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A string of Russian failures got scores of troops killed in a Ukrainian strike, and Moscow's reaction only made things worse
MSN ^ | Dec 14th | jepstein@insider.com

Posted on 01/14/2023 2:28:55 PM PST by dennisw

The attack sparked sweeping criticism and condemnation of Moscow's military leadership by prominent lawmakers, government officials, and military bloggers. They complained that the Kremlin placed troops near ammunition storage, allowed them to use cellphones that emit location data, and stationed them within firing range of Ukrainian weapons.

Scores of Russian troops were killed over the New Year holiday in a Ukrainian HIMARS strike. A string of Russian command failures allowed the deadly attack to happen.

Security experts told Insider that the incident highlights a critical lack of skill at a tactical level. A recent Ukrainian strike killed scores of Russian troops, highlighting a series of command failures that put soldiers in a vulnerable position in the first place.

A lack of oversight, discipline, and awareness Moscow was quick to blame the deadly HIMARS attack on its own troops, attributing the losses to their use of cellphones, saying that this allowed Ukraine to determine their position and conduct the strike. This story, however, was dismissed by some in Russia — such as a war reporter who was previously honored by Putin — and also in Ukraine by senior military officials.

It's unclear if cellphones played a role in the strike. If they did, it is unclear if Russian troops were explicitly told not to use their phones and did anyways, or if these rules were actually enforced.

Ukrainian forces used US-provided High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) to strike Russian positions during the New Year holiday in Makiivka, an occupied city in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.

Russia said that nearly 90 soldiers were killed in the attack — a rare disclosure of battlefield losses. Ukraine's military, however, placed the death toll at a much higher figure of around 400 people. These estimates could not be independently verified.

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


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 00000zeeperalert; 0000spamspamspamspam; 000spamspamspam; 00spamspam; 0spam; blueandyellowpompoms; jakeepstein; jakeepsteinlol; letsgobrandon
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1 posted on 01/14/2023 2:28:55 PM PST by dennisw
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To: dennisw

Putin’s cannon fodder, their commanders housed them next to explosives. A few HIMARS blew it all up, with Russian dead put as high as 400/


2 posted on 01/14/2023 2:30:38 PM PST by dennisw ("You don't have to like it. You just have to do it")
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To: dennisw

Took a lesson from the Joetato admin, I see.


3 posted on 01/14/2023 2:31:14 PM PST by moovova ("The NEXT election is the most important election of our lifetimes!“ LOL...)
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To: dennisw

Excuse me sir, can you direct me to the Russian held city of Soledar?


4 posted on 01/14/2023 2:32:13 PM PST by JonPreston
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To: dennisw

“In almost every category of equipment, the Ukrainian army is significantly stronger today than it was in February, and it will keep getting stronger. About 20,000 Ukrainian personnel have now completed advanced training in NATO countries, according to a Ukrainian state news agency, and thousands more will do the same in 2023.

In the coming months, the war could become horrifically bloody if Russian generals continue to send large numbers of poorly trained soldiers into combat. Still, Ukraine has most of the advantages that typically decide a war. Its forces will be better trained, better led, and, with the West’s help, far better armed. And most Ukrainians’ determination is likely to remain strong, in part because they don’t have any choice but to win.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/time-is-on-ukraine-s-side-not-russia-s/ar-AA16loz8?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=42541d067267460e8153566e25d41e51


5 posted on 01/14/2023 2:37:22 PM PST by Sunsong
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To: JonPreston

ChrisO_wiki
@ChrisO_wiki
·
3h
1/ The Wagner Group’s apparent success in capturing Soledar appears to have been a Pyrrhic victory, with the mercenaries suffering such massive casualties that their future and ability to recover are now reportedly in doubt. ⬇️


6 posted on 01/14/2023 2:41:42 PM PST by dennisw ("You don't have to like it. You just have to do it")
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To: dennisw

Yeah, but you should see the other guy.


7 posted on 01/14/2023 2:43:54 PM PST by JonPreston
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To: dennisw
Jake Epstein, newsclown from Business Insider...

    

https://freerepublic.com/tag/jakeepstein/index

Jake is embarrassed to be seen with himself out in public.

8 posted on 01/14/2023 2:45:25 PM PST by kiryandil (put yer vote in the box, chump. HARHARHARHAR)
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To: JonPreston
https://freerepublic.com/tag/jakeepstein/index

    

Jake is embarrassed to be seen with himself out in public.

9 posted on 01/14/2023 2:47:08 PM PST by kiryandil (put yer vote in the box, chump. HARHARHARHAR)
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To: dennisw
The Wagner Group’s apparent success in capturing Soledar appears to have been a Pyrrhic victory

Congratulations, you picked talking point A! Here they are again:

A. It is only a Pyrrhic victory. Soledar and Bakhmut have no real strategic value.
B. This is a minor Russian victory, after a long string of major defeats. Ukraine is still winning.
C. Russia only won this battle because of the atrocities and war crimes they committed.

10 posted on 01/14/2023 2:54:56 PM PST by Right_Wing_Madman
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To: dennisw

So ukraine has suffered no casualties during this war?


11 posted on 01/14/2023 2:54:59 PM PST by Mmogamer (I refudiate the lamestream media, leftists and their prevaricutions.)
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To: dennisw

Tangentially on topic-——is any of this giving Biden’s inner circle ideas? Presidents nearly always get a big approval boost from war. Will Biden escalate now to distract us from his illegal placement of documents?


