Soldato
- Joined
- 11 May 2007
- Posts
- 9,192
- Location
- Surrey
Agreements aren't worth ****.
Ukraine Invasion - Please do not post videos showing attacks/similar
- Thread starter areksnumbr1sxylady
- Start date
- Status
Would be amazing if they could. Maybe Mariupol being so stubborn is pulling all their resources. Taking Kherson means control on that side of the river and all the land around there due to it being pancake flat. Could force them back east or south to Crimea.
That could allow Melitopol to be regained and have the siege of Mariupol collapse. Perhaps why the Russians so keen to 'allow' the Mariupol defenders out. Only fear is knowing this they may now just step up things.
Probably wishful thinking but maybe possible with new toys making armour/artillery out in the open fields absolutely sitting ducks. Also new air defences giving them cover from Russian drones. Did they get those new switchblade drones from the US?!
Soldato
- Joined
- 30 Nov 2011
- Posts
- 11,522
Switchblade's were included in the latest due to be sent but no idea what US logistics is actually like in terms of timescales.
The Ukraine armed forces already released a few statements about this I believe, basically saying it's impossible due to the nearest Ukrainian forces being ~100km away with nothing but flat terrain between them and Mariupol. Also Russia has a lot of AA in the region and from Crimea which means they can't even provide any air support to the defenders there (they said they tried). It's a grim situation.
Caporegime
- Joined
- 30 Jul 2013
- Posts
- 30,079
I think the west are trying, but countries like India might allow them to circumvent the worst of the sanctions.
Zelensky has refused Putin's demand to surrender the city of Mariupol. Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereshchuk is backing him up.
'Ukraine rejects Russian ultimatum to ‘lay down arms’ in Mariupol.'
'Ukraine rejects Russian ultimatum to ‘lay down arms’ in Mariupol.'
I wouldn't surprise me if China are a little concerned with the product of Putin's self isolation. Putin probably sold them the idea for their buy-in but left out some of the details. He knows China needs to validate their own claim on Taiwan, so Putin is playing China in that regard.
As part of the plan, China wants to ensure they have an equally respected currency for trade. The provides a basis for other countries like Brazil and India, along with Iran to open up financial/trade lines currently blocked using the dollar.
China provides Russia with the conduit, however it's unclear what limits China will allow trade in their currency to prevent it from becoming the currency of corruption and drug dealing etc which threatens their government/ideology. Young days, immature trade currency so Putin is playing the immaturity whilst he can, irrespective of the impact on China's own economy. An easy buck to be made - kind of like bitcoins.
The US see there's a duality - US dollar and the Chinese currency. The US are weary of the immaturity being a conduit hence the talk of sanctions on China to close the connection between the two currencies. Doing this, with no controls and immature global regulation, causes the Chinese currency to be highly volatile. Not mention being "under control" of a foreign superstate and the influence that could have on US interests.
The danger for China is that, like before when it started being the manufacturer and tried climbing its way to higher tech, it's doing the same with it's currency to propel it as a global currency... that initial step of being the low-cost manufacturer means being the launderer/conduit for all the financials for despots/crime/corruption. That's a difficult step to ween the currency off to move up the chain to handle legally acceptable money - London/Boris knows all about laundering money and the implications for the government controlling being corrupted by vested individuals/oligarchs..
I suspect he's reinforcing that Putin has no power to demand anything. Give Putin a demand and he will go all out for all his demands.
Soldato
- Joined
- 25 Sep 2009
- Posts
- 10,210
- Location
- Billericay, UK
Saw some footage yesterday where they had a sound system set up in the street and were taunting the Russian troops with the Bayraktar song.
edit - just found it again
Reports seem to indicate that China didn't know the attack in advance, and given the Russians don't seem to have properly informed even their own soldiers that doesn't seem terribly unlikely. China wants to reduce Western (mostly US) influence and boost its own, but it also wants stability since it is primarily a trading power. Russia wants to destabilise the West. China is allied with Russia only because it sees them as having a shared enemy and because it is a direct neighbour. They don't want a bigger, more nuclear, North Korea on their doorstep, it'll only cause them trouble.
Soldato
- Joined
- 25 Sep 2009
- Posts
- 10,210
- Location
- Billericay, UK
No surprise given just how important that city (opr what's left of it) is to Russia in terms of strategic access for supplies. I was watching videos on CNN about the fighting that's going on there and it sounds horrendous (Stalingradsqe as in fighting room to room, building to building). As brave as their fighting surely it's only a matter of time before they take the city unless Ukraine has some kind of counter attack planned to break the siege.
I can't blame them for not taking any supposed offer of surrender and safe passage out after the events in Ivolaisk back in 2014 for example.... or any other number of promises made by Russians during this and other conflicts.
I've seen suggestion that something the Ukrainians seem to be intent on achieving - pushing the Russians out of Kherson - would be key to relieving Mariupol, by allowing them to move on to Melitopol and disrupt the supply lines from Crimea to the troops on the western side of Mariupol. One can only hope that if that is indeed the plan it happens in time for the people holding out there.
But this is what the peace talks are about, Zelensky has agreed to some ie no NATO membership but does not want to concede any further land.
People keep saying Russia cannot be trusted but without peace talks this continues for who knows how long.
Interesting thread on global grain supplies, looks like India is going to come through for the world:
If this pans out, it'll make a massive difference.
If this pans out, it'll make a massive difference.
Zelensky knows his best bet is to make every victory as expensive as possible for Putin.
Mariupol will be a complete meatgrinder for the Russians. The city may be a ruin, but the defenders have had weeks to dig in and prepare for attack. Taking the city street by bloody street will inflict terrible loses on their soldiers and be a massive drain on troop morale. I've seen military experts talking about 5:1 mortality rates for attackers in that kind of situation.
- Status