Ukraine's Military Mobilizes, Prepares For Combat: Trucks, APCs, SAMs, Howitzers, Tanks Rolling Out

Zerohedge ^ | 3/8/14 | Tyler Durden

[Kartographer]

Did somebody say de-escalation?

Earlier today, photos were distributed showing the latest military convoy reinforcements heading into the Crimea, accompanies by a Police car demonstrating Moscow license plate numbers, most likely providing further support to the pro-Russian forces in the peninsula.

[Kartographer]

GEEETTTTTT REEEEADDDDYYYY TOOOO RUMBLE!!

[Migraine]

Assassinations of Ukie officials begin tomorrow. Plausible deniability, of course.

[Army Air Corps]

PING.

[gaijin]

I’m sure the Ukrainians right now are just tickled pink they got rid of all their nukes, right?

[jmacusa]

Reminds me of the great movie comedy from the ‘60s “The Russians Are Coming!’’ “Egermancy, Egermancy, everybody to get from street!’’.

[Nifster]

this is not going to end well

[crosslink]

Great live link

http://www.reddit.com/live/3rgnbke2rai6hen7ciytwcxadi/

[ClearCase_guy]

When we do things, our military is hampered by our Rules of Engagement.
If things get nasty in Ukraine, I don't think Putin will be hampered by gentle ROE.

And what will the world say about a modern military that REALLY fights to shock and awe?
Real war isn't pretty if you want to win fast and decisively and also pacify a country that wants you to leave.

[Husker24]

Why would Ukraine want to fight a war it has no chance of winning over a piece of land filled with Russians that was only given to the Ukraine in the 50’s?

[Zhang Fei]

I’m sure the Ukrainians right now are just tickled pink they got rid of all their nukes, right?

Nukes are pretty useless unless you want to exterminate the other guy's population while getting immolated in the process. The Afghans outlasted the Russians and they had nary a nuke in their possession. Ditto with our guys in Afghanistan and Iraq and Sunni Arab and Taliban insurgents respectively. Ukraine can kick the Russians out of Crimea without a single nuke - they just have to want it more than the Russians, and that means doing what it takes to get to the Russians' uncle point, casualty-wise. 13K dead was the Red Army's limit back in Afghanistan. I suspect if the Russian body count gets to 10K, Putin will be looking for a comfortable locale for a retirement in exile.

It's impossible to know the degree of Ukrainian rancor over the bloody suppression of past rebellions against the Russians. Was the Holodomor the Ukrainian equivalent of the Irish Potato Famine - the event that finally turned them irrevocably against their Russian masters? Only time will tell - in the form of the amount of punishment they're prepared to take in order to remove the Russians from the Crimea.

[GeronL]

Very likely

[GeronL]

Wow

[Army Air Corps]

Meanwhile, Russia reinforces its position in the Crimea.

[Zhang Fei]

Why would Ukraine want to fight a war it has no chance of winning over a piece of land filled with Russians that was only given to the Ukraine in the 50’s?

I think the question is why Russia would want to fight a war it has no chance of winning. It comes down to who wants it more. Is Russia prepared to have tens of thousands of its servicemen come home in body bags? More and more, I'm beginning to suspect that historians will note the Holodomor as the Ukrainian equivalent of the Irish Potato Famine - the event that made separation from Russia irrevocable. For Ukrainians, this invasion is a nation-making event - the historical enemy engages in yet another instance of unprovoked aggression, giving Ukrainians the opportunity to bleed the Russians, but this time with Ukraine winning instead of losing. Once the war officially kicks off in a few months (after the Ukrainian military is fully mobilized), expect it to be 10x more bloody than what transpired during the partition of Yugoslavia, if the Russians try to tough it out.

[2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten]

I think the west and the EU miscalculated - they thought they could engineer one of their cutely named revolutions and that would be that. Not working out that way.

[Steely Tom]

I spent the evening with a person I know pretty well. This person grew up in Ukraine.

She said the following things:

1. The disturbances started before Christmas 2013.
2. Accurate information is very hard to come by. Her family members back in Ukraine are trying to figure out what is going on almost as much as people here are.
3. There has been much civil unrest caused by "strikers." These are people who are demanding Ukraine join the European Union.
4. My friend says many of these people are unemployed, students, homeless, etc. They are being paid, but no one knows by whom. They are getting a small amount of money ($20 or $30 per day) plus meals in return for their participation in street protest, vandalism, and civil unrest.
5. People in the Eastern half of Ukraine are hoping the Russians invade. They are worried about energy and food supplies.
6. The Russians have greatly tightened security at the Ukraine border, but traffic is still flowing in both directions. There have been attempts to smuggle weapons into Russia from Ukraine by car and truck.
7. Rumor mill in Eastern Ukraine is that this unrest is being manufactured by US, UK, and Germany, who want to induce Ukraine to join EU.
8. Ukraine was very close to joining EU last year, but balked at the 11th hour once people began to realize the degree of economic restrictions on UK enterprises that would accompany EU membership.
9. In particular, my friend mentioned a major highway in Ukraine - "hundreds of kilometers long" that would have to be completely rebuilt before EU admission could be made permanent - because that highway didn't come up to EU standards.
10. When I made the assertion that Obama probably couldn't care less whether Ukraine joins the EU or not, she shrugged, as if to say "you know this and I know this, but people back home think otherwise."
11. The population of the Crimea (which she pronounced "krem-a") is almost entirely ethnically, culturally, and economically Russian. They want the Russians to come in.
12. No one knows or can figure out where the money to pay the protestors is coming from.
13. The protestors have vandalized monuments to war dead in Kiev and Lvov. Some of the ruined monuments were for Russian soldiers, but some were for Ukraine soldiers. This has angered many ordinary people, including my friend.
14. The wealthy people of Ukraine have all left for vacation homes abroad.
15. Putin's position is "if you want to join EU, join, and if you don't want to join, don't join." However, he made it clear that if Ukraine joins EU, they will pay EU prices for Russian natural gas.
16. There is much theft of gas from the pipeline that carries Russian nat gas through Ukraine.
17. Russia is building at least one more pipeline for gas that will bypass Ukraine.

As I said, this information is only a few hours old for me.

[Ghost of SVR4]

How do we know conclusively that they did? Israel has no nukes, right?

[DonaldC]

Sounds like occupy wallstreet type stuff.

[FreeReign]

I’m sure the Ukrainians right now are just tickled pink they got rid of all their nukes, right?

[Steely Tom]

Oh, I forgot some items:

18. Hospitals and schools are still open and functioning normally.
19. Gasoline and other fuels are available but are "very expensive."
20. There are no special travel restrictions between Ukraine and EU countries to its west.
21. When I asked "why are US, UK and Germany so keen to have Ukraine in the EU, she said "because that would bring Ukraine into NATO, which wants to build military bases next to Russia. This was when I said something like "Obama doesn't care about building military bases next to Russia" and her non-verbal response was like "yeah, I know, but what can you do?"