‘Furious battles are underway’: Kursk residents call on Putin for help after Ukrainian incursion

CNN ^ | August 8, 2024 | Daria Tarasova, Jim Sciutto, Allegra Goodwin, Tim Lister, and Ivana Kottasová

[Alter Kaker]

Ukrainian forces are pushing further into the Kursk region of Russia, in a cross-border incursion that surprised even American officials, multiple US and Ukrainian officials tell CNN.

Ukrainian forces are comprised of a mix of Ukrainian regular and special operations units, unlike previous Ukrainian operations inside Russia that often involved undercover units and local sympathizers.

The intention, say US and Ukrainian officials, is multifaceted, in part to disrupt and demoralize Russian forces and in part to divert Russian forces away from other parts of the eastern front.

Russia claimed on Thursday to have halted a Ukrainian incursion into its territory, but later said that some battles are ongoing in the Kursk region. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, units of the “North” group of its forces, together with the Russian Federal Security Service, the FSB, “continue to destroy Ukrainian armed forces formations in the Sudzhensky and Korenevsky districts of the Kursk region, which are directly adjacent to the Russian-Ukrainian border.” CNN cannot independently verify these claims.

Kursk residents, who live in the Sudzhansky District, recorded a video address to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday asking for his help, saying he has been misinformed about the situation on the ground and the Russian Defense Ministry’s statements about things being under control are untrue.

The address was published on a local Telegram channel that is dedicated to covering the latest news out of the town of Sudzha in Kursk region, which has been under Ukrainian attack for several days.

“These lies enable the local residents to die. The Chief of the General staff recently told you that the situation is under control, but today huge furious battles are underway in the Sudzhansky and Korenevsky districts,” one of the residents said.

“Sudzha was attacked, turned into ruins in hours."

[EQAndyBuzz]

“Didn’t Trump have a “very good” phone call with Ukraine last month?”

Yes, but he had a fantastic call with Zelensky several years back which probably explains the impeachment.

[BroJoeK]

pigeoninthepark: "Ukraine is Sodom"

"Ukraine just held its first Pride event in years despite Russia’s continued invasion"

Ukrainians carry photos of fallen soldiers
in Pride Parade:

Here are the facts:

1. There are about 44 million Ukrainians
2. Kiev's population is around 3 million
3. Kiev's June 17 Pride Parade attracted a few hundred -- looked to me in the photos like maybe 250 but reports claimed 500
4. The parade lasted 30 minutes and walked 100 yards.
   It was 100% peaceful.

5. Besides Ukraine there are only two western style democracies which make same-sex civil unions illegal -- Italy and Greece -- those due largely to the strength of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches.

6. There is currently a draft law in Ukraine's parliament to legalize same-sex civil partnerships.
   Pres. Zelenskyy has endorsed the new law, but there is no date set for a vote in parliament.

So, if you are on a desperate search for Sodom or Gomorrah, Ukraine is probably not your first stop.
But here is a Gay Pride demonstration in Moscow, in 2020:

[ANKE69]

Don’t ping me again!

[Cronos]

It is very interesting how Preston John keeps popping his Rskie head up every now and then

[bert]

Your ignorance is profound. As a Russian terror supporter your presence amounts to blasphemy

[bert]

A man who foolishly thinks war is a Pride event should not post here.

Your gross ignorance is profound

[ANKE69]

KM my cute arse, ernie! Are you in this picture?

[aMorePerfectUnion]

Bert, you are so open about your mental illness!

I hope you inspire many to seek support,

[BroJoeK]

ransomnote: "The situation in the Ukraine = The Ukraine is losing the war and needlessly losing soldiers."

SaxxonWoods #19: "Ukraine sent a thousand men in.
600 have been eliminated so far.
On a mission to nowhere."

Alter Kaker: "Ukraine invaded with a CORP comrade, not 1000 men.
They are staying."

Kaiserslacht, the German's last gasp, 1918:

Today Russians' Donetsk offensive is "winning" their war in the same sense as Germans were winning the First World War in France early 1918.
"Kaiserschlacht" added about 10% to French territory conquered by Germans, but at a cost of 600,000 German casualties, which left the German army reeling, depleted and demoralized.
Germans never recovered from their Kaiserschlacht "victory" and by the fall of 1918 were collapsing all along their western front.

How bad are things for Russia today?
We don't know, but their seemingly weak response to Ukraine's minor Kursk incursion does not yet resemble Ukraine's vigorous response to Russia's earlier incursions north of Kharkiv.

How many Ukrainians have invaded Kursk?
Numbers are all over the board -- from as few as 2,000 = two battalions, to as many as 35,000+ = eight brigades = almost three divisions = nearly a corps.

Fog of war is still far too thick to be sure what's really happening -- or who's really winning...

[BroJoeK]

pigeoninthepark: "zeepers: We will take back Crimea any d-d-day now.....
Putin: Oh look, more ants to crush, how quaint"

Oh really?
How's your Black Sea Fleet working out with all those new submarines?

How's your air defense in Crimea doing these days?

