Russia launches Ukraine invasion

Russia Hits Kyiv Missile Factory After Moskva Flagship Sinks

Russian strikes pounded a military factory near Kyiv that makes the missiles Ukraine claims it used to sink the Moskva naval flagship, with Moscow on Friday vowing renewed attacks on the capital.


A workshop and an administrative building at the Vizar plant, which lies near Kyiv's international Zhuliany airport, were seriously damaged in the overnight strikes, an AFP journalist saw.


Russia had earlier announced it had used Kalibr sea-based long-range missiles to hit the factory, which Ukraine's state weapons manufacturer Ukroboronprom says produced Neptune missiles.


"There were five hits. My employee was in the office and got thrown off his feet by the blast," Andrei Sizov, a 47-year-old owner of a nearby wood workshop, told AFP.


"They are making us pay for destroying the Moskva," he said. It was the first major Russian strike around the Ukrainian capital in over two weeks.

The Kyiv regional governor said there were at least two other Russian strikes on Friday, without providing details on damage or casualties.


Oleksandr Pavliuk said civilians thinking about returning to the capital should "wait for quieter times."


The governor of Ukraine's southern Odessa region, Maxim Marchenko, said the 186-meter-long Russian missile cruiser was hit by Ukrainian Neptune missiles on Wednesday.


The Moskva had been leading Russia's naval effort in the seven-week conflict, and the circumstances around its sinking and the fate of its crew of over 500 remain murky.


Russia's Defense Ministry said a blast on the vessel was the result of exploding ammunition and that the resulting damage had caused it to "lose its balance" as it was being towed to port on Thursday.


Natalia Gumeniuk, a spokeswoman for Ukraine's southern military forces, said that Russia would seek revenge for the sinking and that bad weather had meant the Moskva's crew could not be evacuated.


"We saw that other ships tried to assist it, but even the forces of nature were on Ukraine's side because the storm made both the rescue operation and crew evacuations impossible," Gumeniuk said in a briefing.



'NATO frontline'


The fleet has been blockading the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, where Russian officials say they are in full control although Ukrainian fighters are still holed up in the city's fortress-like steelworks.


Moscow, which invaded Ukraine partly because of deepening ties between Kyiv and NATO, on Friday warned of unspecified "consequences" should Finland and Sweden join the U.S.-led defense alliance.


The two countries are considering joining NATO after Russia's devastating invasion of neighboring Ukraine.


"They will automatically find themselves on the NATO frontline," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.


Shortly afterwards, Finland's European Affairs Minister Tytti Tuppurainen said it was "highly likely" that her country would apply for NATO membership.


"The people of Finland, they seem to have already made up their mind and there is a huge majority for the NATO membership," she told Britain's Sky News.


Unlike Sweden, Finland neighbors Russia, from which it declared independence in 1917 after 150 years of Russian rule.


Russia on Friday said it was expelling 18 members of the European Union mission after the bloc kicked out some of Moscow's representatives for spying.


The EU condemned the "unjustified" move, saying in a statement that "Russia's chosen course of action will further deepen its international isolation."


Russian forces last month started withdrawing from around the Ukrainian capital as they were redeployed to focus on territory in the east of the country, but the city remains vulnerable to missile strikes.




Evacuations


"The number and scale of missile strikes against targets in Kyiv will increase in response to any terrorist attacks or sabotage committed by the Kyiv nationalist regime on Russian territory," Russia's Defense Ministry said.


"As a result of the strike on the Zhulyansky machine-building plant 'Vizar,' the workshops for the production and repair of long-range and medium-range anti-aircraft missile systems, as well as anti-ship missiles, were destroyed," the ministry said.


Seizing the eastern Donbas region, where Russian-backed separatists control the Donetsk and Lugansk areas, would allow Moscow to create a southern corridor to the occupied Crimean peninsula.


Ukraine said that Russian strikes had killed five people in the area, after President Volodymyr Zelensky said Moscow's forces were aiming to "destroy" the region.


