This is a comment by user “Marman” I found on a site whose name begins with z and even mention of which seems verboten on MoA:

This actually…makes sense. Whatever happened to Cloutier, just for example?

Posted by: Biswapriya Purkayast | Dec 20 2022 16:31 utc | 3

Zelensky visits besieged Ukrainian city on frontline amid heavy fighting

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday unexpectedly visited soldiers defending the eastern frontline city of Bakhmut that’s been besieged by Russian forces, including mercenaries from the Wagner private military company, for months.
“Zelensky thanked the Ukrainian soldiers for the courage, resilience and strength they demonstrate by repelling enemy attacks,” Sergii Nykyforov, a spokesperson for the president, said on social media.
Nykyforov said Zelensky also gave state awards to members of the mechanized and motor infantry, mountain assault, tank, artillery and airmobile units.
However, military analysts recently told Reuters that Russia will at best be able to achieve a pyrrhic victory — in which considerable losses outweigh the gain — over the city given how many resources it’s devoted to the battle.
Ukraine’s defense of the city has also bought it time to fortify defensive lines to the west of Bakhmut, meaning Russia will struggle to extend its breakthrough if it does fully capture the city, the analysts said. . . .here

Posted by: Don Bacon | Dec 20 2022 16:51 utc | 5

“Russia could resume business with Germany if it ends Ukraine war – Scholtz”
Delusional.
“EU countries agree gas price cap”
Drunks agreeing on the price of beer.

Posted by: Passerby | Dec 20 2022 17:05 utc | 7

Life in the trenches for Russian forces is as bad or worse than conditions of the AFU… and morale not much better, assuming this account is representative. “We were allowed to be slaughtered”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/dec/20/we-were-allowed-to-be-slaughtered-calls-by-russian-forces-intercepted

Posted by: Posa | Dec 20 2022 17:15 utc | 9

Was the Zelensky “visit to Bakhmut” filmed on a Hollywood lot or at the U.S. White House film stage?
Did he arrive by plane, chopper, car or bicycle? Did he entertain the troops in high heels and play the piano with his johnny?
Ukraine is Dead Man Walking.

Posted by: kupkee | Dec 20 2022 17:32 utc | 11

@ Jo Dominich | Dec 20 2022 16:35 utc | 4

A bunch of idiotic sheep shaggers

Priceless. Cheers.
@ Posa | Dec 20 2022 17:15 utc | 9
Independently verified & corroborated by Oryx OSINT or BellingCrap perhaps, one supposes, published in the highly credible MI6 Guardian ?
Read it, substitute RF for AFU, this is the AFU situation since day one, the sheer quantity online of unauthorized material they upload via cell phones & GoPro’s literally everywhere all the time, same with the mercs, is astounding. The BS re intercepted comms re claimed RF Bucha massacre is a clear tell. Is sausage factory manufactured propaganda.
Oh, by the way, Guardian journos being permitted to travel throughout Russia visiting & interviewing deployed RF soldiers families ? Yeah, right, pull the other one. BS!

Posted by: Outraged | Dec 20 2022 17:36 utc | 13

Tom_12 | Dec 20 2022 16:00 utc | 289
Thanks for translating the video!
Passerby | Dec 20 2022 17:05 utc | 7

Russia could resume business with Germany if it ends Ukraine war – Scholtz

How generous of Mr. Scholz. Rather than offering charity, why didn’t he make a push for gas delivery via the remaining tube of North Stream 2, as the Kremlin has offered. Up to 27.5 million cubic meters per year, we need it badly.

Posted by: grunzt | Dec 20 2022 17:39 utc | 15

@Posa
Listening in to a cell phone is not simply a matter of tuning a radio to the right frequency as you would to listen to unencrypted walkie talkie chatter. Calls are intercepted by law enforcement with a piece of specialized equipment that mimics a cell phone tower and forces phones in the area to connect to it by broadcasting a stronger signal than the genuine towers. Dangerous thing to be – a powerful radio emitter – in an active war zone. Does it seem more likely that Ukrainian-provided cell intercepts are recorded to a script in a basement in Kiev or that people are risking their lives on the frontline to capture essentially worthless human interest intelligence that could just as easily be faked ?

