SPOILER

quote:

Sweden joined Demining Coalition

^{Flag of Sweden. Photo from open sources}

Sweden has joined the Demining Coalition and will provide financial support to Ukraine to ensure that demining operations are carried out as soon as possible.

The Minister of Defense of Lithuania announced this.

The Memorandum of Understanding signed by Sweden provided additional support for the coalition led by Lithuania and Iceland.

In addition, the government promised to make its own contribution of �5 million to help Ukraine with demining operations over large areas.

SPOILER

^{Swedish Defense Minister Paul Johnson meets with Lithuanian Defense Minister Laurynas Kasčiūnas. Photo credits: Ministry of Defense of Lithuania}

It should be noted that about 30 countries have now joined the Demining Coalition, actively providing financial and material assistance to Ukraine.

In addition, the countries are donating special equipment designed to find and destroy anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, as well as other explosive devices.

More than 26% of the territory of Ukraine has a very high percentage of explosive devices, including mines, that need to be detected and destroyed.

Sweden’s accession to this coalition will qualitatively improve the capabilities of the countries already involved and allow for the timely delivery of the necessary equipment.

^{ScanJack 3500 (Djupminr�jningsmaskin 1) mine clearing system of the Swedish army. Photo credits: Swedish Armed Forces}

On January 11, the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense held a meeting of the international demining coalition of Ukraine led by Lithuania.

Vaidotas Urbelis, Director of the Defense Policy Department of the Ministry of Defense of Lithuania, noted that had been the first working meeting of the coalition “to clarify the needs of Ukraine in the field of mine action and the specific contribution of each of the coalition partner countries.”

The Demining Coalition includes elements of humanitarian demining of territories liberated from invaders, as well as demining on the contact line.

A support fund is created for carrying out this action, including the purchase of equipment necessary for demining the territory of Ukraine.

quote:

D&M Holding Company constructed an ammunition factory in Ukraine

^{Production of cartridges at the Sellier & Bellot enterprise. Photo from the company page}

The American D&M Holding Company constructed an ammunition factory in Ukraine.

The U.S. Department of Defense reported on this.

The company has now completed the construction of a new factory in Ukraine and is ramping up and expanding production.

D&M is not a company that will control the production of ammunition, but is only a builder of the facility.

SPOILER

^{Cartridge production at the Sellier & Bellot plant. Photo credits: alamy.com}

The company is a provider of turnkey ammunition manufacturing solutions for government and commercial customers seeking large-scale engineering and production solutions.

Products and services include equipment design and manufacturing, as well as engineering and consulting services.

Other details about what kind of ammunition will be produced at the factory are unknown. However, there is a high probability that the new factory will produce rifle ammunition in 5.56 mm and 7.62 mm caliber.

It is possible that production could be expanded to accommodate new rounds and small-caliber projectiles.

^{Illustrative photo with the production of cartridges}

A number of European and American companies have recently announced the construction of ammunition plants in Ukraine.

Also, some of them have granted licenses to produce shells on the territory of Ukraine.

Militarnyi previously reported that Ukraine would launch the production of 155mm shells using the technology of the Norwegian company Nammo.

The government has allocated funds to allow Nammo to transfer technology and experience to a Ukrainian partner. The funding will be provided under the Nansen program.

quote:

The Pentagon reported on the increase in ammunition production

^{155-mm shells at an ammunition factory in Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S., February 16, 2023. Photo: REUTERS}

The U.S. Department of Defense has released the latest results of the increase in the production of various munitions.

The United States has invested $5.3 billion to expand domestic production capacity.

The released report reflects growth from 2022 to current production rates.

The report includes 155mm artillery shells and 155mm propelling charges, GMLRS for HIMARS rocket systems, Javelin anti-tank missiles, AIM-9X air-to-air missiles and PAC-3 MSE anti-aircraft missiles for the Patriot air defense system.

SPOILER

Production of ammunition:
• 155mm Projectiles: 14,400 per month to 40,000 per month (178% increase)
• 155mm Propelling Charge: 14,494 per month to 18,000 per month (24% increase)
• GMLRS: 833 per month to 1,167 per month (40% increase)
• Javelin: 175 per month to 200 per month (14% increase)
• AIM-9X: 116 per month to 137 per month (18% increase)
• PAC-3 MSE: 21 per month to 42 per month (100% increase)

It was possible to increase the production of barrels for 155 mm M777 howitzers from 11 per month to 16 per month.

The report also notes that the US defense industry produces 8 M142 HIMARS rocket systems per month.

The U.S. Department of Defense also noted that France and Sweden would double the capacity of ammunition and explosives loading by 2025, double the capacity of modular charges by 2026, and increase powder production capacity ten-fold by 2026.

^{The Thales munitions plant in the municipality of La Ferte-Saint-Aubin. France. Photo credits: Gaujard Christelle}

“Sites in Germany, Spain, Hungary, South Africa, and Australia plan to increase production up to 700,000 artillery shells and up to 10,000 tons of gunpowder per year by 2025,” the Pentagon said.

This includes a new gunpowder factory in Romania as part of a project developed with the European Commission and a new artillery ammunition facility in Germany.

Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, and Spain will co-produce up to 1,000 Patriot GEM-T missiles in Germany.

^{GEM-T launch with Patriot. Photo credits: US DoD}

As previously reported, the American D&M Holding Company constructed an ammunition factory in Ukraine.

quote:

The enormous Chechen military reserve Ramzan Kadyrov always brags about simply does not exist

^{Soldiers of the Chechen special services and military units in Grozny, 5 January 2024. Photo: Chingiz Kondarov / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA}

During Vladimir Putin’s brief visit to Chechnya on 20 August, Ramzan Kadyrov publicly bragged that he had sent over 40,000 troops to bolster Russian forces fighting in Ukraine, including over 19,000 soldiers who had voluntarily enlisted, before alluding to an enormous military reserve he had on standby that was ready to join the war at a moment’s notice.

Shortly after Putin’s four-hour visit to the North Caucasus republic had drawn to a close, according to sources who spoke to Novaya Gazeta Europe, Chechen Interior Ministry district heads were issued with orders requiring each police station in the republic to deliver a quota of 25 “volunteers” to enlist in Kadyrov’s militia. The move suggests that rather than significant military reserves, all that Kadyrov has permanently ready to deploy is an ability to tell dazzling, barefaced lies to his benefactor, and that he will do everything in his power to avoid mobilisation in Chechnya.

How has Kadyrov managed to maintain the illusion of a mass army of “Chechen foot soldiers” ready to fight for Putin?

SPOILER

The two Akhmats
The Chechen Defence Ministry’s special forces battalion Akhmat-Chechnya, which reportedly fled from its fortified positions at the first sight of the Ukrainian military incursion into the Kursk region last month and somehow still managed to have at least 10 of its soldiers captured, has become a symbol of the alarming incompetence of the Russian military.

Both Ramazan Kadyrov and Igor Konashenkov, the Russian Defence Ministry’s spokesperson, mysteriously vanished from view in the aftermath of that particular failure, leaving Apti Alaudinov, the commander of the Akhmat special forces battalion, which has no connection to the Akhmat-Chechnya battalion, to become the “voice” of the Kursk frontline.

The Akhmat-Chechnya regiment, which was guarding Russia’s borders in the Kursk region at the time of the Ukrainian attack, lacks the level of organisation or sufficient training to undertake real military operations.

When the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) crossed the Ukrainian border into Russia’s Kursk region on 6 August, the Akhmat Battalion led by Alaudinov was stationed in several sections of the Ukrainian frontline, but was not defending Russia’s border with Ukraine in the Kursk region or anywhere else, for that matter.

Alaudinov was forced to step into a spokesperson role mainly as online commentators frequently confused the two Akhmat battalions and attempted to blame the failures of his battalion for the success of Ukraine’s cross-border incursion. In reality, it was completely different formations that had been charged with defending the Russian border, including border guards, conscripts, militias and Kadyrov soldiers, none of which had military experience.

The original Akhmat Battalion was formed in Chechnya under Apti Alaudinov and was made up overwhelmingly of voluntary recruits who came from all over Russia to serve after signing a four-month contract with the Vladimir Putin Russian Special Forces University in Gudermes. Despite its name, the Akhmat special forces battalion is predominantly ethnic Russian in composition, and Chechens have always been a minority.

All the remaining Chechen divisions into which Ramzan Kadyrov has exclusively drafted residents of Chechnya have been created as a way to demonstrate that the Chechen authorities were not only sending Russian troops into war, but Chechens as well.

^{Volunteers who joined the Russian armed forces and did military training in Chechnya at Grozny airport, 17 January 2024. Photo: Chingiz Kondarov / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA}

The Akhmat and Akhmat-Chechnya battalions not only differ in their ethnic composition, but also in their degree of combat readiness. The commanders of Akhmat, like those in the notorious Wagner Group, are former Russian soldiers, some of whom previously served in Wagner themselves.

The Akhmat Battalion was recently joined by fighters under the command of Ratibor, one of the Wagner Group’s best-known mercenaries. Akhmat, like Wagner itself, has its own autonomous structure with its own intelligence agency, artillery units, drone units, medical teams and other rear divisions. By contrast, the Akhmat-Chechnya regiment, which was guarding Russia’s borders in the Kursk region at the time of the Ukrainian attack, lacks this level of organisation or sufficient training to undertake real military operations.

Who’s afraid of the Chechens?
Like other Chechen divisions created by Kadyrov for PR purposes and deployed to areas thought to be relatively risk free, such as Russia’s Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk regions, members of the Akhmat-Chechnya Battalion were not even observing basic military discipline when the surprise Ukrainian incursion on 6 August began.

This fact was shared by pro-war Russian blogger Anastasia Kashevarova during a discussion of the possible causes for the successful AFU advance into the Kursk region. “The behaviour of some of the soldiers on the border is not in keeping with the duty and tasks of a soldier,” Kashevarova said, adding that “despite serving on the national border of a country at war, they were totally relaxed, dressed in civilian clothes, not carrying weapons.”

Kashevarova added that this was the reason so many Russian prisoners of war had been captured, explaining that many were taken prisoner “not at their posts but in towns where they were taking a break from the hardships of service” and even accused some of the Kursk POWs of wearing slippers, comparing them unfavourably with the “shell-shocked, dirty and injured” soldiers fighting elsewhere in Ukraine, who she said had “clearly fought to the last”.

Indeed, most of what the generation of Chechens who grew up under Putin know about war they learned from playing computer games.

Despite their fearsome bearded appearance, the rank-and-file Akhmat-Chechnya troops had no military experience whatsoever. The prevailing myth that all Chechens are born with a gun in their hands may still be widely accepted as fact by many in Russia, but the generation that fought the Russian military in the name of Chechen independence is long gone — most of them were either killed in the war or subsequently chose to emigrate following Moscow’s comprehensive crushing of any independence pipedreams.

^{New recruits about to be sent to Akhmat Battalion positions at Grozny airport, 17 January 2024. Photo: Chingiz Kondarov}

Indeed, most of what the generation of Chechens who grew up under Putin know about war they learned from playing computer games. Not only did they not take part in the Chechen resistance, very few of them have even served in the Russian army, due to a long-standing exception whereby members of ethnic groups indigenous to the North Caucasus are not required to complete the one-year military service that is mandatory for all other Russian males.

This fact makes Apti Alaudinov’s recent controversial comments, in which he rhetorically asked the parents of Russian conscripts what the point of their children was if they weren’t prepared to die for their country, laughable.

Alaudinov, besides being the commander of the Akhmat special forces, is also the deputy head of the military and political department of the Russian Defence Ministry. As such, he must be aware that the ministry will use Russian conscripts to take back the Kursk region.

What’s the point of children?
Despite officially restarting conscription on a tiny scale in 2014, the Russian military has not obliged the vast majority of Chechens to perform compulsory military service since 1991. At present, just 500 Chechens are called up in each wave of conscription, which amounts to just 0.33% of the total number of conscripts in the military’s most recent intake, a figure that has not changed even since the outbreak of war in Ukraine. As a result, only Chechens above the age of 52 have first hand experience of military service. In this sense, even conscripts who have served for just four months in the army are better trained fighters than those in the divisions Kadyrov has formed in Chechnya.

In February 2022 Kadyrov assembled several thousand so-called “Putin foot soldiers” in Grozny and promised to “take Kiev in three days”.

Why, since the start of the war, when the State Duma raised the maximum conscription age to 30, and conscription offices began hunting down men of service age throughout the country, has the Defence Ministry not increased the quota for conscripting soldiers from Chechnya? The explanation is simple: Kadyrov is against it and he has been granted a free hand to rule Chechnya as he sees fit in exchange for keeping the republic in line.

^{Apti Alaudinov Photo: Telegram}

Firstly, increasing the quota for Chechen conscripts raises the issue about army service for the numerous sons of the Chechen elite. At present, not a single Chechen official, including Kadyrov, has a child serving in the Russian army. This does not stop these children from holding high-ranking government positions, of course.

In February 2022 Kadyrov assembled several thousand so-called “Putin foot soldiers” in Grozny and promised to “take Kiev in three days”. But when it became clear that it would not be possible, and that the Russian army had a severe shortage of soldiers, the thousands of “Putin foot soldiers” vanished into thin air.

New blood
But the main reason Kadyrov is fundamentally opposed to Chechnya joining Russia’s military power vertical (in particular by increasing the conscription quota) and to mobilisation in his republic is that he would lose one of his main power bases — his so-called “army”. If Chechens are conscripted into the Russian army, rather than assembled in full combat gear in a stadium in Grozny to scare the world, Kadyrov’s own image as “Putin’s foot soldier” will be under threat.

Sending ethnic Chechen units to Ukraine is also one of Kadyrov’s “tricks”, only on an even larger scale.

The figures that Kadyrov so proudly reported to Putin — 40,000 Chechen fighters and 19,000 volunteers — are far from reality, since soldiers sent to war in Chechnya are counted not by their heads, but by their contracts. Volunteers who are sent to the frontline through the Russian University of Special Forces sign a short-term contract for four months — and then sign another one again. When they sign a new contract, along with their salary (until recently 300,000 rubles (�3,040) a month), they receive a lump sum payment of the same amount. In fact, this is exactly what a volunteer named Ivan from the Rostov region told Putin during his recent visit to Chechnya, namely that this was his fifth military contract through the Vladimir Putin University of Special Forces in Gudermes.

The trick here is that Ivan from Rostov went to war as a volunteer from Chechnya five times, and so the reports from the Russian University of Special Forces state that not one, but five volunteers were sent to war. Because Ivan signed not one, but five contracts.

^{Photo: Chingiz Kondarov / Reuters / Scanpix / LETA}

Sending ethnic Chechen units to Ukraine is also one of Kadyrov’s “tricks”, only on an even larger scale. Chechen soldiers are sent to the front on a rotational system. That is, every six months they replace each other. For example, 300 Chechens return from the war, another 300 Chechens replace them, and six months later they replace each other again. But on paper it looks as if Chechnya has sent 900 fighters to the war. In addition, until recently these units were deployed in the safest places: guarding the border regions.

Now the issue of reserves is a crucial problem for Russia as a whole, and it is already clear that conscripts are likely to be the main source. From this perspective, Alaudinov’s insane question about the point of children in Russia can logically be addressed to the Chechen leader and his cronies: what’s the point of Kadyrov’s children, if they are not prepared to die for their “great motherland”, as Vladimir Putin put it during his visit to Chechnya? And isn’t it time to raise the conscription quota in Chechnya and take the responsibility of forming armed units away from Ramzan Kadyrov, transferring it to the Ministry of Defence?

quote:

U.S. F-35 Fighter Jets Land on NATO Highway in Historic First

This is the first time U.S. F-35s have landed on a highway in Europe.
This week, two fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter jets made headlines by successfully landing on a highway in Finland.

First Time Accomplished in Europe
This significant event marks the first time U.S. F-35s have landed on a highway in Europe, part of the larger BAANA 2024 exercise, an annual military training conducted by Finland, according to Ziare.

General James Hecker, commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA), praised the achievement, stating:

"The successful landing of the fifth-generation F-35 on a highway in Europe demonstrates the growing relationship and close interoperability we have with our Finnish allies."

He emphasized that learning from Finnish counterparts enhances the U.S. military's ability to deploy airpower rapidly from unconventional locations, reflecting collective readiness and agility.

SPOILER

Highways for Military Operations
While this was a first for U.S. forces in Europe, Norway had previously operated F-35s on its highways, showcasing a practice that Finland has long adopted. Utilizing highways for military operations is increasingly relevant, especially given threats to traditional airbases.

The U.S. Air Force has been actively exploring this tactic as part of its agile combat employment strategy, focusing on dispersing air forces across both conventional and unconventional runways to make it harder for adversaries to neutralize airpower.

The concept of highway landings is not entirely new in the U.S. In 2021, American forces executed a successful landing of an A-10 Thunderbolt II on a Michigan highway.

Since then, other aircraft, including a MC-130J Commando II and an MQ-9 Reaper drone, have also landed on highways across various states. Pentagon officials emphasize that this capability is crucial in potential conflicts with Russia and China, as adversary strike capabilities could render traditional airbases non-operational.

quote:

Uralvagonzavod handed over a new batch of T-90M tanks to the Russian Army

^{Russian T-90M Proryv tanks during transportation. September 2024. Russia. Photo credits: Uralvagonzavod}

Russia’s Uralvagonzavod has shipped a new batch of T-90M Proryv tanks to the Russian army.

The machine-building corporation said that the tanks were equipped with electronic warfare equipment against drones.

The tanks are also equipped with Nakidka radar-absorbent material (RAM) camouflage.

The Nakidka camouflage system is a set of covers made of radio-absorbing material and sections to cover the combat vehicle.

The corporation classifies the number of transferred vehicles.

SPOILER

"Уралвагонзавод" передав армії � Ф нову партію танків Т-90М

In the published video, Uralvagonzavod showed 7 T-90M Proryv tanks.

According to the corporation’s data, they intend to increase production of the vehicles.

The T-90M is a modernized version of the main Russian T-90 tank, which in turn is a modernization of the Soviet T-72 tank.

The T-90M has a newly designed turret, an updated fire control system and other subsystems. The tank is equipped with a modular propulsion system with a V-92S2F diesel engine with a capacity of 1130 hp.

^{Russian T-90M Proryv tank during tests. September 2024. Russia. Photo: Uralvagonzavod}

The turret is welded multilayer with an ammunition compartment and air conditioning outside the combat compartment. The tank is equipped with splat armor and the Relict reactive armor.

Earlier it was reported that the Russian army had ordered the first batch of T-90M Proryv tanks, which would be equipped with the Arena-M active protection system.

^{Installation scheme and principle of operation of the Arena-M APC in the T-90M tank. Image: t.me/btvt2019}

The Arena-M system is designed to intercept missiles and other anti-tank munitions in the near area around the tank by physically destroying them with a counter-munition. It consists of radar stations that monitor the space around the tank.

quote:

Op zaterdag 7 september 2024 23:01 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://mil.in.ua/en/news(...)munition-production/
[..]

SPOILER

Production of ammunition:
• 155mm Projectiles: 14,400 per month to 40,000 per month (178% increase)
• 155mm Propelling Charge: 14,494 per month to 18,000 per month (24% increase)
• GMLRS: 833 per month to 1,167 per month (40% increase)
• Javelin: 175 per month to 200 per month (14% increase)
• AIM-9X: 116 per month to 137 per month (18% increase)
• PAC-3 MSE: 21 per month to 42 per month (100% increase)

It was possible to increase the production of barrels for 155 mm M777 howitzers from 11 per month to 16 per month.

The report also notes that the US defense industry produces 8 M142 HIMARS rocket systems per month.

The U.S. Department of Defense also noted that France and Sweden would double the capacity of ammunition and explosives loading by 2025, double the capacity of modular charges by 2026, and increase powder production capacity ten-fold by 2026.
[ afbeelding ]
^{The Thales munitions plant in the municipality of La Ferte-Saint-Aubin. France. Photo credits: Gaujard Christelle}

“Sites in Germany, Spain, Hungary, South Africa, and Australia plan to increase production up to 700,000 artillery shells and up to 10,000 tons of gunpowder per year by 2025,” the Pentagon said.

This includes a new gunpowder factory in Romania as part of a project developed with the European Commission and a new artillery ammunition facility in Germany.

Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, and Spain will co-produce up to 1,000 Patriot GEM-T missiles in Germany.
[ afbeelding ]
^{GEM-T launch with Patriot. Photo credits: US DoD}

As previously reported, the American D&M Holding Company constructed an ammunition factory in Ukraine.

quote:

Russian Drones Breach Belarusian Airspace Again, Amid Night Strike on Ukraine
On the night of September 7, 2024, Belarus experienced an incursion of at least eight Russian drones, according to the monitoring project “Belaruski Hayun.” These drones were launched from Russian territory and included seven Shahed drones and, for the first time, a reconnaissance drone, the Supercam.

