• GoodGuyWithACat [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    1 day ago

    While Russian forces are overextended all along the 700-mile front line of the wider war, outnumbered Ukrainian forces are even more overextended. Ukrainian defenses in the east were buckling before the general staff in Kyiv ordered parts of eight or so brigades to attack across the border into Kursk Oblast last month.

    Now they’re buckling faster.

    Can’t stop laughing at the failure of the Reddit offensive into Kursk. An obvious gambit that Putin didn’t fall for.

    • Adkml [he/him]@hexbear.net
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      1 day ago

      Yea two ways to look at it and neither are good for ukraine.

      Either it’s not strategically viable in which case one might wonder why one of thr largest mechanized brigades of the Ukrainian army operated out of there and why they spent months fighting to try to keep it.

      Or it is strategically viable and it was a successful Russian offensive.

      Either way even if it isn’t viable the Ukranians still tried and failed to hold it for years which it seems like your enemy capturing something you were trying to defend is a win for them regardless of how strategically valuable it was.

      • GoodGuyWithACat [he/him]@hexbear.net
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        1 day ago

        Great point. If Russia takes it, it’s not strategic. But it was strategic for thousands of people to die holding it. And I totally believe that Zelensky would sacrifice thousands of his people for something not strategic

      • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆OP
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        1 day ago

        Exactly, and while I do think Ugledar happens to be strategically important, there is an undeniable factor of Ukraine being constrained by the need for optics. Since Ukraine is entirely dependent on the west to continue fighting, they’re conscious about them getting cold feet if they start thinking that Ukraine is a lost cause. This results in Ukraine holding every centimetre of territory to the last man, and doing stunts like Kursk. On the other hand, Russian military is free to make decisions regardless of the optics. They can give up territory, do tactical retreats, and so on. This is a huge advantage since it affords Russia far more operational freedom.

  • aaaaaaadjsf [he/him, comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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    1 day ago

    Ukraine is also losing more and more territory in Kursk by the day, as they had to send some of the “elite brigades” that took part in the initial Kursk gamble back to the Eastern front to prevent complete collapse under Russian attack, and replaced them with a bunch of inexperienced brigades who are incapable of holding territory in Kursk.

    • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆OP
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      1 day ago

      Kursk was a monumental blunder on the part of Ukraine in my opinion. It pulled a ton of resources away from the main front that was already buckling, and ultimately failed to achieve anything strategic. Now, Ukraine isn’t even able to pull out of Kursk politically because it would be an admission that the whole ploy failed. So, they’re stuck feeding troops and scarce resources into this debacle while their main front collapses.