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Ukraine doesn't have a navy or air force anymore and a large portion of their mechanized force has been taken out. You wouldn't know it by listening to western

Ukraine doesn't have a navy or air force anymore and a large portion of their mechanized force has been taken out. You wouldn't know it by listening to western media though. European/NATO countries are increasing their military spending for a reason. Russia has definitely been losing the propaganda war, that's for sure.

xenadu02 5y ago
The conventional thinking was that the Russian Steamroller would flatten Ukraine within 3-5 days. Absolutely no one suspected the war would last this long. In that sense it is far from just a "propaganda war". I don't know why it should surprise anyone. People who make Putin unhappy end up with "accidental" polonium poisoning. Is there any reason to suspect the Russian military hasn't suffered some for that? Or that the Russian military-industrial complex hasn't suffered some due to looting, corruption, and incompetence? I'm not delusional. Russia has the resources (and human bodies) to waste on this for as long as it takes. If the leadership has the political will they will probably win eventually. It seems unlikely to be worth the cost but Russia would hardly be the first country to pay $100 for a penny in that regard.
blub 5y ago
What media would you suggest? Surprisingly, I’ve found AlJazeera to be quite professional, if slightly biased for up-to-date news. Reports from rusi.org are interesting, but not free and some do have a whiff of opinion/cheering, which is rather suspect. Books by Mark Galeotti offer insight into the various Soviet and Russian conflicts and into their military forces.
- klausjensen 5y ago
  If you want some more background rather than news, I recommed Gary Kasparov's book "Winter is coming". It is from 2015, but describes the process from the collapse of the Soviet Union and how Russia turned into effectively a fascist dictatorship. https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/garry-kasparov/winter-is-coming/9781610396219/ https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/garry-kasparov/win...
TulliusCicero 5y ago
Ukraine already didn't really have a navy lol. As for mechanized force, they've been taking far fewer losses than Russia, due to having so many western portable anti-tank missiles + defender's advantage. And now that they're starting to get more armored vehicles from the West, things are looking up. Russia expected to win easily and they've been getting hammered instead.
- mushbino 4y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Navy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Navy
federoccco 5y ago
Well I’m in Kyiv and that’s definitely not true :) But keep believing in that, it will make our job easier.

xenadu02 5y ago

The conventional thinking was that the Russian Steamroller would flatten Ukraine within 3-5 days. Absolutely no one suspected the war would last this long. In that sense it is far from just a "propaganda war". I don't know why it should surprise anyone. People who make Putin unhappy end up with "accidental" polonium poisoning. Is there any reason to suspect the Russian military hasn't suffered some for that? Or that the Russian military-industrial complex hasn't suffered some due to looting, corruption, and incompetence? I'm not delusional. Russia has the resources (and human bodies) to waste on this for as long as it takes. If the leadership has the political will they will probably win eventually. It seems unlikely to be worth the cost but Russia would hardly be the first country to pay $100 for a penny in that regard.

blub 5y ago

What media would you suggest? Surprisingly, I’ve found AlJazeera to be quite professional, if slightly biased for up-to-date news. Reports from rusi.org are interesting, but not free and some do have a whiff of opinion/cheering, which is rather suspect. Books by Mark Galeotti offer insight into the various Soviet and Russian conflicts and into their military forces.

klausjensen 5y ago
If you want some more background rather than news, I recommed Gary Kasparov's book "Winter is coming". It is from 2015, but describes the process from the collapse of the Soviet Union and how Russia turned into effectively a fascist dictatorship. https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/garry-kasparov/winter-is-coming/9781610396219/ https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/garry-kasparov/win...

TulliusCicero 5y ago

Ukraine already didn't really have a navy lol. As for mechanized force, they've been taking far fewer losses than Russia, due to having so many western portable anti-tank missiles + defender's advantage. And now that they're starting to get more armored vehicles from the West, things are looking up. Russia expected to win easily and they've been getting hammered instead.

mushbino 4y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Navy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_Navy

federoccco 5y ago

Well I’m in Kyiv and that’s definitely not true :) But keep believing in that, it will make our job easier.