P.U.T.U said:
There is no doubt Ukraine is taking back ground but from what is being reported it is coming at a great cost of equipment and men. They do not have the resources to keep going by themselves so they have to keep the west interested. In the end this war will prove to be one of the biggest money laundering schemes ever
First, it is not simply about a few acres here and there. The Russians clearly have what they term 'crumple zones' in their defenses, and to prevent losses in their own forces deliberately pull back when cannon fodder infantry attacks so that the artillery can do it's job and annihilate them instead of just fighting in trenches. It's anything but dumb, on their part, and the Ukrainians, clearly at a manpower disadvantage/shortage, are only losing in this endeavor of 'mosquito attacks.'
Second, it's not even clear if they are net gaining territory, as the Russians are counter-attacking at various points.
Third, it's also not clear how they are winning economically. For instance, they hit a bridge, shutting down one lane for a few weeks. The Russians have depleted the UFA air defenses in key ports now, eliminated their ability to export grain (or anything else) by closing sea lanes, and by doing so raised the price of their grain on the market. Who won by that UFA attack that was so widely praised on another thread? LOL.
Finally; look at the map. Propaganda aside, it's basically static since the mythologized spring offensive began in mid summer.
Oh, and a last point, some of the intent of the war was not just money laundering, but to help Joe Biden's Chinese allies/paymasters by destabilizing Europe, spiking world inflation, and assisting their BRICS alliance. It's worked quite well for them, I'd say, and since the war started, Russia's oil revenues are probably up 50% vs. the 18 months before. Genius, America-first strategy here by Nuland-Power-Sullivan-Xiden et al.