Posted by: OnceWere | Dec 20 2022 18:00 utc | 17

Whatever your opinion these are definitive interviews with Sachs and MacGregor, both interviewees here have honed their message, are succinct and on point also good comprehensive length too. Kudos to the Duran guys for such a good job.
If you have friends and kindred who ignore you but will listen to establishment figures these would be two good vids to pass on.
Global economic crisis & the geopolitical reaction w/Jeffrey Sachs (Live)
Massive Offensives by the Russians to Terminate Ukraine

Posted by: LightYearsFromHome | Dec 20 2022 18:11 utc | 19

@ Jo Dominich | Dec 20 2022 16:35 utc | 4
A bunch of idiotic sheep shaggers
Well-said Jo !!
Good post.

Posted by: Engineer-John | Dec 20 2022 18:22 utc | 21

@ LuBa | Dec 20 2022 17:36 utc | 12
@ Outraged | Dec 20 2022 17:36 utc | 13
@ JT | Dec 20 2022 17:36 utc | 14
Timestamps. LOL. ‘Barraged’, sorry Posa …
@ OnceWere | Dec 20 2022 18:00 utc | 17
Excellent point.

Posted by: Outraged | Dec 20 2022 18:26 utc | 23

Sadly lacking of course is open source re-development plans for the region. The NATO-stan version appears to be Monsanto-Bayer glyphosphate-Roundup chemical agriculture with BlackRock to run it (a la Imperial Valley of California with one of the lowest per capita incomes of California). Russia seems rather mum, hopes of a bro-mance like with Byelorussia is not going to happen in Western Ukraine. Suffice to say, the devil is in the details.
In re Cloutier, yes the video appears quite real, a rah-rah for ROTC at his alma mater. He does keep an extremely low profile. Any info about the Canadian almost general who left a world of lawsuits to go fight in Ukraine would be appreciated.
Ignore the nisse. And as Samuel Day Jr used to always say, Nihil illegitimati corborundum.

Posted by: paxmark1 | Dec 20 2022 18:39 utc | 25

Sometimes I worry the empire actually has its shit together then I see something like this. That Arnold video is the best recruitment ad to join the RF army imaginable, they should not fear to run it on Russian TV.

Posted by: LightYearsFromHome | Dec 20 2022 18:41 utc | 27

ZH has a posting up with the title
Russian City Suffers Casualties – 14,000 Without Power After Ukraine Cross Border Attack
That city is Belgorod and the report talks about HIMARS being used outside agreed upon limits…..grin/sigh
All this for the God of Mammon cult to continue the projection of their barbaric patriarchy…..how sad a representation of our species.

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 20 2022 18:44 utc | 29

@Jo Dominich, #4:
Last name of China’s president is Xi, his given name is Jinping. In Chinese name protocol, last name comes first. So, in Chinese propriety, he is referred to as Xi Jinping. In Western protocol, last name appears in the rear, so one may correctly refer to him as Jinping Xi in western protocol.
Just to clarify for what it is worth :-). No big deal. But to say Xijing Ping, it’s like calling Brandon Den Joebi.

Posted by: Oriental Voice | Dec 20 2022 18:50 utc | 31

Poseur @9
You actually have the chutzpah to cite the now totally MI6 controlled “Guardian” as an allegedly reliable source? Hey, I happen to own this marvel of engineering crossing the East River from Manhattan to Brooklyn. Such a deal I offer, to you only. Ask for my generous offer.

Posted by: aristodemos | Dec 20 2022 19:14 utc | 33

Paxmark1@25
That Monsanto/Bayer/Cargill/Gates scheme to perform chemical warfare on some of the most productive black-soil farmland on the planet may be a primary reason for Russia to transform the entire Ukraine (Excepting the Galician Banderite nut-cases) into a reconstituted nation.
One of the primary instructions would be for the NovoUkrainia government to abnegate all those one-sided and highly corrupted agreements made by the Khazarian Mafiya regime in Kiev with some of the absolutely most dangerous corporations on the planet. All those lands need to be repatriated without compensation by the newly established state and for those lands to be returned to such younger Ukrainian families who wish to return to the Mir, the essential roots of their ancestors.

