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mid growing concerns about a potential new large-scale Russian invasion of Ukrainian territory, at least one Russian T-80 tank has apparently been sighted in occupied Crimea with a bizarre-looking ad hoc armor fit. Armor of this type has been increasingly appearing on Russian tanks as of late and appears to be primarily intended to defend them against attacks by loitering munitions and other armed unmanned aircraft. The solution, which is part of a wider trend of improved defenses for Russian tanks, may well have been inspired by the destruction wrought by drone-launched munitions during last year’s conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, although...

Vladimir Putin has taken to comparing himself to some of his czarist predecessors, invoking their military triumphs. In June, he praised Peter the Great for “taking back and reinforcing” territory in the Baltics in the Great Northern War in the 18th century. But as Putin’s effort to conquer parts of Ukraine slogs into its sixth month, some historians feel he more closely resembles Nicholas II, whose 1904-1905 war against Japan was an unmitigated disaster. The parallels between the two conflicts are undeniable. Just as Nicholas underestimated his Japanese adversary, so did Putin, who was convinced that his invasion of Ukraine...

Vladimir Putin has approved a 31-page "humanitarian policy" which says Russia should "protect, safeguard and advance the traditions and ideals of the Russian World". The foreign policy concept of a "Russian World" is a notion that hardliners have used to justify intervening abroad to support Russian speakers, such as in parts of Ukraine. It means that the idea is now enshrined in official policy, though it was presented as a soft power strategy. The new policy stated that Moscow should further deepen its ties with the self-styled Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic - two breakaway entities in...

A Bayraktar TB2 of the Ukrainian Air Force armed with MAM-L; two ground control stations are in the background. Many years ago when the drone hobby was emerging, it was clear drones had a military potential. What was not foreseen is that civilian grade drones would also make their impact on the modern battlefield. The Ukrainian war changed everything for Ukrainian civilians, and now drones are one of the biggest assets for the Ukrainian Defense Force. Drones have become a force multiplier for infantry forward observers. Next Level Drone Warfare The conflict between Russia and Ukraine is heavily reliant on...

Once the full scale of Ukrainian losses in their counter offensive becomes widely known, the political divisions within the Zelensky government are likely to grow. There is a video online in Ukrainian with a Ukrianian General stating that Ukrainian losses are “hundreds of thousands.” This is a fact that will not remain hidden and will add to the turmoil swirling around Zelensky. How long will the Ukrainian people continue to support a policy where their husbands and sons are being used as cannon fodder? That is a critical indicator to monitor during September.

Turkish Bayraktar TB2 have destroyed more than 800 Russian targets in ongoing war between Russian and Ukraine including two Ilyushin IL-76 strategic airlifter and more than 120 tanks Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial reconnaissance and strike vehicles turned out to be quite an effective weapon in the fight against various kinds of targets. As it turned out, these drones showed the greatest efficiency in the fight against MLRS, air defence systems and tanks, destroying more than 120 units of heavy combat vehicles and more than 280 missile launchers, although drones even account for combat aircraft and helicopters. According to statistics published...

Nearly two months after Russia invaded Ukraine, a Russian general described Russia’s next phase of military operations as what may be an invasion of Moldova. In comments reported by the Russian state-run TASS news agency on Friday, Russian Maj. Gen. Rustam Minnekaev, Deputy Commander of the Central Military District, said the “second phase” of Russian military operations in Ukraine will focus on establishing a “land corridor” between Russia, the Russian-occupied territory of Crimea, and Transnistria, which is a pro-Russian breakaway region of neighboring Moldova. “Since the beginning of the second phase of the special operation, it has already begun, literally...

Russia is pulling all of its fighter jets out of Crimea in an apparent response to recent explosions at Russian military outposts in the region, a secret NATO report seen by Insider said. Russia has already moved ten aircraft — six Su-35S and four MiG-31BM jets — out of Crimea and into Russia and is set to continue until all fighter jets are removed, the report, which was dated August 22, said. The first ten jets were moved from Belbek airfield in Crimea to Kushchevskaya and Marinovka, two regions in Russia, the report said. "Russia has dispersed 10x fighter aircraft...

Detailed commentary with maps from a bird's eye view along with Denys Davydov expertise in all kinds of vehicles and weapons.

KYIV, Ukraine — A small explosive device carried by a makeshift drone blew up Sunday at the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet on the Crimean Peninsula, wounding six people and prompting the cancellation of ceremonies there honoring Russia’s navy, authorities said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the drone explosion in a courtyard at the naval headquarters in the city of Sevastopol. But the seemingly improvised, small-scale nature of the attack raised the possibility that it was the work of Ukrainian insurgents trying to drive out Russian forces. A Russian lawmaker from Crimea, Olga Kovitidi, told Russian...

