Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5

Nathan Evans78 said:If Russia is truly in such a pathetic state, why aren't Poland and the Baltic states starting to push toward Minneapolis?

I honestly feel like this has to reach a breaking point soon—whether we're looking at a nuclear winter or thousands of dead Europeans. Just sitting around waiting for Putin to kick the bucket for some random reason isn't a plan; if anything, that delay might just lead to even bigger disasters down the road.

They aren't barbarians who would just go out and kill people or destroy neighboring nations.

Gerald Torres84 said:They aren't barbarians who would just go out and kill people or destroy neighboring nations.

I suppose we’ll just give it a fancy label like "spreading democracy" or "specialized financial assistance," right?

In reality, folks over in Belarus are practically counting down the days until those new loans kick in, just so they can finally afford some new Whirlpool washing machines. ☕

Nathan Evans78 said:I suppose we’ll just give it a fancy label like "spreading democracy" or "specialized financial assistance," right?

In reality, folks over in Belarus are practically counting down the days until those new loans kick in, just so they can finally afford some new Whirlpool washing machines. ☕

Every nation has the right to determine its own destiny. If they want a loan for a Whirlpool or if they prefer to remain stagnant without any real progress, that is their choice.
The main thing is that nobody is killing them, denying them, raping them, or anything of that nature.

Haha, blocking international waters? That is a brilliant idea. It is high time we escalate this situation.

I honestly don't get it—why aren't the Ukrainians making a serious attempt to damage or completely take out that bridge connecting Crimea to Russia?
Hitting that target would be the single most powerful move possible to actually boost morale on the ground.

Maybe they’re just holding that card in reserve... waiting for the exact right moment when it matters most.🤔

Word is that Russia has sunk something like $19 billion into that infrastructure, so if they were to suffer some major damage or a total shutdown at one or more points... man, that would hurt them where it counts.

Best,

Bryan Booth82 said:I honestly don't get it—why aren't the Ukrainians making a serious attempt to damage or completely take out that bridge connecting Crimea to Russia?
Hitting that target would be the single most powerful move possible to actually boost morale on the ground.

Maybe they’re just holding that card in reserve... waiting for the exact right moment when it matters most.🤔

Word is that Russia has sunk something like $19 billion into that infrastructure, so if they were to suffer some major damage or a total shutdown at one or more points... man, that would hurt them where it counts.

Best,

With what, exactly? Something from Hogwarts?

They just don't have what it takes, I mean, the distance is simply too massive.

So, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken just announced this massive financial push for the Three Seas Initiative on Monday, basically saying that this whole cooperation platform for 12 nations across Central and Eastern Europe has become way more significant ever since Russia decided to invade Ukraine.

Just for some context, the Three Seas Initiative is this informal political group made up of countries tucked between the Baltic, Adriatic, and Black Seas, and it was originally co-founded by the US and Poland.

It’s actually pretty wild that the membership includes the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, and even Canada (???!?) 😬

Donna Harris11 said:They just don't have what it takes, I mean, the distance is simply too massive.

People always look for excuses, but there is always a way if you actually use your head.

Remember back during the war in the States, when our neighbors were absolutely baffled by how "drunk and high insurgents could toss hand grenades 400 yards."😉

https://www.defense-portal.com/...in-the-shape-of-a-lesson

It’s just a matter of a little creativity. It isn't like that bridge is located on another planet.

Best regards,

Bryan Booth82 said:I honestly don't get it—why aren't the Ukrainians making a serious attempt to damage or completely take out that bridge connecting Crimea to Russia?
Hitting that target would be the single most powerful move possible to actually boost morale on the ground.

Maybe they’re just holding that card in reserve... waiting for the exact right moment when it matters most.🤔

Word is that Russia has sunk something like $19 billion into that infrastructure, so if they were to suffer some major damage or a total shutdown at one or more points... man, that would hurt them where it counts.

Best,

Even if they had missiles with enough range, you can't just blast a bridge like that into oblivion with rockets. At best, you'll mess up the roadway or punch some holes in it, but that's not going to threaten the actual structural integrity of the thing. Plus, those holes can eventually be patched up. Just look at when the Russians fired something like 20 rounds at that bridge over the Dniester—they didn't bring it down, they just scuffed up the surface. On top of that, you have to remember the Russians are guarding it with an S-400 air defense system.

The S-400 is nothing more than a slightly upgraded version of the S-300 junk...
Just stating facts...