A Russian attack on buses ferrying civilians from the war-torn east killed seven people and wounded more than two dozen, Ukraine said on Friday.


Ukrainian authorities have been urging people in the south and the Donbas area in the east to quickly move west in advance of a large-scale Russian offensive.


Mariupol is in ruins 50 days into Russia's so-called "special military operation" in Ukraine.


Thousands of civilians are believed to have died in the strategic city, many of their bodies still trapped in apartment buildings.




'Starved to death'


Mariupol's residents have started coming outside in search of food, water and an escape route.


The UN's World Food Program appealed for access to Ukrainians trapped in war zones including Mariupol, saying those besieged were starving to death.


"It's one thing when people are suffering from the devastation of war. It's another thing when they're being starved to death," WFP Executive Director David Beasley said in a statement.


In Geneva, the UN refugee agency said that more than 5 million people have now fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion, in Europe's worst refugee crisis since World War II.


Moscow on Thursday accused Ukraine of sending helicopters to bomb a village in Russia's Bryansk region -- not far from the border with Ukraine — injuring eight people.


Kyiv has denied the helicopter attack, instead accusing Russia of staging the incidents to stir up "anti-Ukrainian hysteria" in the country.

Separately, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday its strategic rocket forces "eliminated up to 30 Polish mercenaries" in a strike on the village of Izyumskoe, not far from the city of Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine.


In Kharkiv itself, Russian strikes killed at least seven, including a child, the region's governor said Friday, as Moscow's forces stepped up attacks.

Russia Hits Kyiv Missile Factory After Moskva Flagship Sinks - The Moscow Times

Makes you wonder why they didn't hit it before tbh. Wouldn't Ukrainian munitions factories be top of the list of targets?

The knee jerk reaction by Putin was delayed. Russia had to decide if it was worse to admit to a victory for Ukraine missiles, or once again, being accused of incompetence, this time in the sinking of a ship responsible for command and control in the Black Sea?

Apparently it was a Ukrainian missile wot did it. Like a child lashing out because someone messed with its favourite toy?

Over 900 civilians dead around Kyiv, Russia vows new attacks

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Indignant over what it called Ukrainian strikes in Russian territory and following the stunning loss of its Black Sea flagship, Moscow threatened renewed missile attacks on Kyiv, where authorities said the bodies of more than 900 civilians were found outside the capital. Most had been shot dead, police said, and likely “simply executed.”


Russian forces prepared for a renewed offensive in eastern Ukraine, and fighting also went on in the pummeled southern port city of Mariupol, where locals reported seeing Russian troops digging up bodies. In the northeastern city of Kharkiv, the shelling of a residential area killed seven people, including a 7-month-old child, and wounded 34, according to regional Gov. Oleh Sinehubov.


Early Saturday, Kyiv's eastern district of Darnytskie was struck, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in an online posting. He said rescuers and paramedics were on the scene. He warned residents who have fled the capital not to return for their safety.

In the towns around Kyiv, said Andriy Nebytov, who heads the region’s police force, bodies were abandoned in the streets or given temporary burials. He cited police data indicating 95% died from gunshot wounds.


“Consequently, we understand that under the (Russian) occupation, people were simply executed in the streets,” Nebytov said.


More bodies are being found every day under rubble and in mass graves, he added, with the largest number found in Bucha, more than 350. According to Nebytov, utility workers gathered and buried bodies in the Kyiv suburb while it remained under Russian control. Russian troops, he added, had been “tracking down” people who expressed strong pro-Ukrainian views.


Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russian troops occupying parts of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions in the south of terrorizing civilians and hunting for anyone who served in Ukraine’s military or government.


“The occupiers think this will make it easier for them to control this territory. But they are very wrong. They are fooling themselves,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. “Russia’s problem is that it is not accepted — and never will be accepted — by the entire Ukrainian people. Russia has lost Ukraine forever.”