The first Shahed drone crossed into Belarus from Ukraine’s Chernihiv region around 11:00 PM, and approximately 40 minutes later, it returned to Ukraine. Several more Shahed drones entered Belarus at different times throughout the night. Meanwhile, at 08:13, data from YeRadar indicated the arrival of the Supercam reconnaissance drone in Belarus.

One of the Shahed drones reached the Grodno region, flying over Korelichi and Novogrudok towards the Lithuanian border. This was the first instance of such an intrusion being monitored. The drone may have traveled approximately 200 km north over Belarus. Its further trajectory remains unknown.

In response to the drone incursions, Belarusian fighters and helicopters were activated throughout the night. Fighters took off from Baranovichi Airport four times, while helicopters from Machulishchi were airborne twice. Aviation activity was noted not only in southern Belarus but also in the northern regions, such as Ostrovets and Vileika, suggesting the presence of multiple drones in the northern part of the country.

Earlier that night, Russia also conducted a drone attack on Ukraine. Reports indicate that 67 drones were detected and tracked, some of which veered off course and headed towards Russia, Belarus, and the temporarily occupied Luhansk region.

The Ukrainian Air Force reported numerous attacks, but most drones were intercepted by air defense systems. In Kyiv and surrounding areas, debris from downed drones caused minor damage to three private houses and fires in grassy areas.

Explosions were also heard in Mykolaiv, Khmelnytskyi, and Vinnytsia regions. Despite the numerous attacks, significant damage or casualties were not reported. In Kyiv, air defenses effectively neutralized all incoming drones, preventing them from reaching their targets.

quote:

IRON Lviv cluster companies demonstrate new drones

^{Ukrainian loitering munition of the company Aviapartisans. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the video Militarnyi}

Ukrainian companies of the IRON Lviv cluster demonstrated their new drones of various types.

Militarnyi’s correspondents visited the demo day of companies that are members of the IRON Lviv Tech Cluster.

“These are not only teams from Lviv, but everyone is working to create solutions for the Ukrainian military,” the correspondents said.

At the event, cluster members demonstrated UAVs and ground drones for various tasks.

The cluster helps to attract investment in the development and procurement of defense products from these companies.

SPOILER

IRON Lviv. Від комплектуючих до дронів – як працює львівський tech-кластер

Most of the 20 companies represented now have uncodified products.

The company provides uncodified products to the military for testing, which tests them in combat conditions and sends feedback to the developers.

IRON Lviv Tech Cluster unites more than 60 companies working in the fields of robotics, electronics, radio communications, and unmanned systems.

At the exhibition, Militarnyi’s correspondents were shown the drones of the Aviapartyzany company.

The company has developed the Chuhaister bomber drone and a “kamikaze plane”.

The loitering munition has a warhead weighing 2.5 kg. Its body is made on a 3D printer, which reduces its price.

^{Ukrainian-made loitering munition by the Aviapartyzany company. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the video of Militarnyi}

The “kamikaze plane” is capable of flying 40 km and hitting a target using an auto-guidance system that captures the target selected by the operator and flies at it.

The correspondents got acquainted with FPV drones by Hentai FPV, which produces 200-300 of these drones per month.

^{FPV drones and a drone bomber by Hentai. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the video Militarnyi}

Hentai FPV has also developed its own bomber drone.

At the exhibition, the Ukrainian company Spextr demonstrated its ground drones.

^{Ground-based unmanned systems by Spextr. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the video Militarnyi}

Spextr ground drones are capable of conducting mining, logistics, and acting as kamikazes to blow up enemy targets.

As previously reported, strike drones of the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine gained the ability to hit targets at a distance of up to 1800 km.

quote:

Ukraine has developed a fixed-wing UAV interceptor

^{Interceptor drone by the Ukrainian company Besomar. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the Militarnyi’s video}

The Ukrainian company Besomar has developed an interceptor drone to shoot down Russian drones.

Roman Shemechko, a representative of the company, told Militarnyi that the interceptor drone was manufactured at low cost and was already being used in the combat zone.

A “kamikaze interceptor” intercepts Russian drones as they approach.

However, this drone is also capable of conducting reconnaissance missions. It can fly for two and a half hours.

“It’s like a big FPV, like a plane that can stay in the air longer and carry more weight,” Roman Shemechko said.

SPOILER

^{Interceptor drone by the Ukrainian company Besomar. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the Militarnyi’s video}
The design allows for the installation of two batteries. The drone flies at a range of 50-60 kilometers.

It can climb to a height of 4 kilometers and fly at a speed of 160-170 km.

The latest versions of the interceptor drone have also been equipped with an air brake, which allows the drone to avoid the enemy’s drone and neutralize it in a timely manner.

According to Besomar, it is currently capable of producing up to 100 such drones per month.

^{Interceptor drone by the Ukrainian company Besomar. September 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the Militarnyi’s video}

As previously reported, Ukraine is already using modified FPV drones against Russian reconnaissance and attack drones.

Currently, there are several publicly known projects in Ukraine to supply such modified drones to the Defense Forces.

^{The moment a Ukrainian drone intercepts a Russian ZALA Z-20 reconnaissance drone. Photo credits: Sternenko}

Previously, an FPV drone operator of the 11th Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine managed to shoot down a Russian Lancet kamikaze drone.

quote:

Op zaterdag 7 september 2024 23:18 schreef LethalNinja het volgende:

KURSK OFFENSIVE IS FAILING... reversal coming; oh no the chopsticks... | Ukraine War Conclusions

Vreselijke clickbait titel weer

SPOILER

"It is reported that while driving, the driver of the KAMAZ, Sergeant Artem Yuryevich Yakushev, lost control and crashed into a concrete barrier.

The tank was being transported towards the Kursk region.

As a result of the accident, Sergeant Yakushev died , and the senior vehicle officer, Lieutenant Dmitry Anatolyevich Petrunin, suffered multiple fractures of his lower extremities ."

Source: https:// t . me /dosye_shpiona/591

SPOILER

quote:

Op zaterdag 7 september 2024 23:18 schreef LethalNinja het volgende:

KURSK OFFENSIVE IS FAILING... reversal coming; oh no the chopsticks... | Ukraine War Conclusions

Vreselijke clickbait titel weer

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 02:05 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

North Korean missiles were destroyed at the ammunition warehouse in Soldatsky

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 13:47 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 14:07 schreef stavromulabeta het volgende:

[..]
En dat komt puur door de dure energie van 3 jaar geleden en niet doordat grote importeurs van kapitaalgoederen zoals de Amerikaanse en Chinese economie aan het kwakkelen zijn? (Wat zo'n beetje elke economisch analyst als oorzaak geeft.)

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 14:12 schreef koffiekoekjes het volgende:

[..]
Kwakkelen van Amerikaanse economie kan je ook aan dure energie en de daaruit vloeiende inflatie koppelen. Eeuwig stijgende lijntjes maken meer kapot dan je lief is.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 14:14 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
De energie in Amerika is volgens mij helemaal niet duur.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 14:15 schreef koffiekoekjes het volgende:

[..]
Wel in de productielanden die producten leveren aan de VS. Maar ook in de VS is energie een stuk duurder geworden/geweest.


Uiteindelijk gaat het westen kapot aan hyperkapitalisme en zoveel mogelijk winst cre�ren voor de ultra rijken. (Op korte termijn). Bedrijven maken de laatste jaren overal gebruik van (Corona, oorlog) om het lijntje op de beurs te laten stijgen en de overheden kijken verder gewoon toe. Uiteindelijk als we al te ver heen zijn gaan de cijfertjes omlaag en komen we in een negatieve spiraal terecht maar de aandeelhouder is tenminste wel even blij geweest. Geen huizen, geen kinderen maar wel een hoop bejaarden die geld en aandacht nodig hebben van een veel te kleine jonge generatie mensen.

Heeft dus niet zo heel veel met Rusland te maken en dus iets voor een ander topic.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 15:12 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Jij bent een voorstander van socialisme of communisme?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 15:15 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Jij bent een voorstander van rover-kapitalisme, waar jij in een put mag schijten en en de dictator en z'n matties jachten van een paar miljard per stuk hebben?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 15:31 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
In zowel de VS als Rusland hebben miljardairs jachten die veel geld kosten. Jachten van 100 miljoen zijn wel ok� volgens jou?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 13:47 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:17 schreef mcmlxiv het volgende:

[..]
Des te meer reden om all in te gaan voor West-Europa dus. Beter nu even doorzetten toch?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:36 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:37 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Wat is je probleem? Stelen is toch goed? Of is dat alleen goed als rus het doet?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:43 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Waar heb ik gezegd dat stelen goed is?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 15:05 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Tactische wandelstok?

[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:51 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Dat blijkt uit wat je hier post.

Overigens is je vorige wappie-post gewoon complete bullshit he?

In het westen krijgen bedrijven simpelweg een concessie om een grondstof bron te exploiteren, of het nu gas, olie, of mineralen zijn.

En dat betekent dat per afgezette eenheid, de concessie houder centen krijgt, maar de eigenaar net zo goed.

In rus zouden alle grondstoffen gewoon eigendom van het volk moeten zijn.

Maar de oligarchen steken het gewoon allemaal in hun zak, en het achterland kan in een gat in de grond schijten.

Maar blijf lekker dom tamboeren op dat het westen uit is op grondstoffen

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:56 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Jij wil dus zeggen dat het westen (en andere landen) niet uit zijn op grondstoffen? Dat hebben we toch zo vaak gezien bij oorlogen het draait voornamelijk om olie en andere grondstoffen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:35 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Wat bedoel je met all in gaan? Nog meer sancties?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:56 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Jij wil dus zeggen dat het westen (en andere landen) niet uit zijn op grondstoffen? Dat hebben we toch zo vaak gezien bij oorlogen het draait voornamelijk om olie en andere grondstoffen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:56 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Jij wil dus zeggen dat het westen (en andere landen) niet uit zijn op grondstoffen? Dat hebben we toch zo vaak gezien bij oorlogen het draait voornamelijk om olie en andere grondstoffen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 17:08 schreef Parafernalia het volgende:

[..]
Ook voor Poetin waarschijnlijk de reden

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 17:23 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Nu krijg je waarschijnlijk een verhaal dat Poetin de Russen in Oekra�ne wil beschermen en dat die Russen vrijwillig, uit dankbaarheid, de mijnen in gaan om hem te eren met grondstoffen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:56 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Jij wil dus zeggen dat het westen (en andere landen) niet uit zijn op grondstoffen? Dat hebben we toch zo vaak gezien bij oorlogen het draait voornamelijk om olie en andere grondstoffen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:57 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Dat is dus de reden dat Rusland Oekra�ne binnen is gevallen?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:04 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
Zou kunnen ja.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 17:39 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Voor de oorlog was shell bezig met wat olieplatformen, totdat rus die onder vuur begon te nemen. Ook in het oosten waren ze het e.e.a. aan het doen, iirc.

Dus we waren daar gewoon al bezig, geen reden om een oorlog te "engineeren".

Maar wappies are gonna wappie.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:04 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Zou kunnen ja. Zowel Rusland en het westen hebben andere belangen maar als dat van het westen gezegd wordt gaan mensen huilen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 17:00 schreef mcmlxiv het volgende:

[..]
Nog meer sancties, nog meer wapens, alle remmen los

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 17:00 schreef mcmlxiv het volgende:

[..]
Nog meer sancties, nog meer wapens, alle remmen los

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:09 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Ja, het zou kunnen. rus zegt het gewoon openlijk, maar troll hier weet het niet zeker.

Maar kremlin propaganda zegt dat het westen dat wel wil, dus troll twijfelt daar geen seconde over.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Alvast RIP dan

quote:

Opnieuw schenden Russische drones NAVO-luchtruim

quote:

Bij Russische aanvallen op Oekra�ne afgelopen nacht zijn ��n of meerdere aanvalsdrones door het luchtruim van Roemeni� gevlogen. Dat zegt het Roemeense ministerie van Defensie. Mogelijk is een drone op Roemeens grondgebied neergekomen.

quote:

Zaterdag stortte in het oosten van Letland ook een Russische drone neer, meldt de president van Letland. Ook daar loopt een onderzoek.

quote:

Polen wil daarom Russische drones en kruisraketten al voordat ze het Poolse luchtruim betreden uit de lucht kunnen schieten. Dit voorstel wordt door Kyiv verwelkomd, maar door westerse bondgenoten tegengehouden. De NAVO is bang dat als lidstaten hun luchtafweer inzetten tegen Russische drones en raketten, dit tot escalatie kan leiden."

Roemeni� deelt een grens met Oekra�ne van meer dan 600 kilometer lang. Ook Roemeni� is bezig met wetgeving om in vredestijd vijandelijke drones uit het eigen luchtruim te kunnen schieten.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Alvast RIP dan

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:40 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Niet gelijk huilen

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Alle remmen zijn al los.
De volgende stap is inzet van chemische en nucleaire wapens. We zijn al door alle escalatie middelen heen.

Betekent wel jou en mijn dood.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:48 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:
Blijft apart dat ze die drones niet gewoon uit de lucht knallen, tenzij ze bang zijn dat er brokstukken op eigen bevolking vallen en dus maar liever hem laten inslaan op Oekrainse plekken. Polen heeft blijkbaar een soort toestemming nodig van de NAVO om z'n eigen grondgebied te verdedigen. Roemenie mag blijkbaar volgens hun wet geen drones neerhalen in eigen luchtruim omdat ze zelf niet in oorlog zijn. Klinkt bizar allemaal als ik dat zo lees.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:52 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Jij hebt gewoon totaal geen idee waar je het over hebt, joh.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 19:03 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Jawel je bent aan t schuimbekken.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:58 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Iets met de-escalatie idioten in het witte huis. Die gewoon richting die landen dreigen met: als je dat doet, houden wij op met oekraine ondersteunen. Zo direct als ik het hier neerzet, is het nooit gezegd, maar redelijk verholen heeft zelensky zelf dat al toegegeven.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 19:07 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:
Roemenie schiet Russische drone uit de lucht in eigen luchtruim, Rusland is boos en schiet op de Patriot/andere luchtverdedigingswapen waarmee een dronetje kapot is gemaakt, Roemenie roept de NAVO hulp in, Amerika moet nu de lanceerplekken in Rusland gaan kapotbombarderen?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Alle remmen zijn al los.
De volgende stap is inzet van chemische en nucleaire wapens. We zijn al door alle escalatie middelen heen.

Betekent wel jou en mijn dood.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:55 schreef Immerdebestebob het volgende:
De volgende stap zijn langeafstandsraketten richting Rusland.

quote:

Ukraine long-range strikes into Russia won't be a game changer, U.S. says

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany, Sept 6 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin cautioned on Friday there was "no one capability" that would turn the war in Ukraine in Kyiv's favour after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged the West to let his forces use its long-range weapons to strike Russia.

At a regular meeting of Ukraine's allies at Ramstein U.S. Air Base in Germany, Zelenskiy repeated his plea for Western nations to supply more long-range missiles and lift restrictions on using them to hit targets such as airfields inside Russia.

Austin said Washington and its allies would continue to give strong support to Ukraine in fighting Russia's invasion, announcing another $250 million in U.S. security assistance.

But, questioned by reporters, the Pentagon chief pushed back on the idea that allowing deep strikes inside Russia with Western weapons would be a game-changer.

He said Russia had already moved aircraft that launch glide bombs into Ukraine beyond the range of U.S.-supplied ATACM missiles.

"There's no one capability that will in and of itself be decisive in this campaign," Austin told reporters at the end of the meeting.

He also said Ukraine had capabilities of its own - such as drones - to hit targets inside Russia that were beyond the reach of ATACM and British-supplied Storm Shadow missiles.

"There are a lot of targets in Russia - big country, obviously," Austin said. "And there's a lot of capability that Ukraine has in terms of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) and other things to address those targets."

Among other donations, Germany pledged to supply an additional 12 self-propelled howitzers to Kyiv, while Canada said it planned to send 80,840 surplus small unarmed air-to-surface rockets as well as 1,300 warheads in the coming months.

Zelenskiy made his first appearance at a Ramstein meeting at an important moment in the 2-1/2-year-old war.
Ukrainian forces have made a surprise offensive into Russia's Kursk region even as Russian forces focus on seizing the city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine, a logistics hub for Kyiv's war effort.

"We need to have this long-range capability not only on the occupied territory of Ukraine, but also on Russian territory, yes, so that Russia is motivated to seek peace," Zelenskiy said, in remarks that drew support from countries including Baltic nations Lithuania and Estonia.

'RED LINES'

Zelenskiy has long pushed back against allies who have supplied long-range weapons but told Kyiv they cannot use them deep inside Russia for fear of instigating a direct conflict between the West and Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

In his remarks on Friday at Ramstein, Zelenskiy said: "Russia's attempts to draw red lines simply do not work."
The talks in Germany came as Americans prepare for a November presidential election that could have major implications for Ukraine. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate, has promised to stand with Ukraine.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, has vowed to resolve the Ukraine war immediately on taking office with possible peace talks that might require Kyiv to cede territory. Trump and many of his supporters are skeptical of the billions of dollars in aid Biden's administration has poured into Ukraine's war effort.

At Ramstein, Austin gave statistics on the toll the war has taken on Russian forces, estimating more than 350,000 Russian troops have been killed or wounded. He said Ukrainian forces have sunk, destroyed, or damaged 32 Russian Navy vessels and pushed Russia's Black Sea Fleet further east.

Zelenskiy said that about 6,000 Russian soldiers had been killed or wounded in Ukraine's Kursk offensive.
"Today we control an area of more than 1,300 square kilometres in the Kursk region and this includes 100 settlements," Zelenskiy said, adding that a large part of that territory was abandoned by Russian troops.

But Moscow has also been pounding cities across Ukraine with missiles and drones in some of its largest attacks since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022,

"The number of air defence systems that have not yet been delivered is significant," Zelenskiy said.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 19:25 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Het Westen heeft (als het goed is) geen chemische wapens.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 20:50 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
[..]
Reuters

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 20:50 schreef AchJa het volgende:

[..]
[..]
Reuters

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Alle remmen zijn al los.
De volgende stap is inzet van chemische en nucleaire wapens. We zijn al door alle escalatie middelen heen.

Betekent wel jou en mijn dood.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 21:39 schreef BEFEM het volgende:

[..]
Dit vind ik ook echt zo'n non-argument wat die Austin in het begin levert. Als je maar lang genoeg wacht dan hebben ze er inderdaad niks meer aan. Als ze een jaar geleden ATACMS hadden gehad �n toestemming om in Rusland aan te vallen dan waren er een hoop vliegtuigen vernietigd en kon Rusland een jaar geleden al een stuk minder effectief gebruik maken van hun luchtmacht. En opbouw van troepen etc.

Alsof je na een dijkdoorbraak zegt 'zwemles geven heeft geen zin, iedereen is toch al verdronken'.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 13:47 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Alle remmen zijn al los.
De volgende stap is inzet van chemische en nucleaire wapens. We zijn al door alle escalatie middelen heen.

Betekent wel jou en mijn dood.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 16:36 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:04 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Zou kunnen ja. Zowel Rusland en het westen hebben andere belangen maar als dat van het westen gezegd wordt gaan mensen huilen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:39 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Alle remmen zijn al los.
De volgende stap is inzet van chemische en nucleaire wapens. We zijn al door alle escalatie middelen heen.

Betekent wel jou en mijn dood.

quote:

Putin’s Press “Freedom” Goes Even Deeper Into Authoritarian Decline

Putin claims that Russia has media freedom. However, Russia is one of the world’s worst countries for that. What are the facts? How does Russia restrict information sharing, and what punishments are journalists and civilians facing?

“The media in Russia is free,” Putin said on Monday, August 2nd, 2024, during his visit to Mongolia. “The only requirement for [media outlets] is compliance with Russian legislation.” He also claimed that the West is openly persecuting Russian journalists.

These statements come just days after Russia banned more than 92 American citizens from entering Russia, including journalists from The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and New York Times.

Press and media freedom is plummeting in Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. More restrictive laws have been put in place, and journalists are being increasingly persecuted.

In contrast to Putin's recent statement, Russia is ranked as one of the world’s worst countries for press freedom. Russia is ranked 162 out of 180 countries globally, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Almost all international independent media have been banned, blocked, and/or declared as “foreign agents” or “undesirable organizations.” Journalists are being charged with espionage, treason, extortion, spreading fake news about the Russian Army, and more, leading to lengthy prison terms.

Freedom House ranks Russia with 13 points out of 100 and lists the country as “not free.” Russia has 21 points out of 100 for “internet freedom.” 1 of 100 within the “nations in transit” ranking, putting Russia at a consolidated authoritarian regime status. 100 points within these rankings is the highest level of freedom, with one being the lowest.

SPOILER

On May 3rd 2024, World Press Freedom Day, the US Embassy and Consulates in Russia stated that it was a particularly “somber day in Russia, where freedom of the press is under constant assault.” They condemned Russian authorities’ for their continued “attempts to silence, intimidate, and punish journalists, and to sever their connection with civil society.”

Currently, there are 34 journalists and six media workers detained in Russian prisons. Twelve of them are serving prison sentences ranging from five-and-a-half to 22 years in prison, according to the United Nations Human Rights Council.