Posted by: aristodemos | Dec 20 2022 19:26 utc | 35

@ LightYearsFromHome | Dec 20 2022 18:41 utc | 27
The only thing I derive from Arnie is a plea to stop the SMO (the war), since Ukraine is losing it badly.
He appeals on stopping the anti-Russian sentiment, somehow excusing the real reasons.
I mean as someone mentioned (maybe Ritter), Putin didn’t wake up one day, scratched his tummy and out of boredom decided to conquer Ukraine with 60.000 combat troops and 90.000 in direct and indirect support military personnel. That is how making this whole story up is developing.
I wish Croatian president’s statements would be more looked into.
Regardless of Croatian Nazi past, at least there is a president of some rather unimportant EU member, saying more or less what might be a distillate of the last 230 Ukrainian threads made here. Hats off to this guy, regardless.
Basically what this guy (prez of Croatia) is saying from what I understand, is that there is no obligation to help Ukraine as it is not a partner, ally, and it is not bound by any mutual contract. It shames Western bureaucrats, directly asking who choose them and pokes specifically elected von der Leyen.
That guy also claims that EU is cynical and derogates USA as in ‘yeah, as we send all our weapons to Ukraine, we (Croatia) will be defended by whom? Like the USA is defending Ukraine?’ Basically, he is more or less having a go on general obedience of EU vassals, misled to support something that shouldn’t be supported. Somehow way more direct and coherent that that Christian-conservative Orban.
A Croatian friend sent me a few links of his statements, so to understand it I just run them through translate machine and I copy it below.
Does that feel like EU puzzles are to be put back in the box or something more sinister? No clue, really.
Croatian president sez:
In his statement, the Croatian president also touched on the arrest of European Parliament Vice-President Eva Kaili, “some kind of Greek woman, relatively antipathetic, but not because she is Greek”, asking why she was arrested, who did it and by what right.
“This is pure fascism,” Milanović believes.
Kaili was arrested as part of a Belgian public prosecutor’s investigation involving an alleged criminal organization, attempted influence peddling in a Gulf state, and allegations of corruption and money laundering. The media write that it is about Qatar, and bags of money were found with the arrested vice-president of the EU.
Milanović asked for “clear explanations” for whom she lobbied for, and emphasized that a large number of representatives were doing this and that some Croatians “sat on supervisory committees”.
PRESIDENT Zoran Milanović said that the EU treats Croatia impermissibly, citing as an example the “cheeky and scandalous letter” from the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, to Croatian Minister Gordan Grlić-Radman. He did not reveal the content of the letter, but hinted that it refers to Croatia’s request to participate in the Althea mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Speaking about European funds, Milanović said that the EU is flooding countries with “money that doesn’t exist” and that Croatia is “collaterally lucky” because it got “crumbs from the table” as part of a plan intended for larger countries, such as Italy.
Milanović said that he did not want to talk about it earlier in order not to jeopardize Croatia’s entry into Schengen, which “ended Croatian history” because “all thieves will be able to enter Croatia without supervision, without border control”.
The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, sent a “scandalous, rude, lying, manipulative, inaccurate” reply to Grlić-Radman, says Milanović.
“They treat us like losers, like deaf-blind fools”
Milanović claims that Borrell, “who is hysterical and threatening”, in his letter “invents Security Council resolutions and European Council decisions” so that Croatia does not participate in Althea.
More than a thousand soldiers from twenty countries are participating in the Althea mission, but not Croatia, whose participation is opposed by Bosniak politicians and some European countries.
Milanović, who recently returned from a visit to Chile, said that even that country is participating in the mission and has five soldiers in Bugojno (BiH).
The president requested that Grlic-Radman publish Borrell’s response to the letter because it is not secret, announcing that otherwise he would do it himself.
“This should come to light so that it can be seen how official Brussels treats the Croatian top government,” Milanović stressed
Regarding the leadership of the European Union, he said that they came to office on the basis of “political guesswork” and that, as leaders who were not elected by anyone, they do not have a democratic mandate.
“Who chose Von der Leyen?” he said about the head of the EU Commission and added that they are “ordinary bureaucrats who were not elected by anyone”.
In his opinion, this is extremely “undemocratic”, but he is “ready to live under it” and to a certain extent “respect it until it gets out of control”, ie until the European leadership declares itself “masters of everything”.
He said that the Croatian problem is not Bahmut, but the issue of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“I recognize a lie better than a neurosurgeon when the EU starts lying,” he says and adds that he differs from Orban, but that he defends him because “colorless bureaucrats terrorize states.”
When asked whether Croatia should have remained among the five countries that do not want to participate in the EUMAM mission while the other 22 member countries are participating, Milanović replied: “Absolutely it should have.”
“Ukraine is not an ally. They are trying to make it by force. It is cynically given the status of an EU candidate. That is today’s EU. Alas, zero.”
“The problem is robbery in Croatia, not Ukraine,” he said, adding that inflation is also a huge problem in Croatia, because the value of the money that citizens have in banks is falling and because that money can buy much less.
“When they say we’re looking at you, they don’t know what kind of scumbags and sycophants are leading us. But those who are looking at us are the scumbags from Brussels, that’s what part of the HDZ (ruling patry) belongs to,” he added.
“It is my constitutional duty. I kept quiet for months, I wrote secretly to the prime minister because I thought that it should not be made public, but now that I see that the Germans and the French are talking about such things from their perspective, then we will also talk about what weapons Croatia has, what the situation is in Croatian warehouses”, he said.
He wondered what Croatia had in terms of weapons.
“How many anti-tank missiles does Croatia have? How many? Come on, Bane, before they arrest you,” he said.
“What did we try to order and get because you can see that it is not there. Even before the war, 1,000 shells were waiting for a year and a half. Forget it today, they are gone. Who is to blame for the terrible state of material and technical equipment of the Croatian army? We have Americans who will defend us as they defend the Ukrainians, that looks great”, he said and added that “someone is criminally responsible for such a situation”.

