Russian invasion of Ukraine

[Zaydin]

This is how bad the differential price is for Russian crude.

WTI crude - 103.88
Brent crude - 109.35
Eastern Siberian Pacific Pipeline Crude Oil (ESPO) - 86.45

So is that how desperate Russia is to sell it or is it a reflection of the fact that Russian oil and gas is effectively radioactive now thanks to Putler?

[Thekri]

You are being brainwashed by propaganda. Russian military is by no means on a luxury cruise, being heavily outnumbered and all that, on top of not being able to use its full potential due to civilians being used as a shield by the Ukrainian military (not all of it, true, but there were enough precedents I have personally witnessed). Remember that Russians are trying to sell this war as a liberation operation back at home. If they actually start to go all out, we will go back to the dark ages. I mean literally. They control all power around the capital, they can destroy all power stations at a click of fingers. Yet, power is being supplied, gas terminals undamaged, petrol is still being delivered. As for this particular twitter photo in your link - it was not a maintenance issue. It was a combat loss.

So please stop this propaganda nonsense. It is not helping anyone. You actually make a fool out of yourself repeating it.

Dear god. Do you believe lines you spout? It isn't "Using Human shields" when you are in a city that is being attacked. That is where people live, which Russians are also bombing. It is like kicking a woman pushing a stroller, and accusing her of hiding behind a baby, the baby was there before you attacked.

As far as this nonsense about a combat loss, lets see if you can grasp the concept of the picture on the right happening before the picture on the left. Like it isn't hard, you can put them in any order you like. If you look very closely, you will see the truck is on fire on the left, and not on fire on the right. The truck on the right has not been burned, therefore it was on fire after that. Obviously, it was a non-combat loss that was abandoned, and then the Ukrainian guy set in on fire after looking at it, to prevent the Russians from reclaiming it.

I mean Jesus, how did you think they got all the scorch marks off the truck after it burned?

[Gaaz]

I am almost 146% sure that this specific Pantsir was burned down after the photo he posted. Just to be clear.

It was damaged beyond repair during a firefight. That is why they burnt it afterwards. Otherwise it would have been towed to safety and repaired. First tweets about this particular launcher state that it was captured (march 4th iirc), not found abandoned. Frontal projection also looks like it was used for target practice at the very least. But likely this is the main reason why this launcher was disabled.

[Mihalik]

So let's sum up, because you clearly choose to cherry pick the texts and not fully read them:

1. Pantsir stuck in the mud - mud does not care for sides as evidenced by stuck Ukrainian vehicles, from APCs to tanks (beloved Oryx can help, if needed). Poster uses word "implied" and talks about a single vehicle in such condition about an army which has more than hundred of those, not to mention thousands of other vehicles.

I'm going to get a fucking aneurysm. We've been fucking getting endless reports since day fucking one about shit breaking, shit missing, basic shit not available, crap literally not doing anything it was supposed to fucking do. There are fucking Russian propaganda videos where they accidentally slip up and show how their fucking air force literally flying using commercial dashboard GPSs because they lack the most basic elementary shit.

2. Forbes openly talking that they cannot fully verify Oryx, then proceeds to guess that either vehicle is abandoned "because probably maintenance" (because lack of fuel does not count, clearly, even when lack of fuel is parroted around everywhere) or that they were stuck in the mud.

A.distinction.is.being.made.between.the.issues.of.fucking.fuel.shortages.and.SHIT.BREAKING .DOWN. Cuz you know...if it's shit that just ran out of gas, the Ukrainians can just fucking fuel the pieces of shit and drive them off, instead of having to strip them for parts, or fucking towing them off to fix them.

3. What does soft ERA blocks filled have to do with vehicles capability to move and when will you show me any proof that the hard ERA blocks (you know, the primary ones) are also empty? Preferably a systematic proof, since Russia had what, 120 BTG's involved? Thats ~1.2k tanks of 3 main models and bunch of subvariants, with various ERA versions.

Those SOFT ERA blocks are there to fucking protect the side the fucking tank not just the fucking turret. THEY FUCKING EXIST FOR A FUCKING REASON. And the Russian don't fucking have them. Just stop fucking making up shit.

There is a simple choice, Mihalik.

I have a better choice you lying Putlerista. I can ignore you. You sycophantic Russian propagandist. You're literally Shillcker light. I'm done engaging with your constant delusional lies.

You've been endlessly lying since day one.

[Thekri]

It was damaged beyond repair during a firefight.

You can tell because of all the bullet holes and such. The ones that aren't there.

That is why they burnt it afterwards. Otherwise it would have been towed to safety and repaired.

Not because the tires were messed up, obviously

First tweets about this particular launcher state that it was captured (march 4th iirc), not found abandoned.

Couldn't one precede the other?

Frontal projection also looks like it was used for target practice at the very least. But likely this is the main reason why this launcher was disabled.

Ah yes. Definitely a firefight then. Not the actual fire that is actually burning right now.

Seriously, at what point did the blown sidewalls and shredded tires happen? Was that at the same time as this imaginary firefight, or did it happen after all the Heroic Russians Heroically Fucked off?