OVD Info states that 58 Russian journalists have criminal proceedings against them. They are either currently imprisoned, wanted, or due to appear in court.

^{A bulletproof vest of a photojournalist killed by Russian Army mortar shelling. (Source: Bogdan Rossinsky via Getty Images)}

Ukrainian Journalists Persecuted by Russia:
In June 2024, at the “Journalists Matter: a call to free Ukrainian journalists held in captivity by the Russian Federation” event, Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) stated that at least 100 journalists have been taken hostage by Russia since 2014, when Russia’s war in Ukraine began.

According to monitoring "Freedom of Speech Barometer" by the Institute of Mass Information (IMI), in the first two years and four months of the full-scale invasion, 602 crimes were committed against journalists and media outlets in Ukraine.

IMI reported that 82 journalists have been killed, 10 of which were killed while performing editorial assignments. 14 journalists are missing and 27 kidnapped. There have been 69 death threats and intimidation of journalists. 20 Ukrainian editorial offices have been seized by Russian forces, 235 Ukrainian media outlets have been shut down and much more.

^{Russia's crimes against the media and journalists in Ukraine (Source: Institute of Mass Information)}

Russia’s crackdown on dissent:
Since the full-scale invasion, the Kremlin has cracked down on dissent in Russia, targeting anyone showing support for Ukraine, not only journalists, but civilians too.

During the first two years of full-scale war, from February 2022 to February 2024 there were 19,850 detentions for anti-war stances, with 15,355 of them occurring in the first month alone.

There are currently over 1000 people accused on various charges from treason to terrorism for supporting Ukraine in some format, with almost 300 people already in pre-trial detention centers or in penal colonies.

Criminalizing poetry and memes:
In December 2023, two Russian men were imprisoned for reciting anti-war poetry in what Russian authorities said was "undermining national security” and “inciting hatred”. Artyom Kamardin was sentenced to seven years, and Yegor Shtovba to five-and-a-half years in prison.

Even before the full-scale invasion Russia was imprisoning people for sharing memes. In 2018, Maria Motuznaya faced up to six years in prison for sharing a variety of memes. One being an image of nuns smoking with the caption “Quick while God isn’t looking”. Back then, most criminally punished meme sharers religion based, now, it’s Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

^{Meme shared by Maria Motuznaya, captioned “Quick while God isn’t looking” (Source: BBC)}

In August of this year, Russia sent Usman Baratov, the head of an Uzbek diaspora group to four years in prison for “inciting hatred”. The meme he shared joked about Russia's rising inflation and military mobilization. The meme showed a hen in a chicken coop with the caption: “Screw you and your eggs! Bring the cocks back from the front.” Prosecutors have requested an increase for a maximum sentence of six years in prison.

^{Social media post and meme shared by Usman Baratov, captioned caption: “Screw you and your eggs! Bring the cocks back from the front.” (Source: Russian State Media Channel)}

Criminalizing anti-war graffiti and stickers:
In April 2024, two teenagers were imprisoned over anti-war graffiti they’d painted. Aleksandr Snezhkov, 19, and Lyubov Lizunova, 16, were sentenced to 6 years and 3 1/2 years in prison, respectively.

In November 2023, artist Sasha Skochilenko was sentenced to 7 years in prison for replacing price tags with anti-war stickers in local supermarkets. In June 2024, she was freed in one of the largest US-Russia prisoner swap in post-Soviet history.

^{Stickers placed by Sasha Skochilenko. (Source: Vitaly Shevchenko via X.com)}

Reporting on Ukraine’s recent incursion of the Kursk region:
The Ukrainian army began its incursion in the Kursk region on August 6th, 2024. Russian authorities have started criminal proceedings against seven journalists who covered the incursion in the western town of Sudzha. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJs) condemned the criminal investigations opened against them.

“The prosecution of the journalists covering an important development in the Russian-Ukraine war is another assault on press freedom,” said Gulnoza, CPJs, New York coordinator.

The media outlets being investigated by Russian authorities are Deutsche Welle, “1+1” national Ukrainian TV channel, CNN, Hromadske, Washington Post, and journalists from Italian public broadcaster RAI. According to the Russian criminal code, their journalists could be charged with up to five years in prison and would be placed on an international wanted list.

^{A Ukrainian soldier walks in front of a Federal Tax service centre in Sudzha, Kursk (Source: Fabien Nachi via Getty Images)}

What are “foreign agents” and “undesirable organizations”?
According to RSF, a third of the victims subject to Russia's “foreign agents” law are independent media outlets. At the end of July 2024, almost 300 media outlets were on the list. For example, the Russian edition of the German newspaper Bild was also added at that time. The media sector is three times more persecuted under this law than the second sector on the list—“political entities.”

The designation of a “foreign agent” can be given to any individual or legal entity who participates in any foreign political or “other” activity. If they receive foreign support or “fall under foreign influence in other ways.” This vague definition was condemned by the European Court of Human Rights in June 2024.

Those placed on the list are closely monitored, controlled and must label every piece of text, audio or video output with the words “foreign agent” in a font that is twice the size of the rest of the content.

twitter

More than 20 media outlets have been listed as “undesirable organizations”; over a third of them are dedicated to investigative reporting. They are officially defined as foreign organizations that pose a “threat to Russia.”

They are exposed to criminal prosecution and face up to five years in prison, amongst other restrictions. At the end of July 2024, the state Duma expanded the scope of this law.

Some organizations have been listed as both undesirable organizations and foreign agents, such as Bellingcat, an organization of open source researchers and journalists.

Which media outlets are in Russian prison?
Last week, August 30, 2024, Russian journalist Sergei Mikhailov was sentenced to eight years in prison for “intentionally spreading false information” about the Russian army. He was arrested in 2022 for posting on a Telegram channel about the murder of civilians in Bucha and Mariupol. His defense is due to take the stand next week, September 2024.

In March 2024, journalist Roman Ivanov was sentenced to seven years in prison for criticizing the offensive in Ukraine in a social media post and spreading “false information” about the Russian armed forces.

"Peace and freedom," Ivanov shouted as he left the courtroom after the sentence, media reported. His supporters applauded and shouted, "We're with you. You are not alone."

In July 2024, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was given a 16-year prison sentence on espionage charges. Gershkovich was a fully accredited journalist and US national who had been operating in Russia for a number of years.

Alsu Kurmasheva, Radio Free Europe (RFE/RL) reporter is facing a six-and-a-half year prison term and was charged with “spreading fake news about the Russian army”. She was detained particularly for her editing of the book “Saying No to War - 40 Stories of Russians Who Oppose the Russian Invasion of Ukraine”, published in November 2022.

On Thursday, August 1 2024, Gershkovich and Kurmasheva were both released as part of the largest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War.

^{Roman Ivanov wearing T-shirt reading as "No war" is handcuffed after being sentenced to seven years in prison for criticising the Ukrainian offensive. (Source: Stringer via Getty Images)}

How does Russia control its narrative further than criminal arrests?
Wartime censorship has forced many independent Russian journalists to flee the country. However, Russia is still targeting journalists in exile. In January 2024, the Russian State Duma passed a bill for the confiscation of property for those charged with disseminating “fake news” about the Russian army.

When passing the bill, Russian MP Andrey Lugovoy said: “Fleeing the country is, of course, easy and pleasant (…). But we will not allow this situation. Anyone who tries to cause damage to their homeland, country, and citizens will lose everything and die there, outside our country, like the last dog.”

In March 2024, the Duma also placed a ban on companies placing ads on websites, social media such as YouTube, and other digital platforms run by “foreign agents.” This law cuts funding to independent voices critical of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Organizations in violation of these laws not only face fines but in some cases, prison terms too, tried in absentia.

^{Youth movement fills a bag with two thousand paper planes near the Roskomnadzor building in protest against the blocking of the popular messaging app "Telegram"in Russia (Source: Olga Maltseva via Getty Images)}

Social media crackdown
The state Duma passed a bill requiring social networks with more than 500,000 daily users to hand over user data to the Federal Security Service (FSB) and Russian media regulator Roskomnadzor upon request. Any individual in Russia with over 10,000 subscribers on any social media platform must also register with Roskomnadzor.

According to Freedom House, telecommunications operators have been ordered to work more closely with the FSB. Fines would be given to operators who refuse to install the Technical Measures to Combat Threats (TSPU) system, which facilitates website blocking and surveillance. Increased fines would be given to those that still needed to install surveillance tools.

Roskomnadzor has blocked the messaging channel Signal, and preparations have begun to block WhatsApp. Pro-Kremlin media outlets have reported that YouTube will be completely blocked by September. The blocking of these channels is another restriction on free expression and freedom of information in the Russian government's sweeping crackdown.

According to Statista, in March 2024, television was noted as the primary source of national and international news for over 65% of Russians. Social media was the second most popular channel, with 38%. With the rise of internet usage, Russia focuses on censorship of social media to maintain information control. TV news mainly consists of pro-Kremlin propaganda.

Russia continues to restrict and oppress press freedom. Information sharing through social media may soon be in complete darkness. Journalists continue to be persecuted, and the lives of Ukrainian journalists and the foreign press continue to be at risk.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 22:37 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]
[ x ]
[ x ]
[ x ]

quote:

Portugal shipped the promised Ka-32 helicopters to Ukraine

^{Ka-32 helicopters are prepared for departure. Photo credits: Ministry of Defense of Portugal}

The Ministry of National Defense of Portugal transferred the first promised Ka-32 helicopters to Ukraine.

Sicnoticias reported on this.

On Friday, September 6, the disassembled Ka-32 helicopters were loaded onto trucks and shipped to Ukraine from Ponte de Sor.

The Portuguese government expressed its intention to transfer Ka-32 firefighting helicopters back in 2022, but the process was stalled due to the change of government.

SPOILER

^{Ka-32A11VS helicopters prepared for deployment. Photo credits: Ministry of National Defence of Portugal}

In 2023, negotiations on further steps and coordination with the Ukrainian authorities continued.

Ukraine will receive a total of six helicopters of this type, which the military can use for various tasks.

“After a long period of uncertainty and negotiations, the current government, through the MDN, together with the Ministry of the Interior, has agreed on the transportation of the helicopters with the Ukrainian authorities, in particular the Ukrainian Embassy in Lisbon and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine,” the Portuguese government stated.

The Ministry of Internal Administration, then headed by Ant�nio Costa, purchased the Ka-32 helicopters in 2006.

^{Ka-32A11VS helicopter of Portugal. Photo credits: Media of Portugal}

Ка-32 is a civil development of the Ка-27PS search and rescue helicopter, developed by the Kamov Design Bureau.

It is designed to perform various tasks, such as cargo transportation, rescue operations, firefighting, and construction and installation work.

Militarnyi previously reported that Moscow calls on Portugal to refrain from transferring Russian Ka-32A11VS helicopters to Kyiv.

Russia says that Lisbon has no right to transfer Russian-made helicopters to anyone without Russia’s consent.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 22:57 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Weer slechts 30 stukken atjerie kapot geschoten. Zouden ze op raken?

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 22:51 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Wel nee, dat betekent kernwapens op Oekra�ne en geen verdere escalatie. Je denkt toch niet dat we westerse steden gaan riskeren om Oekra�ne te redden in extremis.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:02 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:
Biden weet wat de rode lijnen zijn. Dat hebben Rusland en de VS achter de schermen elkaar duidelijk gemaakt. Wij weten dat niet behalve dan die treinen.

quote:

Russians pass off training as an assault on Vuhledar

^{The training ground of the Russian military. Photo: Google Maps}

The Russian command tried to pass off a training assault on the training ground as an assault on the city of Vuhledar.

OSINT analyst EjShahid made the appropriate geolocation of the area.

The footage of the assault, which the Russians tried to pass off as an assault on the city of Vuhledar, turned out to be military training at a training ground in the Telmanivskyi district of the Donetsk region.

False information was also provided by Russian commander Yuri Gagarin, who said that Russian troops had managed to inflict losses on Ukrainian defenders.

SPOILER

Тренування російських військ, які були видані за штурм міста Вугледар

According to him, the Russian Armed Forces suffered no casualties during the assault, while the Ukrainian side suffered 18 military casualties.

Gagarin did not say how the Russian military managed to inflict losses on the Armed Forces of Ukraine at a military training ground in the rear.

The location where the Russian military trained was geolocated at coordinates 47.305881, 38.007939 near the village of Dersove, Telmanivskyi district, Donetsk region.

It should be noted that today, at least several military training grounds that the enemy built on the territory of the Kalmiuskyi district are identified.

^{The geolocation of the place where the Russian military stormed the positions. Photo credits: EjShahid}

The first training ground was created by the Russian invaders in 2017. In the same year, it was geolocated at 47.48347451152067, 38.18862555825477, near the village of Oktiabrske, Telmanivskyi district, Donetsk region.

In the same year, a military base and a training ground were established near the occupied settlement of Svobodne, Telmanivskyi district, Donetsk region, at coordinates 47�22’27.0″N 38�03’46.1″E.

Militarnyi previously reported that in the Vuhledar sector, the 72nd Mechanized Brigade and several other units defeated a Russian assault group with armored vehicles.

The Russian command deployed a lot of infantry fighting vehicles to the attack, which were supposed to deliver troops to Ukrainian positions.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:15 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
Welke treinen?

quote:

Ukrainian MiG-29 shot down two Shahed-136 drones during a night hunt

^{Shahed 136 loitering munition. Illustration}

While fighting off a nighttime attack by Shahed-136 drones, a Ukrainian MiG-29 pilot shot down two Russian UAVs with air-to-air missiles.

A pilot with the call sign DeNfіX published the video on Instagram.

The video captured two successive launches of air-to-air guided missiles that hit Russian Shahed-136 kamikaze drones. The air battle took place at night, further complicating such targets’ interception.

The video shows that the missile captures the target at a relatively short distance of several kilometers.

SPOILER

Український МіГ-29 збив два безпілотники в ході нічного полювання

This makes such an interception, especially at night, extremely dangerous and requires skill from the pilot because there is a danger of getting into the cloud of debris that forms after the target is shot down.

^{A MiG-29 flies past a cloud of wreckage that formed after the downing of a Shahed-136, frame from a DeNfіX video}

Hitting a aircraft with debris at this speed would, at best, require repairs and, at worst, lead to a catastrophe.

Change in tactics of Russian Shahed-136 drones
In response to the enemy’s use of Shahed-136 kamikaze drones at low altitudes, where they were supposed to avoid detection by radar and destruction by anti-aircraft missile systems, Ukraine deployed a large number of mobile AA fire teams.

These mobile AA fire teams, armed with short-range anti-aircraft missile systems, AA guns, man-portable air-defense systems, and heavy machine guns, can effectively counter Russian drones at low altitudes. It was reported that they intercepted almost half of all drones in their area of responsibility.

In response, the drones began to use higher altitudes on the marching sections of the trajectory, where they are almost impossible to reach with machine guns or small-caliber air defense systems.

In turn, this has allowed the Ukrainian Defense Forces to use air power to intercept more effectively, as they are now easier to detect and have more room to maneuver.

This also made it possible to use not only fighter aircraft but also army helicopters, such as Mi-24 and Mi-8, to destroy the Shahed-136 drones.

Момент збиття російського дрона камікадзе типу «Shahed» з Ми-24В

As previously reported, tactical aviation is also actively used to strike enemy targets in the Kursk region.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:24 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Hij heeft uit z'n duim gezogen dat de treinen die westerse hoogwaardigheidsbekleders nemen vanuit polen, als ze naar kyiv komen, zogenaamd off limits zijn.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:27 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

[ x ]

En met de boot de Krim bevoorraden is ook lastig

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:24 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Hij heeft uit z'n duim gezogen dat de treinen die westerse hoogwaardigheidsbekleders nemen vanuit polen, als ze naar kyiv komen, zogenaamd off limits zijn.

quote:

Ukraine downs Russian missile, 15 drones overnight Sunday
Ukraine’s air defense forces intercepted 15 Shahed one-way attack drones and a Kh-59 guided air missile in the early hours of Sunday, September 8.
That’s according to the Air Force Command, Ukrinform reports.

Russia launched a total of four Kh-59 missiles from Belgorod region and 23 Shahed UAVs from Kursk region and occupied Crimea’s Cape Chauda.

Anti-aircraft missile forces, mobile fire groups, and e-warfare units joined efforts to repel the attack.

“One Kh-59 guided air missile and 15 Shahed-type attack UAVs were shot down," the statement reads.

In addition, two Russian drones likely plunged to the ground, affected by e-warfare systems.

Also, three Kh-59 missiles missed their targets “due to the active countermeasures on the part of Ukraine’s Defense Forces”, the report reads without elaborating on the nature of countermeasures.

Anti-aircraft defenses were active in Odesa, Kharkiv, and Dnipropetrovsk regions.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, the Air Force spotted a group of Russian drones flying over Kherson region toward the region of Mykolaiv overnight Sunday.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:33 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Dat is gewoon algemeen bekend al een hele tijd.

quote:

CIA: In 2022, there was a genuine risk of Russia using nuclear weapons

^{Iskander-K complex of the Russian army. June 2024. Frame from the video of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation}

In the first year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there was a genuine risk that Russia would have used tactical nuclear weapons.

Bill Burns, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States, shared that such a moment had a place in the fall of 2022 during the successful Ukrainian offensive.

According to him, the sudden breakthrough of troops in the northeast of the country stoked fears that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin would use the most extreme measures, causing a flurry of diplomatic activity.

“There was a moment in the fall of 2022 when I think there was a genuine risk of a potential use of tactical nuclear weapons,” Burns said.

He added that at the end of 2022, on behalf of US President Joe Biden, he had a conversation with Sergei Naryshkin, head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation.

SPOILER

^{CIA Director Bill Burns. Photo from the media}

At a meeting in Turkey, Burns explained to the Russian official what the consequences of this kind of escalation would be.

“I don’t think we can afford to be intimidated by that saber rattling or bullying, but we’ve got to be mindful of it,” Burns noted.

The situation in 2022
In March 2022, the American TV channel CNN reported, citing its own sources, that after the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the south at the end of 2022, the United States was “carefully preparing” for the use of tactical or strategic nuclear weapons by Russia in a war against Ukraine.

At that time, the Russians began to spread information that Ukraine was allegedly going to use a “dirty bomb” against Russia, which, as American officials feared, could be used as a cover for a Russian nuclear attack.

^{The Slovenian government’s statement on Russia’s use of a photo from Slovenia about the so-called “dirty bomb” in Ukraine}

Later, The New York Times, citing its own sources, wrote that at the end of 2022, the White House was considering options for responding to a possible Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine. The American response was supposed to be “non-nuclear” but “dramatic” for the Russians.

The Russian military is conducting a new stage of tactical nuclear forces exercises.

^{Iskander-M SRBM of the Russian Armed Forces with a cruise missile. Photo: russian Defense Ministry}

The Russian Federation claims that the purpose of the exercises is to maintain the readiness of personnel and equipment in case of the use of tactical nuclear weapons “to unconditionally ensure the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Union State.”

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 22:51 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Wel nee, dat betekent kernwapens op Oekra�ne en geen verdere escalatie. Je denkt toch niet dat we westerse steden gaan riskeren om Oekra�ne te redden in extremis.

quote:

Former British Defense Secretary explains to the government the importance of striking deep into Russia

^{The Storm Shadow missile under the wing of the Ukrainian Su-24M(MR). August 2023. Frame from the video of the Ukrainian Air Force}

The former British Defense Secretary urged the government to lift restrictions on using Storm Shadow missiles for Ukraine.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, Grant Shapps stated that it is time to stop asking “President Zelensky’s brave population to fight with their hands tied behind their backs.”

“Given the way that Putin is targeting men, women, and children using bombs, often launched from Russia, we must now urgently approve the use of our long-range weapons into Russia,” Grant Shapps said.

Shapps noted that the missiles are supposed to hit the source of the Russian attacks.

He emphasized that the UK must issue a straightforward warning to Putin:

“If you continue to murder men, women, and children with glide bombs launched from Russia, then we will lead the rest of the world to authorize our long-range missiles to take out your launchers, regardless of where they happen to be – even inside Russia.”

SPOILER

^{Grant Shapps. Photo: Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom}

In his opinion, now is the time to remind ourselves that what is happening in Ukraine is not just about Ukraine.

“This applies to us as well. It is about protecting our entire way of life… Putin is wrong about us. Supporting a system with democratic winners and losers is not a weakness. It is a strength. But we can only sustain it if we stand up for others whose democracy is under threat,” Shapps said.

He also called on other countries to allow Ukraine to use long-range weapons against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation.

“We should provide permission for our Storm Shadows to be used and invite the French, the Americans, and even our more reticent German partners to join us. With a simple ultimatum to Putin: stop your attacks on Ukraine, or we will support Ukraine’s response,” the former British Defense Secretary emphasized.

^{Storm Shadow cruise missile}

Previously, the U.S. Secretary of Defense stated that Ukraine has significant capabilities to attack long-range targets. Russia has moved its aircraft beyond the range of ATACMS, so the US is focusing on helping to defend Ukraine’s territory.

