Free Republic

Wagner-Line: How useful is Russia's Defensive construction?

The Conflict Intelligence Team found the Russians "may have fought alongside pro-Russia separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine prior to joining the fight against the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) and other insurgents challenging Assad's rule in Syria." The group also found Russians killed "appeared to have joined the Wagner Group, a private paramilitary company, before traveling to fight in Syria. Last October, ISIS released a video showing two Russian-speaking men the militants claimed to have captured, and subsequent research showed the two men were likely Wagner Group members fighting in Syria." "While the total number of 'Wagner' operatives killed in...

Russian fighters were among those killed when U.S.-led coalition forces clashed with pro-government forces in Syria this month, former associates of the dead said on Monday. A U.S. official has said more than 100 fighters aligned with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad died when coalition and local coalition-backed forces thwarted a large attack overnight on Feb. 7. Russia’s Defence Ministry, which supports Assad’s forces in the Syrian civil war, said at the time that pro-government militias involved in the incident had been carrying out reconnaissance and no Russian servicemen had been in the area.

1. They are a minuscule portion of the U.S. population. 2. They're better educated than most Americans. 3. They have more gender equality. 4. They've been here since the birth of the nation. 5. They're not just clustered in big cities. 6. They're as religious as Christians. 7. They're not as dogmatic as they are portrayed. 8. There have been Muslims involved in terrorism. 9. But they've also spoken out against it.

When the Soviets were thinking about landwar in the late 1970s, they struck upon idea: How about strapping as many rockets as possible to a T-72 tank chassis, and using it on the battlefield? Thus, the TOS-1 Heavy Flamethrower System was conceived. If you're confused by the "flamethrower" bit in that designation, it's understandable. The TOS-1 (and its more modern variant, the TOS-1A) look nothing like traditional flamethrowers, either handheld or tank-mounted, used in World War II and other conflicts. Instead, the TOS-1 is designated a flamethrower because, in addition to traditional incendiary rockets, it can also fire thermobaric rockets.

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Our European cousins think we're a nation of thugs because we won't indulge cutthroats and assassins in the name of sophisticated cowardice and nuanced poltroonery. Some of us, like the pituitary freaks who run up and down a basketball court in gaudy underwear and leap into the stands to beat up women and children, really are thugs. Others are merely direct-action guys. George W. Bush saw his bodyguard in trouble with Chilean cops and, like any red-blooded president before him, jumped into the security scrum to pull him out of harm's way. JWR contributor Wesley Pruden is editor in chief...