President Vladimir Putin on Sunday signed a new naval doctrine which cast the United States as Russia's main rival and set out Russia's global maritime ambitions for crucial areas such as the Arctic and in the Black Sea. Speaking on Russia's Navy Day in the former imperial capital of St Petersburg founded by Tsar Peter the Great, Putin praised Peter for making Russia a great sea power and increasing the global standing of the Russian state.

The movement of Vladimir Putin's vessels to the port city of Novorossiysk in southern Russia comes after Ukrainian stocks of longer-range missile systems were boosted by Western allies. Ukrainian media reports Serhiy Bratchuk, adviser to the head of Odesa's Regional Military Administration, reporting news of the ships' eastward movement via Telegram. Media outlet Ukrinform reports the official as saying: "According to the information of our Navy, the enemy has redeployed a significant number of warships from Sevastopol to Novorossiysk. "Russian ships were earlier deployed in missile-proof areas in the zone covered by coastal air defence systems, as close as possible...

Throughout his 20-plus year rule, Vladimir Putin has consolidated power through graft, intimidation, manipulation of the Russian legal system, and forcefully silencing critics. Putin’s ability to sustain subservience and loyalty to his authority is no small feat, especially in a political culture of ruthless power politics. His reputation as a master tactician abroad has also been carefully cultivated, if not exaggerated.

The Russian navy appears to have accidentally blown up one of its own ships in the black sea in the latest blunder for Putin's forces. A landing craft is reported to have exploded when it hit a Russian sea mine near Mariupol. The crew is said to have survived the friendly-fire incident, but the reputation of Russia's naval commanders is not so unscathed. 'Near Mariupol, a landing craft of the Black Sea Fleet D-106 blew up on a mine,' said a Telegram channel related to the Russian navy. 'Waiting for a confirmation of this suicidal goodwill gesture,' said the Twitter...

Russian officials have said Ukraine launched missile strikes against three gas rigs in the Black Sea south of Odesa, in an apparent escalation of Kyiv’s attempts to weaken Russia’s maritime dominance. Seven people were missing and three injured after the strikes, according to the head of occupied Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, who said a “rescue operation with the participation of patrol ships and aviation” was under way. The three offshore platforms, the Boyko towers, had previously been seized by Moscow from Ukraine in 2014. Kyiv believes they are used for military reconnaissance and to help assert control of a larger portion...

The UK and Denmark have sent Harpoon anti-ship missiles to Ukraine which has led to President Putin ordering his warships to retreat 60 miles from the coast. Russia is desperately trying to fit warships with anti-air defences normally meant for land as Vladimir Putin fears Britain's deadly Harpoon missiles - which are being sent to Ukraine, according to reports. The UK and Denmark have sent Harpoon anti-ship missiles to Ukraine which has led to President Putin ordering his warships to retreat 60 miles from the coast. The humiliating climbdown suggests the attacks Putin was targeting on a beach in Odessa...

Walls rattled and pieces of plaster fell from the ceiling of a basement converted by Ukrainian troops into a forward outpost. Russian shells hit again and again the crumpled building above. Images on a surveillance monitor, linked to a camera outside in the deserted village, showed plumes of black smoke rising all around the compound. “The Russians are very angry today because yesterday we killed two of their tanks,” said Marian, a platoon leader in the volunteer Carpathian Sich battalion deployed on the front line near the Russian-held Ukrainian city of Izyum. Like most military personnel, he is only allowed...

Today, one of the representatives of the Russian state said that the occupiers allegedly began to use laser weapons systems in Ukraine. Allegedly to save missiles.Firstly, it is noteworthy that they need to save missiles and somehow explain it. That is, more than two thousand missiles fired by the Russian army at Ukraine were the main part of their stockpile of missiles. That is, only the remnants are left.Secondly, everyone has already seen Russia at war. Inexperienced conscripts, which it throws into battle like cannon fodder. Marauders who see normal appliances for the first time in a foreign country. Old...

Russia claimed to have captured Mariupol on Friday in what would be its biggest victory yet in its war with Ukraine, after a nearly three-month siege that reduced much of the strategic port city to a smoking ruin...Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin the “complete liberation” of the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol......As they surrendered, the troops were taken prisoner by the Russians, and at least some were taken to a former penal colony. Others were said to be hospitalized.Russia said the Azov commander was taken away from the plant in an armored vehicle.

For undying enmity toward Mother Russia, Ukrainians have good cause. It can be traced to a single Ukrainian word -- “Holodomor” (derived from “holod, meaning hunger, and “mor,” meaning extermination). The word refers to a single event, the famine of 1932-3. This “famine,” however,” did not come from an act of nature, but from government policies -- the government at that time being not exactly Russia, but rather the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic, which was close to the same thing. In keeping their socialist, “equitable,” agenda, the Soviets, under Joseph Stalin, took over private farms and formed collectives. The...