Awesome !
The Russian offensive continues. They won’t be distracted by the Kursk incursion.
There are so many Russian troops in Ukraine. They can send a battalion to Kursk from their reserves.
A battalion is s pitifully small amount of combat power for the size of UKR’s Kursk salient. You may as well suggest they could send 2 boy scouts to retake all the territory.
Maxwell Smart: There are a hundred CONTROL agents outside at this very minute.
KAOS Agent: I find that very hard to believe.
Maxwell Smart: Would you believe fifty Control agents?
KAOS Agent: I don’t think so.
Maxwell Smart: How about three Boy Scouts with slingshots?
I’m not familiar enough with military unit sizes.
Wherever Russia is pulling troops it’s not effecting the offensive on Pokrovsk. Apparently the situation there is very grim.
I wonder how strongly Ukraine will fight to defend their positions in Kursk? They’ve made their point and embarrassed the Russians.
Russia is missing a bridge in Kursk. 
It looks like Russia may have diverted some undetermined thousands of troops to stiffen local conscripts. Just not yet top-of-line units or truly mass numbers.
So the incursion seems to be having a little bit of strategic effect, but not yet a great deal (outside of the propaganda war, which was probably worth it all on it’s own). Worth remembering that I believe Ukraine only started this attack with a couple of battalions themselves. Although it seems impossible to determine what exactly they’ve committed since then, they have to be careful not strip out assets needed to hold the line to the south. It seems really, really unclear just how hard they can actually push into Kursk given those constraints.
An interesting move from China. I thought Winne-the-Pooh and Putin were friends.
China could stop this war tomorrow, if they so chose.
It’s to their benefit to keep it going, until Russia is a vassal state.
Direct transactions expose the Chinese banks to risk of US sanctions.
Plausibly deniable indirect transactions open the opportunity for somebody near the bank to skim a nice percentage.
Seems like a simple decision to me.
Right. Plus I’m sure Russia is going to get great deals from the barter system they are setting up with China. It can’t be a great sign when your currency switches to the Craigslist standard. It’s encouraging to see the December sanctions having an effect.
I expected to see the Ruble drop as China stopped accepting payments in May/June/July, but it was climbing since Dec. It wasn’t until the Kursk invasion that it dropped hard. This implies that the value of the Ruble is based more on speculation of the war, than it is on more immediate matters like sanctions.
If Russia had the resources to easily retake Kursk, they would have done so already.
The BBC analysts have a good report on the outcome of the Kursk incursion. The boost to Ukraine’s morale comes at a crucial time.
The report details the destruction of bridges that will hinder Russian supply lines.
It appears that Sudzha has natural defensives and may be difficult for Russia to take back.
CNN got access and interviewed the civilians. They seemed ok. Obviously frightened and angry that the Russian government didn’t protect them. It’s much different from the round-ups and executions favored by the Russians in Bucha.
The Kurst incursion is interesting because in addition to the widely-reported POWs captured in trade, and forcing Russia to pull some troops from elsewhere, it creates some other interesting possibilities:
- Russia can no longer rely on fake “peace talks” to lock in their territorial gains in Ukraine. I mean they could sue for peace, but Ukraine now holds bargaining power.
- Ukraine is nearing the Kursk nuclear power plant. If they captured it, then it would be good trading material for control of Ukraine’s key Zaporizhia nuclear power plant.
I see this as win/win for Ukraine. If Russia commits to cutting off the Kursk salient, then their Donetsk offensive is at risk. If they abandon Kursk then they lose negotiating power as described above.
Russia pulls out of a sparsely populated area and blows up their own bridges. It may not be important enough for Ukraine to take.
Can you say “trap”? C.f. “A bridge too far”.
Glushkovo is the next city that Ukraine is attacking.
The video explains how Sudza is setup as an important logistical hub for Ukraine’s offense operations. The approaches to the city are already mined to prevent Russian armored assaults.
7min video. Very good tactical analysis
The Institute for the Study of War provides maps – updated daily – showing the extent of Ukraine’s incursion into Russia. Remarkably detailed information and assessments. You can also see these maps by following the ISW on Facebook.
Interesting weapon. It would be a very bad day if if jammed with a live grenade.
I wonder what the equivalent is in the NATO arsenal? The video mentions the US had something similar in Vietnam.
Link AGS-17 - Wikipedia
2min short
https://youtube.com/shorts/HGdkje0Jy8Q?si=CTuX0-qmoaYSCp8M
If you click in the automatic grenade launcher link in your wiki article, it lists different models.
The varients are Russian. Ukraine copied it with the RGSh-30.
I finally found a link to the Heckler-Koch GMW. Used by several countries including the US.
It probably spits out the grenades at a higher velocity. Making it impossible for anyone to catch one and throw it back. I’ve heard WWII vets tell stories of throwing back live grenades. It’s worth a try instead of standing there waiting to die.
Imagine having 20 or more grenades thrown into your position in less than a minute or two.