Officials think 2,500 to 3,000 Ukrainian troops have died in the war, Zelenskyy told CNN in an interview. He said about 10,000 have been injured and it’s “hard to say how many will survive.”


More violence could be in store for Kyiv after Russian authorities accused Ukraine of wounding seven people and damaging about 100 residential buildings with airstrikes in Bryansk, a region bordering Ukraine. Authorities in another border region of Russia also reported Ukrainian shelling Thursday.


“The number and the scale of missile attacks on objects in Kyiv will be ramped up in response to the Kyiv nationalist regime committing any terrorist attacks or diversions on the Russian territory,” Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.


Russia used missiles to destroy a facility for the repair and production of missile systems in Kyiv, Konashenkov said. The Ukrainian state arms manufacturer, Ukroboronprom, said Russian forces struck one of the missile workshops at the Vizar plant, located near Kyiv’s Zhuliany airport.


Ukrainian officials have not confirmed striking targets in Russia, and the reports could not be independently verified.


However, Ukrainian officials said forces did strike a key Russian warship with missiles. A senior U.S. defense official backed up the claim, saying the U.S. now believes the Moskva was hit by at least one Neptune anti-ship missile, and probably two. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an intelligence assessment.


The Moskva, named for the Russian capital, sank while being towed to port Thursday after taking heavy damage. Moscow did not acknowledge any attack, saying only that a fire had detonated ammunition on board. The loss of the ship represents an important victory for Ukraine and a symbolic defeat for Russia.


The sinking reduces Russia’s firepower in the Black Sea and seemed to symbolize Moscow's fortunes in an eight-week invasion widely seen as a historic blunder following the Russian retreat from the Kyiv region and much of northern Ukraine.


“A ‘flagship’ russian warship is a worthy diving site. We have one more diving spot in the Black Sea now. Will definitely visit the wreck after our victory in the war,” Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov tweeted Friday.


Russia's warning of renewed airstrikes did not stop Kyiv residents from taking advantage of a sunny and slightly warmer spring Friday as the weekend approached. More people than usual were out on the streets, walking dogs, riding electric scooters and strolling hand in hand.


Such tentative signs of prewar life have resurfaced in the capital after Russian troops failed to capture the city and retreated to concentrate on eastern Ukraine, leaving behind evidence of possible war crimes. But a renewed bombardment could mean a return to the steady wail of air raid sirens heard during the early days of the invasion and to fearful nights sheltering in subway stations.


In Mariupol, the city council said Friday that locals reported seeing Russian troops digging up bodies buried in residential courtyards and not allowing new burials “of people killed by them.”


“Why the exhumation is being carried out and where the bodies will be taken is unknown,” the council said on the Telegram messaging app.


Fighting continued in industrial areas and the port, and Russia for the first time used the Tu-22М3 long-range bomber to attack the city, said Oleksandr Motuzyanyk, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.


Mariupol has been blockaded by Russian forces since the early days of the invasion, and dwindling numbers of Ukrainian defenders have held out against a siege that has come at a horrific cost to trapped and starving civilians.


The mayor said this week that the city's death toll could surpass 20,000. Other Ukrainian officials have said they expect to find evidence in Mariupol of atrocities like the ones discovered in Bucha and other towns outside Kyiv.


Mariupol’s capture would allow Russian forces in the south, which came up through the annexed Crimean Peninsula, to fully link up with troops in the Donbas region, Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland and the target of the looming offensive.


It's not certain when Russia will launch a full-scale campaign.


Also Friday, a Russian rocket hit an airport at night in the central city of Oleksandriia, Mayor Serhiy Kuzmenko said via Facebook. He made no mention of casualties.


And a regional Ukrainian official said seven people were killed and 27 wounded when Russian forces fired on buses carrying civilians in the village of Borovaya, near Kharkiv. The claim could not be independently verified.


Dmytro Chubenko, a spokesman for the regional prosecutor’s office, told the Suspilne news website that authorities had opened criminal proceedings in connection with a suspected “violation of the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder.”

