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© Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.Russia takes steps to bolster army, tighten grip on Ukraine
By RICARDO MAZALAN KYIV, Ukraine©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.
40 Comments
SuperLib
Is it worth the price, Russia? And there's still more to pay.
Mr Kipling
Cracks already appearing in the Western block.... Or just reality sinking in?
PTownsend
Sounds to me like warmongering Russia are making plans to expand the Putin wars, or maybe they are once again 'goading' Nato/US?UK/the West, into an arms race leading to all out-wars.
Which nation bordering Russia will next see tanks and thousands of soldiers lining up next to them. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a wonderful thing for me to see, not so for Putin, who as a Stasi/KGB agent, was on the losing side, something a narcissistically impaired, megalomaniac like him apparently cannot handle. Putin is showing he is willing to start a world war, risking destruction of all life forms on the planet, as payback. Anti-democracy movement members, and others who support big brotherism led by a Putin-type tsar you own this.
Cricky
Ha the Russians are now sending T-62 tanks out of storage. That’s going to help? The Ukrainians are getting stretched so what next?
it’s such a disaster an unnecessarily stupid one from Russia.
‘if there was an adult in the room I’m sure they would say “time out” Russia go back to your home, Ukrainian avoid all contact with Russia. Problem solved. But sadly no adult in the room.
The Avenger
Let's review Putin's 3 day conquest of Ukraine is 3 months and still continues, Russian army has lost 25% of it's soldiers and even a higher % of its tanks and armored vehicles, NATO countries like Germany who weren't meeting their treaty obligation on defense spending are now doing so and Finland and Sweden are looking to join NATO. Way to go Vlad.
Yrral
The Russian have no strategy,the first act of war,is to deliver a death blow to your adversaries leadership,which Putin fail too do, Ukraine cannot substain this war without any trade ,these troops are being bombarded 24/7 in Donbas,fact that you cannot ignore
Yrral
PT,Texas was a Republic
Cricky
It’s now getting to a war of attrition and I sadly doubt Ukrainian have the depth to resist even with western technology. I hope they do but the losses on both sides are catastrophic. It’s Russia that has as usual endless reserves and are willing to throw teenager’s into it. Also an attitude that doesn’t care about losses. Ukrainian are more western in thinking but for Russians that’s a weekness. Ukrainians need boots on the ground from a allied country but who is willing to do that?
Tom San
My sources tell me that PM Kishida has ordered the JSSDF (Japan Space Self-Defense Force) to deploy a platoon of Gundam mobile-suits to Ukraine .
1glenn
Looking forward to the day when the homicidal psychopath is no longer dictator of Russia.
PTownsend
If so Russia will need more troops to replace those seriously injured or dead. So those in the global Z cult should head to, or perhaps back to their ideal state to helpthe Kremlin's and Vladimir's armies in the field, not just online.
SuperLib
But another question is if Russians understand the true cost since so much information is hidden.
Yrral
Avenger,the US is NATO,we have more tank and armor than anybody in NATO,and we are not in the European continent,when say NATO,say the US,it not being arrogant it fact
Peter14
But wait, they were all supposedly Russians already. How is it they require a second citizenship for Russia? Did they lie and the people in the Eastern Ukraine are all actually Ukrainian citizens? That changes everything. They did not go into eastern Ukraine to protect Russian citizens, they went in there to steal the territory. Ohh my, yet another lie from Russia about the justification for interfering in a sovereign nations domestic affairs. It is all becoming more clear as the invasion continues.
What a disgrace Russia is. Lying murderous invaders looking to extend territory and change borders.
The true goal was to take all of Ukraine and make it all part of the Russian empire.
Peter14
Georgia is next in line as is borders Russia and is not in NATO.
Stay tuned.
Rodney
please check how well Russian economy is doing, how strong the ruble is and then check how many food coupons French cities are giving to their citizens. Then, hard to find because of western media control, how happy the Donbass people are now. Dance parties, markets reopening and young couples strolling around the bombed out streets.
stormcrow
Looking forward to Russia abandoning Ukraine, Putin being toppled, Putin being handed over to The Hague to stand trial for war crimes and then imprisoned for the rest of his life.
Seigi
Russia will win!
stormcrow
@Seigi
Russia should win when you consider the size and resources, however, the Ukrainians have more spirit since they're the ones who're being invaded. Much like the Russians during WWII against the Germans. Also, there are certain similarities with the Vietnam War, except this time it's in reverse. Militarily, however, Russia is next to Ukraine and that is an advantage. Let's hope that aggressors are not rewarded for their crimes to serve as a warning to other dictatorships with no respect for other countries or international laws. In a nutshell, Russia has the size (like all bullies) but Ukraine has the spirit.