“Ukraine already has significant capabilities of its own to attack targets beyond the capabilities of ATACMS or Storm Shadow. We know that the Russians have moved their aircraft, which they use to launch bombs, beyond the range of ATACMS missiles. In the near term, we are focused on helping them be more effective in defending their territory,” Austin said.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:40 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Ja, "algemeen bekend" en "dat weet iedereen toch" zijn echt van die signaal woorden dat iemand uit z'n nek kletst.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 18:48 schreef 3rr0r het volgende:

[..]
[..]
[..]
[..]
https://nos.nl/artikel/25(...)rones-navo-luchtruim

Blijft apart dat ze die drones niet gewoon uit de lucht knallen, tenzij ze bang zijn dat er brokstukken op eigen bevolking vallen en dus maar liever hem laten inslaan op Oekrainse plekken. Polen heeft blijkbaar een soort toestemming nodig van de NAVO om z'n eigen grondgebied te verdedigen. Roemenie mag blijkbaar volgens hun wet geen drones neerhalen in eigen luchtruim omdat ze zelf niet in oorlog zijn. Klinkt bizar allemaal als ik dat zo lees.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:42 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Dat ben ik met je eens.
Maar sommigen denken dat eu nog veel mogelijkheden heeft om Rusland te stoppen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:55 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Als er geen harde reactie komt op het gebruik van een nucleaire wapen door Rusland (of welk land dan ook) geven wij hun toestemming en de prikkel om deze wapens te blijven gebruiken wanneer zij het willen. Dan laten wij aan Rusland zien dat wij hun geen strobreed in de weg gaan liggen.

Rusland zal zich sterk gaan voelen, en zal dit als zwakte zien van het westen. Die gaat dan alleen maar meer dreigen met de inzet van nucleaire wapens, wetend dat wij er niks tegen zullen doen omdat wij te bang zijn.

En het gaat niet alleen om de EU natuurlijk, al kan de EU Rusland gewoon de baas als het moet. Maar het gaat om de gehele NAVO en ook bijvoorbeeld China die ook duidelijk tegen het gebruik van deze wapens is.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:53 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Euhm Letland? Dat ligt niet naast Oekra�ne. Dat is geen afzwaaier. Dat is of totale incompetentie of een doelbewuste provocatie. Dit dossiertje begint toch ook wel urgent te worden.

De NAVO moet hier toch eens op gaan reageren, want dit begint nu echt de veiligheid van het bondgenootschappelijk grondgebied te raken.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:53 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Euhm Letland? Dat ligt niet naast Oekra�ne. Dat is geen afzwaaier. Dat is of totale incompetentie of een doelbewuste provocatie. Dit dossiertje begint toch ook wel urgent te worden.

De NAVO moet hier toch eens op gaan reageren, want dit begint nu echt de veiligheid van het bondgenootschappelijk grondgebied te raken.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:56 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
Andersom: Letland moet dat doen. Die kunnen NAVO inschakelen.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:56 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Wat wil je doen dan? Rusland van de kaart vegen omdat ze een tactische nuke inzetten?

Het Westen kan beter voorbereid zijn op een dergelijk scenario, is een kwestie van tijd voor ze dat doen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:00 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Slappelingen.

quote:

Ukrainian Mountain Infantry armed with FPV drone with thermite

^{FPV drone of the Ukrainian military with a thermite munition. September 2024, Ukraine. Frame from video 10th Mountain Assault Brigade}

In the Donetsk region, the Ukrainian Mountain Infantry received thermite munitions that can be installed on drones.

The 108th Separate Mountain Assault Battalion demonstrated the use of this ammunition in a forest plantation with the invaders.

An Arkan Unmanned Aerial Systems Unit conducted the combat work. The termite ammunition was used near the village of Vesele in the Donetsk region.

The thermite mixture was dropped to Russian positions using FPV drones.

SPOILER

Гірську піхоту озброїлили FPV-дрона з термітом

Thermite is a combination of oxidized iron and aluminum that burns at a temperature of about 2,400 degrees Celsius.

This is enough to set fire not only to dry grass but also to trees and other vegetation.

^{FPV drone of the Ukrainian military with a thermite munition. September 2024, Ukraine. Frame from video 10th Mountain Assault Brigade}

The use of thermite provides a large-area effect. The impact of this weapon on the enemy’s morale must also be considered.

The ammunition carried by the drone is designed so that after firing, it starts to burn in flight. The warhead’s weight is unknown, but it could be more than a few kilograms.

This is possible, given that the most powerful 13-inch FPV drones can carry up to 8 kilograms of payload over a distance of up to 5 kilometers.

^{10-inch SPIDER-2 FPV drone. February 2024, Ukraine. Photo credits: eurosolidarity.org}

UAV operators have previously used thermite to drop from drones into the hatches of abandoned enemy armored vehicles and onto the roofs of buildings where enemy troops are located.

In addition, thermite can also burn through the steel hull of lightly armored vehicles and easily melt the aluminum armor of vehicles such as BMD-4 and BMP-3.

^{Ukrainian thermite munition is adapted for dropping from a drone}

Typically, such munitions are made in the form of charges weighing up to 1 kilogram in a square-shaped metal case that prevents possible rolling during a fall.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:56 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Wat wil je doen dan? Rusland van de kaart vegen omdat ze een tactische nuke inzetten?

Het Westen kan beter voorbereid zijn op een dergelijk scenario, is een kwestie van tijd voor ze dat doen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:00 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Slappelingen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:03 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Pfoe ja. Dat is niet best. Heeft Scholz het tegenwoordig ook al voor het zeggen in Roemeni�? Men wat laf.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:03 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Pfoe ja. Dat is niet best. Heeft Scholz het tegenwoordig ook al voor het zeggen in Roemeni�? Men wat laf.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:09 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
1: De VS chanteert iedereen gewoon om het niet te doen want anders. Een kwezel scholz wijst slechts naar dat gedrag en verklaart olijk richting de media dat hij reuze in de pas loopt
2: Die landen willen een zekere garantie, dat als dit hun de oorlog in trekt ze gesteund worden

Ik vind 1 waarschijnlijker. Want rus gaat niet eens weten als jij een drone neerhaalt dat jij dat gedaan hebt. Die dingen pleuren immers vaak zat zelf uit de lucht, bv.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:09 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
1: De VS chanteert iedereen gewoon om het niet te doen want anders. Een kwezel scholz wijst slechts naar dat gedrag en verklaart olijk richting de media dat hij reuze in de pas loopt
2: Die landen willen een zekere garantie, dat als dit hun de oorlog in trekt ze gesteund worden

Ik vind 1 waarschijnlijker. Want rus gaat niet eens weten als jij een drone neerhaalt dat jij dat gedaan hebt. Die dingen pleuren immers vaak zat zelf uit de lucht, bv.

quote:

Iranian official confirms transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia

^{Launcher for Iranian Zolfaghar ballistic missiles. Photo from the open sources}

Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani, a member of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, has admitted that Iranian ballistic missiles were sent to Russia.

According to Iran International, he shared this in an interview with the Didban Iran newspaper.

According to Ardestani, Iran is forced to barter with Russia “to meet our needs, including imports of soybeans and wheat.”

“Part of the barter involves sending missiles, and the other part involves sending military drones to Russia,” the Iranian official said.

SPOILER

^{Launcher for Iranian Zolfaghar ballistic missiles. Photo from the open sources}

Asked whether sending ballistic missiles to Russia could lead to further sanctions against Iran, the Iranian official replied that “it can’t get any worse than this.”

“We give missiles to Hezbollah, Hamas, and Hashd al-Shaabi (Shiite militia in Iraq – Ed.), so why not give them to Russia?” Ardestani said.

According to the Iranian official, Iran sells weapons and receives dollars, bypassing sanctions through partnership with Russia.

“We import soybeans, corn, and other goods from Russia. Europeans sell weapons to Ukraine. NATO has entered Ukraine, so why don’t we support our ally by sending missiles and drones to Russia,” he says.

^{Fath-360 ballistic missile during military exercises. 2022, Iran. Photo: Fars Media Corporation}

On September 6, Militarnyi reported that the United States had informed its allies that Iranian missiles had been transferred to Russia.

The Group of Seven countries previously promised to impose coordinated sanctions against Iran if it supplies missiles to Russia.

On September 2, Bloomberg reported, citing sources, that Iran would soon transfer ballistic missiles to Russia.

Official Tehran has not commented on the transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:13 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
In het geval van Polen zei de regering dat zij bang waren dat als zij zo'n drone zouden neerhalen er mogelijk Poolse burgers in gevaar zouden komen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:02 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Waar blijkt dat precies uit? Zodra Poetin een nucleair wapen inzet is hij gewoon uitgespeeld. En dat weet hij zelf ook wel. Hoe? Ik zou even naar Petraeus luisteren: https://www.theguardian.c(...)e-war-david-petraeus

Het grootste probleem in dit scenario is overigens vooral een eventuele Trump-regering. Niet zo zeer de Russen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:18 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
En als je nou zo'n traject van zo'n drone pakt, gaat die dan soms 100% van de tijd over bewoonde gebieden ofzo? Is polen een soort mega-city one?

Maar goed; excusen waarom iets niet kan, niet mag, geen zin heeft, etc, vliegen ons al vanaf dag 1 van deze oorlog om de oren, en jouw capaciteit om die te ontwaren blijft treurig tekort schieten.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:17 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://mil.in.ua/en/news(...)-missiles-to-russia/
[..]

SPOILER

[ afbeelding ]
^{Launcher for Iranian Zolfaghar ballistic missiles. Photo from the open sources}

Asked whether sending ballistic missiles to Russia could lead to further sanctions against Iran, the Iranian official replied that “it can’t get any worse than this.”

“We give missiles to Hezbollah, Hamas, and Hashd al-Shaabi (Shiite militia in Iraq – Ed.), so why not give them to Russia?” Ardestani said.

According to the Iranian official, Iran sells weapons and receives dollars, bypassing sanctions through partnership with Russia.

“We import soybeans, corn, and other goods from Russia. Europeans sell weapons to Ukraine. NATO has entered Ukraine, so why don’t we support our ally by sending missiles and drones to Russia,” he says.
[ afbeelding ]
^{Fath-360 ballistic missile during military exercises. 2022, Iran. Photo: Fars Media Corporation}

On September 6, Militarnyi reported that the United States had informed its allies that Iranian missiles had been transferred to Russia.

The Group of Seven countries previously promised to impose coordinated sanctions against Iran if it supplies missiles to Russia.

On September 2, Bloomberg reported, citing sources, that Iran would soon transfer ballistic missiles to Russia.

Official Tehran has not commented on the transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:22 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Waarom zou ik naar een ex-generaal luisteren die bovendien louter voor eigen parochie spreekt?

Een dergelijk scenario is helemaal nooit besproken met hem laat staan de eventuele reactie. Hij is geen official meer. Het is allemaal hypothetisch oftewel hij lult maar wat.

Zeker nu die basis ontdekt is en Poetin mogelijk over ICBM's kan beschikken die het raket-schild ondermijnen geloof ik niet dat ze alles op het spel gaan zetten voor Oekra�ne.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:13 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]


En als zo'n drone op zich zelf neerstort en schade of doden/gewonden veroorzaakt zou dat gewoon een artikel 5 kunnen zijn.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:26 schreef Elan het volgende:
schurkenstaat Ukraine

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:28 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Oh ik ben in zo’n discussie beland. Laat maar.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:27 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Welke basis?

Maar los daarvan denk ik dat je de impact van de inzet van een nucleair wapen Ietwat onderschat. Als je daar niet meer op reageert als westerse wereld is elke geloofwaardigheid weg.

En vergeet ook niet dat zijn kameraden uit China daar ook niet op zitten te wachten.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:30 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Iedereen die Putin niet meteen overal zijn ego�stische klote-zin in geeft is een boefje, snap dat dan!

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:28 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Oh ik ben in zo’n discussie beland. Laat maar.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:33 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Ik bedoel daarmee te zeggen dat het een immens corrupt en armlastig land is. Niet voor niets geen bondgenoot.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:27 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Welke basis?

Maar los daarvan denk ik dat je de impact van de inzet van een nucleair wapen Ietwat onderschat. Als je daar niet meer op reageert als westerse wereld is elke geloofwaardigheid weg.

En vergeet ook niet dat zijn kameraden uit China daar ook niet op zitten te wachten.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:34 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Zegt de fanboy van het ultra-corrupte en veel armoedigere rusland.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:33 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Ik bedoel daarmee te zeggen dat het een immens corrupt en armlastig land is. Niet voor niets geen bondgenoot.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:38 schreef Elan het volgende:

Juist dat expliciet toejuichen van agressie maakt jou een fanboy.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:36 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Rusland heeft tactische nucleaire wapens uit de S-3134 en S-3030 klasse die die heel gericht kunnen worden ingezet. Mede mogelijk gemaakt door Nederlandse chips.

Dan heb je het (inclusief fall out) over een gebied van 80-100 kilometer dat besmet raakt. Onacceptabel maar ga je echt alles riskeren? Denk je dat ze/we dat aandurven?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:32 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
https://www.reuters.com/w(...)-missile-2024-09-02/

Ze denken dat het allemaal wel meevalt maar ze weten niet precies hoe ze het moeten interpreteren. Zelfde met die verplaatsing van Iraanse raketten, ze zijn als de dood voor verdere escalatie. En terecht.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:38 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Ik ben geen fan van deze oorlog, anders was ik de hele dag wel dode Ukrainers aan het posten zoals jij maar al te graag doet met Russen.

Juist dat expliciet toejuichen van agressie maakt jou een fanboy.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:38 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Ik ben geen fan van deze oorlog, anders was ik de hele dag wel dode Ukrainers aan het posten zoals jij maar al te graag doet met Russen.

Juist dat expliciet toejuichen van agressie maakt jou een fanboy.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:36 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Rusland heeft tactische nucleaire wapens uit de S-3134 en S-3030 klasse die die heel gericht kunnen worden ingezet. Mede mogelijk gemaakt door Nederlandse chips.

Dan heb je het (inclusief fall out) over een gebied van 80-100 kilometer dat besmet raakt. Onacceptabel maar ga je echt alles riskeren? Denk je dat ze/we dat aandurven?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:45 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Waarom zou (bijvoorbeeld) het laten regenen van bommen op Russische stellingen in Oekra�ne ‘alles riskeren’ zijn?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:27 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Dat is precies het punt. Ze proberen een (mogelijk per ongeluk) artikel 5 te voorkomen, want dan moeten ze iets doen. En wat dan? En wat zijn de gevolgen?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:49 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Omdat een kat in het nauw rare sprongen maakt die je nu eenmaal nooit precies kunt voorspellen.

Verder een kuldiscussie, niemand uit het Westen met enige autoriteit heeft een dergelijk scenario ooit geopperd. Poetin daarentegen heeft wel degelijk concrete dreigementen geuit en beschikt over de middelen en zeggenschap om ze te gebruiken.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:49 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Omdat een kat in het nauw rare sprongen maakt die je nu eenmaal nooit precies kunt voorspellen.

Verder een kuldiscussie, niemand uit het Westen met enige autoriteit heeft een dergelijk scenario ooit geopperd. Poetin daarentegen heeft wel degelijk concrete dreigementen geuit en beschikt over de middelen en zeggenschap om ze te gebruiken.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:50 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Poetin uit al jaren dreigementen. Hij maakt ze nooit waar. Over onzin gesproken zeg

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:42 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Ja, een goeie orc is een dooie orc, dat heb jij goed gezien.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:54 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Hij is ook nog niet in de situatie gekomen dat het zover moest komen.

Als jij denkt dat de Zwarte Zeevloot laten zinken en alle materieel in Oekra�ne decimeren tot een hoopje as realistisch gezien tot de Westerse mogelijkheden behoorde hadden ze dat allang kunnen doen .

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:43 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
De vraag is of Rusland alles gaat riskeren.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:55 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Dat lijkt me een kwestie van tijd. Wat gaan die raketten uit Iran daar doen denk je?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:57 schreef mascara-klodder het volgende:

[..]
hahaatjes.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:00 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Het lachen vergaat jullie wel als India zich er straks op grote schaal mee gaat bemoeien

quote:

Leopard 1 tanks to receive new engine from Rolls-Royce and FFG

^{Leopard 1 tank with MTU 8V199 engine}
Armored vehicles Europe Repair and maintenance of military equipment Tank World
Rolls-Royce and FFG are working on the concept of re-equipping Leopard 1 tanks with the new MTU 8V199 engine.

Rolls-Royce stated that this need is dictated by the fact that the German MTU MB838 engine is no longer in production.

In addition to tanks, platforms based on the Leopard 1 will also be switched to the new power unit.

This applies to Wisent 1 demining vehicles, BPz2 armored recovery vehicles, Biber bridge pavers, Dachs engineering vehicles, and Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns.

The 8V199 provides 800 kW of power, which is 190 kW more than the original engine.

SPOILER

^{The MTU MB838 engine of the Leopard 1 tank, 2013. Photo: flickr.com}

In addition, it is cheaper, lighter, and has longer service intervals and service life.

Many armies cannot afford to replace their Leopard 1 fleet with more modern vehicles, so they must be preserved for long-term use.

Nine countries worldwide still operate 4,700 Leopard 1 units. From 2023, Ukraine also relies on Leopard 1 vehicles and tanks.

It is noted that the MTU 199 series has been tested on many types of military equipment and is used, in particular, to equip Boxer family armored vehicles.

^{MTU 8V199 TE21 engine for Boxer armored personnel carriers, 2023. Photo credits: @RyszardJonski}

FFG will develop and manufacture the power supply based on the 8V199 mtu, as well as be responsible for the cooling concept and interface adaptation to the overall system.

ZF will also participate in the project, supplying the 4HP250 transmission and providing technical support for the 8V199 engine.

^{Leopard 1A5 tank of the Ukrainian military in the Kharkiv region. November 2023. Ukraine. Frame from AFP video}

As a reminder, a total of 110 Leopard 1 tanks are to be delivered to Ukraine through the joint efforts of Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:02 schreef Elan het volgende:
De invloedsfeer van Poetin is veel groter dan men in het Westen denkt.

Niet voor niks kan hij zich prima staande houden in deze oorlog ondanks alle sancties en de miljarden en geavanceerde wapens aan steun aan Ukraine.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:54 schreef Elan het volgende:
Als jij denkt dat de Zwarte Zeevloot laten zinken en alle materieel in Oekra�ne decimeren tot een hoopje as realistisch gezien tot de Westerse mogelijkheden behoorde

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:55 schreef Elan het volgende:
Wat gaan die raketten uit Iran daar doen denk je?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:00 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Het lachen vergaat jullie wel als India zich er straks op grote schaal mee gaat bemoeien

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:02 schreef Elan het volgende:
De invloedsfeer van Poetin is veel groter dan men in het Westen denkt.

Niet voor niks kan hij zich prima staande houden in deze oorlog ondanks alle sancties en de miljarden en geavanceerde wapens aan steun aan Ukraine.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:18 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Rusland houdt zich staande tegenover Oekra�ne. Een land die op papier veel zwakker zou moeten zijn. Dat is geen compliment. Zij dachten Oekra�ne wel even in een paar dagen te kunnen veroveren tenslotte.

En dan houden zij zich nauwelijks staande. Hun economie is al aan gort, een Zwarte Zeevloot, wat er van over is in elk geval is met de staart tussen de benen uit de Zwarte zee gevlucht. Zij zijn al meer dan de helft aan hun voorradige materieel verloren, en hun productie kan dat gewoon niet bij benen. Ook hebben zij meer dan 500.000 soldaten verloren om een relatief klein stukje Oekra�ne te veroveren.

https://www.reddit.com/r/(...)ber_12th2022_leftvs/
Russian occupied areas November 12th,2022 (left)vs September 3rd,2024 (right). Russia has lost more than 500k troops between the two dates.
[ afbeelding ]

Het echte succes hadden zij in de eerste 6-8 maanden of zo. Daarna is het alleen maar bergafwaarts gegaan.

Zij moeten nu zelfs om hulp bedelen bij Wit-Rusland, Noord Korea en Iran voor wapens

Met de aanval in Kursk heeft Oekra�ne in een paar weken tijd bijna meer grondgebied gepakt dan Rusland in 2023 en 2024 in totaal heeft kunnen pakken.

En het heeft Oekra�ne geen 500.000 verliezen gekost.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:54 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Hij is ook nog niet in de situatie gekomen dat het zover moest komen.

Als jij denkt dat de Zwarte Zeevloot laten zinken en alle materieel in Oekra�ne decimeren tot een hoopje as realistisch gezien tot de Westerse mogelijkheden behoorde hadden ze dat allang kunnen doen .

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:55 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Dat lijkt me een kwestie van tijd. Wat gaan die raketten uit Iran daar doen denk je?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:25 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Hulp bedelen haha. Draai het eens om.

De hele wereld met al haar kapitaal en geavanceerde wapens helpt Ukraine en nog kunnen ze niet winnen.

