ton of public sources that say Russia has 12,500 tanks in total, including those held in reserve. Do we know how quickly those reserve tanks can be activated and brought on the battlefield, if the Russians wanted to do so?
I would say only a couple of thousand should be easy to put into service. Most of the others will be in deep storage and will likely take at least a couple days each to become operational. And most of those tanks won't be any good against modern tanks. The exception would be the T-90s in storage.
Use of chemical weapons designed to kill or cause serious injury to combatants would be a violation of numerous treaties to which Russia is a signatory. The gain seems minuscule for the resulting blow back. Logically the best option to smoke them out is to literally smoke them out, by using tear gas or particulate agents that doesn’t maim or kill in themselves but makes the air progressively more unbreathable.
Why would Russia use chemical weapons when they are winning in Mariupol? It makes no sense. Besides, Russia already eliminated its chemical weapons stockpile years ago.
I wouldn’t take it seriously. Since we don’t know how real this video is but…
Supposedly, Zelensky has ordered the invasion of Russia with the City of Belgorod as the target. Sounds like a suicide mission but whatever.
If they do attack Russian territory then Russia can use nukes according to their doctrine.
I've no idea why the Russians haven't developed a drone tank. It would cost them nothing to convert some of the old T-72s they have in stock. The autoloader makes it even easier. One person controlling drive and the main turret, then one person operating each of the guns independently.
They have. But those are only prototypes.
Congrats to Ukraine for getting the worst built T-72's along with the Czech ones.
Weren't the Iraqi T-72Ms during the Gulf War made in Poland? Makes sense how they are desperate for Leopard 2s now.
No kidding. Those are the tanks Saddam's "elite" Republican Guard used to have. Some say those Polish tanks are T-72A. But it is BS. The turret lacks the composite and quartz filler a real Soviet T-72A has. And Ukraine had hundreds of those. Problem is, they are probably in deep storage in Kharkov. These tanks are little better than T-72 Ural if they made no other upgrades.
I didn't mean that conquering more of Ukraine would fix Russia's issues with low life expectancy or fertility rates.
Russia has similar fertility indicators as the EU. And life expectancy was rising steadily all over Putin's term in power.
Ukraine was primarily in helicopter and marine engines. so that took a decade or two to replace them.
Actually some of the helicopter engines are still not replaced with Russian models. Like engines for small and medium helicopters. They are still on bench testing. e.g. for Ansat and Ka-60. But those were considered lower priority since the main user is civilian government functions not the military.
more like M577 Command Post Carrier and M109A6 Paladin
That looks like German cammo. I assume those are the M577s Germany sold to Lithuania. I doubt the Paladins are latest A6 version.
The Paladins use incompatible ammo compared to current Ukrainian stockpiles.
It does feel laughable, right? Zelensky has full responsibility for anything that happens to Medvedchuk. I am sure that the West will find ways to avoid saying that it is just hostage taking, since Medvedchuk is a Ukrainian citizen and not a combatant in service of Russia...
Russia has no responsibility in freeing a Ukrainian citizen. Regardless of him being detained in Ukraine against his civil rights or not.
Well, I myself is not on EU's side. If Russians feel that they don't see EU-Russia relations as important or even beneficial their country, then all the power to them for cutting down ties.
For geographical and cultural reasons it was their main and preferred trade partner. But if they can't be anymore, there are plenty of other, more suboptimal, but possible replacements.
Frankly Japan does not have much chance to be independent as its technological base is in narrrow fields and they are certainly not known for software. than you add declining population means not much surplus manpower to train for really complex battlefield.
Japan is also culturally isolated from large part of world.
Japan has a good software industry. But like you said cultural issues, their language, make it hard to export their software.
This Finland joining NATO move is probably design to thin out Russia military strength. And it is working.
There will be no end to it. Why even responding with sending heavy weaponry and manpower at the Finnish border. Russia should start waving its nuclear might to deter neighbors bringing Nato on Russia front yard.
They already did by showing Bastion with Oniks moving close to Finnish border.
I'm still curious on what are Russian forces doing in Belarus atm... are they regrouping and preparing for new North offensive or something else ?
Baranovichi airbase might still be full of Russian aircrafts.
Probably guarding Belarus against NATO incursion or Ukraine counter attack.
I disagree with this. Sounds like copium to me.
The PLA hasn't fought a war in decades and its training is getting stronger (And that's from its own assessments where it admits weak/string points)
Any army which gets into a war after a long time of peace makes all sorts of mistakes. And do not assume China is the exception to this rule.
Let's call it what it is, Russia's military reforms were (as usual) half-arsed and as a result they are now paying the price for it. Sprinkle a bit of Putin's hopium on "brother war" and you get this result.
As with any similarly ambitious reforms program the progress is pretty much uneven.