Furthermore, if Russia is getting its strategic missile systems into firefights, that is kind of a worse look then just losing them to maintenance. Everyone loses vehicles to maintenance, but most countries don't put $14 million dollar strategic air defense systems with no self defense ability on the front lines.

[Gaaz]

Dear god. Do you believe lines you spout? It isn't "Using Human shields" when you are in a city that is being attacked. That is where people live, which Russians are also bombing.

News flash - Russians do not bomb us. They target Ukrainian military. I do not what they expect would happen if you set up an ammunition storage and hangar for grad launchers in a shopping mall in a densely populated area, but that is "using civilians as a shield" in my book.
If Russians really wanted to bomb the shit out of us, they would have glassed this whole area. I witnessed Retroville Mall blowing up. It took real effort to put a missile directly into the missile storage. It would have been much easier to just level the entire thing using unguided artillery. And they are not shy of using it outside of a built up area. I get it, Russians are pure evil, they drink human blood every morning. Putin personally makes sacrifices to Satan on a daily basis. If you are content with this charade - go ahead, knock yourself out.
PS. If you open your eyes for just a minute and actually look at the photos, you might notice that the truck is on fire on both pictures.

[Finlandia WOAT]

.
PS. If you open your eyes for just a minute and actually look at the photos, you might notice that the truck is on fire on both pictures.

And if you look REALLY hard, you'll see the tires that are FUBAR'd.

News flash - Russians do not bomb us. They target Ukrainian military. I do not what they expect would happen if you set up an ammunition storage and hangar for grad launchers in a shopping mall in a densely populated area, but that is "using civilians as a shield" in my book.
If Russians really wanted to bomb the shit out of us, they would have glassed this whole area. I witnessed Retroville Mall blowing up. It took real effort to put a missile directly into the missile storage. It would have been much easier to just level the entire thing using unguided artillery. And they are not shy of using it outside of a built up area. I get it, Russians are pure evil, they drink human blood every morning. Putin personally makes sacrifices to Satan on a daily basis. If you are content with this charade - go ahead, knock yourself out..

How big of a cuck do you have to be to defend the people who are bombing and shelling you? I really hope you're lying about actually being a Ukrainian actually currently in Kyiv because Jesus Christ....

[Edge-]

News flash - Russians do not bomb us. They target Ukrainian military.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...n-attacks.html

They literally don't.

I do not what they expect would happen if you set up an ammunition storage and hangar for grad launchers in a shopping mall in a densely populated area, but that is "using civilians as a shield" in my book.

Citation needed*

[Evil Midnight Bomber]

So, to be clear, you still think it was good idea even knowing what would be Russian choice in response?

You make Russia sound like an abusive husband beating the shit out of his wife and saying "Do you think it was a good idea to piss me off when you knew this would be my response?"

[Ripster42]

I mean Jesus, how did you think they got all the scorch marks off the truck after it burned?

It's on fire in both of them, but it's still pretty obvious it's not a combat loss: that tire wasn't blown off by an explosion, it was removed with tools. The other tire is flat too.

[Thekri]

Those SOFT ERA blocks are there to fucking protect the side the fucking tank not just the fucking turret. THEY FUCKING EXIST FOR A FUCKING REASON. And the Russian don't fucking have them. Just stop fucking making up shit.

The ERA is a rather large indicator of Russian readiness, or lack of it. Some videos of Russian tanks being hit do show functional ERA, but an equal or greater number of destroyed Russian tanks show damage directly through the ERA panels without detonating. Which suggests the ERA was either not armed on all tanks (It doesn't just sit in motorpools with live explosives, you have to put the fuse mechanisms into it) or that the ERA being used is simply old and not reliable from age, or most likely, a combination of both.

There is another key protection feature of Russian tanks that is rather amusingly missing though. They don't have smoke grenades. They have the launchers, but there are no grenades in them. For context, Russian tankers are rather notorious for popping smoke at the first sign of incoming fire, they use smoke grenades constantly, except in Ukraine, not at all. I have seen no videos of it being used, and I see none of the tell tale bright white crescents of dust on the ground around destroyed tanks. When tanks are under ambush from ATGMs, that is exactly when they should be using smoke to break LOS, but they just don't have any. A significant number of destroyed tanks still have the plastic or canvas covers on the tubes, which guarantees nothing is in there. It is difficult to overstate how big of deal this is to armored forces, smoke is a critical part of their defensive systems, designed to protect against exactly the sort of thing that is killing them.

As to why they are missing it, well that is funny too. There are two important things to know about tank smoke grenades.

1) They are extremely toxic, since they are loaded with phosphorus, magnesium, and various heavy metals to disrupt thermal, IR, and laser designaters. So they are never used in training except for very scripted showpieces, because breathing that shit will make you very, very sick.

2) They have a very short shelf life. Due to the corrosive nature of the ingredients, letting them set for a while tends to end badly. So military depots, that keep large stockpiles of most stuff, do not keep many vehicle smoke grenades. If you don't use them, they go bad in about 10 months, and nobody really wants to be buying 2-3 million of these a year, at a cost of about $100 a piece, if you don't use them.