Je onderschat hoe machtig Rusland is en hoeveel steun zij krijgen. De komende maanden zal het tij keren voor de Russen als zij de energievoorziening van Ukraine platleggen en de bevolking (letterlijk) in de kou komt te zitten. Want zij kunnen in tegenstelling tot Ukraine wel doelen diep in het binnenland en met name Kiev rake . Het feit dat ze Pokrovst zo binnen kunnen vallen zegt wel dat Ukraine zijn hand overspeeld heeft met die aanvallen op Russisch grondgebied.

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:08 schreef Ulx het volgende:

[..]
En dan waait er een wolk radioactieve rotzooi over de grens en geven EU-burgers ineens licht.

Dat moeten we dan maar accepteren?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:00 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Het lachen vergaat jullie wel als India zich er straks op grote schaal mee gaat bemoeien

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:29 schreef Elan het volgende:
De zogenaamd 'totaal vernietigde' Zwarte Zeevloot krijgt regelmatig nieuwe schepen.

https://www.navalnews.com(...)ian-black-sea-fleet/

Jammer dat men hier zo'n onvolledig beeld schetst.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:27 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Maar india is de nieuwe cope? Want het eindelijk geland dat china niet het vriendje is dat ze dachten?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:29 schreef Elan het volgende:
De zogenaamd 'totaal vernietigde' Zwarte Zeevloot krijgt regelmatig nieuwe schepen.

https://www.navalnews.com(...)ian-black-sea-fleet/

Jammer dat men hier zo'n onvolledig beeld schetst.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:29 schreef Elan het volgende:
De zogenaamd 'totaal vernietigde' Zwarte Zeevloot krijgt regelmatig nieuwe schepen.

https://www.navalnews.com(...)ian-black-sea-fleet/

Jammer dat men hier zo'n onvolledig beeld schetst.

quote:

Drowning out the screams
A former Ukrainian prisoner of war describes the torture he withstood during almost two years in Russian captivity

^{A monument in Kyiv to the resilience of the Ukrainian prisoners of war captured in the Azovstal Iron and Steel works in Mariupol, May 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE/SERGEY DOLZHENKO}

Despite being just 24 years old, Andriy Kulko, a former PE teacher from Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, has already experienced a great deal in life. Enlisting in the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) the year before the war started, he found himself in the inferno of Mariupol for three months in early 2022, where he was eventually captured by Russian forces. He then spent one year, eight months and 21 days being tortured in Russian captivity, a torment that only ended when he was returned to Ukraine in a prisoner exchange in January.

“I always wanted to be in the army or in law enforcement,” he recalls. “I suppose I had a heightened sense of justice.” He served in Ukraine’s National Guard and was stationed in the Donetsk region when the Russian invasion began in February 2022.

On the very first day of the war, Kulko’s company was deployed to Mariupol, where it soon found itself pinned down by the Russian military encircling the city. “I saw it all. Bombs hitting residential buildings. The bodies of dead civilians. The bodies of our soldiers. I helped get our lads out of the rubble,” he remembers.

In April 2022, Kolko was captured and taken to the notorious Olenivka prison camp, which made the headlines that July when a massive blast killed dozens of POWs. While Kulko had already been transferred to another camp by that time, he can nevertheless clearly recall the brutal beatings administered to him and his fellow POWs upon their arrival in Olenivka. “Six people beat us using different objects: wooden sticks, rubber truncheons, leather belts, and the like.”

SPOILER

^{Andriy Kulko before the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022.}

Ryazhsk
From Olenivka, Kulko was taken to the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, from where he was flown to the town of Ryazhsk in central Russia. There, he spent around 10 months in a detention centre before being transferred to a prison in the republic of Mordovia on 1 February 2023.

The Ryazhsk detention centre was frequented by Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officers and investigators who tortured Ukrainian POWs to obtain any information they could and considered all prisoners captured in Mariupol to be “Nazis” and “terrorists” due to potential ties with the Azov Battalion.

“They asked me whether I killed soldiers, whether I killed civilians, and used all kinds of physical and psychological torture while they were at it,” he recalls.

“They’d put a plastic bag over your head and choke you. Then they’d beat you with rubber truncheons, punch you, kick you, taser you,” recounts Kulko. During interrogations, FSB officers would also violate Ukrainian soldiers with plastic tubes and torture them with electricity from a field telephone. “If you wire it up to certain parts of the body… they called it ‘putting a call through’. They’d turn the rotary dial, like on an old phone, and it would generate electricity,” he explains.

“They’d put a plastic bag over your head and choke you. Then they’d beat you with rubber truncheons, punch you, kick you, taser you.”

During the three months of the “investigation”, the prisoners were tortured almost daily. “Some couldn’t withstand the torture and said things that they shouldn’t have,” Kulko says. Those who confessed to committing “war crimes” under torture were taken to court in the Donetsk or Luhansk regions.

Many of Kulko’s fellow soldiers were given prison sentences, but Kulko managed to hold out without confessing to anything. “I think I just got lucky. That was the only option,” he says. After three months of interrogations the worst torture was over. “The rest was more tolerable,” Kulko adds.

^{Kulko after being captured. The photo on the left shows a group of Ukrainian POWs, including Kulko (R).}

Mordovia
From Ryazhsk, Kulko and his fellow soldiers were sent to a penal colony in the Mordovian settlement of Udarny, where he was imprisoned until the swap that freed him in January.

Kulko claims that the torture in Mordovia was not as severe as in Ryazhsk, but the prison staff found all sorts of ways to abuse the POWs. “As soon as we arrived, they started beating and humiliating us. They stripped us naked and made us stand right next to each other. Then they took us to the investigator one by one where we were beaten head to toe and brought back to the cell. In the cell we were forced to stay on our feet for 16 hours a day.”

“Head down, eyes on the floor, hands behind your back. Every day for 11 months.”

Day after day, the prisoners had to stand in their cells from morning till night. Kulko recalls that the cells were equipped with surveillance cams. “Head down, eyes on the floor, hands behind your back. Every day for 11 months.”

^{Illustration: Alisa Krasnikova / Novaya Gazeta Europe}

“If someone talked or moved without a command, or turned their head… The door would open and they would be taken away for a beating,” he says.

After one of the beatings, Kulko started having serious issues with one of his legs, which he says began to rot. The POWs did not receive any medical care. Doctors later told Kulko that the beatings had caused a blood clot to form in his leg, which restricted blood flow to the tissue above the ankle and which eventually led to it rotting. Despite this, Kulko continued to stand in his cell in an attempt to avoid even more severe beatings.

“One toe on my left foot stopped working. This also had to do with the fact that we were standing all the time, which meant fluid accumulated in the feet, leading to ulcers — holes, really. You could stick half your little finger in those holes. The surgeon told me that I was an inch away from blood poisoning,” Kulko says.

^{This is what Kulko’s legs looked like immediately after his release.}

“I was in pain round the clock. I couldn’t sleep for weeks and began losing my mind. And then there were the suicidal thoughts, of course,” he admits. “But my cellmates kept my spirits up. And it was only with God’s help that I got through.”

Doctors would occasionally visit the prison, but rarely provided any medical care. “One doctor would ask if anyone needed a pill. But when you put your hand out, occasionally he’d taser you. I don’t know why. Sometimes he behaved normally and actually handed out pills. But occasionally something would click in his head and he’d taser your hand,” Kulko recalls.

Of the nine other prisoners with whom Kulko shared his cell, eight were also POWs while one was a civilian who had been captured on occupied territory.

“Even standing in there was a squeeze, not to mention walking around…The toilet had no doors,” Kulko recalls. “Toilet paper wasn’t always around. We only had a tiny tube of toothpaste for 10 people. It was horrid.”

“We figured out how to talk at least a little, as without talking you could really go crazy.”

The prisoners were allowed to use the toilet only on command, and sometimes not everyone could make it in time. If someone used it without permission, they would be taken away for another beating.

The prisoners were given three poor quality meals a day. “For breakfast we had porridge without salt or sugar, with one and a half pieces of bread. For lunch and dinner they gave us porridge and something similar to soup. Sometimes we got potatoes, but then the staff mentioned that those were meant for feeding animals. They had a weird taste, but we didn’t care what we ate.”

The prisoners were also forbidden from talking to each other, but they found ways to communicate clandestinely — by whispering and holding their heads down to conceal the movement of their lips. “You get used to everything,” Kulko says. “We figured out how to talk at least a little, as without talking you could really go crazy.”

They talked about anything and everything — cars, girls, books, movies… “I retold all seven Harry Potter books. I’m a big fan,” Kulko admits.

^{Illustration: Alisa Krasnikova / Novaya Gazeta Europe}

“We tried not to lose heart, although it didn’t always work because we were constantly told: ‘Ukraine doesn’t exist anymore, no one is waiting for you, no one needs you’. Or: ‘We’ve only got to capture Lviv, and then there’ll be no Ukraine. Only foreign soldiers are fighting there — Americans, Poles, the French. None of your soldiers are left, we killed them all’,” he recalls.

Sometimes, Kulko begrudgingly admits, he was tempted to believe what the Russians were telling him. “I’ll be honest, there was a bit of Stockholm syndrome when you start to believe the terrorists. That happened from time to time. But then that sympathy passed, thank God. And after that, well, we were driven by hatred.”

After a while, new staff arrived at the prison and continued the beatings. “They had this big wooden mallet for checking cells. You’re supposed to use it on doorways, on the beds — if something is attached there, it will fall off. But they used it to beat us. We would go out into the halls, and they would beat us there,” Kulko recalls.

“We tried not to lose heart, although it didn’t always work because we were constantly told: ‘Ukraine doesn’t exist anymore, no one is waiting for you, no one needs you’.”

In an attempt to drown out the prisoners’ screams, prison staff would play loud music — but the screaming could still be heard.

“They would also set dogs on us. They forced us to crawl out of our cells and lie on the floor, and then the dogs would attack us, biting us until we were all bloody.”

The POWs were forced to sing the Russian national anthem eight times a day and learn Russian propaganda poetry — “thank God I don’t remember any of it anymore,” Kulko adds.

Some of the older officers treated the prisoners somewhat better — they did not beat them, allowed them to walk outside from time to time and permitted them to take longer showers. “Whereas the younger ones were completely brainwashed by propaganda about ‘murderous Ukrainians’ and beat us very badly,” Kulko continues.

One prison officer told Kulko about the existence of a document approved by the Russian Defence Ministry that detailed how to treat POWs and “destroy them physically and psychologically”.

^{Ukrainian POWs released in the January swap that Kulko was freed in. Photo: Volodymyr Zelensky’s Telegram channel}

The prisoner swap
Until the very last moment, Kulko had no idea that he was being exchanged and thought that he was simply being transferred to another prison. On the evening of 2 January, he and his cellmates were removed from their cells, told to change into new clothes, had bags placed over their heads and were loaded into cars and then put on an aeroplane. Kulko only realised that an exchange was taking place when the bag was removed from his head at the border between the Russian city of Belgorod and Ukraine’s Sumy region.

During the exchange, Kulko saw the Russian POWs — “they were all clean, well-kempt, not thin. It was rather frustrating. But I am comforted by the thought that we have to adhere to the Geneva Conventions because we are human beings. Whereas the way we were treated is on their conscience.”

After the exchange, a Ukrainian officer approached Kulko and offered to call his parents. “I called them — there were tears, screaming, lots of joy… It was an unforgettable moment,” he recalls. “They were very happy, of course. But they didn’t believe it was me at first.”

^{Ukrainian POWs released in the prisoner swap with Russia on 3 January that Kulko was freed in. Photo: Dmytro Lubinets / Facebook}

When asked what gave him the strength to endure the horrors of captivity, Kulko says: “Firstly, it was my parents. I considered suicide, but then I thought it would be devastating for my parents not to see me after I’d gone through so much in Mariupol. And secondly, my faith. Faith in something divine, you might say. Although I’m agnostic. I am Orthodox, I wear a cross, but nevertheless I consider myself agnostic”.

“I had hallucinations: I’d hallucinate lights or have music from the Russian prison constantly playing in my head.”

Upon his release, Kulko weighed just 55 kilograms — 20 less than his normal weight. He spent seven months in a Kyiv hospital where he underwent several surgeries. “They cut out a vein in my leg and several lymph nodes. My spine and the cerebral contusions also gave me trouble,” he recalls.

At first, he was unable to sleep at all for almost a week. “I had hallucinations: I’d hallucinate lights or have music from the Russian prison constantly playing in my head,” he says. “And I still keep having dreams about the war and my time in captivity.”

“I’ve been told that I’ll be fine if I visit a psychologist regularly. It just takes time,” he adds.

It’s now been a month since Kulko returned home to Zaporizhzhia. He’s now back to a healthy weight and is doing far better, but still has difficulty walking without a cane. He continues to serve in the military, doing administrative duties for the AFU.

“I think justice will eventually be served. I really hope it will.”

Kulko now plans to move to Lviv and get a second university degree in international conflict studies. “I have a lot of anger,” Kulko admits. “But I know I’m no use in combat anymore. So I think I’ll have to do something on an international level.”

Kulko has already given testimony to Ukrainian investigators, the security services, the International Red Cross, and the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine about his experiences in Russian captivity, and says that though he finds it challenging to retell his story time and time again, he feels it is important.

“You have to inform people so that they know the truth about what’s really going on there. There are now multiple proven facts about what happens to POWs in Russia, so I think justice will eventually be served. I really hope it will.”

^{Kulko in Kyiv after his release. “My captivity continues while my brothers are there,” the poster on the left reads.}

quote:

Ukrainian troops destroyed a bridge near the village of Karyzh in the Kursk region

^{Damaged bridge near the village of Karizh in Kurshchyna. September 2024. Russia. A frame from the Khorne Group video}

The Ukrainian military struck a bridge near the Russian village of Karyzh in the Kursk region.

The Surveillance and Target Acquisition Battery “Khorne Group” of the 116th Mechanized Brigade published footage of the attacks.

The Ukrainian forces presumably used a U.S. HIMARS or M270 rocket system to strike the target.

The bridge has been heavily damaged, but the Russians can install planks allowing light vehicles to cross.

SPOILER

На Курщині ЗСУ розбили міст біля села Кариж

The village of Karyzh is located on the banks of the Seim River, 7 km from the Russian-Ukrainian border, 127 km southwest of Kursk, 12 km northwest of the district center, the urban-type settlement of Glushkovo.

The beginning of the Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region in August 2024 caused most residents of Karyzh to be evacuated to Kursk.

<sup>A bridge near the village of Karyzh in the Kursk region before the attack by Ukrainian forces. September 2024, Russia. Frame from the video of the Khorne Group


A bridge near the village of Karyzh in the Kursk region after an attack by Ukrainian forces. September 2024, Russia. Frame from the video of the Khorne Group


The location of the bridge near the village of Karyzh on the DeepState map


The location of the bridge near the village of Karyzh on the DeepState map</sup>

A month ago, Ukrainian troops crossed the border and entered Russian territory in the Kursk region.

Currently, they hold over a thousand square kilometers, dozens of villages, and a district center in Sudzha.

Since the second half of August, the Ukrainian army has been conducting an operation to isolate the area near the town of Glushkovo.

^{Glushkovo on the Deepstate map}

The Armed Forces of Ukraine are destroying bridges and pontoon crossings over the Seim River, hampering supplies to the Russian troops, sandwiched between this water barrier to the west and north, the Ukrainian border to the south, and advancing Ukrainian forces to the east.

The Ukrainian army destroys the reinforcement convoys of Russian forces heading to the area with air strikes and UAVs.

^{The Russian bridge over the Seim River before its destruction, Kursk region, August 16, 2024. Photo credits: Mash}

According to the German newspaper Bild, 2,000 to 3,000 Russian troops could theoretically be surrounded. However, the Ukrainian army is not forcing events in this area; as of early September, it was 10-12 kilometers from the district center of Glushkovo.

quote:

Ukrainians Receive New Tank Ammunition from Halfway Around the World

Recent images shared from the frontlines show ammunition with markings indicating it originated from India.
Reports have emerged of Ukrainian tank crews receiving shells from as far away as India.

A Notable Supplier
These explosive ordnance items, primarily high-explosive fragmentation rounds, are crucial in the ongoing conflict, highlighting the global network of ammunition supplies that Ukraine is tapping into, according to WP.

Recent images shared from the frontlines show ammunition with markings indicating it originated from India's state-run Munitions India Limited (MIL).

This marks a significant development, as the country has become a notable supplier of 125 mm shells, which are essential for Ukraine's tanks.

These shells have appeared in conjunction with statements from Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, who confirmed that the first shipment of ammunition to Ukraine has been delivered.

SPOILER

Simple but Significant
The 125 mm high-explosive fragmentation shells from India weigh a total of 33 kg, with the explosive payload alone weighing 23 kg.

Each shell is designed with an impact fuse and a steel casing filled with approximately three kilograms of TNT, which can generate around 2,000 deadly shrapnel pieces upon detonation.

While these munitions are simple in design, they pose a significant threat when multiple rounds are fired at once, especially in open terrain.

Ukraine has been using its tanks in a dual capacity, functioning both as artillery within a range of 10 to 12 kilometers and in tactical raids against Russian positions.

However, Ukraine's stock of Soviet-era ammunition has been depleted, prompting the need to source munitions globally. NATO countries, except for a few like Bulgaria, Poland, and the Czech Republic, face limitations in producing 125 mm shells, making India a valuable ally in supplying necessary armaments.

With this new influx of ammunition, Ukraine is better equipped to continue its defense against ongoing Russian aggression, utilizing every available resource to strengthen its military capabilities.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:00 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Het lachen vergaat jullie wel als India zich er straks op grote schaal mee gaat bemoeien

SPOILER

Translation. This is what it looks like after an fpv drone hit. This is why we need jammers and anti drone guns. Unfortunately the driver-mechanic didn't make it.

SPOILER

"
"Alright, we're about to disassemble the next tank, and Andy's here to help."

Andy: "Serge, your toolbox is perfect for this. We’ll need to take off some spare parts."

"Two wheels."

"Serge, once again, we're using your toolbox to remove some parts."

(inaudible)

"A huge thanks to Serge Melnik for providing us with this toolbox. The moment we got it, we received a call and headed straight for repairs."

"Big thanks, the tools are top-notch."

"We're almost done, and this tank will be ready for both offensive and defensive operations. Serge Melnik, we really appreciate it. Victory will be ours!"

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 02:09 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://www.dagens.com/wa(...)way-around-the-world
[..]

SPOILER

Simple but Significant
The 125 mm high-explosive fragmentation shells from India weigh a total of 33 kg, with the explosive payload alone weighing 23 kg.

Each shell is designed with an impact fuse and a steel casing filled with approximately three kilograms of TNT, which can generate around 2,000 deadly shrapnel pieces upon detonation.

While these munitions are simple in design, they pose a significant threat when multiple rounds are fired at once, especially in open terrain.

Ukraine has been using its tanks in a dual capacity, functioning both as artillery within a range of 10 to 12 kilometers and in tactical raids against Russian positions.

However, Ukraine's stock of Soviet-era ammunition has been depleted, prompting the need to source munitions globally. NATO countries, except for a few like Bulgaria, Poland, and the Czech Republic, face limitations in producing 125 mm shells, making India a valuable ally in supplying necessary armaments.

With this new influx of ammunition, Ukraine is better equipped to continue its defense against ongoing Russian aggression, utilizing every available resource to strengthen its military capabilities.

[ x ]

quote:

Russian PoWs in Ukraine banned from calling home
Ukraine has stopped Russian prisoners of war from making calls to Russia; they are now only allowed to send letters.

Source: Dmytro Lubinets, Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner, on the national 24/7 newscast

Details: Lubinets noted that "more and more often, the Russians are killing Ukrainian prisoners of war, as documented not only by international organisations, but also by Ukrainian representatives". He believes that this is being encouraged by the Russian Federation's senior leadership.

There are four special camps for Russian prisoners of war in Ukraine, and the conditions there comply with the Geneva Conventions.

Quote: "To be honest, we are adjusting a few things. For example, there has been a lot of discussion about Russian prisoners of war being able to contact their relatives in the Russian Federation. Our position is very straightforward: under the Geneva Conventions, there is a right to correspondence, not [necessarily] phone calls.

As of today, we’ve been informed that the Russians [PoWs] can still write letters, but they can no longer make phone calls."

Background:
• CNN released a video showing Russian troops apparently executing three Ukrainian soldiers after they had surrendered on the Pokrovsk front.
• On 3 September, the Donetsk Oblast Prosecutor’s Office reported that Russian forces had shot three Ukrainian prisoners of war on the Toretsk front.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:33 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Ik bedoel daarmee te zeggen dat het een immens corrupt en armlastig land is. Niet voor niets geen bondgenoot.

quote:

Special Operations: Ukraine War in the Arctic
September 8, 2024: A Ukrainian intelligence operation carried out a surprise attack on a Russian air base near the Arctic Circle. This is 1,800 kilometers from Ukraine and was apparently carried out by Ukrainian operatives who, pretending to be Russian truck drivers, transported the drones to northwest Russia. This is a heavily forested area that is sparsely populated. It is also where several Russian naval and air bases are located. The Ukrainians attacked the air bases and the long-range Russian bombers that operated out of these bases for attacks on Ukraine. Russia believed these bases were safe because they were so far from Ukraine and had about a dozen Tu-95MS, Tu-22M3, and Tu-160 long-range bombers. These bombers fly to the Ukraine border, launch air-to-ground missiles and return to their base in the north.

