Despite their withdrawal, the Ukrainian defense of Severodonetsk inflicted heavy losses on the Russians, who have also withdrawn from Snake Island after a new bombardment. A Donbas separatist appeal to Texas for sovereign recognition only shows how little they know of US federalism but also the larger Russian goal of destabilizing the US.
Key Takeaways
- Russian troops made limited gains within the Lysychansk Oil Refinery and around Lysychansk.
- Russian forces continued offensive operations to the south and east of Bakhmut and to the north of Slovyansk.
- Russian forces continued efforts to regain control of settlements north of Kharkiv City.
- Ukrainian counteroffensives continue to force Russian troops on the Southern Axis to prioritize defensive operations.
- Russian occupation authorities took measures to ensure further economic and financial integration of occupied areas into the Russian system.
Ukrainian forces have pushed Russian forces from Snake Island, a strategic Black Sea island off the southern coast near the city of Odesa.
Russia portrayed the pullout from Snake Island off the port city of Odesa as a “goodwill gesture”. Ukraine’s military said the Russians fled the island in two speedboats after a barrage of Ukrainian artillery and missile strikes.
Ukraine’s win will weaken any plans Russia may have for a future land attack on that stretch of coastline, Ukrainian officials say.
Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, the commander of Ukraine’s armed forces, said Ukrainian-made Bohdana howitzers had played an important role in routing Russian forces from Snake Island, and he thanked foreign partners for their support.
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And yes, it is easier said than done. Interdiction of artillery in the coastal area of Ukraine would have been necessary, and as noted months ago, Russia is very poorly equipped to do this at considerable distances. But also, another constant reminder of how...
how poor Russian air defenses performed here. While their point defenses clearly were beefed up, there was no real area air defense over that region it seemed. Moskva's sinking likely made this worse, but how operable its systems were is still up for debate.
Russia's inability to extend its airpower beyond short ranges against dynamic (moving) land targets has just neutered them in so many ways.
With no ability to execute & sustain an integrated air campaign to sanitize the area within artillery range of the island, which would have included targeting/intel gathering, battlefield interdiction (strike), and SEAD/DEAD/EW operations, lowly artillery largely made holding...
the island just too costly and arguably worthless, of course with some help from Ukrainian airpower.
Otherwise, Russia would have had to hold/occupy that area of the Ukrainian coast. HIMARS made the circle markedly larger.
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The Republic of Texas (Spanish: República de Tejas) was a sovereign state in North America that existed from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846, although Mexico considered it a rebellious province during its entire existence despite the Treaties of Velasco of May 1836.
An incipient illegitimacy crisis is under way, whoever is elected in 2022, or in 2024. According to a University of Virginia analysis of census projections, by 2040, 30% of the population will control 68% of the Senate. Eight states will contain half the population. The Senate malapportionment gives advantages overwhelmingly to white, non– college educated voters. In the near future, a Democratic candidate could win the popular vote by many millions of votes and still lose. Do the math: the federal system no longer represents the will of the American people.
The right is preparing for a breakdown of law and order, but they are also overtaking the forces of law and order. Hard right organization have now infiltrated so many police forces – the connections number in the hundreds – that they have become unreliable allies in the struggle against domestic terrorism.
[...]
What the American left needs now is allegiance, not allyship. It must abandon any imagined fantasies about the sanctity of governmental institutions that long ago gave up any claim to legitimacy. Stack the supreme court, end the filibuster, make Washington DC a state, and let the dogs howl, and now, before it is too late. The moment the right takes control of institutions, they will use them to overthrow democracy in its most basic forms; they are already rushing to dissolve whatever norms stand in the way of their full empowerment.
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