https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-62888388
Artem said he could hear screams of pain and terror coming from other cells.
The occupiers made sure the cries could be heard, he said, by turning off the building's noisy ventilation system.
"They turned it off so everyone could hear how people scream when they are shocked with electricity," he told us. "They did this to some of the prisoners every other day... They even did this to the women".
stevedoc
Free MemberJust simply looking at the level of gear they are wearing says a 1000 words .
Plate carriers and gucci molle systems fast mag pouches, elcan sighting systems peq boxs Safarilands . its another era from what the average Russian booty is wearing/using.
They're very nearly as well equipped as the average airsofter or nerfer
And so rats continue to leave the ship...?
https://twitter.com/vtchakarova/status/1570137823193317376?t=VAGDNwK5NzDAiYeyyB1EZw&s=19
seems russia has blown up a dam overnight along with the attacks on the grid its clear they are targeting civilians infrastructure to make this winter as hard as possible for ukraine.
scorched earth. have they stopped pedalling the line they are there to save and liberate people yet?
And so rats continue to leave the ship…?
It doesn't seem to be substantiated. Kazakhstan called on the CSTO in January after rioters seized most of the city of Almaty over the price of LPG.
Kazakhstan opposed the invasion of Crimea and, later, the rest of Ukraine, but it wouldn't be logical for them to leave the CSTO. There is rumour that China would be prepared to step in, but that isn't their MO
scorched earth. have they stopped pedalling the line they are there to save and liberate people yet?
They want to pressure Ukraine into a deal that secures some/any part of Ukraine. If that doesn't happen then rebuilding will give Europe an economic kicking
On the subject of "liberation" this is a translation from an RIA Novosta article, I wont quote as it needs to be read in full to really appreciate what its saying, and how that would translate into action on the ground.
Also, if anyone has seen rumours of Ukrainian "kill lists" kicking about. Worth getting hold of the text from the "evidence" and translate that text if you can
The example I saw translated to something completely different, but I guess some wouldn't bother and just take it at face value.
Theres not been much chat about China.
In keeping with other questions about this war.
WHAT PARTNERSHIP WITHOUT LIMITS DOING?
Is their any balanced analysis or even opinion pieces kicking around for this?
Specifically looking for something that isnt clearly biased one way or the other. The opinion of someone that always favours the authoritarian outlook, or the US hegemony isnt going to add anything new.
They’re very nearly as well equipped as the average airsofter or nerfer
I'm sure there's a few in this thread.
I’m sure there’s a few in this thread.
🙃
Having just googled an Airsoft shop. And recently been made aware of LARPers pretending to be in Ukraine.
If you have something like this https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/lct-lck-12-tactical-airsoft-replica-aeg?pv=11152
Are you not genuinely at risk of an armed police response?
Sorry, that’s way OT beyond the LARPer thing.
Are you not genuinely at risk of an armed police response?
If you walk down the street yes but they just play on private sites. Think trail centres rather than cheeky trails.
Is their any balanced analysis or even opinion pieces kicking around for this?
They dont seem to be doing a lot hence lack of articles on it. Might be sending a bit of kit but nothing major and are abstaining/voting for Russia.
Theres not been much chat about China. In keeping with other questions about this war. WHAT PARTNERSHIP WITHOUT LIMITS DOING?
Not analytical in the slightest but the “profound transformation” and “world order” is taking taking on a new meaning and the timing is bad for President Xi a month before the CCP conference and vote for leadership
China Daily reports an agreement with Ukraine in 2013, "The two sides underline their support to each other on issues concerning national sovereignty, reunification and territorial integrity." https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2013-12/05/content_17155239.htm
China will continue to play the long game
Are you not genuinely at risk of an armed police response?
Yup. But some rules were bought in a while ago that makes buying the weapons harder for dickheads.
I thought bikes were expensive until I saw what they wear. Crye kit isn't cheap, although seems there's plenty of Chinese knock off gear.
Anyhow, nice to see the UKR getting some decent kit to do their job, I wonder how much is from aid packages, procured through their system or privately bought.
Well, I never knew about airsoft
It's like paintball with less mess and more pain. It's good fun as a one off, but some people take it far too seriously...
I wonder how much is from aid packages, procured through their system or privately bought.
An interesting question - Zelensky said early on in the conflict that money wasn't the problem, they were happy to buy gear they just needed the opportunity to do so.
Specifically looking for something that isnt clearly biased one way or the other. The opinion of someone that always favours the authoritarian outlook, or the US hegemony isnt going to add anything new.
You're never going to find that. An honest reporter can report factual events, but there will always be editorial decisions about what is worth reporting. Different publications have different editorial priorities, the honest ones are clear about those priorities.
That's for straight news reporting. For opinion articles, every writer starts with some worldview. Most Western journalists have been raised in liberal countries and trained in cultures where things like freedom of speech and challenging the views of the government are considered central to an effective press. To countries like Russia or China, those liberal values are evidence of support for the U.S. hegemony (which, at its core, is based on advancing Western liberal values.)
The worst thing of all is the "bothsidism" view, where reporters just report what politicians say without questioning whether it's factual. This gives them access to political leaders, but it just serves to propagate misinformation. Donald Trump is a master of using this to his advantage.