The Ukrainian attack put several Russian bombers out of action. The Russians were mystified and the Ukrainians would only say that they did it without supplying any details. Given the geography of the situation, it was deduced that the Ukrainians transported the attack drones to northwest Russia and launched them from there. Because the Ukrainian and Russian languages are so similar, it is easy for Ukrainian intelligence to recruit Russian speaking Ukrainians to carry out this mission. Western economic sanctions and the usual lousy Russian maintenance practices have caused the Russian railroads to fall into such disrepair that they are no longer able to move much cargo. That means more work for commercial truckers and their vehicles, which can be smuggled in from China and Central Asia. Russian security forces have much else to do and don’t spend much time monitoring who is doing what with trucks.

The attack up north caused Russia to cancel an event in the Baltic Sea city of St Petersburg where two nuclear powered submarines and two surface ships were on display for the public to admire. These four navy vessels were withdrawn from the event and moved to an undisclosed location.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:36 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Dat zijn zeker vissersschepen, ze schieten al een tijdje niet meer op Odessa.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 01:25 schreef Elan het volgende:

[..]
Hulp bedelen haha. Draai het eens om.

De hele wereld met al haar kapitaal en geavanceerde wapens helpt Ukraine en nog kunnen ze niet winnen.

Je onderschat hoe machtig Rusland is en hoeveel steun zij krijgen. De komende maanden zal het tij keren voor de Russen als zij de energievoorziening van Ukraine platleggen en de bevolking (letterlijk) in de kou komt te zitten. Want zij kunnen in tegenstelling tot Ukraine wel doelen diep in het binnenland en met name Kiev rake . Het feit dat ze Pokrovst zo binnen kunnen vallen zegt wel dat Ukraine zijn hand overspeeld heeft met die aanvallen op Russisch grondgebied.

Niet dat ik dat alles toejuich maar je schetst in je verhaaltje wel een heel opportunistisch en eenzijdig beeld van het verloop van de oorlog.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 09:37 schreef icecreamfarmer_NL het volgende:

[..]
Dit hoor ik hier nu al vanaf het begin en het is je al vaker uitgelegd dat het zo niet werkt maar op 1 of andere manier blijf je die onzin herhalen.

Waarom doe je dat .

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 08:54 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Dit is wel een interessant dingetje. De blauwdrukken delen en ze die dingen zelf laten bouwen om daarmee doelen ver in Rusland op te blazen is natuurlijk wel wat anders dan die drones zelf leveren. Rusland kan hier niets van zeggen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 10:53 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Ik zeg: doen.

[ x ]

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 10:03 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 10:53 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Ik zeg: doen.

[ x ]

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:03 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Sprookjes, gaat niet gebeuren.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 10:59 schreef kl1172 het volgende:
Of is dat enkel voor de b�hne?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 10:03 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:03 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:

[..]
Sprookjes, gaat niet gebeuren.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:22 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
Ja, zal vast een "geheime afspraak zijn", ofzo

Want dat is toch "algemeen bekend" en "iedereen weet dat toch"

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:27 schreef Discombobulate het volgende:
De VS gaat daar niet mee akkoord

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:35 schreef kl1172 het volgende:
Amerika en co zitten daar absoluut niet op te wachten inderdaad.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:09 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Heeft Putin nou al in drie dagen Ukraine verovert?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:35 schreef kl1172 het volgende:
Amerika en co zitten daar absoluut niet op te wachten inderdaad.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 03:10 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://www.reddit.com/r/(...)or_the_russian_army/
Highway of death for the Russian army

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:54 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Nee maar hij gaat wel Europa veroveren. 🤡

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:35 schreef kl1172 het volgende:
Amerika en co zitten daar absoluut niet op te wachten inderdaad.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 12:50 schreef Zwoerd het volgende:

[..]
Hou op met die stropop, helemaal niemand is daar bang voor. Wat men zegt is dat als we Poetin zijn gang laten gaan, hij niet gaat stoppen met Oekra�ne en er nog een hoop meer ellende bij zal komen, waar wij in Europa ook last van gaan krijgen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 12:55 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Op zich is het een stropop, maar rusland kan wel voor veel problemen zorgen met alternatieve oorlogsvoering in o.a. Moldavie en de Baltische landen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 12:54 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Hele goede vergelijking mbt kopen van levensmiddelen.

Een loodgieter in moskou betaalt voor een bepaald mandje goederen 8% van z'n maandsalaris.

Een loodgieter in het hyper dure california nog geen 2%.

INSANE FOOD PRICES IN RUSSIA

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 13:03 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Hij gebruikt de Lenta supermarkt, ik de Perestrok supermarkt prijzen. Hou er ook rekening mee dat het pensioen zelfs zo laag als 130 dollar kan zijn. Officieel is het 23.000 roebel.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 11:54 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Nee maar hij gaat wel Europa veroveren. 🤡

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 13:11 schreef Papierversnipperaar het volgende:

[..]
Dan moet ie flink z'n best doen want dan moet ie het opnemen tegen alle stoere FOK!ers.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 13:01 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Ook West-Europa is reeds slachtoffer van de door de Russen gevoerde hybride oorlog.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 13:01 schreef spicymchaggis het volgende:

[..]
Ook West-Europa is reeds slachtoffer van de door de Russen gevoerde hybride oorlog.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 14:17 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
En als wij ons met die oorlog bemoeien zal het minder worden ja...

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 14:17 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
En als wij ons met die oorlog bemoeien zal het minder worden ja...

Spionage en wantrouwen aan de grens met Rusland

De Russische dreiging op de Noordpool

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 14:52 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
De oorlog komt ooknaar ons , Baltische staten eerst, Poetin is dol op macht
Spitsbergen is de Noorse Krim

Spionage en wantrouwen aan de grens met Rusland

De Russische dreiging op de Noordpool

Spitsbergen hoort bij Noorwegen , maar er wonen opeens steeds meer russen met een russich paspoort

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 14:50 schreef ExTec het volgende:

[..]
NIET ONZE OORLOG!!!!!11!!1!!1!!1!11!EINZ

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 14:52 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
De oorlog komt ooknaar ons , Baltische staten eerst, Poetin is dol op macht
Spitsbergen is de Noorse Krim, Groenland is dan de volgende

Spionage en wantrouwen aan de grens met Rusland

De Russische dreiging op de Noordpool

Spitsbergen hoort bij Noorwegen , maar er wonen opeens steeds meer russen met een russich paspoort

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 12:13 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Dat zuigt he, oorlog.

[ x ]

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:06 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Als hij op dit tempo doorgaat is hij hier over 25 jaar.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:10 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
dan is ie 117

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:23 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Bijna net zo oud als Biden.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:25 schreef kl1172 het volgende:

[..]
Voor Putin is dat geen probleem, die heeft de grondwet dan nog wel enkele malen aangepast zodat ie op de troon kan blijven zitten.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:25 schreef kl1172 het volgende:

[..]
Voor Putin is dat geen probleem, die heeft de grondwet dan nog wel enkele malen aangepast zodat ie op de troon kan blijven zitten.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 16:27 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Lijkt Rutte wel

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 16:27 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Lijkt Rutte wel

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 16:19 schreef michaelmoore het volgende:

[..]
zetten ze een doedskist naast de troon en heeft ie een AI robot die net zo verrot is alls hij zelf

quote:

Op zondag 8 september 2024 23:55 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
Als er geen harde reactie komt op het gebruik van een nucleaire wapen door Rusland (of welk land dan ook) geven wij hun toestemming en de prikkel om deze wapens te blijven gebruiken wanneer zij het willen. Dan laten wij aan Rusland zien dat wij hun geen strobreed in de weg gaan liggen.

Rusland zal zich sterk gaan voelen, en zal dit als zwakte zien van het westen. Die gaat dan alleen maar meer dreigen met de inzet van nucleaire wapens, wetend dat wij er niks tegen zullen doen omdat wij te bang zijn.

En het gaat niet alleen om de EU natuurlijk, al kan de EU Rusland gewoon de baas als het moet. Maar het gaat om de gehele NAVO en ook bijvoorbeeld China die ook duidelijk tegen het gebruik van deze wapens is.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 00:50 schreef trein2000 het volgende:

[..]
Poetin uit al jaren dreigementen. Hij maakt ze nooit waar. Over onzin gesproken zeg

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 17:30 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Misschien moeten wij onze houding wat gaan aanpassen tov Rusland, China, en andere landen.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 17:34 schreef Delenlill het volgende:

[..]
En hoe zie je je dat precies voor je? Rusland alle omringende landen maar met geweld in laten nemen? China hetzelfde laten doen? Denk je echt dat dat een betere oplossing is? Om deze landen gewoon te geven wat ze willen en de andere kant opkijken?

Op den duur zullen wij dan ook aan de beurt zijn.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 17:37 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Onzin. Het zou al schelen als wij geen (direct en indirect) landen zouden aanvallen. Interveni�ren in relaties (zoals in Oekraiene met de maidan revolutie), in het M-O. Etc etc.

We zijn bang, omdat we bang zijn dat onze eigen slachtoffers hetzelfde gaan terug doen. En met "we" bedoel ik de brede liberale elite.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 17:37 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Onzin. Het zou al schelen als wij geen (direct en indirect) landen zouden aanvallen. Interveni�ren in relaties (zoals in Oekraiene met de maidan revolutie), in het M-O. Etc etc.

We zijn bang, omdat we bang zijn dat onze eigen slachtoffers hetzelfde gaan terug doen. En met "we" bedoel ik de brede liberale elite.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:10 schreef inslagenreuring het volgende:

[..]
Wat zien we hier? Russische militaire doelen die geraakt worden?

Watch Ukrainian 'Vampire' rockets rain down on Russian city as cars scatter for safety

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:10 schreef inslagenreuring het volgende:

[..]
Wat zien we hier? Russische militaire doelen die geraakt worden?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 17:37 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:

[..]
Onzin. Het zou al schelen als wij geen (direct en indirect) landen zouden aanvallen. Interveni�ren in relaties (zoals in Oekraiene met de maidan revolutie), in het M-O. Etc etc.

We zijn bang, omdat we bang zijn dat onze eigen slachtoffers hetzelfde gaan terug doen. En met "we" bedoel ik de brede liberale elite.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 18:29 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Zweden sorteert al voor op het leveren van de Gripen.

quote:

EU considers blocking Slovakia’s funds over democratic backsliding - Bloomberg
The European Union is working on a proposal to censure Slovakia for the erosion of democratic norms, which could lead to the withholding of funds allocated to Bratislava, according to Bloomberg.

The European Commission has prepared a decision to initiate proceedings in response to Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s decision to dismantle a special prosecution office that handled corruption cases related to EU funds, sources familiar with the matter have informed the agency.

The process is in its early stages and will require approval from Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Approximately 80% of all public investments in Slovakia are funded by EU funds. Any potential issues with this funding would be a significant blow to the EU and Eurozone member states, which are already grappling with excessive fiscal deficits.

One proposal involves the Commission using its so-called conditionality mechanism, which allows the EU to freeze funding when it perceives that its money is at risk. This would enable the EU to withhold part of the 12.8 billion euros ($14.2 billion) in cohesion funds allocated to Slovakia in the bloc's budget, sources reported.

The Commission is also considering the possibility of withdrawing all or part of the 2.7 billion euros in COVID relief grants that Slovakia received under the EU's pandemic recovery spending, according to one agency source. The special prosecution office was a condition for the distribution of these funds.

Slovakia would become the second country subject to the EU's conditionality mechanism after the bloc froze 6.3 billion euros in cohesion funds for Hungary due to Budapest's violations of the rule of law.

Earlier reports indicated a sharp reduction in the number of Ukrainians receiving housing compensation in Slovakia. Since July, aid is provided only for the first 120 days.

Slovakia, along with Hungary, has refused to endorse Ukrainian strikes against Russia using Western weaponry provided to Kyiv. Both countries are governed by pro-Moscow regimes.

quote:

^{Ukrainian military installs Starlink. Photo from open sources}

The United States demands to investigate the Starlink shutdown near Crimea

The United States Congress is to investigate the circumstances of the Starlink satellite communications outage near Crimea, which disrupted Ukraine’s attack on the Russian fleet.

Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic Senator from Massachusetts, stated this, Bloomberg writes.

This request comes after the U.S. media recently reported that last year, Elon Musk blocked Ukraine from accessing Starlink to divert an attack against Russian warships stationed at bases in temporarily occupied Crimea.

“The Congress needs to investigate what happened there and whether we have adequate tools to make sure foreign policy is conducted by the Government and not by one billionaire,” Senator Elizabeth Warren stated.

Musk, who is the CEO of SpaceX, is expected to be among the tech industry executives participating in a private meeting with U.S. Senators at the Capitol on Wednesday, September 13.

SPOILER

^{Elon Musk, SpaceX founder. Photo from open sources}

Warren, who is a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Armed Services, said she also wants the U.S. Defense Department to review its relationship with Elon Musk’s company.

In turn, Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat, and Armed Services Committee Chairman, also expressed that he was concerned about the issue given that national governments traditionally control satellites and Presidents were the ones deciding what to do with them.

He pointed out that there was a very positive change when SpaceX lowered the cost of access to space, including for launches in the interest of national security, “but he can’t be the last word when it comes to national security,” Reed said, referring to billionaire Musk.

Previous statements
CNN recently reported that entrepreneur Elon Musk allegedly secretly ordered his engineers to turn off the signal of the Starlink satellite communications network near the coast of Russian-occupied Crimea. He allegedly aimed to prevent the Ukrainian naval drone attack on the ships of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation in Sevastopol.

^{Starlink kit}

Reacting to this information, Musk subsequently claimed that he did not order his specialists to turn off the Starlink satellite network near Crimea, but rejected Ukraine’s request to activate it in this region.

“The response regions in question have not been activated to use Starlink. SpaceX has not deactivated anything,” Musk posted on the X social media (Twitter).

^{An unidentified naval drone in the Sevastopol area. September 21, 2022. Crimea, Ukraine. Photo from social media}

In September 2022, Militarnnyi reported that a military naval drone was discovered near the shore near the Russian naval base in occupied Sevastopol.

quote:

August Becomes Ukraine’s Second Deadliest Month in 2024, Says UN
At least 184 civilians were killed and 856 injured due to Russian aggression in Ukraine during August, marking the month as the second deadliest for civilian casualties in 2024, according to a report from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The report highlights an increase in civilian deaths, driven by several mass casualty incidents, including in Kostiantynivka and Kharkiv, as well as daily shelling along the front lines, particularly in the Donetsk region.

^{Civilian casualties August 2024 (Source: UN)}

SPOILER

The UN report states that the majority of civilian casualties (91%) and damage to educational and healthcare facilities (95%) occurred in government-controlled areas. Among the casualties, 10 people were killed, and 84 were injured in Russian-occupied territories.

Educational and healthcare infrastructure also suffered significant damage in August, with 13 educational institutions destroyed and 38 damaged. Two medical facilities were destroyed, while 28 others were damaged.

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022, a total of 11,743 civilians have been killed, and 24,614 have been injured as a result of the war, according to UN estimates.

^{Civilian casualties since 24 February 2022. (Source: UN)}

The UN also attributes the majority of August’s civilian casualties to missile, bomb, and artillery strikes, with two civilians killed by landmines.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 14:17 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
En als wij ons met die oorlog bemoeien zal het minder worden ja...

quote:

Belarus to hold Territorial Defense Forces training near the border with Russia

^{Formation of the troops of the Territorial Defense Forces of Belarus. Photo: Belarusian mass media}

Training of the Territorial Defense Forces near the border with Russia will begin in Belarus.

The Ministry of Defense of Belarus reported on this.

The training will take place from September 10 to July 3, 2024 in the Vitebsk region.

Conscripts from Vitebsk and Orsha districts will be involved.

SPOILER

^{Training of the Belarusian Territorial Defense Forces. Photo credits: Belarusian media}

According to the Ministry of Defense, the main aim is to check the work of military registration and enlistment offices, state bodies to strengthen the army with mobilized personnel.

$17,340 was allocated for the training, which is three times less than in 2023.

Currently, Belarus is intensifying training of the army and reservists, which should improve the army’s capabilities and demonstrate its combat readiness.

The Vitebsk region will become the 10th region to host the exercise and related training since the beginning of 2024.

^{A soldier of the Belarusian Territorial Defense Forces. Photo credits: Sputnik}
Militarnyi previously reported that a concentration of military equipment of the Belarusian Armed Forces was observed in Stolin, the Brest region, 12 kilometers from the border with Ukraine.

quote:

Sweden’s Largest Airport Shuts Down After Drone Sightings
Authorities suspect foul play and have launched an investigation.

On the night of September 9, Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport temporarily suspended flights due to the presence of drones in the area, according to a report from Reuters citing local police.

Arlanda Airport is the largest airport in Sweden.

The drone sightings occurred around 11 p.m. local time, forcing a halt in both departures and arrivals until 1:30 a.m.

Police are now investigating the incident as a possible act of sabotage.

"We suspect this was a deliberate act, but we cannot yet say what the motive was," said police spokesman Daniel Vikdal to SVT Nyheter. He noted that due to the sensitivity of the investigation, details about the types of drones involved and who may have seen them are being withheld.

Cecilia Begstr�m, spokeswoman for the Swedish Civil Aviation Authority, confirmed that four drones were detected over the airport, though their model and origin remain unknown. It is also unclear whether the drones were neutralized or left the area on their own.

The drone-related disruption comes a day after a Russian drone crashed in Latvia, which had flown in from Belarus. This incident is the first known instance of a Russian drone entering Latvian territory, and authorities are working closely with NATO to investigate.

quote:

F-16 crash: Ukraine's army chief promises investigation results soon

^{F-16 fighters (Photo from Volodymyr Zelenskyi Telegram channel)}

Pilot Oleksii "Moonfish" Mes died on August 26 while repelling an attack from Russia. He was piloting an F-16 fighter

Results of the investigation into the F-16 crash, in which pilot Oleksii Mes died on August 26, will be announced soon, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi said in an interview with CNN.

"I think the results of the investigation will be known to everyone shortly. And on the one hand, we are not going to hide it [fact of the tragedy], but on the other hand, the effectiveness of the use of these aircraft has been proven by the results – the destruction of four cruise missiles by a pair of F-16s," he stated.

Syrskyi said that Ukrainian pilots were well-prepared. They underwent training in allied countries' educational institutions, and overall, the best military personnel with experience in successful aircraft use were chosen for this task [repelling the Russian massive attack].

quote:

Russia presents self-propelled anti-aircraft system based on ZU-23 gun

^{Self-propelled anti-aircraft system with automated ZU-23-2 gun on KamAz-4386 Typhoon-VDV chassis, August 2024. Photo: Said Aminov}

The Russian company Tekhmet has presented the ZU-23-2 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun based on the Typhoon-VDV armored vehicle.

The photo was posted by blogger Said Aminov on his social media page.

The Russian company Tekhmet and the JSC Kizlyar Electromechanical Plant presented a prototype of an artillery system developed on the basis of the Soviet ZU-23-2 23 mm twin automatic gun at this year’s Army-2024 defense forum.

The anti-aircraft gun was mounted on the chassis of the Russian KamAZ-4386 Typhoon-VDV armored vehicle in a version for five crew members.

SPOILER

^{Self-propelled anti-aircraft system with automated ZU-23-2 gun on KamAz-4386 Typhoon-VDV chassis, August 2024. Photo: Said Aminov}

Development of the system began in 2020, and the system itself, based on the Typhoon-VDV, was first presented in 2022 at the Army-2022 exhibition.

The system has a high level of automation thanks to the installation of a remote control system, an optoelectronic station and electric guidance drives. The system’s computing module collects data from an optical system and weather station to capture the detected target and calculate the target’s ballistics and trajectory.

When rebuilt, the ZU-23-2-based system retains main elements of the 2A13 carriage and artillery unit. The characteristics of two rifled 23 mm guns remain unchanged: the range and the height of the targeted fire reaches 2000 meters.

The main innovation of the system, according to the developers, is a new programmable projectile of 23x152mm caliber, which will allow it to effectively fight air targets.

The exhibition presented a control panel for the system operator with a monitor and joystick. It is remote, which makes it possible to control the system outside the machine at a distance of up to 100 meters.

^{The ZU-23-2 remote control module}

Earlier, Militarnyi reported on another project by the Russian company Elins to develop the Soviet ZU-23AE 23 mm anti-aircraft gun to the version, as well as its self-propelled version, the ZAK-23E.

The complex received a remote control system from a remote control panel. The airspace of the installation is monitored by a panoramic optical station.

