Russia Invades Ukraine. Again
POSTED BY: captaincrunch
UPDATED: Sunday, September 6, 2026 21:09
VIEWED: 562266
PAGE 1047 of 1104
Quote:Actually, you can. The Russians showed that they could in this video:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
THGR, you can't damage a road, railway, or bridge with drones.
Dozens Of FPVs Chip Away Support Columns To Bring Down Road Bridge In Ukraine
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2026/06/17/dozens-of-fpvs-c
hip-away-support-columns-to-bring-down-road-bridge/
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Phillips P. OBrien
Jun 20, 2026
https://phillipspobrien.substack.com/p/early-lessons-from-the-us-iran-
war
One idea that I have tried to get through in my writings is that battles rarely, if ever, “determine” anything. By battles, I mean time-limited engagements over space that do not see the complete ending of a war. Think Stalingrad, the Tet Offensive, or Bakhmut. What battles usually do, on the other hand, is “reveal”. This is, I believe, one of the key insights needed to understand what is important and what is not when analyzing the course of a conflict. This argument was central to my recent book War and Power: Who Wins Wars and Why, and was included as a major point in the Introduction. Here is a paragraph from page 15.
Wars go off the rails because they are extremely complex and difficult interactions that end up taxing militaries, economies, governments and societies, from the beginning of the productive process all the way to the battlefields. They are not decided on the battlefield; rather, the battlefield reveals the state of the national powers involved. The cause-and-effect relationship that people normally assume between battle and wars needs to be reversed. Battles don’t cause the war to end a certain way; they reveal how a war is developing.
Not understanding this is one of the reasons the reporting about the fighting in Ukraine was so weak for so long. For example, looking at the Battle of Pokrovsk, which raged from 2024 throughout most of 2025, it is easy to see that the result was not decisive in any way. Russia’s ability to gain control of the wrecked shell of that city was not important strategically. It made no difference to the continuing creation of military power on either side, and deprived neither side of, nor gained for either side, access to the key resources or political power needed to keep waging war.
However, what the Battle of Pokrovsk did, if you were paying attention to the right things at the right time, was reveal how the Russo-Ukrainian war was developing. That was not necessarily in Russia’s favor.
Download the book from https://z-lib.sk/s/War%20and%20Power%20Who%20Wins%20Wars%20and%20Why
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Trump: Ukraine war would have ended in one day if not for a 'terrible mistake'
The US President explained the decision made by a Russian general
By Daryna Vialko | Sat, June 20, 2026 – 00:02
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/trump-ukraine-war-would-have-ended-in-
one-1781902697.html
Russia could have ended the war in Ukraine on the very first day if a Russian general had not made a single mistake, US President Donald Trump said in an interview with Axios.
Trump said the war should have ended very quickly because Russian President Vladimir Putin had hundreds of tanks moving toward Kyiv along a highway.
"There's a highway, concrete, very good highway, solid as a rock, right into Kyiv. And about halfway there, he would've been there in three hours going at 51 miles an hour, which is about the max speed for a tank," the President said.
However, according to Trump, that did not happen because a Russian general decided to send the tanks "through the farmland" instead. The vehicles became stuck in the mud after record rainfall had hit the area several days earlier.
The American leader said Ukrainian forces then destroyed the Russian tanks using Javelin anti-tank missiles, which he emphasized had been supplied to Kyiv during his presidency.
"They were locked in quicksand, practically. It was mud like quicksand. They couldn't move," Trump said.
According to the US President, if the Russian tanks had stayed on the highway to Kyiv, they would have reached the Ukrainian capital within four hours.
"That war would've been over in one day. That was four and a half years ago. So that was a terrible mistake. And here's a general, decides rather than going up the middle of a highway right into the town," Trump said.
As previously reported, following a Ukrainian strike on the Moscow oil refinery, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Russian citizens to influence the Kremlin leader if they want to end the consequences of the war started by Moscow.
Zelenskyy also noted that, according to available information, more than half of Russians support ending the war. At the same time, he stressed that the Russian public is aware of the lack of significant battlefield achievements by Russian forces.
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Sat, June 20, 2026 - 18:47
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has returned the Order of the White Eagle to Poland after President Karol Nawrocki revoked the award from him.
"Yesterday, the President of Poland noted that the Order of the White Eagle is not an ordinary award. It is a symbol of the highest trust of the Republic of Poland. It signifies a special bond with the Polish state and the special gratitude of the Polish People. Such a symbol requires not only merit, but also respect for the values that form the foundation of our community," Zelenskyy wrote on X.
He noted that if it is considered acceptable for this special symbol to remain associated with Catherine II, Benito Mussolini, and Gerhard Schröder, then Ukraine will not dispute it. Therefore, Zelenskyy returned the award to Poland.
"We believed that the Order of the White Eagle, awarded in 2023, was meant for the Ukrainian People and our army. That is what was said at the time. Today, I sent the Order back to the President of Poland," the Ukrainian leader said.
At the same time, Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine is grateful to the Polish people for their support and cooperation, which plays an important role in the struggle "for our and your independence."
"Ukraine never forgets solidarity and understands that cooperation between states and peoples in our region is one of the tangible security guarantees for Ukrainians and for each neighboring state," the statement reads.
The president also said that Ukraine will remain open to all meaningful formats of cooperation with Poland in order to avoid "conflicting interpretations of the difficult and painful chapters of our shared past and to ensure proper respect for all innocent victims of the 20th century."
Zelenskyy stressed that Ukrainians are doing everything in their power to prevent Europe from losing in this century. He also said Ukraine will continue to defend itself in the war waged by Russia.
"We will undoubtedly achieve a dignified peace. Ukraine is grateful to all peoples, states, and leaders who will continue to stand with us in the defense of freedom and who, together with Ukraine, will serve as guarantors of postwar peace in Europe and a new, real security," the head of state added.
In conclusion, he added that he is proud of Ukrainians and every Ukrainian soldier, and expressed the view that the future will confirm respect for Ukrainians.
Background
Earlier, on June 19, Polish President Karol Nawrocki stripped Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Poland's highest state award—the Order of the White Eagle.
The decision was linked to a series of diplomatic disputes between Ukraine and Poland over historical issues. However, the main factor was Zelenskyy's decree awarding an honorary designation "named after Ukrainian Insurgent Army heroes" to one of the Ukrainian military units.
Today, June 20, Presidential Office head Kyrylo Budanov said he was refusing the Gold Officer's Cross of the Order "For Merit to Poland," which he was awarded by the Polish president last year.
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/zelenskyy-sends-poland-s-highest-honor
-back-1781970087.html
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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As a Ukrainian journalist, I’ve covered the US for 20 years. I find it increasingly shocking
My country has been under occupation, dogged by corruption and war. Yet even I’ve been bewildered by the way the US seems to be fracturing
By Nataliya Gumenyuk | Thu 30 Apr 2026
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/30/as-a-ukrainian-journalis
t-ive-covered-the-us-for-20-years-i-find-it-increasingly-shocking
In 2008, when I was a reporter for a leading Ukrainian TV station, I insisted on following Barack Obama’s campaign for US president. Few Ukrainian media outlets could afford to send a journalist to travel around the US to report on the election; even the newsrooms of those that could took some convincing.
As a media student in 2004, I had spent two months on the streets of Kyiv during the Orange Revolution, where people protested a stolen election and succeeded in defending their vote. The excitement of the fight for freedom and justice, combined with the energy of mass gatherings, was seductive. I recognised a similar momentum in the US during Obama’s campaign and wanted to see how things felt on the ground. As a Ukrainian, I could relate to Obama’s promises to restore respect for human rights and the rule of law, and his desire to mobilise people around the idea of “hope”. It also stood in contrast with what I knew of the US: I had studied foreign news reporting at the time of the US invasion of Iraq and the military’s crimes in Abu Ghraib and Guantánamo.
I went on to cover four more US elections. What stood out to me, and still bewilders me now, is the extent to which the conversation around access to affordable health care and education has become radicalised in the US. To a Ukrainian, or indeed most Europeans, these are simply what people expect from a functioning state. I recall a Nobel prize laureate – the American scientist Martin Chalfie, who won the 2008 chemistry prize and taught at Columbia University – telling me he was planning to use the award money to pay his daughter’s college tuition. I was shocked.
As a foreign reporter in the US, I witnessed debates around these issues become increasingly hostile and disconnected from reality. In 2020, the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic, Donald Trump supporters considered anyone wearing a face mask to be suspicious; health and safety measures, they believed, were a ploy to deprive them of their civil liberties. No rational argument could convince them otherwise. Fast forward to 2025, and Trump has appointed as the US secretary of health an anti-vaccine activist who champions debunked scientific theories and insists that mRNA vaccine technology is dangerous, despite its proven efficacy.
There is no longer a shared sense of what is true. I know first-hand that when facts are questioned, rather than verified and used to build common ground, it becomes harder to agree on even the most basic issues – including what the government is for. People stop debating what can be changed and improved about the public sector and instead start to see it as something to be dismantled. The underlying problems, meanwhile, remain unsolved.
Today, as Ukraine fights a war to defend its democracy – to preserve a state where institutions serve the people rather than dictators, where the press remains independent, and where citizens can shape the politics around them – the contrast between the two countries is striking.
In Ukraine, the war claims the lives of soldiers every day. Resources are scarce, the economy has been shattered, and yet even the poor contribute what they can to support fellow citizens, often through small but meaningful donations. Those experiences make it even more unsettling to observe how in the US, democracy is being eroded and dismantled, sometimes without an effective fight. And how a prosperous society, facing no comparable threat, can hesitate to redistribute resources that are readily available.
More at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/30/as-a-ukrainian-journalis
t-ive-covered-the-us-for-20-years-i-find-it-increasi
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Weekend Update #190: Long-Range Reveal
Phillips P. OBrien
Jun 21, 2026
. . . the Ukrainians were able to get a large number of drones through this blanket of defenses to seriously damage one of the most important economic/strategic targets in the capital of Russia. Now that is notable and shows change. This kind of attack would have been beyond Ukrainian abilities in 2025. There systems were not refined enough, they did not have the tactics to neutralize Russian air defense, and they lacked the mass.
Now they can do it.
That is the most important “reveal” of the week and the thing to take from these contrasting attacks. We have known for a long time that while the Russians are more than happy to launch terror attacks, the Ukrainians attack strategic targets and try to respect the laws of war (even while the US is disregarding them).
So the targets themselves are utterly consistent. The difference is that when faced with a crisis, the Russians opted to simply ramp up the horror because they have no other new ability. The Ukrainians, to counter, showed that they can do more, very effectively. If the Russians cannot change that dynamic, the long-range war is going to get even worse for them.
More at https://phillipspobrien.substack.com/p/weekend-update-190-long-range-r
eveal
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Russian-occupied Crimea completely suspends gas sales to civilians as Ukrainian drone strikes squeeze peninsula
By Luca Léry Moffat | June 21, 2026 1:11 pm
https://kyivindependent.com/crimea-completely-suspends-gas-sales-as-uk
rainian-drone-strikes-squeeze-occupied-peninsula/
Gas stations in Russian-occupied Crimea have been instructed as of June 21 to completely suspend sales of fuel to civilians, as Ukraine steps up medium-range drone strikes on energy infrastructure across the peninsula.
"Fuel will only be dispensed to state services that ensure the vital activities and security of the Republic of Crimea," Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed governor of occupied Crimea, said in a video address on the morning of June 21.
The ban is effective as of 9 a.m. on June 21, Aksyonov added. . . .
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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UK cuts US parts from missile production chain in new systems for Ukraine
Britain has developed new cruise missile prototypes for Ukraine that eliminate American parts, aiming to reduce dependency in weapons production.
By Benjamin Murdoch | June 21, 2026
https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/06/21/uk-cuts-us-parts-from-missile-p
roduction-chain-for-ukraine/
The move comes as Ukraine seeks to expand and diversify its long-range strike arsenal, amid repeated delays and political constraints linked to US-involved systems.
The UK Ministry of Defense has confirmed the development of three prototype cruise missiles under a program known as Project Brakestop, according to Financial Times reporting on the program. The systems were tested in spring, and at least one design is expected to be delivered to Ukraine by the end of 2026.
MBDA UK developed the Crossbow cruise missile, which uses an independent visual navigation system rather than US-linked guidance inputs. Rotron Aerospace produced a propeller-driven SkyLance variant focused on longer range at lower speed, while MGI Engineering adapted Formula 1-derived technology for its Tiger Shark concept.
UK officials said the aim is to shift toward simpler, lower-cost cruise missiles that can be produced at scale, with a target rate of around 20 units per month. Reported unit costs are significantly lower than existing Western long-range systems. . . .
The Joss Whedon script for Serenity, where Wash lives, is Serenity-190pages.pdf at https://www.mediafire.com/two
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Quote:
Originally posted by SIGNYM:
THGR, you can't damage a road, railway, or bridge with drones. You can't even destroy a significant industrial facility with drones. It's that "payload v distance" trade-off. You'd need missiles.
That's why Ukraine targets storage tanks. They're lightly built, full of flammable material, and make big clouds of black smoke. A great show.
Try to put things in perspective. While you're busy cheering Ukraine managing to hit some storage tanks here or there, or vehicles here or there, or a truck stop or substation or two, this is something Russia has been doing multiple times a day for years.
*****
And attacking Belarus.
Again... seriously??
Are Zelenskys handlers following the Trump model of warmaking? When getting your ass handed to you in one conflict, start another one (and overextend yourself)?
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"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
You can watch this and learn something or not comrade.
T
Crimea DECLARES Emergency As Russia ENDS Fuel Sales; Putin PREPARES Imminent Response
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THGR, do you really think making life miserable for civilians in Crimea will dent Russia's warmaking capacity?
Jeez! Get a grip!
"Time works in Russia's favor."
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"It may be dangerous to be America's enemy, but to be America's friend is fatal."- Henry Kissinger
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