Re: All Things Russia & Ukraine
Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2022 6:12 pm
Ukraine has been using U.S. and NATO intelligence data (including, I assume, precise targeting data) very judiciously. Ukraine has been launching precision strikes against Russian command centers, ammunition depots, and armored vehicles with great efficiency.MDlaxfan76 wrote: ↑Sat Sep 03, 2022 10:55 amYes, it is indeed very dangerous. And yes, we should certainly hope that our military takes such danger seriously and has taken what steps it can to minimize and mitigate any Russian attempts to strike US forces.old salt wrote: ↑Sat Sep 03, 2022 5:48 am This is really dangerous stuff. We are very close to being involved in a shooting war with Russia & nobody is taking it seriously.
The Russians know where & how the Ukrainians are getting such precise targeting info. This is a very explicit warning. Not just bluster.
I hope we have combat air patrol fighters escorting our surveillance aircraft & we are able to jam Russia's S-400's in Crimea.
https://abcnews.go.com/International/wi ... s-89225498
Russia warns US off sending long-range weapons to Ukraine
A senior Russian diplomat has sternly warned Washington against supplying long-range weapons to Ukraine
by VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV, Associated Press, September 2, 2022
MOSCOW -- A senior Russian diplomat sternly warned Washington Friday against supplying long-range weapons to Ukraine, noting that the U.S. is balancing on the edge of direct involvement in the conflict.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov also pointed to the country's military doctrine that envisages the use of nuclear weapons in case of a threat to the existence of the Russian state.
“We have repeatedly warned the U.S. about the consequences that may follow if the U.S. continues to flood Ukraine with weapons," Ryabkov said. “It effectively puts itself in a state close to what can be described as a party to the conflict.”
Speaking on state television, Ryabkov warned that ”a very narrow margin that separates the U.S. from becoming a party to the conflict mustn't create an illusion for rabid anti-Russian forces that everything will remain as it is if they cross it.”
He emphasized that Russia will push its offensive in Ukraine until it reaches its aims.
“Russia is capable of fully defending its interests, and the goals of the special military operation will be fully achieved,” Ryabkov said.
He pointed out that Russia’s military doctrine stipulates that it could use nuclear weapons in case of aggression against Russia and its allies involving mass destruction weapons, or an aggression involving conventional weapons that threatens the very existence of the Russian state.
Supplies of the U.S. HIMARS multiple rocket launchers strengthened the strike capability of the Ukrainian army, which has used them to hit key infrastructure facilities and other targets. The truck-mounted systems fire GPS-guided missiles capable of reaching targets up to 80 kilometers (50 miles) away.
U.S. authorities so far have refrained from providing Ukraine with longer range missiles for HIMARS launchers that can reach targets up to 300 kilometers (186 miles) and could potentially allow the Ukrainian military to hit areas deep inside Russia.
“We are warning the U.S. against making provocative steps, such as deliveries of longer-range and more devastating weapons,” Ryabkov said. “It's a road to nowhere fraught with grave consequences, the responsibility for which will lie entirely with Washington.”
But let's be very clear, this is on Russia not the US, Putin in specific, for having invaded a neighboring country, with long range, indiscriminate missile strikes against civilian populations. Russia is the aggressor, full stop.
They can warn and spin all they want (and of course they will), but the reality is that we should provide the longer range, precision capabilities to the Ukrainians so that they can and will defeat the aggressor.
That said, we need to be confident that the Ukrainians will use the weaponry we provide for precision strikes only, and against military assets only, and not 'deep inside Russia'. The objective needs to remain the repulsion of the aggressor.
Are the Ukrainians building that confidence with the US?
Indeed, I think Ukraine’s ability to rapidly adapt and learn to use precision artillery is going to be studied by generations of military officers in the U.S. and elsewhere.
It truly is astounding what Ukraine has achieved with the Howitzers and HIMARS systems that we have provided.
I agree … I think we should give Ukraine the longer-range 189-mile missiles for the HIMARS systems. They will need those to take back territory occupied by Russia.
DocBarrister