Blacklabel
how strong the ruble is a
A strong ruble is actually “bad” for Russia.
say the same people who recently celebrated a weak ruble as “bad” for Russia and evidence that “sanctions work!”
rainyday
Well, speaking of reality sinking in I'm pretty sure NATO countries aren't the ones having to raise the age limit on military recruits to above 40 because so many of their soldiers have been killed or wounded.
Strangerland
If sanctions don’t work why is Russia going through hyper inflation right now?
Blacklabel
Are they? The topic was the ruble. It’s at recent record high.
ClippetyClop
Living in ghastly, shattered impoverished cities. Sounds idyllic and thoroughly Russian.
RichardPearce
Some people have managed to lose track of the fact that the people of Donetsk and Luhansk have a better claim to the label Ukrainian than the foreign backed regime in Kiev.
And they're providing just as much to the fight to free Donetsk and Luhansk from the oppressive rule of the Kiev regime as Russia is.
rainyday
OK, lets do that. Hold on a second.
(Checks how well Russian economy is doing. Comes back.)
Oooooh, not looking good. They've even had to start making Soviet era cars and other consumer products again. The Ruble has recovered though, which is great for anyone in the market for a brand new 13 channel black and white TV with wired remote control, straight off of production line.
ClippetyClop
cleo
Read the blurbs to the photos attached to the article.
local resident injured in a russian strike....
two rockets struck the town...
heavily damaged house after a russian strike....
Why on earth would any local resident willingly apply for a russian passport?
Why would any of them want anything to do with the orcs and the mad Gremiln in the Kremlin who are destroying their homes and targeting their children?
Please Mad Vlad, have a stroke, or a heart attack, shoot yourself in the back of the head five times, take a running jump out of a 14th-floor window.
Just put an end to this evil madness now.
wtfjapan
Are they? The topic was the ruble. It’s at recent record high.
doesnt matter where the ruble is if you cant buy the parts for the planes, cars, heavy machinery, if you even looked at Russia youd see theyre nearly all foreign owned companies, whats Russia going to do , go back to Ladas or using Russian planes to fly domestic. lol.
this war is costing Putin billions every week, we all saw what happed to the USSR when it was shut out of international trade and finance
rainyday
Oh well, if we're getting into the personal motivations of Putin for attacking Ukraine, its because he wants to stamp out the Ukrainian nation and subjugate its people to Russian rule against their will using violence. This is what he has said and its what he is actually doing. Kind of like what Hitler tried doing a few decades ago.
cleo
You mean the proxy war instigated and backed by Russia? The war that the ICC ruled to be "an international armed conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation."? The war in which a civilian aeroplane with nearly 300 people on board was shot down by a Russian missile? That 'racial violence'?
You mean the pro-russia separatists who took over the trades union building and started throwing petrol bombs from the roof onto the crowds below, and firing from the building?
ClippetyClop gave you the answer, to which I would add that Putin started his shenanigans in 2014, not in 2022.
Flame the 'bad russians'? You bet. Not that all russians are bad, though. Just the ones who, blindly or knowingly, support Mad Vlad in his megalomanic destruction of a neighbouring country.
rainyday
Indeed, why think when you can just repeat Kremlin propaganda points ad nauseum like you do, right?
Rob
Either the Russians have been spectacularly successful or a very large part of the population of Ukraine wants them to win and are helping them win. They've taken an area off the formerly second largest army in Europe armed to the teeth with the latest NATO weapons the size of England and got life as usual up and running as if that area of Ukraine was the same as Vladivostok, Stalingrad, Murmansk, etc. Local government is working. pensions being paid. Trains running. The Russian ruble being the only currency in use.
rainyday
While I appreciate that in some cultures, particularly in the former Soviet Union, admonishing someone with a different opinion from the “correct” one for not being able to “think” is an effective rhetorical means of scoring points in an argument, in English it just makes you look like you don’t have anything worth saying.
Cricky
Ukrainian forces not getting encircled, they from the srart been two moves ahead of the pre pubescent Russian forces. It’s again a a death ride forward for into death, might move forward but over the bodies of those sent forward first.. Russian style
rainyday
If the goal of wars was to decorate the countryside with the smoldering remains of as many of your own burnt out tanks as possible, then yes Russia would definitely win the medal for most spectacularly successful invasion ever.
Yes, clearly all that help they’ve been getting from the population explains why the Russians were able to just waltz into Kyiv and Kharkiv like liberators so easily and definitely not have to do anything embarassing like retreat all the way back to the border.
Right, after 3 months the largest army in Europe has taken about 10% of the territory of the number 2 one, which it dwarfs in most metrics, and had to give back a fair bit of what little they did take. Impressive performance.
Sven Asai
Now and at least loudly and wildly complaining the decades long own choice and overwhelming preference for Russia is just only stupid. Someone once called it the wrong pig slaughtered. And that of course logically means that the other not slaughtered pig happily stomping around is also the wrong one.
rainyday
Been hearing that since day one of the invasion without it ever actually being true.