Russia - threadbanned users in OP

Russians finally getting across the river at Izyum is not news I wanted to see today. Success around Kiev is great though. Hopefully Ukraine can put some of the recently acquired Russian equipment to good use in the east.

While I'm seeing tanks, rocket launchers etc. are they acquiring much artillery units? The arrival of the American switchblade drones can't come quick enough.

Edit: I see the official number sent by the US is 100. I'm going to sound like Zelenskyy now and say could they not have sent more.

Poland and Denmark both said they would be willing to be named as guarantor's for Ukraine in there peace talks.

Wonderful apt cartoon. Summarises the situation far better than the western media unfortunately has done.

Its more to do with not taking to many causualtys as you withdraw so shell thr sh1t out of them so they stay in cover and dont follow for a while as you withdraw

Remarkable good faith there from the Russians indeed.

The Russians leaving Kyiv is good news, I guess, but part of me is worried that they may be just getting their troops out of the way before carpet bombing the place or, worse still, using some kind of WMD. I wouldn't trust them as far as I can throw them.

If the Ukrainians can get the Russians pushed back across the northern border, could they then mine the hell out of the first couple of kilometers of their border with Belarus so that they don't need so many troops to defend it and free up most of the troops for the east/south?

I hope they have already been using the past few weeks to mine every bridge and culvert on the rest of the Belarussian border ala the Swiss.

Is he going to launch something at Kyiv?

Just because those Russians found that they were living in different countries after the Soviet Union collapsed it doesn't mean they're 'locked out'. They can go and live in Russia, can't they?!

Russia: We have no plans to attack Kyiv with weapons of mass destruction

Ron Howard: Later that day, Russia attacked Kyiv with weapons of mass destruction

But in seriousness, the city of Kyiv itself is a place I understand Russians hold in high regard and think of it as the second city of the Slavic world, behind Moscow, and an historical centre of Slavic culture before Moscow even got going. The idea of bombarding Kyiv could be controversial for even the true blue supporter of Putin as it would potentially mean destroying some dear history. I don't know what the Irish equivalent would be.... Maybe like flattening Bundoran or something.

What am we looking at there... Some dollars?

If either of those things happen I reckon NATO will get involved and then any Russian within the borders of Ukraine would be fair game.

After Obama's red lines in Syria debacle the US will react in far more aggressive manner.

I suspect it might be the Donbass War for the foreseeable future. Most action will be attrition based warfare along a single long front from Mariupol in the south up to Kharkiv in the north; or some variation thereof. Strikes behind Ukraine lines will be frequent and damaging; Ukraine won't be able to do the same behind Russian lines. Losses on both sides will likely be significant; but Ukraine will struggle against Russian air superiority. At some point Russia might achieve air supremacy over some key Ukrainian cities which would be a disaster and could force Ukraine's hand at any negotiations; but I hope that's less likely.

Just my idiot opinion. I sincerely hope we will have had a Russian withdrawal by then but I just don't see how that happens.

If push comes to shove, Putin does not need any reason to call a nuclear strike....one of his spokespersons has already said that Russia is not bound by any "First Strike " rules or international laws. It will evaluate threats as it sees fit, and react accordingly.( Nukes? ) And we have already seen an Israeli spokes person ( one who has always only posted positive articles / news etc. about Putin ) publicly stating that Putin HAS to achieve his Ukrainian targets, otherwise this will be considered as failure, and that will be an existential threat to Russia.