Much better to just have media organizations clearly state their editorial viewpoints and base their news reporting on verified facts. It's not possible for humans to not have biases.
But some rules were bought in a while ago that makes buying the weapons harder for dickheads.
Dang...
*puts credit card away
It’s good fun as a one off, but some people take it far too seriously…
I'm sure that's what airsoft people say about mountain biking.
It’s like paintball with less mess and more pain. It’s good fun as a one off, but some people take it far too seriously…
That they do. Better regards gear than I was issued, for a while at least.
OT: Although there is a hilarious video of a guy from the 75th Ranger Regiment absolutely carving a bunch up.
An interesting question – Zelensky said early on in the conflict that money wasn’t the problem, they were happy to buy gear they just needed the opportunity to do so
No way of knowing, but I have noticed a gradual upturn of kit, with the exception of the foreign defence legion, they are clearly way down the pecking order.
Dang…
*puts credit card away
Haha!
No way of knowing, but I have noticed a gradual upturn of kit
Oh god I hope so! I've always wondered if there was a chance that Ukraine could 'own the night', like the US were able to do with such devastating effect in Iraq (I did not support that war). They were able to do this simply because the US had nigh vision goggles and Iraq didn't. Now, we know that Russia does not equip their solders with night vision, so if we reach a point where enough of the Ukraine forces have them could they start to over run the Russia lines by attacking at night? I mean, it's winter soon, so those nights are going to be looooong....
When they do, they'll find themselves up against an increasing number of 'volunteers' many of whom will have swapped life behind bars for life under the Himars
In fairness Putin’s chef doesn't mess about. Five minutes indeed
Yep that guy does not mince his words!
Now, we know that Russia does not equip their solders with night vision, so if we reach a point where enough of the Ukraine forces have them could they start to over run the Russia lines by attacking at night?
Apparently, that was one of the things that stopped the Russian advance on Kyiv back in March. Ukrainian special forces had night vision gear and the Russians were terrified of night attacks. I think the point there is that you don't need the entire army to have night vision gear, just enough to make sure that the enemy are afraid to sleep at night.
They were able to do this simply because the US had nigh vision goggles and Iraq didn’t.
The US also had GPS and Iraq didn't
Excellent interview with Mark Hertling
https://morningshots.thebulwark.com/p/general-mark-hertling-russias-army
The proper NATO Military NV kit is bonkers money and utterly impractical to issue en masse.
For example: https://tnvc.com/shop/l3harris-gpnvg-ruggedized-bridge/
But when issued to Special forces, it gives them a massive advantage over opponents without them, or even those just using cheaper, lower quality NV kit.
Thanks for posting that Mark Hertling interview. He did an excellent article back in April about the differences in how Russia trains their soldiers (I think it was posted on this thread)- very insightful^^
The proper NATO Military NV kit is bonkers money and utterly impractical to issue en masse
Mate, you've gone for top of the line there. Absolutely no need, monocles work just as well for dismounted troops, there is a huge array of different options available in single or double tubes that although not current gen would give UKR an advantage.
That 4 tube goodness is special kit only and for good reason.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has acknowledged Chinese “concerns” about the war in Ukraine at his first in-person meeting with President Xi Jinping since the invasion.
Putin’s comments in a meeting with Xi in Uzbekistan on Thursday were the first public admission of differences between Beijing and Moscow over the war in Ukraine.
Mate, you’ve gone for top of the line there... That 4 tube goodness is special kit only and for good reason.
But..... shiny!
piemonster
On the subject of “liberation” this is a translation from an RIA Novosta article, I wont quote as it needs to be read in full to really appreciate what its saying, and how that would translate into action on the ground.
That is seriously scary reading.
This amazed me
https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/status/1570432775429427200
Reading the comments it appears that he isn't texting his pals but more likely he is using a targeting app that they have now. The idea is that targets are fed in by various sources, humans, drones, etc and the app will automatically select the most appropriate thing to fire at the target based on how far it is away, what it is trying to hit etc. HQ get involved with authorisation.
The idea of that being mixed in with automatic weaponry is more than a little scary.
That is seriously scary reading.
Not really, it's just typical propaganda.
The idea of that being mixed in with automatic weaponry is more than a little scary.
The Ukranians have been using apps for artillery for a while. Not always successfully as back in 2016 it was discovered the Russians had managed to push a dodgy version of an app the Ukranians were using so they could locate the artillery units.
There seems to be an increasing amount of noise that Lyman has fallen / is about to fall. Important as it acts as a bridgehead to attack North towards Russian lines east of the river and through to Svatove (logistics hub), as well as Severodonetsk to the East, with all the strategic and political implications that an assault there would have.
If the Ukrainians can take Lyman and advance North and East from there, it will indicate that the Kharkiv campaign is more than just a blitzkrieg through poorly defended Russian territory essentially that the Ukrainians can sustain and develop this into something bigger and more sustained.
Fingers 🤞
There seems to be an increasing amount of noise that Lyman has fallen / is about to fall.
I'm not seeing this anywhere
Interesting analysis from an Indian perspective
I’m not seeing this anywhere
Just various posts on twitter. In fairness I'm not able to confirm veracity. However it does seem that Dubrova and Siversk have fallen, which means that UA are established over the river and able to attack Lyman in the flank from the South East. Surely just a matter of time..
