Russian soldiers in Ukraine. Not Russian soldiers in (what he is claiming) as Russia.
There is also a possibility that he's not an Amazing Master Strategist, mobilisation decision is unpopular domestically and he's trying to use this for domestic propaganda purposes.
I really don't think he is itching for a fight with NATO, if he were he'd have invaded Estonia or somewhere rather than Ukraine. He attacked Ukraine because he thought they couldn't defend themselves and he's a bully.
Putin tends to look more effective when he manages to convince certain European leaders he is someone they can do business with, who they can convince to be more friendly through negotiations and some degree of appeasement. That is obviously no longer possible (despite Macron & Scholz’s best attempts), and leaders are finally beginning to realize the best way to deal with him is to gradually weaken him until he falls from within.
The latest update from Rybar (pro-Russian) shows it already under full Ukrainian control:
He's been claiming Crimea is part of Russia since 2014 and Russian soldiers have died there. There have even been causalities in Belgorod which is legit Russian territory. Also, why would Putin be itching for a fight with NATO when he's struggling to even fight Ukraine unless he wants to use Nukes and take everyone down with him but you can't just grant a tyrant whatever he wants just out of fear of nuclear Armageddon because in that case we should also be surrendering south Korea to Kim jong un.
Thanks- sorry I missed the earlier message. This reminds me a little of the Allies Hundred Days in 1918. Attack one area and start rolling it up. When that front stabilises move focus and keep the defenders constantly on the move.The latest update from Rybar (pro-Russian) shows it already under full Ukrainian control:
Looks like the troops who stayed in Lyman are either killed or surrendered. Most of them apparently tried to break through to Kreminna during the night and took heavy losses on the road between Torskoye and Kreminna (you see the contested area were the Ukrainian troops (blue) arrived from the south and could attack the full length of that road). My post from earlier today was about the fight in that area, allegedly it was like "hunting squirrels" for the Ukrainian troops.
Earlier it looked like there was still fighting in Lyman, now the Russians believe that they have completely lost it, so it was news now
No he is not itching for a fight with nato, because even in the deranged state he is in, he knows that will lead to the complete demilitarisation of Russia. Even if someone had any doubts about that 6 months ago, it is completely obvious now.
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kashmir was my thought.
UN has always been a joke.
Exactly. Not condemning the Russian behaviour doesn't necessarily mean supporting Russia in this current war, but can also simply be to leave options open to do something similar.
Putin is basically a one trick pony, he’s like a poker player who aggressively bluffs and his opposition know it’s likely a bluff but don’t want to take the risk themselves. NATO until now has basically not done anything to curb his aggression but that changed with the reaction to this invasion. NATO adapted their approach but Putin hasn’t, he’s not some great strategist (in fact it looks like he’s terrible judging by reports he was directly working with the military) this is all he has, escalation after escalation until he wins or loses. He will lose if the West keeps backing Ukraine.
Just like most dictators his years of power has made him narcisstic and he's surrounded himself with yes men. It's why someone who's never in touch with reality can win the war in the long run.
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For the glory of mother Russia, they have accomplished a grand redeployment to the rear!
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I thought the genstaff are not the ones calling the shots any longer...
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It won't move into annexed territory it doesn't recognize as Russian?
Nato is a defensive alliance. Ukraine would be joining Nato perfectly aware that 4 of its territories is under Russian control and its up to them to win it back. This compromise would limit Russian operation without Nato actively declaring war on RussiaIt won't move into annexed territory it doesn't recognize as Russian?
To let Ukraine join NATO and not help it claim back those regions is as good as openly acknowledging they are legally Russian.
But it's just not true. Lyman for example is lost and part of the four annexed oblasts.
Gesture of goodwill to celebrate recent annexation.
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This sounds insane to me. A complete insult to Ukraine and a mockery of NATO.
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I don’t think they quite understand the way NATO operates, the process and the politics of it all. Ukraine is still years away from joining NATO, even if the war would end today.
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Still a bit of premature, but it definitely looks like Russia is on the backfoot
NATO's argument is that its a defensive alliance. That means it can't actively engage into war with someone unless its get attacked first. Since Ukraine is engaged into an active war then it can't join NATO as by doing so would mean dragging NATO into war.
Absolute gibberish.
In my opinion Putin's weakness lie with his people. They allow him to do whatever he wants on the condition that he doesn't send their children to war. In fact he's already struggling in selling this 'partial mobilization' against an enemy most Russian people consider as weaker then them. In this scenario the table could shift at any moment. Russian parents would end up sending their kids to war not knowing if they would end up the first line of defence against the Western juggernaut. How would they react to that? We're not talking about WW2 here were the Russians were defending their own country against the biggest bastard in European history. Russia is the aggressor this time round and it can avoid this massacre by just pulling out of the war.