Posted by: whirlX | Dec 20 2022 19:34 utc | 37

Haha guys check out Arnold Schwarzenegger’s take on the war, I swear they got this propaganda thing down lol
Posted by: Dan | Dec 20 2022 17:59 utc | 16

LOL indeed, using an Austrian to make a sales pitch to Russians is pretty funny.
I wonder how much the offered Ovetchkin?

Posted by: Opport Knocks | Dec 20 2022 19:38 utc | 39

Posted by: OnceWere | Dec 20 2022 18:00 utc | 17 “Listening in to a cell phone is not simply a matter of tuning a radio to the right frequency”
It can be done that way with multiple “networked” receivers that follow the control channel. And the strength of the encryption varies.
A device like this https://www.crowdsupply.com/krakenrf/krakensdr
can be programmed to get you the signal, but then you have to decrypt it.

Posted by: Bill Smith | Dec 20 2022 19:48 utc | 41

Don Bacon | Dec 20 2022 16:51 utc | 5
_____
Cicked on your link, Don, expecting some inspiring green-screen pics or video of Zelensky rallying the frontline cannon fodder in Bakhmut. But strangely, your link is circular, linking directly back to this thread, like an ouroboros, a snake eating its own tail. How odd. Was that inadvertent?

Posted by: Doug Hillman | Dec 20 2022 19:54 utc | 43

Doesn’t mean any of them were in Azovstal but it sure as shit doesn’t mean they weren’t. There is a conspicuous absence of timely evidence that would have refuted those allegations.
Posted by: anon2020 | Dec 20 2022 18:39 utc | 26

If the Senior Management of the US military responded to every false claim, it would only encourage more false claims. This one, apparently from the troll army, was likely deemed “not worthy of response”.
Here is a video from his LinkedIn profile that others have cited. Go ahead, claim he had a subordinate look after that and perhaps the video was faked from earlier footage, etc. Dig a deeper hole that you should never have started in he first place.
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6920327591182696448/
His main profile says he is now “retired” (since September) and he appears to be doing what retired senior military people do, sitting on Boards of Directors and supporting causes linked to the military.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/roger-l-cloutier-ltg-us-army-retired-752bb891/

Posted by: Opport Knocks | Dec 20 2022 20:00 utc | 45

“Ukraine’s Azov Regiment visits Israel: ‘Mariupol is our Masada’
Azov officer Ilya Samoilenko, one of the defenders of the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol, led the delegation to Israel.”
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-725351
Masada was a last stand by a jewish community against the Romans. A hilltop fortress. They were all killed or killed themselves when the Romans breached the defenses.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Dec 20 2022 20:04 utc | 47

Dan@16 and Opport Knocks@39
Here’s Arnold Schwarzenegger with another view on war:
link to Schwarzenegger video

Posted by: Objective Observer | Dec 20 2022 20:21 utc | 49

“As for the beaten and battered Ukrainian army being able to overcome logistical nightmares and resupply their forces in Bakhmut”
They are still there, no?

