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Putin now faces only different kinds of defeat
BBC ^ | 8th May 2022 | Michael Clatke

Posted on 05/09/2022 1:04:07 PM PDT by Cronos

This war is one that Russia cannot win in any meaningful sense.

Putin's foreign military successes around the world after 2008 were all achieved by using small units of elite forces, mercenaries and local militia groups alongside Russian air power.

This gave Moscow considerable leverage at low cost during interventions in Georgia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Syria, Libya, Mali and twice in Ukraine during 2014, first in illegally annexing Crimea and then in creating self-declared Russian statelets in Luhansk and Donetsk.

In every case, Russia moved swiftly and ruthlessly in ways the western world was unable to counter except through graduated sanctions regimes - nothing that could reverse the reality. Putin was adept at creating "new facts on the ground".

In February he tried the same again on the grandest possible scale in Ukraine - to grab governmental power within about 72 hours in a country of 45 million people occupying the second biggest land area in Europe. It was an astonishing and reckless gamble and it failed completely in the first crucial week.

...Having failed with Plan A to seize the government in Kyiv before President Zelensky's forces, or the outside world, could react, Moscow then switched to a Plan B. This was a more "manoeuvrist" military approach to surround Kyiv and move in on other Ukrainian cities - Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Mariupol and Mykolaiv and simply snuff out Ukrainian armed resistance while Kyiv itself would be threatened with capitulation or destruction.

This, too, failed.

...In frustration, Russia has now moved to "plan C",

(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Russia
KEYWORDS: allplanned; approvedpropaganda; bbc; bbcpropaganda; britpropaganda; britwarliars; clatkeisalyingpos; fightingukrukhai; genius; globalistpropaganda; liztruss; liztrussapproves; liztrussapprovesthis; mi6agitprop; michaelclatke; orkrainians; orkrainiansarelosing; peterhitchens; putinthegenius; smartandsavvy; thefightingukrukhai
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To: Cronos

Meanwhile “great” Britain is losing its grip on Northern Ireland...but ok.


21 posted on 05/09/2022 2:18:18 PM PDT by mac_truck (aide toi et dieu t'aidera )
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To: Bulwyf
Look at the people backing Ukraine, that should tell you everything.

Like Trump? Here's a list of countries that voted to support the Russian invasion: Belarus, North Korea, Eritrea and Syria.

22 posted on 05/09/2022 2:26:48 PM PDT by tlozo (Trump-the Russian invasion of Ukraine is " truly a crime against humanity")
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To: Bulwyf
Look at the people backing Ukraine, that should tell you everything.

That's a grade school level way of picking who or what to support, but I'd rather be allied with NATO, the rest of Europe, and the USA and Canada instead of joining up with Iran, Syria, and North Korea, but to each his own.

23 posted on 05/09/2022 2:29:41 PM PDT by freeandfreezing
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To: Cronos

Its one way to spin it - Putin OBVIOUSLY wanted the whole of Ukraine - but he’s just going to have to settle for the East.

Victory for Biden!


24 posted on 05/09/2022 2:31:31 PM PDT by PGR88
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To: Kazan

Critical thinkers take reports with a truck load of salt, and consider the source (i.e., who does the source support?). American media are not credible, and Russian media certainly are not credible. Yet, you seem to rely on Russian and pro-Russian sources almost exclusively. You were outed as pro-Russian several weeks ago. Are you paid in rubles for posting on FR?


25 posted on 05/09/2022 2:43:36 PM PDT by ought-six (Multiculturalism is national suicide, and political correctness is the cyanide capsule. )
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To: Kazan

Ukraine will become Putin’s Afghanistan.

L


26 posted on 05/09/2022 2:47:06 PM PDT by Lurker (Peaceful coexistence with the Left is not possible. Stop pretending that it is.)
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To: Kazan

What kind of moral deviant roots for russia to occupy and oppress an independent sovereign nation? Or are you just doing this for the rubles?


27 posted on 05/09/2022 2:52:11 PM PDT by lump in the melting pot
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To: freeandfreezing

As a western Canadian, I can assure you, we’re under a dictatorship.


28 posted on 05/09/2022 2:59:16 PM PDT by Bulwyf
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To: tlozo

Where’s Kenya and Ethiopia on the list?


29 posted on 05/09/2022 2:59:43 PM PDT by Bulwyf
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To: adorno

“Putin and Russia (as the former Soviet Union) did not dare take on any big adventures when Reagan and Trump were president. When analyzing victories, small or large, one has to look at who is the opposition. Certainly, Obama and Biden are no opposition, and in reality, they encouraged the aggression.”

___________

You have a pretty good synopsis in your whole comment. The above excerpt explains where we’re at today. We were supposed to be here by design under Clinton, but President Trump squeaked by their fraud ability. They didn’t make that error twice. So, here we are. The same people are running the show and the orchestrators of the Maidan coup are back in play again. Nukes will fly.

China is hoping so, too. Saves them from having to do it themselves. They would if they couldn’t get Russia to do it, but they can. Russia is RIPE. This war isn’t between Russia and Ukraine. This war is about who has the power to rule the world and despite what anyone believes nobody has that power. That won’t prevent them from striving to do so.


