Posted on 01/18/2023 9:30:14 PM PST by Zhang Fei
The Biden administration is preparing to announce a roughly $2.5 billion military aid package for Ukraine that is expected to include dozens of Bradley and Stryker armored vehicles, according to two people familiar with the decision, as the Pentagon intensifies its support ahead of an expected counteroffensive against entrenched Russian forces.
The war has entered a phase, U.S. officials have said, that will require Ukrainian units to attack enemy forces in a concerted way, using tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and aviation in what is known as combined arms warfare. Bradleys and Strykers would significantly bolster their firepower and allow soldiers to move quickly around the battlefield.
The coming transfer could contain nearly 100 Strykers, one of these people said. It would mark the first time the Pentagon has supplied Ukraine with such vehicles. Those familiar with the plan spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss it ahead of a formal announcement.
The Bradley fighting vehicles included in this transfer will be in addition to those announced earlier this month in a separate $3 billion arms package, the people said. The next tranche of aid also will include a substantial restock of ammunition for howitzers and rocket artillery, they said, and more mine-resistant vehicles.
The new vehicles are intended to complement the large-scale, combined arms training that several hundred Ukrainian soldiers are receiving at a U.S. military facility in Germany to help them change the dynamics of the battlefield, U.S. officials have said. As winter has taken hold, the fighting has concentrated in the south and east, degrading into a violent slugfest where both sides are suffering steep losses for modest gains.
“The Russians are really digging in. … They’re digging trenches, they’re putting in these dragon’s teeth, laying mines. They’re really trying to fortify that forward line of troops,”
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Ukraine ping
citizen: [Yeah, and no doubt our military brass is just itching to use those planes. Lose a few pilots? Who cares, gotta break those eggs, right, for that omelette? ]
https://theintercept.com/empire-politician/biden-walks-back-opposition-gulf-war/
He was against the operation to kill bin Laden:
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/12/barack-obama-memoir-joe-biden-bin-laden-raid
He handed back a high-level defector who wanted to spill every secret he knew in exchange for political asylum:
https://foreignpolicy.com/2012/05/02/white-house-disputes-report-on-bo-xilai-deputy/
Biden doesn’t care about foreign policy. But he’s afraid of becoming a second Jimmy Carter. Carter lost Iran. He lost Nicaragua. Then the Russians invaded Afghanistan. Biden’s already lost Afghanistan. He doesn’t want to be the president that lost Ukraine. At the same time, his disinterest in foreign policy and typical Democrat timidity and stupidity means he’s giving Ukraine the minimum possible.
The brass doesn’t make decisions to intervene. Nothing happens without Biden’s direct order. Remember that colonel who criticized Biden in 2021 over the withdrawal from Afghanistan?
He ended up in the brig and almost lost his pension. And that was just over public griping. A general who ordered his men into combat without presidential authorization would suffer even worse consequences. There’s a reason a Navy boat crew ended up being taken hostage by Iran during Obama’s tenure. Obama ordered no action to be taken against the Iranians taking them into custody as it was happening.
We have criminals running this place put there by useful idiot democrat voters.
This is how the Cold War was fought. The collapse of the Soviet Union and Putin's 20 year reign just put this on hold for 30 years. Don't forget that during the Cold War, it was Russia that was the aggressor in starting conflicts.
Saving to read later.
Ten Myths about US Aid to Ukraine, for the May 2022 Ukraine funding bill:
"Myth 1: There is not enough oversight of US aid to Ukraine."Accountability is part of the legislation for the appropriations. Ukraine is not getting money to buy what it wants; the money is not actually going to any Ukrainian back accounts. It is going to the US and European suppliers of weapons, munitions, equipment, aid and shipping, with all the accounting that comes along with it."...Reality: There has likely never been more accountability or transparency measures in place for US foreign assistance than what is available for Ukraine aid. Take the biggest (and most controversial) supplemental from last May, which allocated $40.1 billion. This bill was 699 lines long. Of these, 110 lines dealt with accountability, transparency, and reporting requirements. Therefore, 16 percent of the bill's text was dedicated to oversight."