^{Modernized Russian version of the Zu-23-2 “ZU-23AE” at the “Army-2023” exhibition in the Russian Federation, August 15, 2023. Photo: Michael Jerdev}

Last year, Elins also presented its reinterpretation of the Soviet Shilka SPAAG, placing a remotely controlled combat module with two 2A7 23 mm guns on the chassis of a Soviet BTR-80 armored personnel carrier.

quote:

Russia struck energy facilities in 7 regions of Ukraine over past day
Over the past 24 hours, Russian troops attacked energy infrastructure in 7 regions of Ukraine, namely, in Dnipro, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Chernihiv regions, according to the press service of the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine.

As a result of the Russian shelling, substations, and consumers were de-energized in Dnipro and Kharkiv regions. Part of the power supply has already been restored.

In the Donetsk region, several substations and a mine with 74 employees were de-energized during the attack. All of them were successfully evacuated to the surface.

In the Chernihiv region, 3,100 customers in three settlements lost power due to damage to overhead lines.

Work is ongoing to restore the power supply.

Russian night attack on Ukraine
Russian occupants continue to terrorize Ukrainians, using nighttime for missile and drone attacks. On the night of September 9, Russia attacked Ukraine from several directions, using a variety of weapons.

Ukraine's Air Defense Forces demonstrated high efficiency, destroying 2 Russian Kh-59/69 guided missiles and 6 Shahed drones.

Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported that a fire broke out in the city as a result of a Russian attack at the site of one of the air raids.

Ukrainian Air Defense Forces were operating in Kyiv and the region.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 15:06 schreef stinkielinkie het volgende:

[..]
Als hij op dit tempo doorgaat is hij hier over 25 jaar.

quote:

Soldiers of the 5th Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine hit a Russian Tor-M2 SAM

^{Russian Tor-M2 anti-aircraft missile system in Ukraine, 2024. Illustrative photo}

Soldiers of the 5th Slobozhansk Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine destroyed a Russian Tor-M2 surface-to-air missile system.

The press service of the brigade reported on this.

The defeat of the Russian SAM took place in close cooperation with the aerial reconnaissance group of the units of the 107th Territorial Defense Brigade.

The Territorial Defense Brigade detected a Russian Tor-M2 and passed the coordinates to the soldiers of the National Guard for its destruction.

SPOILER

Ураження З� К «Тор-М2» бвйцями 5-ї Слобожанської бригади НГУ на Куп'янському напрямку

The Russian SAM was destroyed in the Kupiansk sector thanks to an FPV drone operated by the National Guard Brigade`s Striks crew.

According to the brigade’s press service, the Russian Tor-M2 system was destroyed on the first attempt, along with the crew.

In the video captured by the FPV drone at the time of the target’s destruction, the SAM can be seen in a combat position with a search radar operating.

The Russian SAM system was hit in the hull without detonation of the munition, which did not allow it to leave the combat position.

^{Russian Tor-M2 air defense system with a set of slat armor, July 2024. Photo credits: TASS}

Although the system was not destroyed, a large amount of debris from the exploded munition damaged the search and target acquisition radars.

Militarnyi previously reported that soldiers of the 3rd Assault Brigade had destroyed a Russian Tor surface-to-air missile system and a TOS-1A Solntsepyok flamethrower system.

The defeat of Russian equipment took place in the Kharkiv region, where the brigade’s fighters discovered a Russian Tor-M2 missile system and a TOS-1A Solntsepyok heavy flamethrower system.

The Tor-M2 was hit by an FPV drone when the system was searching for air targets.

quote:

Netherlands Push for Free Travel Ban on Russian Diplomats Over Espionage Concerns
The Netherlands, along with seven other EU countries, is advocating for restrictions on the travel of Russian diplomats within the European Union. They propose limiting these diplomats' movement to the country where they are accredited, rather than allowing free travel across the Schengen zone.

This push stems from concerns that many Russian diplomats may be covert agents engaged in influence operations, sabotage, and espionage, according to Trouw.

The Czech Republic initiated this effort late last year and garnered support from the Netherlands, Denmark, several Eastern European nations, and the Baltic States. In June, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky sent a letter to EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on behalf of eight EU countries. "This measure will significantly reduce the operational space of Russian agents," Lipavsky stated.

In a recent interview with German media Deutsche Welle, Lipavsky revealed there is "specific information about so many cases of Russian sabotage," asserting that "Russian diplomatic posts are being used for a hybrid war against Europe."

Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, European nations expelled around 600 Russian diplomats, with about 400 suspected of being intelligence officers. The practice of using diplomats as spies is not unusual due to diplomats' freedom of movement and diplomatic immunity.

While the Netherlands supports the initiative, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs is displeased that the letter has been leaked, a spokesperson told Trouw.

The proposal has faced division within the EU. Germany, Austria, and Italy oppose the travel restrictions, fearing retaliatory measures from Moscow and the potential closure of diplomatic channels with Russia, according to Trouw.

quote:

Ukraine reportedly downs Russian Orlan drone at 'record height' of 3.6 km

^{A Russian Orlan-10 reconnaissance drone moments before being hit by Ukrainian forces on Sept. 7, 2024, in Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine. (3rd Tank Brigade/Facebook)}

Soldiers of Ukraine's 3rd Tank Brigade shot down a Russian Orlan reconnaissance drone at a record altitude of 3,620 meters, the Ukrainian military said on Sept. 9.

The Orlan is a Russian-developed reconnaissance drone widely used by Russia in Ukraine. Feared by Ukrainian soldiers, it often serves to target Russian artillery attacks. It can travel 600 kilometers and climb to an altitude of 5,000 meters.

"(The hit) took place on Sept. 7 in Kharkiv Oblast. Once the enemy Orlan-10 drone was spotted, the Voron missile artillery group rushed to the area," the 3rd Brigade said on Facebook.

SPOILER

The Russian drone's altitude and trajectory were established in cooperation with Ukrainian border guard units. Then, one soldier prepared the necessary "equipment," and two more service members began to "hunt" the unmanned aircraft, the unit said.

According to the 3rd Brigade, shooting down the drone was particularly difficult due to its altitude and because it kept changing its position and direction.

The weaponry used in the attack was not specified, but the 3rd Brigade published a first-person-view (FPV) video of what may be another drone ramming into the Russian Orlan. This was the first high-altitude Russian drone shot down by the 3rd Tank Brigade.

The Ukrainian military has recently boasted about a number of new drone innovations that are being deployed against Moscow's troops. This included drones firing small arms or dispersing thermite against Russian positions.

Ukrainian FPV drones have also been repeatedly used to target Russian reconnaissance drones and helicopters.

quote:

Ukraine produces analogs of Soviet F-1 and RGD-5 grenades

^{Ukrainian variant of F-5. Source: Ukrainian Ministry of Defense}

Defense industry of Ukraine Infantry armament Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Ukraine
The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has codified and authorized the use of analogs of Soviet F-1 and RGD-5 grenades in the army.

This is stated in a statement by the defense ministry.

The Ministry of Defense codified two samples at once: the F-1 anti-personnel fragmentation defensive grenade and the RGD-5 anti-personnel fragmentation grenade.

The Ukrainian-made ammunition meets the characteristics of modern infantry weapons.

SPOILER

^{Ukrainian variant of RGD-5. Source: Ukrainian Ministry of Defense}

The Ministry of Defense emphasizes that we have never produced this type of grenade before.

Recently, on September 6, Militarnyi reported that the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine had codified and authorized the delivery of a domestically produced MK-500 field kitchen trailer to the Armed Forces.

F-1
The F-1 hand grenade is intended for use in defense operations. The radius of the F-1 grenade’s fragment dispersion is much larger than the distance it can be thrown.

For this reason, the grenade must be used from cover, standing behind a tank, armored personnel carrier or other combat vehicle.

^{F-1 grenades. February 2021. Photo credits: Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs}

The throwing distance of the grenade is 35-45 meters, and the fragmentation kill zone is 30-35 meters. After the explosion, the grenade body creates about 300 fragments.

The body of the grenade is made of cast iron, with longitudinal and transverse grooves, which usually break the grenade into pieces. The upper part of the case has a tapped hole for screwing in the fuse.

RGD-5
The RGD-5 hand grenade is intended for use in offensive operations.

^{RGD-5 grenades. February 2021. Photo credits: Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs}

Unlike the F-1, the kill zone is not large – up to 25 meters, which allows it to be used without shelter. The grenade can be thrown 30-50 meters.

The RGD-5 grenade consists of a body, an explosive charge and a fuse. The body is used to house the explosive charge and the fuse tube and consists of upper and lower parts.

quote:

As Toronto Film Festival Opens, Worldwide Backlash Against Trofimova’s “Russians at War”—a Documentary That Sees No Russian War Crimes in Ukraine—Grows

^{Anastasia Trofimova. Still from "Russians at War."}

Russian-Canadian filmmaker Anastasia Trofimova premiered her film Russians at War at the Venice Film Festival, claiming it challenges Western media’s one-sided portrayal of Russian aggression. Trofimova wants to offer a different story, and it happens to be one in which she sees no war crimes committed by Russian soldiers.

Trofimova states she “saw no signs of war crimes during her time near the front” when questioned by a Reuters journalist about whether her film whitewashes Russian troops, given the documented atrocities such as the Bucha Massacre. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General has launched investigations into over 122,000 suspected war crimes since Russia’s full-scale invasion, identified 511 perpetrators, and secured 80 convictions in Ukrainian courts.

Trofimova is taking her film to the Toronto Film Festival amid massive backlash, including from the Ukrainian government.

"In Russia, they are these heroes who never die,” she told reporters. “In the West, they are mostly war criminals, war criminals, war criminals.”

SPOILER

Filming illegally on Ukrainian territory
Trofimova spent seven months embedded with Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine to make the film, doing so without authorization and in violation of Ukrainian law. With over a decade of media experience, she is known for producing films for the Russian propaganda outlet RT (formerly “Russia Today”).

Trofimova insists that Russian soldiers “are not someone whose voices are heard," emphasizing that the soldiers shocked her by "how ordinary they were,” with families, humor, and “their own understanding of what's happening in this war."

She claims that the soldiers simply don’t understand the reasons behind the war. Some cite answering their country’s call; some came to defend Russia from “NATO’s expansion.” Many are fighting primarily for money.

"They start to fight because they lost someone,” Trofimova muses. “It's maybe a question of revenge.”

This isn’t the first time Russian soldiers have hidden behind a mask of innocence, avoiding the reality of having taken up arms, invading, raping, injuring, and killing the people of a neighboring country, soldiers and civilians alike. It may be shocking to see Russian soldiers being ordinary, but, perhaps, what’s more disturbing is that such heinous crimes seem to be normalized among ordinary people in Russia.

“This is my attempt to see through the fog of war and to see people for people,” said Trofimova.

Response from Ukrainian filmmakers
The Venice Film Festival also featured Songs of Slow Burning Earth, a documentary by Ukrainian director Olha Zhurba. This film captures the impact on Ukrainian society during the first two years of the full-scale invasion since February 2022. Zhurba criticized the Festival’s decision to screen the Russian film, saying that Russian filmmakers should “show the real face of the criminals of this war” rather than portraying them favorably, all while Russia keeps waging its war.

Trofimova dismissed the criticism, saying it was vital not to fuel the hatred further and instead seek common ground. At the same time, she voiced her disquiet at the ending of Zhurba’s documentary.

“It sort of contrasted Ukrainian kids and Russian kids, with Ukrainian kids thinking about what they can do to build a better Ukraine for the future, and Russian kids were just shown as marching and singing war songs,” she said. “I found this to be playing into that whole narrative that Russians, by definition, are these aggressive and awful people… you know that it’s in their blood to be this way.”

The Russian kids marching and singing war songs, however, is nothing new. Schools across Russia are increasingly militarized, with even young children in uniforms participating in drills. Meanwhile, kids as young as 9 or 10 are reportedly pressed into service, preparing care packages for troops invading Ukraine. But it doesn’t stop there: Russia’s systematic campaign to kidnap and indoctrinate Ukrainian children shows a chilling strategy of weaponizing childhood itself.

Trofimova’s own film shows only brief glimpses of actual combat, failing to convey the destruction Russia inflicted upon Ukraine.

Darya Bassel, the producer of Songs of Slow Burning Earth, also criticized Russians at War on Facebook, describing it as “pure Russian propaganda.”

“The filmmaker begins by expressing her surprise at the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022,” she writes. “The filmmaker also states that her country hasn’t participated in wars for many years and that she has only read about wars in books.”

Ukrainian film director, Iryna Tsilyk, noticed the same problem.

“The author claims that Russia has not participated in wars for a long time, and that, as a child, war was something completely distant and abstract for her,” she said. “Russia’s wars in Chechnya, Georgia, Transnistria, and elsewhere did not exist for her.”

“In the end,” Bassel writes, “the filmmaker concludes that these are poor, ordinary Russian people who are being manipulated into war by larger political games. The filmmaker—like [Russian dictator Vladimir] Putin and his regime—plays an interesting game with these people. They deny them the simple ability to possess dignity and to think and decide for themselves.”

Trofimova currently resides outside her home country, "awaiting the government’s response."

"I still have many questions about how all this happened,” she said. “It’s clearly some kind of diplomatic failure. Any war is a failure of diplomacy. But I can say that ordinary people usually have no say in these matters.”

Canadian taxpayer money fueling Russian propaganda
Ukrainian Consul-General in Toronto, Oleh Nikolenko, has called for the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to pull the documentary Russians at War from its lineup. In his letter to TIFF, Nikolenko condemned the festival for promoting a film that whitewashes Russian soldiers committing war crimes in Ukraine. He also criticized the Canadian government’s support for the documentary, including a $340,000 grant from the Canadian Media Fund, and raised concerns about Trofimova’s involvement with a Russian invading unit to shoot the film, stating it “grossly violates Ukrainian legislation.”

Scheduled to premiere at TIFF on September 10, the film has faced backlash from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), which argues it undermines Ukrainian sovereignty and downplays the severity of the war.

“From the description of the movie offered on the TIFF website, it is clear that the movie equates the perpetrator and the victim, portraying Russia's genocidal war of aggression against Ukraine as ‘a nefarious game,’” the UCC said.

The statement that Russians at War reminds of “the human cost on both sides" is the moral equivalency of the “most disgraceful kind,” the UCC added.

“Whatever the ‘human cost’ borne by Russia—it is the fault of Russia,” the letter states. “It is, moreover, ridiculous to blame ‘propaganda’ or ‘the fog of war’ for the behavior of the Russians who invaded Ukraine.”

quote:

Ukrainian Legion in Poland exists only on paper: no training or recruitment yet – Gazeta Prawna
The reasons why the Ukrainian side has not yet started recruiting men remain unknown

The Ukrainian Legion in Poland has yet to begin military training for Ukrainians living abroad who want to serve. Two months after the announcement of its creation, recruitment has still not begun, reports Gazeta Prawna, citing responses from various agencies.

According to the publication, the training of volunteers was supposed to begin on August 1, with the Polish Army responsible for it. However, the Ukrainian side has not even started recruiting men — there is no information on the official websites of the embassy and consulates.

On July 11, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski stated at a NATO public forum in Washington that supposedly several thousand Ukrainians across Europe want to join the Legion and have already registered. However, Polish media report that the minister was "misled," and there was no official registration at that time.

"We were ready to start training on August 1. We maintain this readiness," said Polish Deputy Defense Minister Paweł Zalewski.

At the end of July, the former Ukrainian ambassador to Poland, now the ambassador to the Czech Republic, stated that a technical agreement needs to be signed to begin recruitment. This document should outline the responsibilities and roles of the parties. The document had already been signed, according to the Polish newspaper, but the process has not moved beyond paperwork.

Gazeta Prawna sent inquiries to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense of Poland, as well as to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense. The Polish Foreign Ministry responded that the matter is under the control of the Ministry of Defense, while the defense department replied that recruitment is handled by the Ukrainian side.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, as of the time of publication, has not provided any response.

The creation of the Ukrainian Legion was announced by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on July 8 during a meeting in Poland with Prime Minister Donald Tusk. A few days later, the media reported about "several thousand men" who wanted to join.

quote:

Iran diplomat summoned by Ukraine over potential ballistic missile supply to Russia
The diplomat was warned that confirming the missile supply to Russia would have devastating consequences

On Monday, September 9, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Shahriar Amuzegar, the Charg� d'Affaires of Iran in Ukraine, as reported by the press service of the foreign affairs department.

The diplomat was informed of Ukraine's deep concern regarding reports of possible supply of Iranian-made ballistic missiles to Moscow.

Additionally, Amuzegar was given the relevant MFA comment from September 7 and was sternly warned that confirming Iran's supply of ballistic weapons to the aggressor state "would have devastating and irreparable consequences for Ukrainian-Iranian relations."

quote:

"Grandpa Shit His Sh*t. Traitors Are Sitting in the Kremlin." Z-war correspondent lashes out at Putin and Russian authorities

^{Egor Guzenko}

Russian Z-blogger Yegor Guzenko, who runs the Telegram channel “Thirteenth” (305,000 subscribers), published a series of emotional videos in which he sharply criticized Vladimir Putin, the Russian government, and the military command. Shortly after the publication, Guzenko deleted some of his most provocative statements, despite initially claiming that he was not afraid of persecution.

Later, an audio recording appeared on his channel, where a male voice explained that Guzenko's "team" had removed some of the materials because he is "a man of storm, elements and emotions," and sometimes emotions "take over." "With all the objective and complex situation and the problems that he correctly highlights, ( Guzenko . - TMT) has the inaccuracy to say something that we recommend not to do ," the "administrator" explained the content removal. The recording also mentioned that "Thirteenth" requires hospital treatment to eliminate "serious health problems."

SPOILER

The reason for Guzenko's indignation was the news of a criminal case being opened against "war correspondent" Alexander Sladkov. The military investigation accused Sladkov of discrediting the army, but thanks to the intervention of VGTRK General Director Oleg Dobrodeyev and the presidential administration, the issue was settled. Guzenko was indignant: Sladkov had been through Afghanistan, Chechnya and "all military conflicts in general", he had PTSD and opening a case against a "war correspondent" was " you can't pull that off, b*tch" .

In his statements, Guzenko harshly criticized Vladimir Putin, calling him a "grandfather" and linking the events taking place in Ukraine to the fact that the Russian president did not start a full-scale war in 2014. " If 10 years ago one grandpa had not shit himself and had gone the honest way ( with the war in Ukraine . - TMT) in 2014, then all this sh*t would not have happened, and so many guys would not have died. And now you, b**ches, are jailing us and killing us," he said. The blogger added that he was offended that 10 years ago he and other participants in the conflict "believed all this and went to fight ," while "they ( the Russian leadership. - TMT) were having fun and holding negotiations."

Guzenko called what was happening "betrayal", noting that traitors had captured Russia and were now sitting in the Kremlin. He recalled that Russian authorities were putting "inconvenient" citizens behind bars, citing as an example Igor Strelkov (Girkin), a former commander of separatist formations in Donbass who unleashed the war in eastern Ukraine in 2014, who was convicted of extremism. At the same time, "Thirteenth" expressed confidence that there was no need to be afraid of Russian authorities, since "you can't put all the people in jail".

The Russian military command was also criticized. Guzenko is sure that at the beginning of the invasion of the Kursk region, it was necessary to destroy the bridges in the region in order to deprive the Ukrainian army of supply routes. However, the opposite happened - the Ukrainian forces destroyed the pontoon crossings, cutting off Russian troops from support.

Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller also found himself under attack from the blogger. Guzenko suggested sending him to the front, accusing him of Russian soldiers dying defending the interests of oligarchs. “ Look at Gazprom, it’s our national treasure. What the f*ck do we get from this treasure? We’ve been paying for it our whole lives, in debt our whole lives. We pay, sit in prison, and so on. And they don’t get cancer or anything else there. <…> We’ll soon be extracting gas. We’ll make a deal, and let the guys die defending the interests of the oligarchs — I don’t give a f*ck ,” he was indignant.

Guzenko noted that his statements have already appeared in the media, and they are going to send them to the Russian Ministry of Justice to recognize the Z-blogger as a foreign agent. In response to this, he promised that if he is indeed declared a foreign agent, he will go to the Kremlin with disabled soldiers and mothers of fallen soldiers. "So many people will follow me that you will be f*cked up ," threatened "Thirteenth".

quote:

In Omsk, a soldier who killed an 18-year-old pregnant woman was sentenced to 19 years
The Omsk Regional Court found a participant in the war in Ukraine, Sergei Kozlov, guilty of murdering a pregnant woman with particular cruelty. The former serviceman was sentenced to 19 years in a maximum security penal colony. This was reported by the court's press service.

According to the investigation, in October 2023, 18-year-old Daria and her father came to the house of her cohabitant, 36-year-old Sergei Kozlov. During a party, he quarreled with her because she allegedly broke his speaker. Kozlov began to hit the victim on the head with the speaker until its body cracked. Then he jumped on his cohabitant's stomach and shouted that she was unworthy of being the mother of his child. In total, experts counted 138 injuries on the victim's body, including a ruptured liver, a brain contusion, and an abdominal injury.

