There are a collection of videos, images and words scattered around various social media channels that paint a horrific picture of a Ukraine headed for defeat. While one must always consider the possibility that the Russians staged these videos and images, I think it is unlikely.
First up is the wife of a Ukrainian soldier who is almost encircled in Severodonetsk. The worried spouse describes the catastrophic situation of the Ukrainian troops in that city and pleads with Zelensky and the Ukrainian General Staff to rescue the embattled soldiers.
Abandonment appears to be a more common theme among the Ukrainian troops battling the Russians. The following commentary is not unique:
The Ukrainian fighters hiding in the bowels of the Avostal Steel Plant echo sentiments of these POWs :
Ukrainian soldiers at the besieged Azovstal steel plant have vowed to keep on fighting “as long as we are alive”.
Russian forces have continued shelling the steelworks building which is the last holdout of resistance in the ruined south-eastern port city of Mariupol.
However, soldiers from the Azov regiment have refused to surrender despite being vastly outnumbered.
“We will continue to fight as long as we are alive to repel the Russian occupiers,” Captain Sviatoslav Palamar, a deputy commander of Ukraine’s Azov Regiment, told an online news conference.
“We don’t have much time, we are coming under intense shelling,” he said, pleading with the international community to help to evacuate wounded soldiers from the plant.
Unfortunately, this Yahoo article reflects the propaganda themes pushed by the west–i.e., the brave Azov regiment holding on like fighters at the Alamo against the Russian horde. For starters, this report whitewashes the fact that Azov embraces Nazi ideology and symbols. They are not just a regular group of patriotic Ukrainians fighting communism. Second, these guys are hiding, they are not “fighting”. One or two may poke their head out of their bunker to take a potshot at Russian troops, but Russia continues to rely on artillery and airstrikes as the primary means of destroying the neo-Nazi safehavens. The Russian forces are not rushing the buildings in a suicide charge. They are using drones to pinpoint the remnants of Azov. Once located, the site is subjected to an artillery barrage and aerial strikes. It is only when the rubble is smoldering and belching smoke that the Russian troops creep forward to secure the site.
The fate of the Azov unit in Mariupol is simple and stark–surrender or die. Many in the west fail to understand the sheer horror of the carnage. The following video (WARNING–GRAPHIC CONTENT) shows a unit of Russian troops tasked with collecting and burying the bodies of fallen Ukrainian troops. It is an ugly business:
Russia did not pause operations today in honor of Liberation Day. They continue to press the attack on multiple fronts. A primary objective is to locate and destroy western supplied military equipment and armaments. There was quite a bit of activity in Odessa on the night of May 9:
I agree with Andrei Martyanov–Ukraine is a dead country walking. The Ukrainian leaders have not yet awakened to the reality that they cannot defeat the Russians. Russia’s Putin is not a prisoner of a timetable and enjoys massive support at home. And his army is racking up territorial gains. Ukraine’s figurehead leader, Volodomyr Zelensky, cannot make the same claim. Military relief columns are not rushing to rescue trapped troops. They are going the opposite direction. The situation is made more dire because Ukraine is economically eviscerated and there is no hope of fixing it on the horizon. I conclude with this map that summarizes the losses:
ukrop stunt at snake island was a total disaster as they fell into the ‘incompetent’ russian military trap.. they want this to outshine the russian victory parade instead they got total disaster on hand .. and their ukrop propaganda ministry even used the footage of their own destroyed helicopter (full of ukrop commandos) and misrepresented it as russian helicopter
https://www.moonofalabama.org/2022/05/ukraine-putin-on-why-the-war-started-failed-attempts-on-snake-island-other-issues-.html#more
The last briefing (09.05.2022 (19:15) by the Russian Defense Ministry (published after the above post) again mentions Snake Island:
According to the updated information, 6 Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters have been destroyed during the night near Artsiz in Odessa Region near the Chervonoglinskoe military airfield by Onyks high-precision missiles from the Bastion coastal missile system.
…
On 7 May, on direct orders from Zelensky, the Ukrainian General Staff, with the direct involvement of advisers from the USA and Britain, planned a major provocation to seize Zmeiny Island.
Over the past two days, the Kiev regime has made several desperate attempts to land air and sea assaults on Zmeiny Island, which is important for controlling the northwestern part of the Black Sea.
The Ukrainian provocation was thwarted as a result of the competent actions of a Russian Armed Forces unit on the island. The enemy suffered heavy losses.
4 Ukrainian airplanes, including 3 Su-24 and 1 Su-27, 3 Mi-8 helicopters with paratroopers on board, and 1 Mi-24 helicopter have been shot down in the air while repelling the attacks near Zmeiny Island.
Within two days, 29 Ukrainian UAVs have been shot down in the air, including 8 Bayraktar TB-2 strike UAVs. Meanwhile, 4 Bayraktar drones have been shot down this afternoon.
Also, 3 armoured Ukrainian amphibious assault boats carrying Ukrainian naval personnel were destroyed during an attempted landing on the night of May 8.
As a result of Zelensky’s thoughtless provocation, more than 50 Ukrainian saboteurs have been killed at sea and on the coast during the landing and attempts to consolidate on the island.
24 bodies of dead Ukrainian servicemen were left on the shore of Zmeiny Island.
https://eng.mil.ru/en/special_operation/news/more.htm?id=12420647@egNews
LJ there’s more of videos on telegram depicting dead ukrop soldiers after battle / artilery bombardment. No wonder twitter/youtube blocked them out it is so disasterous for ukraine military , they already lost and can only wait for slow death by advancing russian troops.
meanwhile their so called ‘leaders’ openly proclaim everything on Stalingrad is fine , they even have time to give medal to a dog and hobnob with cia asset bono..
Its enough to stir a normally peaceful man to violence.
They are no longer “walking” – just holed up waiting to die
Subterranean Coronation of the Clueless
Stud Hamster and Gopher of Prairie-dog Town
stuck out their two heads, showed their teeth and a frown
to terrify Russians from Putin on down
who’d quail at sight of their noses so brown
from sniffing the butts of Zelenski the clown
and NATO who promised them rodent renown
for dying in trenches with dirt for their crown.
Michael Murry, “The Misfortune Teller,” Copyright © 2022
Regarding defenders at Mariupol; I recall another situation with defenders at the airport at Donetsk early in the war. Ukrainians had taken ground at the airport in a partly airborne assault. During the course of fighting a rebel medical convoy was ambushed and wounded soldiers were reported shot through the head. In the end the airborne group became isolated at the airport, fought like tigers to the death (a terminal was collapsed on top of them) and they were eulogized by the Ukrainian government. There has been much abuse over the last several years while the front line was static. I suspect that some of the defenders now at Mariupol may not see surrender as an option, even if they have been promised no death sentence.
That map is brilliant and explains a lot. I was wondering how the mineral and oil and gas were spread out and your map answered it.
Snake Island may also be strategic if under law of the sea oil and gas fields are in its sea territorial scope. While the land is not much and too vulnerable to be a huge offensive asset. If captured the owner may have right to exploit resources in its sea territory.
One thing that still shocks me a bit is the level of propaganda in the U.K. I was in London when there were a million people of all ages and types, farmers, bankers in suit marching peacefully against war. I would back the instincts of the ordinary Brit.
That has completely changed. The Brits and Poles, followed by Estonia seem to hate, really hate Russia and all people and things Russian to an extent the majority are in lock step.
As a for mercy CIA analyst Larry, how does this psych ops triggered hate and mass brainwashing against Russia get countered.
I have sent this link and others to British friends, but the blinkers are on so tight it’s like pushing shit uphill.
Propaganda done properly is extremely powerful. The crafted of it understand psychology and know how to press certain buttons to create the desired impressions.
Add that to most people’s inherent love of authority. Authority means you don’t have to go to the trouble of thinking for yourself and make all those difficult choices. They hand it all to you on a platter all neatly laid out pushing your buttons, creating postive associations, then make you feel part of it. Like your favorite football team.
Think of the football psychology. Most fans revere their teams, yet few actually have any connection to “their” team. The players move teams, the team associated with a city might not have any players from that city. Yet team loyalty is a big part of many people. This psychology is one of those tools. Ukraine is “our guys”
Russia is “their guys” with their funny accents and backwards “R’s”.
Plus media and popular culture from “24” to John Wick always put in Russians as brutal Mafia types, violent, they will kill you for looking at them the wrong way.
Propaganda takes away the stress of thinking and making difficult decisions.
The funny thing is, that Red Pill metaphor is very powerful. Propaganda is easy to break, once broken
, that is take the Red Pill, you truly are immune and once that veil is lifted you can see it for what it really is. They can never fool you again after that.
i read the covid operation yielded psych results on the scale on the overall populations at least here in the usa.
1/3 were/are hopeless zombies STILL, total cognitive dissonance and true believers in the all fauci spewed bs
1/3 were/are suggestible if the bs is well done and repeated enough, but they also detoxify once the bs slows down………you seem those now no longer wearing masks for instance while the zombies still do
1/3 never bought the bs for a second…..they are the ones who either refused outright vaccines or got religious exemptions
i expect the same percentages now are at work for the latest mental operation on the western populations now whitewashing ukrainian nazis and deifying the clown and grifter zelensky.
note: it is impossible to rationally speak about these things with the 1/3 who are lost causes. they have invested to much of their self image and esteem to change their beliefs even when given 100% incontrovertible proof they are misled. they will actually attack you before changing their minds
Everyone is vulnerable to propaganda. It permeates society and forms our culture. Thus, it is very difficult to see through. People need models and stories in which to interpret and understand events. Propaganda provides this. One could say religion is a form of propaganda. People who never have saw God believe. In fact, the word comes from an organization within the Catholic church: “the congregation for the propagation of the faith.”
Hou reverse “the congregation for the propagation of the faith” fights miracles. Do you want to see miracles ?
https://gloria.tv/post/QDYnxqoqjzAr3A8jhJVbS6xXZ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5mtad02Op4
https://www.madredelleucaristia.it/root/fra/vesmar/vesmar.php
https://www.maria-valtorta.org/ValtortaWeb/Oeuvre.htm
– scientifiquement véridique : https://www.fabricegagnant.com/maria-valtorta/
https://youtu.be/kCzbapBW_AE
http://saint.padre.pio.free.fr/monde-surnaturel.htm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKA6gek_ULw
https://www.blueman.name/YG_LaViergeDeFatima.php
etc…
Here is the Holy Pope of more than a hundred prophecies expected by all Christians, a priest of Rome appointed Bishop by God on June 20, 1999 therefore Pope by definition :
https://www.madredelleucaristia.it/root/fra/vesmar/vesmar.php
Here is the plot from 1996 to 2002 organized by Cardinal Ratzinger, future Benedict XVI, taking advantage of the illness of John Paul II
https://www.madredelleucaristia.it/root/fra/sto/page/ST_18_10_02.php
Here is the real 3rd secret of Fatima because Cardinal Ratzinger lied in 2000 when God is Truthful:
https://www.madredelleucaristia.it/root/fra/jou/page/ART_FATIMA_BIS.php
Religion is not propaganda, it is the doctrine of God (true) as positivism is that of unbelievers (false) but “the congregation for the propagation of the faith” is lying because they take Christians for fools.
Mattias Desmet has done great work in identifying the concept of “mass formation” a form of mass psychosis deliberately engineered.
https://medium.com/@dina.osman/what-is-mass-formation-d2ac63020a34#:~:text=Mass%20formation%20also%20known%20as,Le%20Bon,%20and%20many%20others.
Thanks Skorpion9, food for thought.
Instead of CRT kids should be taught how to counter and recognise propaganda, false narratives and psych ops. Much more useful to them and the world. Maybe Larry can develop a course on that I would sign my kids up.
The education system just gets dumber and dumber and more political. Less tools. More indoctrination. Less questions, more subservience.
Sadly it appears right that a certain percentage just want blinkers on. But information is also bring starved out for others.
Maybe course can be called real CRT critical reasoning theory.
Real education.
Tom Woods has Liberty Classroom, and Ron Paul has a homeschooling curriculum that is worth checking out.
My grandkids us Liberty Classroom all the time.
I see these photos and see the messages and I have to wonder how people like Obama, Susan Rice, Lloyd Austin, Victoria Nuland, Adam Kinzinger, Nancy Pelosi and the rest. How do these people sleep at night? They are deliberately causing mass desth, destruction, suffering and soon famine while they sit in their ivory towers and live like Marie Antoinette watching their stock portfolios swell.
Biden I know is so far gone he is in Happy Ice Cream Valley. But the rest?
Are they truly demons or just mentally defective?
For some reason my reply here was placed below my own post below.
Corrupt groups reinforce each other. They are also very resistant to outside ideas that threaten their values.
On their own maybe they would go nuts at the crap they do..but in a group behaving the same way, corrupt and harmful behaviour becomes the norm. They are not leaders. They are now mafia. That’s exactly how they behave.
Yes. Mafia is a good description. Unfortunately, most people do not want to accept that. So they blame only one side of the aisle for the issues. In reality, both sides are in on it. Controlled opposition. The only difference is nuances in the criminal networks from which the politicians get their money and power. Like the mafia, they sometimes do compete viciously with each other, but, like the mafia, the first rule is omertà; even if you’re fighting with other “families” you don’t talk about the mafia. You deny it exists. There is little to no daylight between the democrats and the republicans when it comes to Russia policy – and there hasn’t been for years.
The oil ad and gas fields; Back in 2014 or maybe early 2015 I saw a video of Nuland giving a speech in UKR. Behind her was a large poster board w/ either the Chevron or Exxon logo (I think it was Chevron, but not certain). Could she/they have been more obvious and brazen? This was not long after Maidan and the coup. “oh, I see” I said to myself, “This is right out of Smedley Butler’s ‘War Is A Racket'”. Then came the accusations, involving the IC, etc, that Trump is a Russian asset and the election was stolen was Hillary due to Russian hacking and influence operations. All of that with the memory of the false pretenses for invading Iraq and all of the subsequent screw-ups post invasion.
I made a comment sometime later that while PL and Larry may be honorable men in service to their country, the people they [ultimately] worked for are scumbags [that don’t deserve the dedication and service of such men]. I worded it badly and LJ, PL and some others misinterpreted my point and jumped on me. No worries, but this is what I was talking about. “This” being, IMO, that absent the oil and natural gas and western big money wanting to exploit it, none of the turmoil in the UKR would be occurring. I stand by my comment to this day. Our civilian leadership is thoroughly corrupt and those in the military and IC that rise to the top and coordinate with the civilian leadership on their nefarious schemes aren’t the best either.
Yes. It appears that Ukrainian troops have been duped and are being led to their deaths and that Russia is absolutely going to prevail. All of that driven by the dishonorable scumbags that run the USA. Terrible as that is. let’s hope it’s as bad as it gets – b/c it could become a lot worse.
PL is fond of saying that’s it not about the money. It’s always about ideology. I question that assertion. In the US, at least, it does appear too often enough to be about the money, with the ideology being the motivation that gets the useful idiots in line and behind the “project”. Saying otherwise flies in the face of the evidence and might be a deliberate attempt to deflect from the root cause (money) or, perhaps, an attempt to psychologically shield oneself from the unsettling realization of what one is/has been involved in.
PS – I myself have told myself stories, excuses to justify a few things I have been involved in. It’s normal and human. Also, no organization consisting of humans is pure b/c humans aren’t pure. It’s always a weighing of more good versus more bad and, at some point, you decide that there’s more good in the end and that it’s worth the effort. Maybe you can even help minimize the bad. I get it. I’m not saying LJ is lost in a psychological quagmire. He clearly is not. He is taking the bull by the horns (bull being a double entendre here). I am talking in generalities and about PL.
Very true, Eric. The west is being run by Psychopaths, and those brainwashed and bullied into submission by them. I’ve been following PL for years, thinking of him as a purveyor of a rational, realist FP. The opposite of the Psycho neoliberals and neocons. I’m tempted to provide armchair analysis of his sudden change of heart, but I have no expertise in this area, so will leave it at that.
Rick,
I’m something of an expert on the phenomenon of psychopathology (often considered synonymous with “sociopathology”) – don’t ask why. I won’t tell you.
We have to be careful about casually tossing that label around and assigning it to people who make decisions we don’t like. Some people are born extroverted type A personalities. They are driven to get out front and take charge and do things; big things. In their hyperactive zeal to get out there and get it done they don’t always take the time to think things through. Being extroverted, public appearance and salesmanship take priority over deep thought. It’s just the way they’re built. It’s anathema to an analytical introvert type like me, but it is what is.
Then, being human, ego, career considerations, etc. become factors when things go wrong and doubling down and silencing critics becomes an attractive option. Also, these people, of course, end up in charge of big endeavors, whether it’s being the CEO of a major company or a politician or a military general or in charge of foreign policy. They have to make tough decisions for “the greater good”. They necessarily have to be hard hearted at times. This is not necessarily a sign of psychopathy. It may have the appearance of some psychopathic features like the Machiavellian approach, lack of remorse, trampling on the rights of others, irresponsibility and utterly self-centered outlook, but it lacks some other key features of psychopathology – and it is difficult to know what is really happening with these personalities, how they feel in private. All we have is brief glimpses in the media replete with all of the limitations and issues involved in media presentations.
That said, an environment in which one can merely run one’s mouth – and lie – one’s way to the top of a zero sum/dog eat dog mentality system (e.g. politics) and where there is little to no accountability and plenty of other peoples’ money readily available, is one that will attract true psychopaths. The extroverted type A personalities find themselves needing to compete with true psychopaths and, therefore, adopt, at least, psychopathic tactics/strategies just to stay competitive. That becomes habit and the personality (and soul) is distorted over time until one is pretty much consistently functioning and thinking in terms that more resemble a true psychopath than a normal human. I think that’s where we are at.
or a shorter version……we’re all born with a seed of corruption. Experiencing *unchecked* power can – and will – cause that seed to sprout and then achieve full bloom except for the most virtuous who remain constantly vigilant. Psychopaths are born in full bloom corruption and they know and revel in it; and with an egocentric rage against humanity and God.
Eric, I have to agree, sanctions are money. Also, all that old military gear headed to Ukraine, there’s money to be made there in replacing the old stuff with new stuff. Hunter, the “big guy”, and others connected to our political elite have made fortunes in Ukraine and still do.
There’s some ideology in that the neocons in the Biden administration have such hatred for Russia, maybe it’s not about the money for them. Ask General Vang Pao (now deceased) if the USA tolerates fomenting coups in other countries, he almost went to jail under the Neutrality Act when he tried to overthrow the communist regime in Laos while he was living here in the USA.
that i remember , the way pat lang attacked anyone who said money was primary motivator. he intentionally want to diffuse the issue of economic and tried to push toward this nonsense ‘de oppreso liber’ fantasy mask when the reality it is only a mask of goodness , freedom , liberty that the empire used to justify it’s insane wars
it is the root cause indeed and this senile col lang tried hard to pooh pooh the real issue , as if he really worked for neocons and warmongers lol
maybe stacks of $$$ was offered to this senile colonel along with threat to not publih photos of his illegal pedophiliac adventures in asia
Larry, thank you for the work you do in keeping us updated about this terrible war.
However, I must object to your name calling. Propaganda and the demonization of the other side is part and parcel for governments to get people to go slaughter each other. I believe the responsiblity for this war lies at the feet of the neocons and their control of US foreign policy. Western minds and Russian minds have been propagandized for 75 years about how evil Hitler was with hardly a peep about Stalin. Prior to 1939 what crimes against humanity could be laid at the feet of Hitler and of Stalin? There is no contest here. Stalin is the clear winner by orders of magnitude. And yet after the invasion of Poland, the West declared war on Germany but not the USSR. Why?
The Nazi ideology was Germany for Germans and otherwise it was an authoritarian socialist state. Nazi ideology didn’t kill millions of people, communism did! And no the war doesn’t count because both side behave really badly during that war. The evil of the Allies could just as easily be used to vilify liberal democracy. But, the Allies won so we’ve been propagandized to think that the unrestrained bombing of the civilian population was a noble and just endeavor because them there Nazis were such stinkers.
The Ukrainian who embrace Nazi ideology and symbols probably have a very different understanding of what it means than you do. For them it harkens back to past grievances such as the Holodomor.
Thus the name calling is nothing more than a dehumanization of people who find themselves being used by Western elites to wage a proxy war on Russia. It makes people salivate for their demise because they are stinkers too. I tend to view them as unfortunate dupes being played by the West. Their grievance is against a Georgian (Stalin) and a jew (Lazar Kagonovich) who orchestrated the holodomor (which also starved millions of Russian peasants ). But by the clever interpretation of events Slavs are being induced to murder Slavs as multimillionaire Zelenskyy and the neocons cheer them on.
gman, I sense some cognitive desonance here in your statements regarding holodomor. “Their grievance is against a Georgian (Stalin) and a jew (Lazar Kagonovich) who orchestrated the holodomor (which also starved millions of Russian peasants ). ” Can you kindly explain if the Georgian Stalin and the jew Lazar were responsible for this atrocity, why is such visceral hate of these Azov guys for the Russians who themselves were also victims. I hope you remember that in 2014 after the REVOLUTION OF DIGNITY, the Azov guys celebrated torching the protestors in the Trade Union building, and comparing them to cock roaches since the Saint George Ribbons are similar in color to the ribbons? You seem to want to excuse the Ukrainian Azov patriots for their actions since you state “The Ukrainian who embrace Nazi ideology and symbols probably have a very different understanding of what it means than you do. For them it harkens back to past grievances such as the Holodomor.” Thanks
No cognitive dissonance, just a perspective. I am not excusing any from whatever crimes they commit. Everyone is responsible for the actions they take. Within each of us are angles and monsters. One can easily cause one or the other to come forth. One only need play to a certain instinct, prod a certain hurt, exploit a certain anger. Anger, hate and testosterone are a toxic brew and many atrocities are committed by them.
This is deadly game is being watched like a sporting event where each picks a side and routes for the demise of the other. I don’t have a side. I’m anti war. I look at what’s happening and think it’s a human tragedy.
Please note, WW2 is always portrayed as the good war. The one that is justified because them Nazis were so evil. Yet if one truely seeks the truth, one finds this to be a false narrative. Both sides did very evil things. The Neocons always use Hitler and the Nazis as an excuse to start wars. Thus, whenever I see this narrative, I always attack it.
All wars are economic or resource based.
WW2 was an economic war as Germany was facing devastation post WW1. It started out like all similar wars.
What is exceptional is the turn is took. Gasing and genociding Jews, gypsies, homosexusls and disabled people. The idea of the perfect person. The only ones fit to exist.
The extreme and scale of some of these acts made this incredibly dangerous.
I understand your point. Other leaders are equally evil. But the scale of harm and reasoning used by Nazis to justify its acts is one of the most horrific things to happen on this planet.
CNN anchor Amanpour called Trump Hitler. I switched CNN off forever after that. The watering down of the immense evil of Nazis is a back door to create the same. And yes it must be called out
why you keep pretending to be real person and always tried to post fake stuff like the holodomor ukrop propaganda presenting it as factual ?
i read your posts and you always insert untruth and lies inside your posts
They are truely demons. Look at neocon Madeliene Albright responses to the death of hundreds of thousands of children in Iraq.
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2022/3/25/lets-remember-madeleine-albright-as-who-she-really-was
I guess they were expendable goy.
I read on Saker that the Azov battalion at the Avostal Steel Plant were trading civilians for food. This would explain reports like, ‘another 200 people escaped through a humanitarian corridor’. I’d love to know if this is true or not. It would certainly bolster the idea of Azov using human shields, vs the claim that Russia is trapping civilians (a report that never made any sense).
Larry thank you sir for your expert analysis of the current situation. When people watch the MSM here in US (including FOX), Putin is loosing badly and he has no way out according to Biden who doesn’t know his way from the podium and invents people to shake hands. Thanks again for your invaluable service to keep us sane.
Larry, there is, IMO, an excellent analysis of the big geopolitical situation from John Mearsheimer
https://youtu.be/mHG_wDbJ0D8
from about May 3.
The video is only about four minutes long.
He is utterly discouraged by what the U.S./West/NATO has been doing.
Do you see any problems with his analysis?
Nope. He is spot on.
Regarding the Snake Island: Firstly, it is not an island -per se, but rather a rock. It belonged to Romania until 1947 when it was given, as a gift to Stalin. Not sure that Stalin even wanted it but, you know, many Romanians are the ass-licking type. It made sense for USSR bureau to allocate it to Ukraine republic and not to Vladivostok. After the fall of USSR, as Ukraine became a sovereign state, incorporating territories that did not belong to the Ukraine of today (remember that Ukraine – border territory – of Russian empire did not have its today western part, which at that time belonged to Austro-Hungarian empire, and its joining to the “real” Ukraine by Stalin in 1939 was a very bad judgement act. OK, so the newly formed Ukraine started to get nasty to Ro, by declaring the island having economic status by moving some peasants over there, etc. If I remember, it was a big scandal, international courts, anyway, the UN decided that the snake island is just a rock and Ukraine has no rights to create an economic zone around it. As one can see, the Ukrainian “spirit” was/is always at it’s best. This island is difficult to defend in any kind of war, as is flat without even a tree to hide behind. Its real value would be in a “prewar” situation – not under attack – where Russia could build a radar unit (like in Hawaii), and of course defended thoroughly. Such station would cover up to Syria or Italy, but as it is now, it’s not worth the sediments it’s made of during millions of years
Russia has abandoned far more of its dead and wounded than Ukraine has. Just look at the all the dead Russian soldiers and destroyed tanks they left around Kyiv when they fled before the Ukrainian counteroffensive. Also, there were so many dead around Mykolaiv that Russia refused an offer by Ukraine and the Red Cross to send the bodies back to Russia because Putin is afraid of what the Russian people would do if they saw how many of their soldiers have been slaughtered. And now the Russians are again doing the same thing as they flee the Ukrainian counteroffensive around Kharkiv. In Mariupol, the Azov Regiment and the 36th Separate Marine Brigade are still holding out despite having very little food, water and ammo. But they have inflicted so many casualties on the Russians over the last 2months, that the Russians are terrified of them which is why they are refusing to storm the Azovstal plant.