Remember when the military conducted an audit in Ukraine and our Putinistas cried to high heaven about it being “boots on the ground” and highly provocative?
They claim that the weapons are stolen and therefore no more weapons should be sent.
They also claim that conducting an audit (that showed the weapons are there and used properly) is a terrible provocation.
“You must be kidding. This is Joe Biden we’re talking about. He opposed Desert Storm:”
Ya, Biden the warmonger!, hilarious!. Of course the same people who call him that condemn him for pulling out of Afghanistan. These people would rather twist themselves into knots in contradictions rather than admit that a blind pig on occasion finds an acorn.
Russian “Dragons Teeth” are a joke - they are not anchored and can easily be pushed aside.
>> Putin’s like you, he’s OK with killing other people, but he loves his own ass. If he could nuke us without consequence, he would. Thanks to our nuclear arsenal, Putin is *never* going to nuke us unless we nuke him first.
More living in the past... this isn’t 1962 Kennedy vs Krushchev. This is 2023. Putin’s an ill, psychotic egomaniac. Biden is an obviously demented doddering old fool who wasn’t all that bright at his younger best. It would not be out of character for Putin to analyze the situation and decide he could nuke us and get away with it, because Biden would freeze at the switch... and Putin might be right.
>> Fact is, the West has >20x Russia’s GDP
You missed my point, which is this: let the Yurpean globalists dig into their own damn pockets for once, and pay for their own damn eurowar. As far as that goes, let them sacrifice not only their own treasure but also their own blood. We have a war to fight here at home: an invading army on our southern border.
WE’RE BROKE
The training required to become proficient in Combined Arms Warfare is immense. One cannot climb aboard an M1, Bradley, or Striker turn the key on, and go fight. Combined arms warfare requires the integration of Combat, Combat Support, and Combat Service Support operations. It would take years to make uninitiated soldiers capable of conducting those operations.
What distinguishes today’s Russian aggression from that of the USSR?
If I asked the question: "If Biden wanted to destroy the US, what would he do differently?" Biden fans would answer "He has not committed US forces to fight Russia directly in the Ukraine war." A better question is, "If Biden wanted to destroy the US without destroying himself, what would he do differently?"
Do you really think US special forces are not already in Ukraine ? Of course they are. Also, again in reference to your quote “Putin’s like you, he’s OK with killing other people, but he loves his own ass” I agree this can be applied to the man in Castro green. ‘Zelensky also is ok with killing other people, but loves his own ass. ‘ It’s the same with most leaders. Trump however, showed us that we don’t need to interject ourselves on a military level across the globe. There are other ways.
Biden is not the first potus to behave this way. It’s been going on for a very long time. It starts with sanctions and military action follows eventually.
Thanks for the reply. I believe US special forces are in Ukraine, but I don’t know of any reports of them in direct combat with Russian troops. (If Biden could get away with it, I would not be too surprised if he sent them into combat). The Biden gang got 13 US Marines killed at Kabul airport but did nut suffer too much public anger.
What makes you think china would Russia want to be like United States Don’t you get it they have their own vision for the world
I wrote this earlier today, but it bears repeating: Russians might be a lot of things…but they aren’t stupid.
No one is invading Russia. No one is sinking her ships. No one is dropping bombs on Moscow or St Petersburg.
Russia has no reason to attack the US. We are not at war with them. They did worse against us in Vietnam and Korea. We supported the Muhajedeen against Russia in the 1980’s.
Russia has more reason to be pissed at us directly for bombing them in Syria. And yet, they did nothing.
Russia knows they would be mauled against the US. It is easier to huff and puff for domestic consumption.
>Russia has more reason to be pissed at us directly for bombing them in Syria.
They were asking for it and it was nice to hear how they got annihilated.
This is paraphrasing the dialogue with them.
US to Russia: We see that you’re setting up to attack us. We warn you not to try it.
Russia to US: That’s not us.
Then Russians attack and get annihilated.
Russia to US: Can we have an hour to collect our bodies, please?
US to Russia: Hmm ... sure.
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