Over 900 civilians dead around Kyiv, Russia vows new attacks | Taiwan News | 2022-04-16 15:09:45

Russia Warns U.S. of 'Consequences' of Ukraine Military Aid: Reports

Russia has formally complained to the United States over its military aid to Ukraine, warning of "unpredictable consequences" if shipments of advanced weaponry go forward, U.S. media reported.


In a diplomatic note this week, Moscow warned the United States and NATO against sending the "most sensitive" weapons for Kyiv to use in the conflict with Russia, saying such shipments were "adding fuel" to the situation and could come with "unpredictable consequences," the Washington Post reported.


The warning came the same week that U.S. President Joe Biden pledged a new $800 million military aid package for Ukraine, including helicopters, howitzers and armored personnel carriers.


"What the Russians are telling us privately is precisely what we've been telling the world publicly — that the massive amount of assistance that we've been providing our Ukrainian partners is proving extraordinarily effective," the Post quoted a senior administration official — who spoke on condition of anonymity about the note — as saying.

The State Department declined to comment on reports of the formal note.


"We won't confirm any private diplomatic correspondence," a State Department spokesperson said.


"What we can confirm is that, along with allies and partners, we are providing Ukraine with billions of dollars' worth of security assistance, which our Ukrainian partners are using to extraordinary effect to defend their country against Russia's unprovoked aggression and horrific acts of violence."


According to the New York Times citing U.S. officials, the note was sent through normal channels, and was not signed by any senior Russian officials.


The formal correspondence indicates Russia is concerned about the United States' ongoing material support for Ukraine, an anonymous U.S. official told CNN.


CNN also reported that one source familiar with the document said the complaint could mean Moscow is getting ready to adopt a more aggressive stance against the United States and NATO as the invasion of Ukraine continues.


Biden told his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky of the new weapons aid package over the phone Wednesday, as Russia refocused its efforts eastward, the new frontline of the seven-week-old war.


"As Russia prepares to intensify its attack in the Donbas region, the United States will continue to provide Ukraine with the capabilities to defend itself," Biden said.


"This new package of assistance will contain many of the highly effective weapons systems we have already provided and new capabilities tailored to the wider assault we expect Russia to launch in eastern Ukraine."

Zelensky for his part tweeted that he and Biden had discussed the "additional package of defensive and possible macro-financial aid."


The new assistance included some of the heavier equipment that Washington had previously refused to provide to Kyiv for fear of escalating the conflict with nuclear-armed Russia, and comes after previous weapons aid already supplied to the Ukrainian army.

Russia Warns U.S. of 'Consequences' of Ukraine Military Aid: Reports - The Moscow Times

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Originally Posted by sabang

Makes you wonder why they didn't hit it before tbh. Wouldn't Ukrainian munitions factories be top of the list of targets?

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To be fair, they did have a long list of hospitals, schools and residential buildings that obviously had priority.

The BBC did an excellent job. The entire article is much too long to post.

• Sanctioned Russian oligarchs linked to £800m worth of UK property

A dozen sanctioned Russians are linked to an estimated £800m worth of property in the UK, analysis by the BBC reveals.

Multi-million pound country manors in the south of England and luxury flats in London's most expensive areas are among the homes which have been snapped up by figures linked to Vladimir Putin.

Some of the individuals deny ownership of the mansions, which may mean they are beyond the reach of the sanctions.

To get to the bottom of who owns what, we carried out a detailed trawl of leaked offshore documents, the Land Registry and court papers - as well as previous reporting.

Our findings highlight the UK's status as a place for super-rich Russians to set up home, and the difficulties of identifying the true owners of properties bought by offshore firms in tax havens.

In response to the BBC's findings, anti-corruption group, Transparency International highlighted how hard it is to track who owns what in the UK.

"Because of the system of secrecy here in the UK and in relation to the Overseas Dependencies it's really easy for people to hide their assets and their funds in the UK and not even the police necessarily have sight of where those assets are," Rachel Davies, head of advocacy at the organisation, told the BBC.

The UK, US and European Union have together sanctioned more than 1,000 Russian individuals and businesses, including wealthy business leaders - so-called oligarchs - who are considered close to the Kremlin.

Most of those listed below were sanctioned after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, although some were already on the government's sanctions list.

Properties linked to sanctioned Russians include:

One example..........

https://i.ibb.co/vBqFwYd/Polina.jpg

Polina Kovaleva is the stepdaughter of Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, according to the UK government.

Lavrov was sanctioned by the British government at the same time as Vladimir Putin. A few weeks later, on 24 March, the UK government sanctioned Ms Kovaleva too - saying she reportedly owns a London property worth £4m.

Land Registry documents show Polina Kovaleva bought an apartment in Kensington with no mortgage in 2016, when she was 21. https://twitter.com/pevchikh/status/1501878715709632518

Reckon I might join the Dep't of Foreign Affairs...

Ukraine war: Russia bans Boris Johnson from country over Ukraine war

Russia has banned Prime Minister Boris Johnson and other senior ministers from entering Russia over the UK's "hostile" stance on the war in Ukraine.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and 10 other senior politicians - mostly members of the Cabinet - have also been barred.
Moscow said the decision had been made in retaliation to the UK's sanctions against it since it invaded Ukraine.


In March, Moscow imposed a similar ban against US President Joe Biden.


The full list is:
Prime Minister Boris Johnson
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace
Deputy Prime Minister, Lord Chancellor, and Secretary of State for Justice Dominic Raab
Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps
Home Secretary Priti Patel
The Chancellor Rishi Sunak
Minister of Entrepreneurship, Energy and Industrial Strategy Kwasi Kwarteng
Minister of Digitalization, Culture, Media and Sport Nadine Dorries
Minister for the Armed Forces James Heappey
First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon
Attorney General for England and Wales and advocate general for Northern Ireland Suella Braverman
Conservative MP and former British Prime Minister Theresa May


In a statement, Russia's foreign ministry said: "London's unbridled information and political campaign aimed at isolating Russia internationally, creating conditions for containing our country and strangling the domestic economy" were responsible for its decision.

It added: "In essence, the British leadership is deliberately aggravating the situation around Ukraine, pumping the Kyiv regime with lethal weapons and coordinating similar efforts on the part of Nato."


Earlier this week, the UK and US governments announced further sanctions on Russia.
The sanctions included financial measures designed to damage Russia's economy and penalise President Putin, high-ranking officials, and people who have benefited from his regime.

Ukraine war: Russia bans Boris Johnson from country over Ukraine war - BBC News

ooops

Quote:

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Originally Posted by misskit

In a statement, Russia's foreign ministry said: "London's unbridled information and political campaign aimed at isolating Russia internationally, creating conditions for containing our country and strangling the domestic economy" were responsible for its decision.

It added: "In essence, the British leadership is deliberately aggravating the situation around Ukraine, pumping the Kyiv regime with lethal weapons and coordinating similar efforts on the part of Nato."

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That's a great statement outlining the success the UK has had, i imagine Boris will be sending a thank you note.

The worst kept secret is finally out, been there since the start

British special forces ‘are training local troops in Ukraine

British special forces have trained local troops in Kyiv for the first time since the war with Russia began, Ukrainian commanders have told The Times.


Officers from two battalions stationed in and around the capital said they had undergone military training, one last week and the other the week before.


Captain Yuriy Myronenko, whose battalion is stationed in Obolon on the northern outskirts of Kyiv, said that military trainers had come to instruct new and returning military recruits to use NLAWs, British-supplied anti-tank missiles that were delivered in February as the invasion was beginning.

British special forces ‘are training local troops in Ukraine’ | News | The Times

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Originally Posted by malmomike77

British special forces ‘are training local troops in Ukraine

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Of course they are and sure the US and other nations have "trainers" in country.

^ yep, both been running intel and recon from before day one, the US/UK SF have been working jointery since Iraq.

It's been known for years- not a secret at all. More controversial is that they were training private militia, such as Azov, well before they were 'incorporated' into the Ukrainian military reserve.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by malmomike77

^ yep, both been running intel and recon from before day one, the US/UK SF have been working jointery since Iraq.

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Common practice when weapons are transferred to a nation. Hell, I was a trainer in Nong Kai 50+ years ago. :)

KYIV (Reuters) - Around 1.25 million tonnes of grains and oilseeds are still on commercial vessels blocked in Ukrainian seaports due to Russia's invasion and part of the cargo may deteriorate in the near future, Ukraine's farm minister was quoted as saying on Friday.

Ukraine used to export almost all its grain and oilseeds via seaports and now is forced to find new routes as its ports are blocked.


Before the war, Ukraine exported up to 6 million tonnes of grain and oilseed a month, while in March the exports fell to 200,000 tonnes, Mykola Solskyi told the newspaper Ukrayinska Pravda.

"It (the cargo) is not unloaded, and is still on vessels. There are currently 57 vessels with 1.25 million tonnes of grain and oilseeds," Solskyi said.

"As for the retention period, I think that even the captains themselves in most cases do not know if there are any problems with this. They certainly did not plan to keep this grain on the ships for a long time," he added.


Solskyi said that everything depended on the condition of the holds of the vessels and if the grain is stored for more than three months, "problems arise and part of the cargo can be spoiled."

Ukraine traditionally exports grains to the north Africa and the Middle East and Solskyi said these regions would be forced to spend more money and focus on wheat from non-Ukraine origins.

He said importers were already spending more and the situation with grain supply from Ukraine could push these countries to build greater grain reserves and this would also drive up prices.

"That is, even if this story ended magically tomorrow, the wave of high prices will be another 3 to 5 years, until the mood levels off, and there will be no balance," Solskyi added.

Ukraine Says Grain on Ships in Blocked Black Sea Ports May Deteriorate | World News | US News

Russia says its troops cleared the urban area of the key city of Mariupol and only a small contingent of Ukrainian fighters remained inside a steel factory in the besieged southern port.

Russia’s claim to have all but taken control of Mariupol – the scene of the war’s heaviest fighting and worst humanitarian catastrophe – could not be independently verified. It would be the first major city to have fallen to Russian forces since the February 24 invasion.

“The entire urban area of ​​Mariupol has been completely cleared … remnants of the Ukrainian group are currently completely blockaded on the territory of the Azovstal metallurgical plant,” said Igor Konashenkov, the Russian defence ministry’s chief spokesman.

“Their only chance to save their lives is to voluntarily lay down their arms and surrender.”

Konashenkov said 1,464 Ukrainian servicemen have already surrendered “in the course of liberation of Mariupol”.

Russia’s defence ministry said if Ukrainian forces still fighting in Mariupol lay down their arms starting at 6am Moscow time (03:00 GMT) their lives will be spared, Tass news agency reported.

In the key port city, journalists in Russian-held districts reached the steel factory, one of two metals plants where defenders have held out in underground tunnels and bunkers.

The factory was reduced to a ruin of twisted steel and blasted concrete, with no sign of defenders present. Several bodies of civilians lay scattered on nearby streets, including a woman in a pink parka and white shoes.

Someone had spray-painted “mined” on a fence by an obliterated filling station. In a rare sign of life, one red car drove slowly down an otherwise empty street, the word “children” scrawled on a card taped to the windshield.

‘Absolutely hate them’

No immediate reaction came from Kyiv to the Russian assertions.

“The situation is very difficult” in Mariupol, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Ukrayinska Pravda news portal. “Our soldiers are blocked, the wounded are blocked. There is a humanitarian crisis … Nevertheless, the guys are defending themselves.”

Speaking in an online address, he accused Russia of trying to wipe out the city’s inhabitants but did not address Moscow’s claim of seizing Mariupol.

Zelenskyy threatened to withdraw from the continuing peace negotiations with Russia if Ukrainian fighters trapped in the port city are killed.

“What they are doing right now … could put a stop to any form of negotiation,” Zelenskyy said in an interview with a Ukrainian news website.

“There are troops there who absolutely hate them, and I don’t think they will let them live,” the Ukrainian leader said, referring to the fact many of the fighters in Mariupol are part of the far-right Azov Batallion.

FULL- Mariupol ‘entirely’ taken, Russia says urging remnants’ surrender (msn.com)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sabang

It's been known for years- not a secret at all. More controversial is that they were training private militia, such as Azov, well before they were 'incorporated' into the Ukrainian military reserve.

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Please stop making unsubstantiated stories up to suit your narrative.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sabang

It's not inside intel at all- it's public knowledge, never even obscured from the public. If that is 'inconvenient' for you, that's your problem.

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Is certifiable correct truth available to support your position on this.

You saying that it’s public knowledge carries no weight on here.

GIYF swish.

The Secret Of Ukraine’s Military Success: Years Of Nato Training | Mint

Another Russian general got smoked today.

Russian Major General Vladimir Frolov, deputy commander of the 8th Army, was buried Saturday after being killed in combat in Ukraine, Russian state media reported, which would make him the eighth Russian general killed in Moscow’s invasion, if Ukrainian claims are true.

Key Background

As of the end of March, around 14 Russian generals and senior colonels had been claimed to be killed–a notable death toll likely to have disrupted Russia’s front-line operations. An unnamed Pentagon official said on March 25 that “it's not surprising to us to see that there are [Russian] generals on the battlefield” and vulnerable to Ukrainian fire. The official said Russians “don't delegate very well,” adding they “do not invest a lot of responsibility” in junior-level officers and “don't have a non-commissioned officer corps.”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisakim...h=e98f1d53d412

Brave blokes but out on a limb....

Second British soldier captured in Mariupol is paraded on Russian TV

A second British soldier fighting with the Ukrainian army has been paraded on Russian television after being captured in the besieged city of Mariupol.

Shaun Pinner said he had been fighting alongside Ukrainian marines when Vladimir Putin’s forces invaded nearly eight weeks ago.

The 48-year-old former British soldier appeared tired and bruised in a short propaganda video aired by Russian media on Saturday night.

In the video, he says: “Hi, I’m Shaun Pinner. I am a citizen of the UK. I was captured in Mariupol. I am part of the 36 Brigade First Battalion Ukrainian Marines.

“I was fighting in Mariupol for five to six weeks and now I’m in Donetsk People’s Republic.”

Pinner also spoke of his fear of capture: “I fear for my life. The Russians will treat us differently if we are captured because we are British. This is always on my mind, that I will be captured.”

Jayson Pihajlic, who fought against Islamic State alongside Pinner and Aslin in the Syrian Democratic Forces, said the men were “standard bearers for democracy” who were fighting “as volunteers, not mercenaries”.

He told the Guardian: “I was holding out after Aiden was captured that maybe no news was good news for Shaun. He was in a different unit than Aiden, but they were both in Mariupol.

“It’s horrible to see. They’re obviously being beaten up and that’s the least we can say – who knows what else is going on. They’re being labelled as mercenaries, but these guys are not mercenaries – they are proper, uniformed, Ukrainian soldiers.”

Pihajlic, a former US marine, said he had last spoken to Aslin and Pinner when they were joining the Ukrainian resistance and that he was praying for their safe release.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/17/second-british-soldier-captured-ukraine-mariupol-paraded-shaun-pinner-russian-tv

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Originally Posted by malmomike77

“I was fighting in Mariupol for five to six weeks and now I’m in Donetsk People’s Republic.”

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Man, I would not want to be in his shoes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bsnub

Man, I would not want to be in his shoes.

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No but it comes with the territory, he and his mates were on ISIS too so he knew what he was getting into, he also knows the UK Govt can't get him out. I admire his spirit though. The trouble with these add-ons is they end up as leverage and that's counter productive.