How many military aircraft do you still have parked in Crimea -- I mean working war-birds, not burned out hulks.

How are those new bridges doing?
Are you sure?

[JonPreston]

It is very interesting how Preston John keeps popping his Rskie head up every now and then

Cronos Since May 1, 2001

[BroJoeK]

Mr. Lucky: "...and Kiev will be taken in three days."

Karl Spooner: "Yeah, the guy who said that was a joke.
I bet you thought the Russians said that.

"Gen. Milley says Kyiv could fall within 72 hours if Russia decides to invade Ukraine"
Fox News, February 5, 2022

dforest: "Russia was never after Kiev.
They still aren’t."

Russian HALO jump, Winter 2022:

On March 18, 2022 the UK Mirror reported:

"Putin has refused to call his invasion what it is - a war.
Instead, he only refers to it as a "special military operation" to "de-Nazify" Ukraine.
He had hoped it would last just three days."

That August, The Washington Post said US intelligence had predicted:

"The attack would happen in the winter so that the hard earth would make the terrain easily passable for tanks.
Forming a pincer around the capital, Russian troops planned to seize Kyiv in three to four days.
The Spetsnaz, their special forces, would find and remove President Volodymyr Zelensky, killing him if necessary, and install a Kremlin-friendly puppet government."

Now, consider that Russia's February 2022 assault on Kiev was a combined arms, air and mobile land forces operation, three to four days obviously was their original intention -- had everything gone according to Vlad the Invader's plans.
Had Russia's air-assault on Kiev's airport succeeded as intended, the war could easily have been over in a few days.

Ukraine Pres. Zelenskyy himself said it would have been over soon, had he followed some bad advice:

"Zelensky recalled. 'If we had communicated that — and that is what some people wanted, who I will not name — then I would have been losing $7 billion a month since last October, and at the moment when the Russians did attack, they would have taken us in three days. ...
Generally, our inner sense was right:
If we sow chaos among people before the invasion, the Russians will devour us.
Because during chaos, people flee the country.' "

In December 2022, Vlad the Invader himself admitted:

"Putin says Ukraine ‘special military operation’ is taking longer than expected"

So, Putin himself never said "three days" publicly, but the design of his February 2022 SMO was clearly intended to make quick work of a presumed hapless enemy.

BeauBo : "The joke now, is that Kursk will be taken in three days."

Ukraine's OpSec is reported as good and no reliable word has been published on Ukraine's intentions or force sizes.
Originally the Ukraine force was said to be around 2,000 and now seemingly much larger, but nobody really knows and Russia's response so far has seemed a little lackluster.

[Allegra]

LOL - there’s been quite a summoning. I guess couple of zeepers have sore butts and called in reinforcements. 😂🤣

[UMCRevMom@aol.com]

“Before I even saw or commented, you already ATTACKED Allegra in more then one post, although it had nothing to do with you. Don’t do lying routine with me. It’s not working.”

Don’t do YOUR LYING ROUTINE WITH ME.
Both Allegra & I have explained this before: I do not comment to her nor she to me.

[UMCRevMom@aol.com]

https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4257269/posts?page=161#161

[Allegra]

Now she’s lying about lying. And screeching it in ALLCAPS. Pathetic.

I guess she doesn’t like having her bad behavior called out and then handed back to her. If she’d kept her big, hairy nose out of other people’s business to begin with, she wouldn’t be moronically digging herself deeper into the hole she started.

What a nasty freakin’ piece of work.

[JonPreston]

there’s been quite a summoning

This is their childish version of NATOs Article 5. The use PM to launch group dogpiles, which rapidly become dogsiht. I can always tell when one of these goofs pings me to a thread, I'm not part of.

[USA-FRANCE]

In Russia, the interest rate is at 18% now, but for Russia it hurts way more than for the US. Russia doesn’t have the same coping capacity as America has. It’s an isolated country (even though China is helping it to not drown financially).

“On 26 July 2024, the Bank of Russia’s Board of Directors decided to increase the key rate by 200 basis points to 18.00% per annum. Inflation has accelerated and is developing significantly above the Bank of Russia’s April forecast.”

And let not forget that 40% of Russia’s entire economy is oriented towards war... which has hiked the taxes for already poor russian citizens. Russia is once again setting course towards post WWII Soviet-Union expenses... which propulsed the country into the 1991 revolution.

When is comes to inflation:
“The annual inflation rate for the United States was 3% for the 12 months ending June, compared to the previous rate increase of 3.3%, according to U.S.”

It’s 9% in Russia.

If Russia did not have China’s support, it would have crashed already, and badly so.

[Allegra]

This is their childish version of NATOs Article 5. The use PM to launch group dogpiles, which rapidly become dogsiht.

Oh yeah, in the past, a couple of normal Americans were accidentally included in the Ukrainians’ blast FReepmails directing them to pile on a good FReeper.

I guess they’ve been more careful about their mail distribution list lately, but we can always tell when the flying monkeys have been summoned.

[ANKE69]

You humor me, old girl! 😎
Now run along and mind your OWN business.