Tomconroy

Tomconroy's Journal

March 12, 2022

The Battle for Kyiv March 12, 2022

https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent/status/1502676866909491204

The operative lull in the battle for Kyiv over the last few days seems to be running to its end.

New indications suggest Russia is getting ready to relaunch a massive offensive in the region, the war’s main goal.

Despite a very complicated situation with many of its main axes of attack throughout Ukraine, Russia keeps throwing more military power west and east of Kyiv, in a bid to possibly surround and penetrate the city.

Satellite images issued by U.S. company Maxar reveal Russia’s very recent activity close to the Hostomel Airfield, including armored units and towed artillery.

“Russia is likely seeking to reset and re-posture its forces for renewed offensive activity in the coming days,” as the British Defense Ministry said in its March 11 intelligence update.

https://kyivindependent.com/national/russia-concentrates-military-power-for-kyiv-assault/

March 12, 2022

Brave Ukranians demonstrate in occupied Ukraine:

https://twitter.com/KSergatskova/status/1502566348488065024

March 12, 2022

UK Correspondent says UK Ministry of Defense gets it wrong!

https://twitter.com/RolandOliphant/status/1502564144322682880

Sounds like he's right about Kharkiv if you read the full thread.

March 12, 2022

Report on Russia's main political talk show

Pretty interesting. Sounds like Russia's equivalent of Hannity and Carlson have gone all wobbly on the invasion:

https://twitter.com/MaximAlyukov/status/1502337993012658177

Medium thread.

This might have been on DU yesterday. Not sure.

I thought they passed s law that said you could get 15 years for saying this.

March 11, 2022

Why the Battle in East Ukraine matters:

The Sydney Morning Herald
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When Russian military aircraft attacked a maternity hospital in the southern Ukrainian city of Mariupol this week, President Volodymyr Zelensky posed the questions that the rest of us were surely thinking: “Were pregnant women going to fire at Rostov? Was it the de-Nazification of the hospital?”

This attack is indicative of Russia’s new phase in their war against Ukraine. It is no longer a lightning war to quickly capture the Ukrainian capital and install a puppet regime. As CIA director William Burns described in testimony to the US Congress this week, “I think Putin is angry and frustrated right now. He’s likely to double down and try to grind down the Ukrainian military with no regard for civilian casualties.”

Members of the Ukrainian military arrive to reinforce a forward position on the eastern frontline near Kalynivka village this week.
Members of the Ukrainian military arrive to reinforce a forward position on the eastern frontline near Kalynivka village this week. CREDIT:CHRIS MCGRATH/GETTY IMAGES

The Russians are desperate for battlefield success. Therefore, they are falling back on their preferred way of war in the past – massive firepower to destroy enemy military forces and terrorise “enemy” civilians.

If the failure to secure Mariupol is any sign, Russia’s shift in tactics is not yet working any better than their initial “blitzkrieg” approach. Its repeated attempts to seize an even larger prize in the east, Kharkiv, have yielded similar failure. Both cities sit astride important supply routes for advancing Russian forces. And while Mariupol has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance in the south-east of the country, Kharkiv is even more important.

https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/while-putin-is-denied-battlefield-success-look-east-to-grasp-his-strategy-20220310-p5a3ov.html