12 posted on 01/14/2023 2:58:04 PM PST by frank ballenger (You have summoned up a thundercloud. You're gonna hear from me. Anthem by Leonard Cohen)
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To: JonPreston

Small town, prewar pop 10,000. You may have been misdirected, probably took a wrong turn at Albuquerque.

I think you meant to go to the inherently, perpetually Russian city of Kherson, prewar pop 280,000.


13 posted on 01/14/2023 3:06:38 PM PST by buwaya (Strategic imperatives )
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To: dennisw
How do you know Dennisaw and his sources are lying? Their lips or fingers are moving.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13MBwNsFWLs

Update on Russian military operations in Ukraine for January 13, 2022.

- Russian advances near Soledar and Bakhmut contradict “Ukrainian offensive momentum” narrative;

- Russian operations are consistent with the “demilitarization” objective for the special military operation;

- Bakhmut & Soledar are fortified cities along one of Ukraine’s last defensive lines in the Donbass region;

- West is announcing plans to send Western main battle tanks including Challenger 2 and Leopard 2 tanks;

- Challenger 2 and Leopard 2 tanks use different ammunition & both require an additional crew member (loader) increasing training demands for Ukrainian forces;

- The large variety of equipment the West is sending will create additional burdens for Ukrainian forces without any notable benefit;

- Western main battle tanks have proven to be vulnerable to (Russian-made) modern anti-tank weapons even under relatively ideal conditions;

- Ukrainian forces will be going into battle without sufficient artillery or air cover and facing off against Russian forces reinforced with an additional 300k men, new defenses, and an influx of new weaponry;

https://sonar21.com/us-army-vet-from-iowa-rats-out-ukrainian-corruption/

US ARMY VET FROM IOWA RATS OUT UKRAINIAN CORRUPTION

Meet Ryan O’Leary. He currently is in the Bakhmut area of operations fighting under the command of Ukrainian officers. Mr. O’Leary is not happy. He is a 34 year old alumni of Carroll High School in Iowa and a National Guard veteran who served in Afghanistan and Iraq.

He reports that his unit is undermanned and lacking in heavy weapons because “they’ve gone missing.” In other words, the weapons are being sold on the black market. O’Leary blames the logistics problems on the corrupt, criminal behavior of his Ukrainian chain of command — from the Major General to his Captain. He specifically calls out a Captain Baroda, noting that Baroda traffics in a host of illegal narcotics.

###

I fear that young Mr. O’Leary has signed his death warrant. Men like Captain Baroda will retaliate in a very brutal way against anyone who interferes with their “entrepreneurial” activity. At some point the U.S. legislators, media and public need to wake up from their delusional dream that Ukraine is a budding democracy fighting for truth and justice and realize it is a kleptocracy celebrating a neo-Nazi ideology. President Zelensky and his general, Zalushny, have sent the cream of Ukraine’s youth into a slaughterhouse while depriving them of the supplies, ammunition and weapons required to fight the Russians.

It is a tragedy that Ryan O’Leary has traveled so far from the bucolic farms of western Iowa to learn a very hard truth. I hope he survives.

14 posted on 01/14/2023 3:10:27 PM PST by Kazan
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To: buwaya
Small town

Location, location, location.

15 posted on 01/14/2023 3:16:01 PM PST by JonPreston
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To: kiryandil
Jake is described as a Junior Defense Reporter, which means at 25 years old he accepts press releases from the State Dept and signs his name.

He previously worked at The Times of Israel, freelanced in the Boston area, and interned at CBS Boston. Jake graduated from Lehigh University with a degree in journalism and international relations in May 2020. At Lehigh, he was the editor in chief of the independent student newspaper The Brown and White. 

16 posted on 01/14/2023 3:23:31 PM PST by JonPreston
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To: dennisw

Proxy wars are mainly conducted with propaganda “brought to you by Pfizer.”


17 posted on 01/14/2023 3:36:04 PM PST by E. Pluribus Unum (The worst thing about censorship is ████ █ ██████ ███████ ███ ██████ ██ ████████. FJB.)
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To: Right_Wing_Madman

1. They haven’t got Bakhmut at all. It remains to be seen if they do finally take Soledar.

2. In the operational scheme of things these towns really aren’t that important; what matters is the overall Donets front. As points that the Russians have to take or hold these are strictly tactical. The strategic points that matter for ongoing Russian operations, and that are threatened by Ukrainian operations, is to hold Tokmak, Melitopol, Svatove, Sieverodonetsk. These are strategic for logistics reasons.

3. If it is a victory it is a minor one. Ukraine has indeed taken lots of more important Russian positions lately. Besides Kherson and the whole Dneiper bridgehead, which could have continued to pose a genuine offensive opportunity for Russia, they lost the whole logistics route from the railhead and depots at Belgorod, the northern shoulder of any potential northern Donets offensive at Izyum, the river crossing at Lyman, etc. This all severely limits Russian offensive options. Most of Russian logistics for the forces engaged in Ukraine now have to run through Rostov.

This is not really a rhetorical contest. The actual military situation is what matters. If you dont want to deal realistically then thats up to you.


18 posted on 01/14/2023 3:37:43 PM PST by buwaya (Strategic imperatives )
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To: E. Pluribus Unum
Your post and all things conspiratorial brought to us by...
19 posted on 01/14/2023 3:39:31 PM PST by guido911
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To: JonPreston; All
Excuse me sir, can you direct me to the Russian held city of Soledar?

What city? You call THIS a city? And how long have the Russians been attacking it with human wave tactics?


20 posted on 01/14/2023 3:47:38 PM PST by Timber Rattler ("To hold a pen is to be at war." --Voltaire)
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