Each Russian armored vehicle has about 12-16 launchers, and you want at least 2 full reloads for each vehicle, so to equip all 20,000 or so vehicles Russia took into Ukraine you would want about 600,000-1 million smoke grenades. Which you would have to order about 6 months before the invasion to get them in time. Which they didn't do. If they had ordered them in advance, and then Putin decided not to invade, they would have all been wasted, and some sap would have gotten in massive trouble for wasting $100 million dollars Russia can't afford.

[Gaaz]

You can tell because of all the bullet holes and such. The ones that aren't there.
Not because the tires were messed up, obviously Couldn't one precede the other?
Ah yes. Definitely a firefight then. Not the actual fire that is actually burning right now.

Seriously, at what point did the blown sidewalls and shredded tires happen? Was that at the same time as this imaginary firefight, or did it happen after all the Heroic Russians Heroically Fucked off?

Furthermore, if Russia is getting its strategic missile systems into firefights, that is kind of a worse look then just losing them to maintenance. Everyone loses vehicles to maintenance, but most countries don't put $14 million dollar strategic air defense systems with no self defense ability on the front lines.

I get it, anything that is not in line with the narrative is blasphemy. Just out of curiosity, have you ever seen a tire blowing up on a truck? When it was moving? Now imagine for a second, can it be possible because someone shot the tire?
I get it, people here would like to paint everything in cartoonish hyperboles.
I am just going to state the obvious - this particular truck was first reported as a "captured" vehicle, describing how Russians retreated during a firefight. While I am sure that Russians have their share of technical issues, this bravado of them falling apart is of the same caliber as the "Ghost of Kiev" or "4 K-52 helicopters shot in Mariupil", siting a blurred clip from a computer game as evidence.

[Voidism]

https://twitter.com/Osinttechnical/s...34F1qk4OQ&s=08

I do not trust anything Putin claims or says. He's always lying.

[Santti]

News flash - Russians do not bomb us. They target Ukrainian military.

Yeah, right. Sure. Where are you from, really, because I'm calling bullshit on you being Ukrainian.

[Gaaz]

Yeah, right. Sure. Where are you from, really, because I'm calling bullshit on you being Ukrainian.

Yeah, because I AM Ukrainian, I have to "raise my hand to the sun" and shout "heil Hitl...", I mean "heil Ukraine". That is what "Slava Ukraini" means in case anyone is interested. And the salute is supposed to be done either with a straight hand, or with 3 fingers. Holy F-ing shit... Do you people not see who is actually in control here right now? Do you not see them executing POW's? Arranging pogroms of Roma people? Calling for eradication of Jews, blacks or just ethnic cleansing in general? It may well be a game for you! The west is going to fight with Russia to the last Ukrainian so to speak. But I freaking have to live here!

[Edge-]

Yeah, because I AM Ukrainian, I have to "raise my hand to the sun" and shout "heil Hitl...", I mean "heil Ukraine". That is what "Slava Ukraini" means in case anyone is interested.

Really? Because everywhere I look "Slava" translate to "Glory" and "Slava Ukraini" translates to "Glory to Ukraine". Especially given that the term dates back to the 1920's for practical use, and earlier for its first mention. Well before Naziism was much of a thing. I mean, Hitler was still a wee lad of 10> years old at this point.

Can we see your credentials?

[PhaelixWW]

Yeah, because I AM Ukrainian, I have to "raise my hand to the sun" and shout "heil Hitl...", I mean "heil Ukraine". That is what "Slava Ukraini" means in case anyone is interested. And the salute is supposed to be done either with a straight hand, or with 3 fingers. Holy F-ing shit... Do you people not see who is actually in control here right now? Do you not see them executing POW's? Arranging pogroms of Roma people? Calling for eradication of Jews, blacks or just ethnic cleansing in general? It may well be a game for you! The west is going to fight with Russia to the last Ukrainian so to speak. But I freaking have to live here!

What a bold accusation.

Surely you can produce proof of these allegations?

[Zaydin]

What a bold accusation.

Surely you can produce proof of these allegations?

He's one of Putlers paid trolls. Just ignore him. I took one look at his post and did just that.

[Corvus]

Really? Because everywhere I look "Slava" translate to "Glory" and "Slava Ukraini" translates to "Glory to Ukraine". Especially given that the term dates back to the 1920's for practical use, and earlier for its first mention. Well before Naziism was much of a thing. I mean, Hitler was still a wee lad of 10> years old at this point.

First usage dates back to the 1800s. Became popularised in the 1917-21 Ukrainian War of Independence. A long time before fascism. Soviets tried to ban it after invading and occupying Ukraine but it has had a resurgence in the face of Russian aggression since 2014.

[Fugus]

Really? Because everywhere I look "Slava" translate to "Glory" and "Slava Ukraini" translates to "Glory to Ukraine". Especially given that the term dates back to the 1920's for practical use, and earlier for its first mention. Well before Naziism was much of a thing. I mean, Hitler was still a wee lad of 10> years old at this point.

Can we see your credentials?

Question, as a moderator, do you have access to see stuff like a users IP address and other such stuff to see where they track back to? Would be interesting to be able to call out liars saying they are in one space when really they are in another.