russian looters are removing all agricultural machinery from region Melitopol.
They are transported loot in the direction of the Crimea
They are transported loot in the direction of the Crimea
It goes back much further than that. Russia is not creative, it wins wars by throwing bodies at the problem, followed by terrorizing the population and forced resettlement. I would trace it all the way back to the Great Northern War in 1700, and only start there because we know fewer specifics about earlier wars. In it Russia defeated Sweden and solidified its claim as a European power, but it's worth taking a look at how it won. This Series covers it well, but if you don't have the patience for battle by battle analysis, I'll summarize: Russia consistently fought Swedish armies that were several times smaller and lost each time with horrific casualties. It was finally able to win when it outnumbered the Swedish army 3:1, the Swedish army was exhausted and famished, and had only 4 cannons left whereas the Russians had 86. This was Russia's "great" victory. As usual Russia also perpetrated horrific crimes throughout Finland, extreme in barbarity even for this era.Russia has been constant in how little they value the lifes of civilians or even their own soldiers, from WW2, to Grozny, to Georgia, to Syria to Ukraine. I hope they dont get away with it again. Russia needs to pay and the sanctions need to stay for a long time, regardless of the outcome. It would be best for peace if Russia dissolves or is disintegrated like Germany.
I cant express how much this war is dragging me down personally, haven't felt like this since the start of the Syrian civil war.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced today, a further shipment of weapons to Ukraine, in the amount of $100 milluon British pounds. The package includes the following...
- Undisclosed number of additional Starstreak anti-aircraft missiles.
- 800 anti-tank missiles of an undisclosed type (likely NLAW).
- British Kamikaze drones, similar to the Switchblade 300, the Americans are sending. It's a loitering munition.
- Undisclosed number of helmets, body armor and night vision systems, over and above what they've already sent.
Russia has been constant in how little they value the lifes of civilians or even their own soldiers, from WW2, to Grozny, to Georgia, to Syria to Ukraine. I hope they dont get away with it again. Russia needs to pay and the sanctions need to stay for a long time, regardless of the outcome. It would be best for peace if Russia dissolves or is disintegrated like Germany.
I cant express how much this war is dragging me down personally, haven't felt like this since the start of the Syrian civil war.
With all due respect intended towards this effort, and absolute respect towards the Australians for stepping up, the quantities of vehicles being sent, as of now, are not sufficient for successful, large scale, Ukrainian counter offensives.
Below would make a difference...
250 T-72 tanks, from the Eastern European countries + 100 captured T-72 tanks and T-80 tanks refurbished / repaired for Ukrainian use.
100 Bushmaster Personnel carriers with 50mm machine guns, or grenade launchers, from Australia
100 Mastiff Personnel carriers, with full weapon's suite, from Great Britain.
75 BMP-1 armored personnel carriers that have already been announced from the Czechs.
250 HMMWVs, equipped with TOW anti-armor weapons, 30mm and 50mm machine guns of varying types and grenade launchers from the Americans.
30 mixed S-300, 2K12 Kub, 9K33 OSA anti-air systems, from Eastern European countries.
1000 Switchblade 300 loitering anti-personnel drones, provided by the Americans.
250 Switchblade 600 loitering anti-armor drones, provided by the USA.
150 Javelin anti-tank missiles, PER WEEK, provided by anybody and everybody who has them.
500 NLAW more anti-armor weapons, provided by Great Britain.
1000 more mixed Panzerfaust 3, MILAN and M72 anti-armor weapons, provided by Germany, France, Canada, etc.
5000 more AT4 rockets, provided by Sweden, Finland, USA, Britain and everyone else who uses them.
500 more Stinger, anti-air systems, provided by whoever has them in their stockpiles. If they have to be purchased from the Middle East, so be it.
100 mixed medium and long range artilery and guided rocket systems from Poland, Britain, USA, etc. British AS-90, 155mm howitzers, Polish 155mm Krab, American M777A2, 155mm howitzers, with counter battery radar systems. Eastern European BM-21 Grad rocket systems, from Eastern European countries.
20 British Starstreak Air defense systems.
50,000 more Western small arms, including rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers and portable mortars.
100 Harpoon, anti-ship missiles, with launchers, provided by Britain, USA, Canada, Denmark, Italy, etc.
10 Turkish Bayraktar, TB2 drones PER WEEK, with neccessary MAM-L ammunition.
5-10 million more rounds of ammunition of all neccessary types, WEEKLY.
Millions of litres of fuel, to keep keep the Ukrainian war machine running.
$5 billion dollars of cash, from the countries not able to send weapons systems, so that Ukraine can keep its army fed and equiped with whatever they feel they need.
Thanks for adding Spain to the "wealthy countries", I almost cried .It's time for wealthy Western nations such as Canada, Denmark, The Netherlands, France, Spain etc... To send a new round of weapons systems to Ukraine. It's fine if some of those countries don't have the inventory to send. Buy the inventories (at a premium if you must) off of some of South American, Middle Eastern and Asian allies and backfill their respective inventories later.
I want to see the countries I just named above, in concert with some of the other European countries that are short on weapons, but flush with cash, announce a $1 billion dollars (USD) in combined new spending for anything and everything that Ukraine needs. If you have to give Poland $750,000 USD per T-72 tank, and spend $150 million dollars to buy 200 of them and have them shipped to Ukraine, so be it. If you have to buy Javelins, RPG-7's, howitzers and an erray of armed vehicles off the Saudis, so be it. If you have to buy M72 LAW systems, or M203 grenade launchers off the Japanese, as well as additional anti-ship weapons, so be it. If you can buy 5000 AT4 rockets, directly off of Saab and have them delivered ASAP, so be it.
The next three weeks are going to be critical. If you want the Russian army in Ukraine destroyed, the time is now.
121,000 Ukrainian children have been forcibly removed to Russia, Ukraine’s Ombudswoman says. Now Moscow plans to simplify the procedure for Russians to adopt these children, potentially separating them from their families forever. This calculated cruelty is astounding.