Do the Israelis even care about that!?

hollowdriver13 said:Even if they had missiles with enough range, you can't just blast a bridge like that into oblivion with rockets. At best, you'll mess up the roadway or punch some holes in it, but that's not going to threaten the actual structural integrity of the thing. Plus, those holes can eventually be patched up. Just look at when the Russians fired something like 20 rounds at that bridge over the Dniester—they didn't bring it down, they just scuffed up the surface. On top of that, you have to remember the Russians are guarding it with an S-400 air defense system.

I am not suggesting this would be some easy walk in the park, but there is nothing on this earth that is truly indestructible.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimea_Bridge

The bridge spans 19 kilometers; it certainly doesn't strike me as an invincible fortress.
Perhaps a coordinated assault using a variety of different assets—because creativity knows no bounds—could work? It would be practically impossible to maintain a high-quality defense along the entire length of such a massive structure.

In my view, destroying or severely crippling that bridge—which serves as a supply line from an aggressor state into occupied Ukrainian territory (that godforsaken occupied land)—would be a completely legitimate military objective. Any level of success there would be a massive reward for the effort expended.

Best regards,

Nancy Gomez26 said:It appears I was mistaken regarding Kazakhstan's role as a loophole for bypassing sanctions against the Russian Federation. At least for the moment.

The smartest move for Europe would be to seriously evaluate constructing gas and oil pipelines from Kazakhstan via a route crossing the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, then running under the Black Sea toward Romania or Bulgaria—or perhaps through Turkey. However, an undersea route seems more prudent. A joint venture between Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan could work.

From what I can tell, though, that kind of thing moves at a snail's pace. You're always stuck dealing with permits and land rights and all that stuff... it takes years. Could they speed it up? I don't know. Europe really needs solutions sooner rather than later, especially within this year.

gentlerider7 said:All he'll have left is Alexander Lukashenko.

Even he won't last very long this time... nobody is going to step up to defend him against the protesters.

Bryan Booth82 said:I am not suggesting this would be some easy walk in the park, but there is nothing on this earth that is truly indestructible.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimea_Bridge

The bridge spans 19 kilometers; it certainly doesn't strike me as an invincible fortress.
Perhaps a coordinated assault using a variety of different assets—because creativity knows no bounds—could work? It would be practically impossible to maintain a high-quality defense along the entire length of such a massive structure.

In my view, destroying or severely crippling that bridge—which serves as a supply line from an aggressor state into occupied Ukrainian territory (that godforsaken occupied land)—would be a completely legitimate military objective. Any level of success there would be a massive reward for the effort expended.

Best regards,

I guess it would make more sense to hit those bridge supports with torpedoes, but then again, Ukraine doesn't exactly have a submarine fleet.

American MQ... either equipped with guided anti-tank munitions, GBU kits... or maybe both? 🙂

Why would Ukraine even ask the Americans for this? We're talking about strategic ground objectives versus naval assets... let's be real here...

A bridge is a strategic target on land, not a ship... more or less. 🙂

Bryan Booth82 said:I honestly don't get it—why aren't the Ukrainians making a serious attempt to damage or completely take out that bridge connecting Crimea to Russia?
Hitting that target would be the single most powerful move possible to actually boost morale on the ground.

Maybe they’re just holding that card in reserve... waiting for the exact right moment when it matters most.🤔

Word is that Russia has sunk something like $19 billion into that infrastructure, so if they were to suffer some major damage or a total shutdown at one or more points... man, that would hurt them where it counts.

Best,

Just look at photos of the bridge. It's mostly massive concrete. I mean, what are they even supposed to hit? It'd just leave tiny little holes in the slab. The bombs they have right now can knock down simple stuff, like houses or small buildings, but that's about it.
The Ukrainians need bunker-buster missiles—stuff that can actually punch through thick layers of reinforced concrete—but the US isn't providing those yet.

Well... no... that's just not how it works.

A thick slab of concrete is basically just a target for a bunker buster. Just Google "bunker buster bomb" if you don't believe me. A single BLU-109 is plenty to take out a bridge; it can punch through two feet of reinforced concrete without breaking a sweat.

Maybe they'll get those HIMARS units over to the bridge... I'm guessing the Brits might cough up a missile with a range of 186 miles

If someone actually managed to hit the Golden Gate Bridge, then maybe Putin would finally have an excuse to claim he’s being attacked.