Vlad could have avoided some of this by reading the Forum here- wherein it was suggested that arming convicts and then telling them that they must go to the front lines might not be the zippiest plan. I mean how would they resist? Oh, that's right, you have armed them. Nevermind. Idiots. Hammer blow to Putin as drafted convicts quit army to go on armed crime sprees Enlisted convicts have begun to desert from Putin's army, it has been reported, as Russia continues to scramble for soldiers and equipment. "Some have gone AWOL with their weapons to carry out crimes back in Russia." An anti-Putin activist also appeared to confirm reports of marauding armed gangs of drafted convicts in Russia. @turkmendagz said: "They write that the criminals mobilised by Prigozhin, having received weapons, began to run away from their units and create armed gangs. "There is nothing unexpected in this. "Now the lads have something to go to rob citizens and banks." https://www.express.co.uk/news/worl...putin-wagner-convicts-desert-army-ukraine-war
Russia says seized Ukrainian lands are under its nuclear protection Russia said on Tuesday that four Ukrainian regions whose annexation it proclaimed last month are under the protection of its nuclear arsenal. https://www.reuters.com/world/europ...tected-by-russian-nuclear-weapons-2022-10-18/
With the possible exception of Turkey, no one out-snakes the Saudi's. They have it down to a science. Snaky Arabia. Saudi Arabia Announces $400 Million In Aid To Ukraine https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-...-Announces-400-Million-In-Aid-To-Ukraine.html
They are merely trying to halt the U.S. from freezing arms sales to Saudi Arabia due to their support of Russia in oil sales. Of course, Saudi Arabia has a lengthy history of promising financial aid and never delivering. In related news --- Saudi threatens to go all jihadi on Biden. Saudi prince sends threat to the West after Biden warns of consequences for kingdom The Saudi prince warned the kingdom is the 'project of jihad and martyrdom' https://www.foxnews.com/world/saudi-prince-sends-threat-west-after-biden-warns-consequences-kingdom
An interesting thread on autonomous systems in this war. In some ways, the Ukraine war is a proving ground for weapons. Thread Reader - https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1582178578736685057.html
These Kamikaze Iranian drones present "interesting" supply chain issues. They are problematic as hell, needless to say. They are swarming everywhere. On the other hand, they make one-way trips. Hence the name Kamikaze versus others that return to be re-loaded and used again. So every one they use is "gone." That's all fine and dandy I guess if you have a supply chain that lets you keep replenishing or if you have a kazillion in stock. Don't know. They may be making them with some part from China that is dependent on some part from the U.S. which may or may not be there in the future. Don't know.