Posted on 09/21/2022 10:03:58 PM PDT by UMCRevMom@aol.com
Actually, there are tons of Freepers who support Ukraine and follow news. If you’d rather be someplace where that wasn’t the case, you should check out those alternative you listed.
If? It already is a contest between Russia and NATO which is why Russia is threatening to go nuclear.
So you would destroy Europe and North America over some NAZI government in the most corrupt country in Europe? Thank goodness you have no say in the matter. No more anything for the Ukraine!
Hey Comrade, there is NO Nazi government in Ukraine. You might want to look further east in Moscow though.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said (video, Sputnik report) that 300,000 reservist will be mobilized. Conscripts and people currently studying will not be send to Ukraine.
He also said that, so far, 5,937 Russian soldiers have died during the war in Ukraine. (This number does not include the militia of the DPR and LPR, or the Wagner group, who have done most of the frontline work and thus have had higher losses.) Shoigu puts Ukrainian losses at some 62,000 killed and some 50,000 wounded. (I regard this as a low estimate.) Russia's total military reserve, people who have previously gone through military training, is 25 million. It also has the equipment to arm those forces.
There are rumors that the Ukraine is preparing for an all out offensive, mobilizing and preparing new units from Kiev and further west for one big push against the Russian and allied forces. It will take a few months to prepare for this. The Ukraine will need much more equipment and ammunition from the 'west', including 'western' tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, and has yet to train troops to be able to use it. It is likely intending to start the offensive only in spring.
The call up Russia announced now may have the intent to draw Kiev into a premature launch of its general offensive. The mobilized Russian troops will take about three months to be ready for war. Russia could thus launch its own offensive during the winter season. In the meantime constant defensive work will continue to severely degrade the Ukrainian units which are currently on or near the frontlines.
With a force of an additional 300,000 troops, far beyond the 100,000 to 150,000 engaged now in the war, the Russia forces could change their tactics from the slow grind that is happening now into a larger scale maneuver war with heavy strikes into the operational depth of the Ukrainian army.
Belarus, allied with the Russian Federation, is also in the process of getting ready for war. It could, as it had threatened before, cut of the supply lines from the 'west' into the Ukraine in the western part of that country.
Should current Ukrainian attacks on civilians and infrastructure in Russia and the Donbas regions continue, we can expect that the Russian forces will start to degrade Ukrainian infrastructure on a large scale. The electricity and railway networks would be the primary targets.
Update:
Some two weeks ago a successful Ukrainian offensive led to the retreat of Russian troops in the Kharkov region. That at least is the 'western' version of that story. A different narrative is that the Russian troops intentionally withdrew from the region to raise Russian calls for an escalation of the war. The Izium withdrawal was thus probably a mere catalyst for 'starting in earnest':
The Russian public, which at first did not fully understand why the war was necessary, has since grown in its awareness. It now understands the big game that is played against its country. It may soon demand to adjust the level of resources put into the war to the one needed for a decisive victory. Polls will clarify if or when that point is reached.
That is why Dima concludes that: "We can say that today was the best ever [..] day for the Russians in the territory of Ukraine."
It is now probably assured that they will be liberated. One way or another.
I also believe that the withdrawal from the Izium region, which left behind a significant number of pro-Russian civilians under deadly threats from fascist 'filtration' groups, will be the catalyst for a significant escalation on the Russian side.
Finally the gloves are coming off.
apparently a lot of ppl would and value their “russia bad” narrative over what is good for the US.
Yep, they are either stuck in a cold war mentality, or they are globalists neocons siding with Biden, Soros and the rats over MAGA conservatives.
They have been strangely silent about it in the past 5 months -- looks like that was, AT BEST, a one-off sample missile. Putin does not have the capacity to build more of them.
Russian Hypersonic Missile ‘Kinzhal’ Fired From MiG-31 Fighter Reportedly Fell On Its Own Territory -- oh wait, like other Russian systems, this is falling apart.
That is completely laughable.
First, Russia does not have 25 million people who have gone through military training. That's just ridiculous. Maybe 1/10th of that in the right age range, and then you'd have all of those who would be excluded for health and other reasons. And in terms of "reserves" in the sense that term is used in western armies -- meaning people who undergo periodic refresher training and are assigned to specific units, Russia has less than 100k, many of whom already have been activated.
But second, even if they did have 25 million, the idea that that they have the equipment to equip an army of that size is insane. That's more than the total number of Soviet troops mobilized in WII, who were equipped with high-five figures in tanks, and well over 300,000 pieces of artillery.
Your claim that Russia already has enough equipment to arm 25 million more troops is so ridiculously laughable that it discredits anything else you might say on here. It is flat-out absurd.
Contrary to the polls listed above (very dubious sources), PEW (IIRC) found the group with the highest % of that group in favor of increased weapons to Ukraine was Republicans who identified as conservative. That was higher than moderate or liberal pubs (there are any liberal pubs not in DC left?) - both in the 20’s, I believe. Current policy “About right”, neutral or no opinion, and stop aid filled out the remainders. Again IIRC, no Dem group got to 40%.
Rather anecdotally, asking around a wide range of people, I’d say the above seems about right. I did notice stronger support for more weapons among guys than gals, but a few of the more informed “pro” ladies were really vehement. A lot of libs seem very fearful of Putin’s threats, but not sure what to do. OTOH, many libs seem to support any action any Dem Pres. makes, and oppose any action any Pub Pres. makes. One can almost ignore these people, as their opinions seem to be purely politically driven. For that matter, I view extreme isolationists and extreme interventionists the same way.
Something else I noted was that the strong isolationist and especially the Putinista types have really lost the under 40 crowd. That younger group finds the Putinists’ propaganda ludicrous. The “kids” also admire Z-man for staying in Kiev early on, though some think he was foolish to take the risk. Most ID the Russians as bullies, but almost none know the full history of it.
I was talking to a pretty Auburn student today and her parents are from Finland. Her father owns a Sako like a good patriotic Finn. She had strong opinions about Russia and said of Putin’s recent threats that “Somebody needs a butt whippin” sounding like a real Southerner.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.