The victim’s father and other guests were present in the house; Kozlov also beat them.

Kozlov participated in the war against Ukraine as part of the Wagner PMC, was awarded the Medal for Courage, and returned home in the summer of 2023. He was recruited by the PMC from a penal colony, where he was serving a sentence from the Pervomaisky District Court of Omsk. In 2021, Kozlov was found guilty of causing grievous and minor bodily harm for hitting an Omsk resident with an axe and beating her young daughter. For this, he was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison. Previously, he was also convicted of theft, robbery, and beating his common-law wife with a hammer.

• The media regularly report on serious crimes, including murders and rapes, committed by those returning from the war against Ukraine. Hundreds of such cases are already known. The resonance they caused forced the Kremlin to recommend that journalists under its control not report on such incidents.

quote:

Accused of "discrediting the army" deprived of rights to adopted child

^{Lydia Prudovskaya}

In Arkhangelsk Oblast, Mirny resident Lidiya Prudovskaya, who had previously been arrested in absentia under the article on the so-called discrediting of the Russian army, was deprived of her rights to her foster child. Guardianship authorities unilaterally terminated the foster family agreement with Prudovskaya. Guardianship authorities motivated their actions by the fact that Prudovskaya allegedly did not properly fulfill her duties as a foster parent. She moved from Mirny without notifying officials.

A criminal case against Prudovskaya was opened in July 2023. The reason for the prosecution was several of her publications about the war in Ukraine on VKontakte. According to Novaya Gazeta Evropa, Prudovskaya's home was searched, and not only she but also her minor children, who were then nine and ten years old, were summoned to the Investigative Committee for questioning. The children were questioned without her presence; the investigator assigned the functions of the legal representative to a representative of the guardianship authority for the duration of the investigation.

In March of this year, Prudovskaya left Russia with her two children. The police put her on the wanted list, and the court arrested her in absentia .

Prudovskaya's adopted son is now 12 years old. He has lived with her family since he was 11 months old. If Prudovskaya and the child come to Russia, the boy will be taken away and sent to an orphanage.

• Articles on "discrediting" and "fakes" about the Russian army appeared soon after the invasion of Ukraine. They are used to prosecute citizens who either disagree with the start of the war or who disseminate evidence of war crimes by Russian soldiers. After several administrative protocols on "discrediting", a criminal case can be opened against a citizen under a similar article.

quote:

Russian Troops Start Using Belarus-made Trucks

^{MAZ-5316 truck of Belarusian production in the Luhansk region. Source: X/@tiamat007}

Russian occupation forces are using trucks manufactured by the Minsk Automobile Plant.

The photos were posted by user Yegor Letov on his X-account.

The trucks, including a Belarusian MAZ-5316, were reportedly spotted in the Luhansk region, between Luhansk and Stanytsia.

The truck is covered with an anti-drone “grill” in the upper projection along the entire length of the cab, and the “grill” and body are covered with a camouflage net.

It is worth noting that although Belarusian and Ukrainian MAZs are almost identical, the Ukrainian trucks are produced locally under the name Bogdan, and have a different sign.

SPOILER

^{Bogdan-63172 heavy-duty trucks handed over in October 2019. Photo credits: Bogdan Corporation}

At the end of August, Militarnyi reported that the 21st Research Institute of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (Russian acronym 21st NII VAT MoD RF) was testing MAZ-631705.

It’ remains unclear for what purpose the Belarusian product was tested, since after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation abandoned the products of the Minsk Automobile Plant in favor of its own manufacturers.

The only platform used in the Russian army of Belarusian production is the products of the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant, and MZKT-7930 is a platform for such products as the Iskander SRMB.

^{MAZ-631705 truck during testing in the Russian Federation. Photo: Ruslan Guk}

The need to purchase Belarusian-made trucks possibly arose because of heavy losses of Russian URALs and KAMAZs.

^{A damaged KamAZ truck of the Russian military. Photo credits: 110th Territorial Defense Brigade}

Data from the Oryx OSINT service indicates that during the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, the Russians lost more than 1,500 KAMAZ and URAL trucks of various modifications.

It can be assumed that local producers cannot meet the needs of the Russian military, therefore, Russia has to buy trucks made in Belarus.

Thus, MAZ trucks can be a temporary solution to meet the needs of the Russian army.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 21:58 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
Thirteenth

quote:

Hungary’s MOL reaches agreement on oil supplies from Russia via Druzhba pipeline
According to the document, in 2024 the Group "will take over ownership of the affected volumes of crude oil at the Belarus-Ukraine border, effective from 9 September 2024"

Hungarian energy concern MOL has reached an agreement on the supply of Russian oil via the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary and Slovakia in accordance with the current sanctions of the EU and Ukraine, the company said in a statement on the website of the Budapest Stock Exchange.

"MOL Group has concluded agreements with crude oil suppliers and pipeline operators to secure the continuous transportation of crude oil on the Druzhba pipeline through Belarus and Ukraine, to Hungary and Slovakia," the statement says. According to the document, in 2024 the Group "will take over ownership of the affected volumes of crude oil at the Belarus-Ukraine border, effective from 9 September 2024."

"The updated transportation agreements and the new takeover arrangements of the crude oil fully comply with all relevant sanctions and provisions, including those of the EU and Ukraine," the statement says.

SPOILER

"The new arrangement provides a sustainable solution for crude oil transportation on the Druzhba pipeline," Gabriel Szabo, MOL Group Downstream Executive Vice President said as quoted in the document. He added that he considers the agreement a "great achievement."

On August 22, Reuters reported, citing Gergely Gulyas, head of the office of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, that MOL was negotiating a new pattern for the transit of Russian oil through Ukraine and was ready to take on the corresponding obligations. According to him, the new pattern would include obligations of the Hungarian concern for the transit of oil, but could be more expensive and riskier.

On July 17, Ukraine stopped the transit of Lukoil oil through its territory to Hungary and Slovakia due to Kiev's inclusion of the company on its blacklist. Energy supplies from Russia to these countries are carried out via the Druzhba pipeline, which passes through Ukrainian territory. Budapest and Bratislava demanded the immediate start of consultations with Ukraine through the mediation of the European Commission, stressing that Kiev’s actions are a direct violation of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. The European Commission refused to hold "urgent consultations" on Kiev's blocking of oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia. The EC cited "the absence of an immediate threat to the EU's energy security." Earlier, a TASS source in Brussels reported that blocking oil supplies to Hungary and Slovakia "is in the interests of the European Commission," effectively strengthening discipline within the EU with regard to sanctions against Russian oil.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 22:12 schreef oheng het volgende:

[..]
Hah, ja dat was een keiharde video. In stijl van girkin, Pringels, en de oude Rybar. En iedere keer zijn ze weer verbaasd over de corruptie, de leugens, het ontduiken van verantwoordelijkheid, en de onderdrukking. Ronduit hilarisch, want dat is de kern van de russische cultuur.

Hier is een linkje naar een kopie van het origineel op Twitter

Journalist David Knowles (van de "Ukraine the latest" podcast) is ook plotseling overleden.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 17:37 schreef phpmystyle het volgende:
Interveni�ren in relaties (zoals in Oekraiene met de maidan revolutie), in het M-O. Etc etc.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 18:26 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]
[ x ]
[ x ]
[ x ]

SPOILER

Zouden ze op zijn?

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 22:29 schreef LethalNinja het volgende:
dat Zelenski gevluchte mensen terug wil en dat Wilders dat ook wel prima vind.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 20:40 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://united24media.com(...)n-ukraine-grows-2206
[..]

SPOILER

Filming illegally on Ukrainian territory
Trofimova spent seven months embedded with Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine to make the film, doing so without authorization and in violation of Ukrainian law. With over a decade of media experience, she is known for producing films for the Russian propaganda outlet RT (formerly “Russia Today”).

Trofimova insists that Russian soldiers “are not someone whose voices are heard," emphasizing that the soldiers shocked her by "how ordinary they were,” with families, humor, and “their own understanding of what's happening in this war."

She claims that the soldiers simply don’t understand the reasons behind the war. Some cite answering their country’s call; some came to defend Russia from “NATO’s expansion.” Many are fighting primarily for money.

"They start to fight because they lost someone,” Trofimova muses. “It's maybe a question of revenge.”

This isn’t the first time Russian soldiers have hidden behind a mask of innocence, avoiding the reality of having taken up arms, invading, raping, injuring, and killing the people of a neighboring country, soldiers and civilians alike. It may be shocking to see Russian soldiers being ordinary, but, perhaps, what’s more disturbing is that such heinous crimes seem to be normalized among ordinary people in Russia.

“This is my attempt to see through the fog of war and to see people for people,” said Trofimova.

Response from Ukrainian filmmakers
The Venice Film Festival also featured Songs of Slow Burning Earth, a documentary by Ukrainian director Olha Zhurba. This film captures the impact on Ukrainian society during the first two years of the full-scale invasion since February 2022. Zhurba criticized the Festival’s decision to screen the Russian film, saying that Russian filmmakers should “show the real face of the criminals of this war” rather than portraying them favorably, all while Russia keeps waging its war.

Trofimova dismissed the criticism, saying it was vital not to fuel the hatred further and instead seek common ground. At the same time, she voiced her disquiet at the ending of Zhurba’s documentary.

“It sort of contrasted Ukrainian kids and Russian kids, with Ukrainian kids thinking about what they can do to build a better Ukraine for the future, and Russian kids were just shown as marching and singing war songs,” she said. “I found this to be playing into that whole narrative that Russians, by definition, are these aggressive and awful people… you know that it’s in their blood to be this way.”

The Russian kids marching and singing war songs, however, is nothing new. Schools across Russia are increasingly militarized, with even young children in uniforms participating in drills. Meanwhile, kids as young as 9 or 10 are reportedly pressed into service, preparing care packages for troops invading Ukraine. But it doesn’t stop there: Russia’s systematic campaign to kidnap and indoctrinate Ukrainian children shows a chilling strategy of weaponizing childhood itself.

Trofimova’s own film shows only brief glimpses of actual combat, failing to convey the destruction Russia inflicted upon Ukraine.

Darya Bassel, the producer of Songs of Slow Burning Earth, also criticized Russians at War on Facebook, describing it as “pure Russian propaganda.”

“The filmmaker begins by expressing her surprise at the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022,” she writes. “The filmmaker also states that her country hasn’t participated in wars for many years and that she has only read about wars in books.”

Ukrainian film director, Iryna Tsilyk, noticed the same problem.

“The author claims that Russia has not participated in wars for a long time, and that, as a child, war was something completely distant and abstract for her,” she said. “Russia’s wars in Chechnya, Georgia, Transnistria, and elsewhere did not exist for her.”

“In the end,” Bassel writes, “the filmmaker concludes that these are poor, ordinary Russian people who are being manipulated into war by larger political games. The filmmaker—like [Russian dictator Vladimir] Putin and his regime—plays an interesting game with these people. They deny them the simple ability to possess dignity and to think and decide for themselves.”

Trofimova currently resides outside her home country, "awaiting the government’s response."

"I still have many questions about how all this happened,” she said. “It’s clearly some kind of diplomatic failure. Any war is a failure of diplomacy. But I can say that ordinary people usually have no say in these matters.”

Canadian taxpayer money fueling Russian propaganda
Ukrainian Consul-General in Toronto, Oleh Nikolenko, has called for the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to pull the documentary Russians at War from its lineup. In his letter to TIFF, Nikolenko condemned the festival for promoting a film that whitewashes Russian soldiers committing war crimes in Ukraine. He also criticized the Canadian government’s support for the documentary, including a $340,000 grant from the Canadian Media Fund, and raised concerns about Trofimova’s involvement with a Russian invading unit to shoot the film, stating it “grossly violates Ukrainian legislation.”

Scheduled to premiere at TIFF on September 10, the film has faced backlash from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), which argues it undermines Ukrainian sovereignty and downplays the severity of the war.

“From the description of the movie offered on the TIFF website, it is clear that the movie equates the perpetrator and the victim, portraying Russia's genocidal war of aggression against Ukraine as ‘a nefarious game,’” the UCC said.

The statement that Russians at War reminds of “the human cost on both sides" is the moral equivalency of the “most disgraceful kind,” the UCC added.

“Whatever the ‘human cost’ borne by Russia—it is the fault of Russia,” the letter states. “It is, moreover, ridiculous to blame ‘propaganda’ or ‘the fog of war’ for the behavior of the Russians who invaded Ukraine.”

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 20:40 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://united24media.com(...)n-ukraine-grows-2206
[..]

SPOILER

Filming illegally on Ukrainian territory
Trofimova spent seven months embedded with Russian soldiers in eastern Ukraine to make the film, doing so without authorization and in violation of Ukrainian law. With over a decade of media experience, she is known for producing films for the Russian propaganda outlet RT (formerly “Russia Today”).

Trofimova insists that Russian soldiers “are not someone whose voices are heard," emphasizing that the soldiers shocked her by "how ordinary they were,” with families, humor, and “their own understanding of what's happening in this war."

She claims that the soldiers simply don’t understand the reasons behind the war. Some cite answering their country’s call; some came to defend Russia from “NATO’s expansion.” Many are fighting primarily for money.

"They start to fight because they lost someone,” Trofimova muses. “It's maybe a question of revenge.”

This isn’t the first time Russian soldiers have hidden behind a mask of innocence, avoiding the reality of having taken up arms, invading, raping, injuring, and killing the people of a neighboring country, soldiers and civilians alike. It may be shocking to see Russian soldiers being ordinary, but, perhaps, what’s more disturbing is that such heinous crimes seem to be normalized among ordinary people in Russia.

“This is my attempt to see through the fog of war and to see people for people,” said Trofimova.

Response from Ukrainian filmmakers
The Venice Film Festival also featured Songs of Slow Burning Earth, a documentary by Ukrainian director Olha Zhurba. This film captures the impact on Ukrainian society during the first two years of the full-scale invasion since February 2022. Zhurba criticized the Festival’s decision to screen the Russian film, saying that Russian filmmakers should “show the real face of the criminals of this war” rather than portraying them favorably, all while Russia keeps waging its war.

Trofimova dismissed the criticism, saying it was vital not to fuel the hatred further and instead seek common ground. At the same time, she voiced her disquiet at the ending of Zhurba’s documentary.

“It sort of contrasted Ukrainian kids and Russian kids, with Ukrainian kids thinking about what they can do to build a better Ukraine for the future, and Russian kids were just shown as marching and singing war songs,” she said. “I found this to be playing into that whole narrative that Russians, by definition, are these aggressive and awful people… you know that it’s in their blood to be this way.”

The Russian kids marching and singing war songs, however, is nothing new. Schools across Russia are increasingly militarized, with even young children in uniforms participating in drills. Meanwhile, kids as young as 9 or 10 are reportedly pressed into service, preparing care packages for troops invading Ukraine. But it doesn’t stop there: Russia’s systematic campaign to kidnap and indoctrinate Ukrainian children shows a chilling strategy of weaponizing childhood itself.

Trofimova’s own film shows only brief glimpses of actual combat, failing to convey the destruction Russia inflicted upon Ukraine.

Darya Bassel, the producer of Songs of Slow Burning Earth, also criticized Russians at War on Facebook, describing it as “pure Russian propaganda.”

“The filmmaker begins by expressing her surprise at the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022,” she writes. “The filmmaker also states that her country hasn’t participated in wars for many years and that she has only read about wars in books.”

Ukrainian film director, Iryna Tsilyk, noticed the same problem.

“The author claims that Russia has not participated in wars for a long time, and that, as a child, war was something completely distant and abstract for her,” she said. “Russia’s wars in Chechnya, Georgia, Transnistria, and elsewhere did not exist for her.”

“In the end,” Bassel writes, “the filmmaker concludes that these are poor, ordinary Russian people who are being manipulated into war by larger political games. The filmmaker—like [Russian dictator Vladimir] Putin and his regime—plays an interesting game with these people. They deny them the simple ability to possess dignity and to think and decide for themselves.”

Trofimova currently resides outside her home country, "awaiting the government’s response."

"I still have many questions about how all this happened,” she said. “It’s clearly some kind of diplomatic failure. Any war is a failure of diplomacy. But I can say that ordinary people usually have no say in these matters.”

Canadian taxpayer money fueling Russian propaganda
Ukrainian Consul-General in Toronto, Oleh Nikolenko, has called for the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) to pull the documentary Russians at War from its lineup. In his letter to TIFF, Nikolenko condemned the festival for promoting a film that whitewashes Russian soldiers committing war crimes in Ukraine. He also criticized the Canadian government’s support for the documentary, including a $340,000 grant from the Canadian Media Fund, and raised concerns about Trofimova’s involvement with a Russian invading unit to shoot the film, stating it “grossly violates Ukrainian legislation.”

Scheduled to premiere at TIFF on September 10, the film has faced backlash from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), which argues it undermines Ukrainian sovereignty and downplays the severity of the war.

“From the description of the movie offered on the TIFF website, it is clear that the movie equates the perpetrator and the victim, portraying Russia's genocidal war of aggression against Ukraine as ‘a nefarious game,’” the UCC said.

The statement that Russians at War reminds of “the human cost on both sides" is the moral equivalency of the “most disgraceful kind,” the UCC added.

“Whatever the ‘human cost’ borne by Russia—it is the fault of Russia,” the letter states. “It is, moreover, ridiculous to blame ‘propaganda’ or ‘the fog of war’ for the behavior of the Russians who invaded Ukraine.”

quote:

'Massive' drone attack on multiple Russian regions ongoing, explosions reported, officials claim
Ukraine launched a "massive drone attack" on Russia's Bryansk Oblast, Governor Alexander Bogomaz claimed on Telegram overnight on Sept. 10. Air raid alerts were also activated in at least nine different oblasts, Russian officials reported.

The Kyiv Independent cannot verify the claim, and Ukraine has not yet commented on the alleged attack.

Videos of purported explosions heard over Bryansk Oblast were posted on social media by local residents around 12:30 a.m. local time. Bogomaz claimed that 21 Ukrainian drones had been downed by air defenses in first hour of the attack.

Later in the night, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin also claimed that over a dozen drones had been shot down over Moscow Oblast en route to the capital.

Sobyanin reported that emergency services are responding to a fire on the 11th and 12th floors of a residential building in the town of Ramenskoye, following an attack. The town is located 46 kilometers southeast of Moscow.

Downed debris was also found near Zhukovsky International Airport, some 36 kilometers (22 miles) southeast of central Moscow. Over 30 international and domestic flights, initially scheduled for departure between 12:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. local time, were delayed at Vnukovo Airport because of the attack.

Air raid alerts and the presence of drones were also reported overnight in Belgorod, Kursk, Oryol, Voronezh, Tula and Kaluga oblasts, as well as the Krasnodar Krai region.

No information was immediately available as to casualties caused by the alleged attacks.

In recent months, Ukrainian forces have increased attacks against targets within Russian territory, aiming to damage Russia's oil industry and military production facilities.

Overnight on Sept. 1, dozens of drones reportedly targeted several Russian regions, with Russia's Defense Ministry claiming to have downed 158 drones.

quote:

Op maandag 9 september 2024 21:48 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
https://www.reddit.com/r/(...)r_shows_a_ukrainian/
Russian recruitment poster shows a Ukrainian soldier holding an infant
Tja, dat krijg je als je zo goed als geen helden in je eigen land kan vinden. Dan moet je ergens anders zoeken.
[ afbeelding ]

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 09:00 schreef oheng het volgende:
De verkiezingsuitslagen zijn ronduit hilarisch.

De regerende partij heeft letterlijk in geen enkele regio verloren.

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 09:11 schreef BlaZ het volgende:

[..]
Dat komt gewoon prima overeen met de eerdere statistiek aangaande dit onderwerp;
https://www.statista.com/(...)roval-rating-russia/

Waar je wel naar moet kijken is de opkomst, de meeste tegenstanders van iemand als Putin stemmen dan in Rusland juist niet. Voor Putin is dan ook eerder een lage opkomst gevaarlijk.

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 10:23 schreef ExTec het volgende:
Ja, je kan hem prima slopen. Je hebt er immers toch niks meer aan. Dit lijkt ook nog de editie zonder optical, dus enige manier om aan games te komen is online kopen. En dat kan niet meer.

[ x ]

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 10:26 schreef luxerobots het volgende:

[..]
Rusland is geen vrij land, mensen zijn terecht bezorgd om zichzelf negatief over Poetin uit te laten.

Wat dat betreft is het moeilijk om in te schatten over hoe er echt over Poetin gedacht wordt. Zelf vermoed ik, dat als er een charismatische tegenkandidaat is, de meeste Russen daar op zouden stemmen. Niet voor niets worden de verkiezingen grondig gemanipuleerd.

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 05:28 schreef Delenlill het volgende:
[ x ]

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 10:36 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Laat ze het maar merken. Don't care.

quote:

Op dinsdag 10 september 2024 10:36 schreef Ulx het volgende:
[ x ]

Laat ze het maar merken. Don't care.