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Note: Some said it would happen in winter; it didn’t. Some now say it will happen soon, in spring. Some say of it, wait & see.
”It” is a Ukrainian counter-offensive. Ukraine’s war goal is to get Russian forces out of all its claimed territory. To win, they’ll have to push them out. That would require a massive counter-offensive.
Continue reading Spring in Ukraine: Time for An Offensive/Counter-offensive?
Category Archives: War Notes
Wikipedia vs Russia: The War comes Out in the Open on the Web
[NOTE: In my view, Wikipedia is just about the best thing in the web. I consult it almost every day, donate when they ask, and respect what seems to be their increasing credibility and comprehensiveness as a source of reliable information.
But “reliable information” is a hotly contested commodity, and in many places part of a larger battlefield. And a much more important indicator of Wikipedia’s importance than my regard, is the fire they’re drawing from state actors and other militants who want to bend its information to their partisan narratives and disinformation. Continue reading Wikipedia vs Russia: The War comes Out in the Open on the Web
Gwynne Dyer On Ukraine Peace Prospects
MONDAY’S stunt, where Yevgeny Prigozhin held a Russian flag in his hands and declared that his ‘Wagner’ mercenary soldiers have finally conquered the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, probably marks the end of Russian winter offensive.
It was just a charade, of course. The footage was shot at night, in front of a nondescript administration building that signifies nothing in particular. Even Prigozhin admitted that it was only a victory “from a legal point of view”, i.e. he was standing on a street-corner that he wanted us to believe – well, wanted Russians to believe was really Bakhmut city’s centre.
Defector Escapes from the Elite Russian Unit that Guards Putin
[NOTE: I’m unable to verify this story. But it comes from Associated Press, a long-established and generally top-quality news organization. Here it sets out a real-life Russian intelligence thriller, worthy of LeCarré or the other spy-novel masters, and the last chapter is not written yet . . .]
Officer from Putin’s elite security team defectsGleb Karakulov, an officer in Putin’s secretive personal security service, defected in October. The 35-year-old engineer is one of few Russians to flee and go public who have rank, as well as knowledge of intimate details of Putin’s life and potentially classified information (April 4)
So, There’s War Crimes — and Then, There’s “War Crimes”
Dyer: Putin can’t be charged with all his crimes while Bush goes free
Gwynne Dyer — Mar 27, 2023
Although the arrest warrant issued for Russian President Vladimir Putin by the International Criminal Court last week was welcome, there is come puzzlement about the crime with which he is being charged.
Continue reading So, There’s War Crimes — and Then, There’s “War Crimes”