Posted by: Fnord73 | Dec 20 2022 20:26 utc | 51

Posted by: whirlX | Dec 20 2022 19:34 utc | 37
Interesting statement by Milanovic:
Milanović said that he did not want to talk about it earlier in order not to jeopardize Croatia’s entry into Schengen, which “ended Croatian history” because “all thieves will be able to enter Croatia without supervision, without border control”.
So he didn’t want to stop “the end of Croatian history? Must be be a popular fellow with the voters, eh?

Posted by: Membrum Virile | Dec 20 2022 20:32 utc | 53

Posted by: laguerre | Dec 20 2022 19:40 utc | 40

Europeans, but not Anglo-Saxons, often put the family name first. In France and Hungary are the ones I know.

Thanks for the clarification. I didn’t know that. Learned something.

Posted by: Oriental Voice | Dec 20 2022 21:24 utc | 55

Dan @ 16: Video is 9 months old. Even our Austro-German ‘hero’ may be disabused of this position by now.

Posted by: Paul Spencer | Dec 20 2022 21:40 utc | 57

Andrei Martyanov makes another comment about some of the “analysts” talking about the war on the pro-Russian side, in this case “Wargonzo”:

Now, to yet another “voenkor” running with this BS about Gerasimov. This time it is Mr. Pegov of Wargonzo. Thanks to Martin Berndt for pointing this out.

On Telegram Semen Pegov (War Gonzo) wrote yesterday that every high Russian official who traveled to Donbass was a target and a lot of lower ranking officials in the region have been killed. The Russians know what’s going on. Gerasimov missed the parade on the Red Square this year. He probably was wounded. Those were the rumors then.

Now, let me explain. Semen Pegov maybe considered by some a hot shot and a “combat veteran”, especially when parading himself in military fatigue, but Semen Pegov is a graduate of the Smolensk State University, and you may have guessed it, Department of Journalism (in Russian), and apart from his “combat” exploits, he never served in the armed forces in any capacity, let alone officer capacity and has zero experience with any operational matter or high-end military technology. So, as any “voenkor” (a euphemism for BSer) his professional qualifications in purely military aspect are limited to reporting the suffering of civilians and tactical minutiae as provided by primarily low level personnel and traditional front-line rumors.
In other words, Pegov has zero understanding of the subject he is talking about, and this subject is an operational and strategic level ISR and means of countering it. If he doesn’t understand who the Chief of General Staff of Russia is and what goes into provision of his safety and security when he enters combat zone, there is absolutely nothing to talk about with him….
So, my suggestion to Pegov and all those “analysts” from WarGonzo is to concentrate on what they do reasonably well–sell emotionally charged war footage and reporting to laypeople, and try to stay away from issues they have no clue about. After all, derogatory term “voenkorschina” appeared in Russia for a reason. It is a euphemism for selling primarily pseudo-military BS to housewives and househasbands, who are easily impressed by explosions, military uniform and as any normal people, yours truly included, react emotionally to war crimes and devastation of the war. In the end, if you want to know if some “voenkor” is a real deal (most of them are civilian BSers) ask them if they know how the resolution of uncertainties is done. Make sure to mention to them that it is directly related to Gerasimov’s visit to the front-lines.

I agree, and this applies to people like Strelkov and a lot of commentators here (including me).

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Dec 21 2022 1:28 utc | 59

Yes, MoA was down for me for perhaps an hour. Tried doing the post I put in the Iran thread a couple hours ago, it failed with one of those weird messages, then the site wouldn’t load after several tries, so I gave up and came back a short while ago. At first, I thought it was a DNS issue. Thankfully it seems we’re back to normal.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Dec 21 2022 1:44 utc | 61

MoA was unavailable for me today for about 4 hours and typepad was having sketchy/unavailable problems itself during that time

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 21 2022 2:26 utc | 63

RSH @59–
Mr. Pegov was one of the awardees at the Kremlin today: Order of Courage “PEGOV Semyon Vladimirovich – correspondent, head of the WarGonzo project.” Photo here.

Posted by: karlof1 | Dec 21 2022 2:40 utc | 65

Posa @ 9:
From that linked Guardian post:

“… They are just three of thousands of calls between soldiers in the trenches or advanced positions that Ukrainian experts have eavesdropped, pored over for snippets of intelligence and then, where there is propaganda value, made public …”

When the source of these mobile phone calls between soldiers and their families is Ukrainian, there’s something smelling very strongly of rotten rodents about the whole article.
As other MoA commenters have noted, Russian soldiers may not take mobile phones with them while on active duty. That The Guardian makes much out of the supposed number of calls – apparently a “huge scale of calls” – seems very suspect.
On the other hand, if it is true that Ukrainian soldiers are making use of mobile phones while on active duty, then they are endangering themselves and others around them. There is a reason soldiers don’t take mobile phones with them, and it’s not only a disciplinary reason. (Not to mention the likelihood that whoever wrote the article for The Guardian substituted “Russian” for “Ukrainian” wherever possible.)
Mention of Dmitri Alperovitch’s name in the article as a source should be ringing alarm bells as well. Alperovitch helped cook up the Russiagate hacking hoax back in 2016 while a director of Crowd Strike. What else might he have concocted in the way of fake news and disinformation?

Posted by: Jen | Dec 21 2022 3:14 utc | 67

The ukie domestic propaganda meme at the start of the SMO was that Ruskies were so poor and backwards they didn’t have phones or electrical appliances so they were looting them from Ukraine.

Posted by: Peter AU1 | Dec 21 2022 3:41 utc | 69

“But then you have to decrypt it.”
Posted by: Bill Smith | Dec 20 2022 19:48 utc | 41
There’s the rub. By impersonating a cell tower you can signal the phone to downgrade its encryption. I believe the old 2G encryption is weak enough to be cracked in real-time now – so tell the phone to use that and you’re in business. But passive methods don’t allow you to do that – you can map networks and track individuals’ phones but you can’t get the content of their conversations.

Posted by: OnceWere | Dec 21 2022 4:27 utc | 71

On TASS this morning (the twentieth):
“Zelensky already on his way to Washington – CNN”
Unlike everybody else, I know little about war and the international machinations that start them and kept them going past all decency.
For instance, that you could pass a good part of the Alps mountain range into Ukraine or volumes of weapons and get away with it, I did not imagine. Or why Zelensky’s plane is still in the air crossing that lone Atlantic flight.
As an amateur, I thought if they track every plane and gyrocopter flight in stunning detail on youtube,why are these two things able to happen?

Posted by: Elmagnostic | Dec 21 2022 4:38 utc | 73

Posted by: karlof1 | Dec 21 2022 2:40 utc | 65
Good for him. Irrelevant to whether he knows anything, as Martyanov noted.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Dec 21 2022 4:52 utc | 75

melaleuca 21224:30@71
thank you, as always exactly what we are thinking, succinctly said. & yes as always a grateful thank you to karloff & peter & b.

Posted by: emersonreturn | Dec 21 2022 5:06 utc | 77

@68 Peter AU1
Thanks for bringing me up to speed on that. I watched the most puzzling video of what was obviously homemade drone footage of two men moving a washer from a damaged home, makes a lot more sense knowing it was faked.

Posted by: NJH | Dec 21 2022 5:43 utc | 79

⚡️🇷🇺🇺🇦⚔️ #Chronicle of the Special Military Operation for 20 Dec 2022⚡️
♦️#Bryansk Region:
▪️ Ukrainian militants shelled the village of #Suzemka. Railway tracks and power lines were damaged. The power supply in the settlement was temporarily cut.
▪️ An AFU drone have hit the district electric networks in the Trubchevsky district, damaging an administrative building and a vehicle. There were no deaths or injuries.
♦️#Kursk Region:
▪️ Enemy militants struck the village of #Makhnovka in the #Suzhan district, residential buildings were damaged and a fire broke out on the site of the arrivals. One woman was injured.
♦️#Belgorod Region:
▪️ Ukrainian militants shelled #Shebekino. Residential buildings, warehouses and infrastructure were hit. There were temporary problems with electricity and water supply in the city. One civilian was wounded.
♦️#Starobelsk Direction (MAP):
▪️ In the #Kupyansk – #Svatovo section, units of the RF Armed Forces are attacking Ukrainian formations near #Dvurechnoye and #Petropavlovka.
➖ The Ukrainian command moved the 3rd Battalion of the AFU’s 14th Mechanized Brigade to the area of #Sinkovka and #Berestovoye to reinforce the defence.
▪️ In the #Liman sector, the enemy is preparing for a large-scale offensive on #Dibrova with the aim of continuing to #Kremennaya and the #Svatovo – #Kremennaya highway.
♦️#Soledar Direction (MAP):
▪️ In the #Soledar sector, Ukrainian formations are spread information about the complete loss of #Yakovlevka and the advance of the RF Armed Forces towards #Soledar and #Razdolovka.
➖ In the northeast, fighting continues at the site of the gas compressor station near #Spornoye.
▪️ In the #Bakhmut (#Artyomovsk) sector, Wagner PMC assault troops are engaged in fierce fighting in #Bakhmut and #Opytnoye. Russian artillery is hitting the enemy strongholds en masse.
➖ In the southwest, Russian troops have pushed Ukrainian formations from the eastern outskirts of #Kleshchiyevka.
♦️#Donetsk Direction:
▪️ Fighting continues in #Maryinka. The motorized rifle units of the RF Armed Forces are pushing the enemy to the western outskirts of the town.
▪️ Ukrainian terrorists have shelled populated areas of the #Donetsk agglomeration with rocket and gun artillery. A clinic and a neurosurgery department in #Donetsk have also been hit. One patient was killed and another wounded.
♦️#Zaporozhye Direction:
▪️ In preparation for a possible offensive on #Tokmak, the AFU command continues to move additional forces into forward positions across the front.
▪️ Artillery duels continue along the line of contact. Russian troops have hit enemy positions in #Temirovka, Malaya Shcherbaki, #Dorozhnyanka, #Belogorye and #Novoandreyevka.
♦️#Kherson Direction on Southern Front:
▪️ The AFU is using drones and informers to search for positions of the RF Armed Forces and supply lines along the banks of the #Dnipro River.
▪️ Russian artillery shelled Ukrainian formations in #Berislav, #Chernobaevka, #Antonovka and the outskirts of Kherson.
For their part, enemy terrorists shelled a school and a polyclinic in Novaya Kakhovka with barrel artillery.

https://t.me/sitreports/2366

Posted by: Down South | Dec 21 2022 5:49 utc | 81

🇺🇸🇨🇳🇷🇺US Ambassador to NATO: Russia and China are developing joint strategies for the collapse of NATO
“Among the tools she named threats to energy supply and cybersecurity”,added Julianne Smith.
US Permanent Representative Julianne Smith said that Washington does not intend to shift the attention of NATO allies to the Asia-Pacific region, but only seeks to ensure a strong internal defense policy of the alliance countries.
The United States is concerned that Russia and China may exchange tools and strategies aimed at undermining the unity of NATO. This was stated on Tuesday by the permanent representative of the United States to the alliance, Julianne Smith.
“They [Russia and China] are increasingly using common tools, which should be of concern to NATO,” the Financial Times quoted Smith as saying. The American diplomat believes that Moscow and Beijing are “exchanging hybrid tactics,” and points to factors such as risks to energy supplies and cybersecurity issues. “There is no doubt that they are working to divide the partners in the transatlantic alliance. We are well aware of these attempts and intend to fight them,” she said.
The United States is increasingly inclining other members of the alliance to toughen their positions towards China, writes the Financial Times. Washington motivates this with Beijing’s military developments, threats to the critical infrastructure of Western countries, in particular, transport and energy networks, and China’s “unlimited partnership” with Russia, the newspaper said. Smith stressed that the United States does not intend to shift the attention of NATO allies to the Asia-Pacific region, but only seeks to ensure a strong internal defense policy of the alliance countries.
“>https://www.ft.com/content/3146a413-9aba-4fd4-86a7-671bce0e6c00

https://t.me/azmilitary11/31400

Posted by: Down South | Dec 21 2022 5:52 utc | 83

I am reading that Z is coming to the US and going to speak before the CongressCritters.
But we are suppose to believe that there are “No boots on the ground” related to Ukraine.
When does parts of the charade blow up?
I hope that a few of the CongressCritters make some noise about my tax dollars being spent of propping up nazis instead of fixing some US infrastructure.
The shit show continues until it doesn’t

Posted by: psychohistorian | Dec 21 2022 6:51 utc | 85

Zelensky to appear before US Congress today, or a cunning plan do depose him? Or both?
https://t.me/Slavyangrad/25699

Posted by: Norwegian | Dec 21 2022 6:59 utc | 87

Posted by: Down South | Dec 21 2022 5:50 utc | 81
“But even in the current realities, this will require pumping up the grouping in the #Donetsk direction with additional forces. At the same time, the command must keep in mind the situation in the #Ugledar and #Zaporozhye directions, as well as the need for an offensive against #Artyomovsk and #Soledar.”
300,000 more troops (or 150,000 more if we cut it in half as Macgregor suggests, ignoring support troops) – and they still can’t get enough forces? Also, why are they planning offensives in four different directions? Why not finish Bakhmut and then go after the others with more concentrated forces? Are they afraid that if they pull any troops away from one of the four places that the Ukrainians will achieve a breakthrough somewhere? With 150,000 more Russian troops, 1,500 tanks (allegedly) and thousands of artillery, plus air power?
This implies one of two things: 1) they’re holding the forces back for some reason, or 2) they are holding them back for an offensive somewhere else.
Or the entire report is bullshit.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Dec 21 2022 7:45 utc | 89

@Posa
Story is likely true, yet reported as a Russian problem, not Ukrainian. That’s the nature of propaganda, after all. Take a truth and hide the others.

Posted by: Lysa | Dec 21 2022 7:57 utc | 91

Posted by: js | Dec 21 2022 7:46 utc | 89
The Kherson withdrawal per se was never the problem. The problem was why Russia didn’t reinforce the strategic bridgehead and prepare it for use against Ukraine in the event the Ukrainians retreat across the Dnieper (thereby allowing a flanking attack without having to cross the river under fire because it was already crossed) and/or to prevent the bridgehead from being threatened (not to mention Kherson City). And if the dam was a problem, why did it take nine months to discern that? Those reasons were mostly BS excuses for not having prosecuted the Kherson area properly from the get-go, as I said at the time.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Dec 21 2022 8:16 utc | 93

Xi Jinping met with Dmitry Medvedev, today, in Beijing
Medvedev delivered President Putin’s message to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Medvedev and Xi Jinping discussed the situation in the post-Soviet space, including the Ukrainian crisis.
https://t.me/azmilitary11/31416
“China is ready to move closer to Russia for the sake of more fair global governance”-Xi Jinping
~~~~~
Senator Penny Wong (Australia)
>…”I’ve just landed in Beijing for bilateral discussions with China’s State Councilor and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Wang Yi.
Our talks coincide with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Australia and the People’s Republic of China.
https://mobile.twitter.com/SenatorWong/status/1605276933318934529
Wong:
…> “We have much to discuss.
Australia’s approach is to cooperate where we can, disagree where we must and engage in the national interest.”
ErrrUmm. Is she plagiarising Blinken @ Alaska meeting?
Better not be…. Words didn’t yield a good response the first time…

Posted by: Melaleuca | Dec 21 2022 8:20 utc | 95

Melaleuca #94

Wong:
…> “We have much to discuss.
Australia’s approach is to cooperate where we can, disagree where we must and engage in the national interest.”
ErrrUmm. Is she plagiarising Blinken @ Alaska meeting?
Better not be…. Words didn’t yield a good response the first time…

Wong to Wang :-
“We have so much in common we even built Pine Gap to bring internet and television to remote Australia to lift our poor Indigenous people from poverty.”
Maybe she is looking for a discount submarine or long range bomber for the Aussie arsenal. You know to help China protect the Pacific 🙂
Can’t wait for reports of resounding success.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Dec 21 2022 8:29 utc | 97

That was before Kherson was solemnly proclaimed to be sacred Russian soil.
It remains a mystery why they held the Kherson referendum at all when they were already contemplating abandoning the capital.
Posted by: Flying Dutchman | Dec 21 2022 8:14 utc | 91
Did you forget how often Belgorod and Kursk were attacked? They even had ground invasions. They still are shelled today. Not as heavy as Donetsk but still a big problem. If they don’t care about the old borders and the new Baldie general talked about “tough decisions” in his first public speech, why would you imagine anything else?
More running may happen soon because multiple natoids, like France, UK, US, possibly Greece, are sending new weapons and will continue easily for many years. Those will be used to shoot civilians, like they’re using himars or harm or petal mines for malls and hospitals, just for fun.
The meat grinder works, but in reverse. Let’s add the public numbers of Russian army losses with the public numbers of civilians killed intentionally by zelyy in a single area (TASS id 1549391) and the unknown (higher) number of Donbass militia losses and the unknown number of Wagners and we get a very sad range, maybe 1:3 to nazis. Using this year’s great strategy, this will last many years. who is going to sustain yearly deaths of 30k with no results? In addition to millions displaced and other things like Crimea bridge, Engels, assassinations which will happen almost monthly. “Slow is best”!

Posted by: rk | Dec 21 2022 9:38 utc | 99