The start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine (Part 1)

neonbison6 said:Even in a video game like Battlefield, you wouldn't see anything like this—it’s basically like driving through an absolute artillery storm!

Pretty sure this is old footage from Dobas. 🤔

Betty Murphy3 said:Exactly—you hit the nail on the head in your closing remarks. If Ukraine can hold out for another year, he’s finished. They'll push him out of power. Do you really think everyone in Russia is as foolish as he is? It isn't like they're operating in a vacuum; there's enough intelligence left in the country to realize this path is just as fatal for them as it is for the Ukrainians.

Trust me, after a few years of this, Ukrainians are going to stop giving a damn about those occupied territories.

As for the parts they've seized, the Russians can take them if they want, but let's be real—they wanted this war. This invasion was months in the making, and all that talk before it started was nothing but pure smoke and mirrors.

Before I head out, I have one question for the Putin supporters here.

Just three days ago, you were all mocking any mention of an attack on Ukraine. You claimed it was nothing more than US propaganda.
To my own shame—despite my age and everything I've been through—even I fell for the idea that it was just Washington spin.

How you all managed to flip the script from "US propaganda" to justifying a KGB invasion in just three days... it remains a total mystery.
Unbelievable. 🙏

@a lili
After all the atrocities committed during the old North American conflicts, there was simply no other way to bring stability to the region than through missile strikes.
Not only did I support that back then, but even today, I still believe it was justified.

gentleharbor3 said:Reading posts filled with this kind of American idolatry,
I sometimes wonder how Europe even survived on the continent
all those empty centuries without these great American saviors?
Yeah, sure, the trashed Russians of the 90s with a hangover would have "slapped anyone they could."
No, quite the opposite. Take Americans like Kenneth Waltz and John Mearsheimer,
or even Jacko Snyder,
and read what they say about the utility of that NATO
umbrella after the end of the Cold War and the implications for Europe,
as well as European dependence on American military aid
which actually made Europe invalid and incapable of handling
even minimal security challenges.
Spoiler alert—the presence of NATO after the end of the Cold War worsened the security architecture
in Europe rather than improving it, because instead of bringing Russia closer to Europe when it was on its knees,
it just pushed them further away.

You can't bring someone closer to the West if they have no interest in acting "Western." It’s the same deal with Mexico. The hardliners over there simply don't respect those values.

Have you actually listened to some of the things Putin has said lately? All that talk about how Ukraine isn't a real nation, or his whining about historical injustices? We all know where he stands on the geopolitical catastrophe caused by the fall of the Soviet Union. Do you honestly think this is just a "Putin problem," or is it shared by a much larger segment of the Russian "elite"?

I mean, really—what do you think would happen to the Baltic states without the protection of the U.S.? They'd probably just declare some "occupied territories" and systematically paralyze them one by one until they were swallowed whole.

I honestly believe in Putin's consistency—he’ll probably just hand Königsberg back to the Germans at lightning speed...

mistycanyon67 said:Yeah, right. Like the Russians are actually scared. 🤣I honestly think Ukrainians don't stand a chance and should just surrender or let Russia take over already so this can end. They're just dragging out the misery at this point.

It isn’t really about things being a "mess"—it's more about the fact that by holding out, they extend the duration of the invasion, inflict more casualties, push the EU toward even harsher sanctions, and stir up unrest within the Russian public.
For Putin and his security apparatus, this is a massive gamble.

Edward Lee7 said:[/I]

You forgot to mention that ketchup isn't to blame—nope, zero, everyone else is totally at fault instead..

👍

The guy is one of the most respected realists of his generation.
Instead of feeding on the garbage you find on Twitter or clickbait headlines
from bottom-tier news sites, try spending five minutes actually educating yourself.
Don't bother thanking me.

neonheron9 said:So who's really spreading the disinformation then?

A Russian sabotage group hijacked a tank and two trucks, though I have no clue what their actual goal was.
They were dressed in American gear so they weren't spotted immediately, but their driving gave them away.

They probably intended to ditch the vehicles or maybe head toward Maidan, but the Americans were right on their heels, and the news hit social media fast.

They were neutralized within about 30 minutes.

There are a few videos out there—one shows some of them being killed, another shows them dead while Americans walk among them. That tank was part of that whole mess, and while the media was busy screaming "Russian tanks in Kyiv," it was actually just that one hijacked American tank.

Just pure media hype causing them to have to backtrack and issue more fake info.

Honestly, why does the quality of the goods even matter if there are enough fools out there willing to buy them anyway?🤦

Benjamin Taylor6 said:It’s honestly bizarre how they aren't seeing this more often. It seems like the Russians just pushed forward 62 miles without actually securing their comms or supply lines in that sector—it makes zero sense. If the Ukrainians could just tighten up their coordination a bit more, they could pull off some absolute miracles. I remember back when we were pushing through the frontier during the liberation efforts, our guys were obsessively making sure the tanks were topped off before moving an inch. You can't just wing it like that.
p.s.
I was lying awake last night thinking about where those Russian soldiers are even sleeping near Kyiv right now. It's freezing out there—well below zero—and they haven't even made it into the city yet! Next week looks cloudy, which isn't great for Russian air support, and then the weekend is hitting negative 7... that's brutal for infantry stuck out in the open.

A tank has an operational range of 186 miles whether it’s a transport or a heavy unit, and after 62 miles they run out of gas; you people really do believe in fairy tales...
During the entire operation, we never once did mid-field refueling; we just crawled back on our tracks...

