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☆ A Ukrainian captain says his unit shot down every drone it met despite having 'antiquated' guns
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-09 | by ( Thibault Spirlet | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Ukrainian platoon has shot down all of the drones it's encountered, its captain told The Guardian. Oleksandr Zhygun said his soldiers are using "antiquated" guns to do it, per the outlet. AdvertisementA Ukrainian captain operating near Kyiv said his platoon has shot down every Russian drone it has encountered, despite having what he describes as "antiquated" guns. But in eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian troops are struggling against Russia's night-vision drones, a Ukrainian soldier told the Kyiv Post last month. Asked whether Ukraine could still win the war, Zhygun told The Guardian it was a "difficult" question and that they needed more air defense systems.

Persons: Oleksandr Zhygun, —, Zhygun's Kalashnikov, Yehven, Dolin, Zhygun, Ukraine's Organizations: Ukrainian, Guardian, Service, Ukraine's 241st Brigade, Territorial Defense Forces, Soviet Union, Patriot, Republicans, The Institute Locations: Ukraine, Soviet, Kyiv, Afghanistan, Ukrainian, Kyiv Post, Russia, Ukraine's, Avdiivka

☆ An MIT professor devised a 'Fortress Ukraine' plan in 1994 that proved remarkably right about the Russian invasion
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-23 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

An MIT professor envisioned a defensive strategy in 1994 for Ukraine to survive a Russian attack. AdvertisementIn 1994, an American professor came up with a plan for Ukraine to defend against Russian invasion. Rather than seizing all of eastern Ukraine, Russia currently occupies about 18 percent of Ukrainian territory, mainly in the southeast and along the Black Sea coast. AdvertisementA member of 120th Independent Brigade of the Territorial Defense Forces of Ukraine takes part in training exercises on March 16. "The Ukrainian force can cover about 60 percent of the front with no reserves.

Persons: Barry Posen, —, Posen's, Posen, Vladimir Putin, Gian Marco Benedetto, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, envelopments, didn't, Ukraine hadn't, George Barros, Barros, Michael Peck Organizations: MIT, Service, Russia —, NATO, Ukraine —, 120th Independent Brigade, Territorial Defense Forces, Russia, Mechanized, Russian, Institute for, Defense, Foreign Policy, Rutgers Univ, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: Ukraine, American, Russia, Ukrainian, Russian, Dnipro, Posen, Soviet Union, Soviet, Moscow, America, Britain, Crimea, Donetsk, Nazi Germany, Washington ,, Kharkiv, Luhansk, Forbes

Kyiv, Ukraine CNN —The small group of women thought about canceling their protest when the sirens went off. A short distance away from where the women were standing, lawmakers debated reforms to Ukraine’s mobilization rules, inside Kyiv’s heavily protected parliament building. Antonina and her son Sasha, 3, take part in a protest in Kyiv, Ukraine, calling for soldiers' mobilization to have a time limit. “The time has come to take back what is ours,” said one highly produced video, published on the Telegram channel of then commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi. “The bureaucratic apparatus of the armed forces is a bit inflated.

Persons: Antonina, Sasha, “, doesn’t, ” Antonina, Antonina’s, Daria Tarasova, ”, Valerii, Mac ”, Mykola, Yurii, Ukraine’s, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Andriy Demchenko, Demchenko, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zaluzhnyi, Zelensky, ” Zaluzhnyi, Andriy Zagorodnyuk, Oleksandr Syrskyi, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Gen, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Sysrkyi, Genya Savilov, ” Tymofiy Mylovanov, Mylovanov, “ It’s Organizations: Ukraine CNN, Kyiv, CNN, Telegram, Ukraine’s Armed Forces, 92nd Assault Brigade, Territorial Defense Force, Publishing, Getty, State Border Service of Ukraine, Facebook, Former, Publicly, Munich, Ukrainian Armed Forces, Presidential Press Service, Reuters, President’s, Air Assault Forces, Kyiv School of Economics Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, Bakhmut, Russia, London, Ivano, Frankivsk, Ukrainian, Donetsk Oblast, Anadolu, Hungary, AFP, Avdiivka

CNN —Russia and Ukraine exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war on Thursday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram that the released prisoners had returned to Ukraine. Last week, Ukraine and Russia exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in what the Ukrainian government called the “second major exchange after a long break.”It was the first exchange since the mysterious crash of a Russian IL-76 plane on January 24 in Russia’s Belgorod region, which neighbors eastern Ukraine. Moscow claimed the plane was transporting dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war, while Kyiv said it was carrying Russian missiles to be used in further strikes on Ukraine. Zelensky said 207 Ukrainian service members were returned on Wednesday, while the Russian Defense Ministry said 195 Russian military personnel had been received.

Persons: KSHPPV, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Zelensky, Zelensky Organizations: CNN, Ukrainian Armed Forces, United Arab Emirates, Russian Ministry of Defence, Russian Air Force, Russian Defense Ministry Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Azovstal, