Russia - threadbanned users in OP

The US did comment on the fact Ukraine were counter attacking on at least 3 axis (and also bakhmut) and suggested they focus on one in order to breach the Russian defences. They also suggested Ukraine commit more armor to the assults and be less risk adverse. There was criticism at the time that it's easy for the US to say that when it's not their soldiers on the ground.

So not outrageous or fantastical claims and in hindsight it looks like the US were right.

Yeah Josip got it right just before me. Added to that when was the last time the US fought a near peer(or indeed with MORE raw resources available to them) enemy without air superiority against minefields the like of which the world has never seen. Where the couple of hundred armored vehicles/tanks that were donated to them were not guaranteed to be replaced. Where they had no long range ability to barbeque the airfields filled with Ka-52s before they moved.

We all remember the initial images of the dozen or so bradleys/leopards knocked out in minefields before they'd even made a few metres of progress. And that was just a few days worth of work. What would have happened if Ukraine had continued to smash their faces against the wall for 4 months? It's easy to imagine that they'd have had nothing left and still not have even made it to Tokmak. Then Russia collapse on Avdivka and.......

There's zero chance either side will ever achieve air superiority. Not to mention the US enjoyed air supremacy in the likes of Iraq and Afghanistan. Needless to say whether or not the US was correct in it's suggestions is a moot point. The question was did they say it, yes they did, it wasn't just Russian propaganda etc....

Because the Ukrainian leadership decided against going with the plans and strategies put forward by the US and NATO and do there own thing which they put months of planning and intelligence gathering to come up with a plan that would actually get them territory back instead of losing it ,

Meanwhile, back the ranch....

(3) NEXTA on X: "The US Congress is preparing a border and immigration agreement that would unlock funds for aid to Ukraine. It could be released as early as this week - Republican Party representative. "This agreement has to work. Everyone's counting on this actually working," Rep. James… https://t.co/SJzDqJcPKU" / X (twitter.com)

The big offensive failed in less than 5 days ,and as much as your excuses are trying to make it sound like oh this is what happened,

The Americans came out and said they disregarded the Plans and strategies to give the the best chance of winning,

All these Months laters Lads this is what happened no .

Fantastic reply.

Fortunately for me the posts I'm making reference several credentialed individuals. Namely Valery Zalushny. Heard of him?

If you're bothered to read the article i can tell you how to circumvent the paywall. I suspect you won't though. So here's a little quote from the article and some from the man himself:

At which point he:

I also pull some of the opinions I post from Anders Puck Nielsen.

It's an older video which describes exactly what went on between Ukraines initial Manoeuvre phase and switch to attrition. As posted by this credentialed individual:

So..... We have the Commander in chief of the UAF and a military analyst with years worth of credentials making the points about what happened in the offensive(switching from NATO manoeuvre to attrition) that I'm referencing.

Against........ you?

I literally can't wait to see your credentials. Or perhaps an admission that you're talking absolute shite as per usual. I suspect I'll get neither but I'm not the miserable sort. I like to remain hopeful! ☺️

800 + billion on defence going by what the US media were talking about last night,if it's not agreed on next week the next deferral date to avoid a government shutdown will be the first or second week in February

Well, let's hope that they get their own (US) issues sorted, and they can get back to stopping Putin and his murderous regime.

And this is a dangerous vector for the Russian administration. Between deaths and wounded, the number of families directly affected has to be substantial. Even if Muscovites are more sheltered, the reality has to start biting. You post often about the rigorous control over the population but women: mothers, grandmothers, wives, girlfriends, sisters, daughters can exert great influence.

Say 365'000 dead plus 700'000 wounded / disabled, and plus add another 200'000 (???) actually fighting in Ukraine, and that adds up to a fair Nr of families affected. And its showing in the economic sense too, you cannot take this kind of Nrs out of the workforce, without consequence, and now many black holes are appearing in the fabric of life for ordinary Russians. In Moscow, some 20'000 residents have been left without heating in -30c, lack of routine maintenance being the primary cause, and this is replicated in many rural areas too. No, things are not going well for Vladimir Putin on the home front. The question is, when if ever, will it reach critical mass?

...

I suspect a Critical Mass or Tipping Point exists for the Russians, but the question certainly is; what is that point?

There will be a point where Russia has used up too much of her Soviet arsenal, and too many of her viable troops to have any shot of holding back an offensive by the AFU. Unless they can realisitally replace the lost equipment and useful troops at the rate they are losing them, it can only be a matter of time and of course the will to continue fighting the Russians. How much time is the question that I bet even the sharpest intelligence agencies are having a challenge trying to figure out.

I don't however expect that Tipping Point to be the end of Putin. Based on your experiences with Russia that you have shared with us here jmreire, I'm getting the impression that no uprising will happen to topple Putin, and that the man himself will be in post until assasinated or until age takes him.