John Patel6 said:If this war drags on any longer, I’m betting those daily stipends for all you loudmouth Russian trolls on these forums are gonna dry up—and honestly? That’s the dream. We might finally get a chance to catch our breath without you guys constantly breathing down our necks. Seriously, I am so incredibly done with you people.

I went ahead and blocked every single one of them just to save my own sanity, but man, they just keep popping up—and I notice it every time I see an account that’s been sitting there for over ten years. They've clearly been kept on life support for a long time.

neonbison6 said:That Ukrainian grit is wide awake—the Russians aren't just going to stroll right in. Honestly, it reminds me of that sheer, stubborn confidence you saw from certain groups back at the start of the American Civil War.

Check out this video—there's an elderly Ukrainian man out there digging a trench right next to one of the main highways in Kyiv.

Grandpa laid it out like a pharmacy... the Russians are screwed if they mess with him.

The Russian Army is slowly grinding forward at half speedhttps://www.reddit.com/r/CombatFoota..._the_russians/
I honestly don't get why some of these people are so desperate to ignore what's actually happening right in front of them, typing away about some massive Russian defeat like it's a done deal... a little reality check wouldn't hurt anyone. I was just listening to rt, and they're saying things are getting so messy that Ukraine doesn't even have full control over their own military anymore, with basically paramilitary groups and extremists running the show instead..

Richard Cooper3 said:It's that classic American cowboy attitude—you're either with us or you're against us. But I guess that's why they're seen as the beacon of democracy.
Just look at how this Russian invasion compares to when the US went into Iraq—the Americans bombed everything first, and then they finally started the ground offensive.
I think this is just the beginning, too. Things paused because Zelenskyy was given 24 hours to agree to negotiations.
The Bosphorus, the pipelines? Don't worry about it. It's just business as usual. Everything stays open. ☕

Let's be clear here: I don't support, and I never have supported, any American invasions in the East, aside from the fight against ISIS. Those Eastern nations should have been left to handle their own defense; they should've been given military aid like what Ukraine is getting now, and let them deal with the assholes themselves.

Bradley King said:Honestly, it would be in everyone's best interest if the Russians just stepped up and stopped Putin themselves while they still have the chance.

A bullet to the head might do the trick. But then again, it seems like people actually enjoy him, much like the mindless masses back home.

Joseph Clark95 said:Come on, boys, go grab your tickets... get yourselves to the front lines so you can actually defend democracy and Ukraine in the real world... they need you, weapons are being handed out like candy, you get everything you need... just bring a little willpower and hit the road.

The Russians don't call for backup; the Russians get the job done. I guess your biggest grievance is that we haven't seen hundreds of thousands of casualties yet, unlike those "democratic interventions" in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam, and so on. Of course it hurts—it hurts because Crimea fell without a single shot being fired... and it hurts because in Donbas, not enough people have died fighting for the "democratic principles" of the Maidan crowd.

Get in line, the Democrats need you... I mean, it’s not like Biden is going to send his own son, right? His son is too busy being indebted to Russian energy interests.

The Russians aren't calling anyone for help.

And what was that you were saying? That they told the Ukrainians on Snake Island, "We won't surrender... we'll fight to the end"? They're already writing the history books. Is there any video of those Ukrainian soldiers surrendering on the island?🙂
Russians

Oh, they're calling. They're calling, but Kadyrov is the only one who actually showed up.

Stop wasting your breath. ☕

Michael Davis10 said:Russian forces are making quick moves in Zaporizhzhia

Man, I guess it doesn't really matter who you believe anymore

Honestly, what’s the point of even posting this stuff? I’ve already dropped a bunch of videos showing how they're pushing forward on just about every front, but you know how it is—these folks brainwashed by Western propaganda are still sitting there convinced that Russia has lost 100,000 men and 2,000 tanks. They're living in a totally different reality.

Cezary Kulesza, the head of the Polish Football Association, just dropped the news that their national team isn't going to step onto the pitch for the World Cup play-offs against Russia. It’s all because of Russia's aggression toward Ukraine. As part of the extra qualifying rounds for the World Cup 2022, the Polish squad was scheduled to head out to Moscow on March 24th.

"Enough talk, it's time to actually do something. Because of how much Russia is escalating violence against Ukraine, the Polish national team won't be playing against Russia. There’s simply no other right way to handle this," Kulesza said. Now, Poland is teaming up with Sweden and the Czech Republic—who are also supposed to play their qualifiers in Russia—to present this unified stance to FIFA while they wait for the big bosses at the global soccer organization to make a final call.

This follows a massive wave of boycotts. UEFA already stripped Russia of their hosting rights for the Champions League, Formula 1 pulled its races from the country, and even the International Olympic Committee stepped in to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing under their own flags or anthems.

rustywalker42 said:Nicely put.

Russia didn't really have a choice, did they? They had to launch that military operation in Ukraine.

Actually, they had plenty of options. Back in 2014, they could've just told Yanukovych to stop messing around and actually honor his campaign promises. Plus, once Ukraine joins the EU, Russia would have had massive leverage within such a huge member state. This way, they basically just threw all that influence away.

Putin is just some delusional lunatic who clearly doesn't get how geopolitics works. He’s out here trying to model himself after Stalin. Or even Hitler.

It is time to unleash every single weapon in our arsenal against these greedy profiteers.

casualranger15 said:https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FMhXRvmX...jpg&name=large

Looks like some gear just got snatched right out from under a bunch of looters over in Nikopol.

Maybe the Ukrainians are just trapping themselves

https://www.reddit.com/r/CombatFoota...inian_militia/