Ukraine’s battlefield optimism is ebbing as Russia threatens its ‘fortress belt’

Iryna Rybakova is horribly aware that the front line is inching toward Kramatorsk. Having served in eastern Ukraine for several years, she has watched her units being pushed from one strategic hub after another. But she said the past few weeks have been “insane.”

The city remains one of Ukraine’s last strongholds in the Donbas region, but the Russians are getting dangerously close. Nearly all of the city’s bridges have been destroyed, and barrages of guided bombs and drones are now a daily reality.

“The attacks happen dozens of times a day. Dozens of cars, utility buildings, residential buildings, administrative buildings, and garages have been hit; they’re just setting everything on fire,” Rybakova, who serves as a press officer with Ukraine’s 93rd mechanized brigade and is based in Kramatorsk, told CNN on Monday.

“Toward the evening and in the morning, almost no one is out and about,” she said. “During the day, there are gunmen everywhere … everyone walks around with a rifle, goes out for a coffee with a rifle, heads to the store with a rifle and so on because drones are everywhere now and you never know. They can strike at any moment.”

As the first visit to Kyiv by US President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner came and went Sunday without a major breakthrough, Ukraine is increasingly finding itself on the backfoot in many spots along the eastern front line. It’s a major change in fortune compared to the spring, when Kyiv was liberating more land than it was losing.

Jennie Olmsted, a Russia analyst at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based conflict monitor, said that while a quick breakthrough is unlikely, there has been a shift.

Doesn’t matter.

Russia is simply keeping the pressure on: https://deepstatemap.live/en#10/48.3790576/36.3482666 (you can choose your date range and watch Ukraine lose, lose, and lose more as some are screaming how Ukraine will have a victory).

The Russians are slowly creeping forward.

1.) If they let the pressure off, Ukraine could build up a reserve with which they could launch a true major offensive. So Russia will keep pushing forcing them to commit their forces.

2.) The longer the war goes on, the more land Ukraine loses. Their is a cost in not settling this.

3.) This is a very methodical, risk and casualty averse way of doing an offensive. You find a weak spot along a vast forward edge of battle where it is impossible to cover it all well (to much frontage), and make small advances in those areas.

The reciprocal argument (spin):

Russia is not advancing quickly and Ukraine is therefore doing a great job. It will take Russia 100 years at this pace to take all of Ukraine.

Problem is, Russia never wanted all of Ukraine, they still don’t want it. Even if they end up taking Kiev itself, they would spit it out as a deal is made (they would use it as bargaining chip but not hold it). It would be a pain in the ass if they have the more nationalist areas to the West. It would be a large-scale and permanent resource drain on them. Russia is interested in the Eastern areas that are more ethnic Russian by language, who they vote for, and what church they go to.

Here is the bottom line that is completely overlooked by our MSM waving the Ukrainian flag: Russia has already achieved their political goal, Ukraine in NOT in NATO. Russia has already achieved the military objective, they have seized most of the more ethnic Russian areas to the East.

So what does Ukraine do? Generate BS maps, BS Russian casualty statistics (but not mention their own), BS dreams for their weapons manufacturing output... talk about game changing weapon systems, all while Russia sits on 20% of their land, they aren’t in NATO, and Russia is advancing little by little every month.

End of this year, or early next year, Russia will put an end to this.

Ukraine is sufficiently attritted while Russia still has vast reserves they can tap into.

Note that this is from CNN. I suspect that CNN, after running stories essentially saying that Ukraine was halfway to Moscow, that they’re now having to ‘soften up’ their Leftist audience by preparing them for the TRUTH, since it will be impossible to hide.

As for timing, we’ll know that the fall of these final defensive positions is coming quick when the leaders of France, UK, and Germany start talking about nuking Moscow, or at least talk about sending their own troops in.

But NEVER FORGET, this is ONLY a war between Russia (along with Iran and N. Korea), all arrayed against poor little Ukraine, a country that get no help from anyone - at least that’s pretty much what SOME HERE want us to believe. LOL!

--- "Note that this is from CNN. I suspect that CNN, after running stories essentially saying that Ukraine was halfway to Moscow, that they're now having to ‘soften up’ their Leftist audience by preparing them for the TRUTH, since it will be impossible to hide."

Apt. As with some European press we also read, it seems that "lowering expectations" in terms of messaging is underway, at the very same time that competing voices are pushing for ---

In my bride's view and mine as well, getting President Trump to do ( still ) what the Europeans and US Democrats want.

Not this shit again?

You BorisBots have been posting these lies for the last 4 1/2 years.

“Ukraine is about to fall”, etc.

LOL

You bozos don’t seem to be able to accept the simple FACT that Russia still cannot defeat a country 1/15th its size, a country that has no Navy, no Air Force, no satellites, and no nukes ...

YET, that small country is still able to hold off a former “superpower”

Stay angry and frustrated, BorisBots ... we loved it for the last 56 m0nths, and we STILL love seeing Pootin lose!

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