30 posted on 05/09/2022 3:03:03 PM PDT by jacknhoo ( Luke 12:51; Think ye, that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, no; but separation.)
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To: Lurker

Putin already had his Afghanistan. It was Afghanistan.


31 posted on 05/09/2022 3:14:54 PM PDT by HIDEK6 (God bless Donald Trump. )
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To: HIDEK6

Then he can have a second heaping helping.

And I hope he chokes on it.

L


32 posted on 05/09/2022 3:18:25 PM PDT by Lurker (Peaceful coexistence with the Left is not possible. Stop pretending that it is.)
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To: Kazan
I can't imagine having an IQ as low as yours. You see constant Russian failure, which you dismiss as propaganda and CGI graphics or whatnot, and after 3 months in there's still nothing but failure and BS from known lying Russian propaganda channels. You gotta at least have SOMETHING objective and solid and real to hang on to, but you don't. You've got bupkis.

Amazingly, you dismiss Russians with bad news too, as Igor Girkin-Strelkov, the former minister of Defense for the Donbass, expects the Russian eastern offensive to fail quite soon. It's already begun since Ukraine nearly liberated the entirety of Kharkiv Oblast today. There will be no "encirclement of the Donbass," as you clowns claimed had already been done 2 or 3 months ago. It's just going to keep going down here from here, dummy.

33 posted on 05/09/2022 3:27:01 PM PDT by Greetings_Puny_Humans (I mostly come out at night... mostly.)
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To: Bulwyf
As a western Canadian, I can assure you, we’re under a dictatorship.

If it is that bad you could move to Syria, or Iran, or North Korea, or even Russia.

34 posted on 05/09/2022 3:28:09 PM PDT by freeandfreezing
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To: Cronos

Wonderful news - now stop asking for money already 🤪


35 posted on 05/09/2022 3:43:32 PM PDT by NWFree (Somebody has to say it)
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To: Kazan

Russia will control of all of Donbass and, likely, all of the coastline by the time this is finished. That was the objective.
———
Exactly, the corrupted western MSM and Senile Joe’s war cheerleaders never bothered to read Vlads speech. Three “ objectives “, none of which stated Ukrainian occupation.

Vlad did something uncommon, he stated clearly to his people ( and the world), and his Congress ( Duma) what he considers a “ win”. 1) No NATO for the Ukies 2) Denazification ( almost done with their base Mariupol leveled) 3) Donbass Independence.

Sorry war cheerleaders, that is exactly what Vlad will get done, at all costs. He will bury his dead, the corrupted little beggar Zelensky will also bury his dead, but then have to rebuild his destroyed nation for decades on US taxpayer’s dime - minus 10 percent for old vegetable head Joe.

Don’t get sucked in, like you did with Bosnia, Libya, Somalia and more.


36 posted on 05/09/2022 3:55:26 PM PDT by delta7
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To: Lurker

Ukraine will become Putin’s Afghanistan.
———
Not likely, Ukraine will become another Slow Joe Biden’s Afghanistan II, he cut and run from Afghanistan leaving billions in US arms and equipment, he is doing the same sending billions of equipment to Ukraine, a nation that has absolutely no strategic importance to the US….

When do you wake up? Are you old enough to remember Bosnia, Libya, Somalia?


37 posted on 05/09/2022 4:02:17 PM PDT by delta7
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To: Kazan

These problems aren’t alleged. They are real as the evidence of Russian troops killed, tanks lost and flagships sunk show.

Putin can’t overcome them, as evidence shows their Kalibr missile stock is depleted and they are stuck in Donbas.

You don’t need to believe either Biden or the Ukrainians. And you Kazan, stop believing Putin’s propaganda.

Rossiya losing


38 posted on 05/09/2022 7:30:31 PM PDT by Cronos
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To: Kazan

Kazan “I am certainly rooting for a land bridge from Crimea all the way to Transnistria. If The Russians control the Black Sea, “

First, you are rooting for an aggressive state to occupy another?

Secondly, you do realise that Turkiye still controls the Bosphorus and Dardanelles, so the Russians don’t control the black sea


39 posted on 05/09/2022 7:33:38 PM PDT by Cronos
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To: Forward the Light Brigade

A. Iran isn’t going to stick its neck out for Putin. Remember that Iran and China still remember the territories that Russia took from them in the 19th century

B. Egypt, the Israelis won’t let that happen. Plus Putin doesn’t have that kind of reach.

C. The USA and Colombia won’t let that happen, plus Putin doesn’t have that kind of reach

D. Putin doesn’t have subs to spare. There is no “north sea fleet” just the combined “northern fleet”, which tells you they are overstretched. They have allegedly 34 ships and 35 subs, but operationally expect a quarter of that. Plus, thanks to Putin’s threats Finland and Sweden are joining NATO, so the northern fleet gets even more stretched.

E. Not capable of that

F. See a

G. Not capable of that

H. No capacity

I. Africa, Asia and south America at best will remain neutral. They aren’t going to stick out their necks for Putin


40 posted on 05/09/2022 7:42:07 PM PDT by Cronos
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