Putin Can’t Hide This: 260,000 Dead and Wounded in Ukraine for Russia The Russian campaign in Ukraine isn’t going well. That is no secret to anyone who has been even vaguely following the 19-month conflict https://www.19fortyfive.com/2023/08...60000-dead-and-wounded-in-ukraine-for-russia/
Commander-in-Chief of Ukrainian Armed Forces tells US officials Ukraine is on the cusp of breakthrough https://news.yahoo.com/commander-chief-ukrainian-armed-forces-200252698.html
U.S. to start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16s at air base in Arizona https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politi...inian-pilots-on-f-16s-at-air-base-in-arizona?
Some more insights into Prigo's demise. Prigozhin was scrambling to salvage his business empire from Kremlin control in the days before his death, report says https://news.yahoo.com/prigozhin-sc...ness-empire-124133342.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall Yevgeny Prigozhin flew across African trying to salvage contracts there, the WSJ reported. But his mission came to an abrupt end when his plane crashed over Russia on Wednesday. Per the WSJ's investigation, Prigozhin was racing to stop the Kremlin dismantling his empire. Yevgeny Prigozhin spent his final days crisscrossing Africa in a frantic attempt to protect his global business empire from Kremlin plans to take it over, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The Journal said it reconstructed his movements from interviewing government and military officials, defectors from his Wagner Group, and from evidence like chat logs and flight data. Prigozhin died Wednesday when a private jet carrying him and others crashed in the Russian countryside on its way to St. Petersburg. On Friday, the Kremlin denied that it ordered Prigozhin's death, despite widespread assessments from experts and intelligence agencies that it was indeed an assassination. Per the WSJ's account, the plane crash cut short an effort by Prigozhin to maintain his sprawling network of mercenary deals. On his last foreign trip last week, The Journal said he visited two African countries to shore up support from foreign allies there. The report said he was in the Central African Republic last Friday, where he met officials in that country and also rebels fighting in neighboring Sudan. The next day, it said, he moved on to Mali, another state where Wagner has interests. The Journal said that Prigozhin found himself in a race with the Kremlin, which was at the same time trying to win over Wagner clients to have them deal directly with Russian officials instead. The respected Institute for the Study of War reported, citing Russian military bloggers, that the Kremlin was doing its best to dismantle Wagner's presence in the Middle East and Africa, by forming new private military companies from existing Wagner personnel. The Wagner boss established one of the world's most mysterious and complicated corporate organization, which included enterprises in media, logistics, mining, cinema, and catering in addition to his mercenary activities, according to an investigation by the Dossier Center. Per The Journal, other sources of income for Prigozhin include gold from Sudan, and diamond and timber from the Central African Republic. It remains unclear what is going to happen to the sprawling network now that its leader is no more. Read the original article on Business Insider
US has to get its crap together. This constant wishy-washiness is sending a completely wrong signal to the Russians.
Correct signal is: if we intend to give something to Ukraine, we give it. If we don't, we don't. Saying no, no, no, then suddenly yes is stupid and as I said sends the wrong signal. That US is not a dependable friend or ally. On the other hand, that (not being dependable) has been true forever. There is a story in Israel that in 1956, after the meeting with the US envoy where he told Nasser he'd convinced France, UK and Israel to stop their advance and withdraw, Nasser turned to his advisors and told them: "We learned a huge lesson today - US is a very poor ally."
That could be a part of the strategy. An example of a smaller scale : ,,we announce about providing weapons only once they already crossed the Poland-Ukraine border''. Obviously, Leopards, Abrahams, Challengers and jets, being exception, due training requirements. Wasn't sure if my memory doesn't fail me, checked it and yes, from wiki : 1956: Suez Crisis Main articles: Suez Crisis and Closure of the Suez Canal (1956–1957) In the period prior to what became known as the Suez Crisis, on 13 October 1956 United Nations Security Council Resolution 118 was released, stating that "There should be free and open transit through the Canal without discrimination, overt or covert – this covers both political and technical aspects".
Oh look, the Russian neo-Nazis no longer want to fight in Ukraine. Russian neo-Nazi group refuses to fight in Ukraine, accusing Kremlin of abandoning its leader Yan Petrovsky was arrested in Finland for war crimes but Wagner affiliate Rusich says Russia has ignored pleas to free him https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/08/26/russian-neo-nazi-group-refuses-to-fight-in-ukraine/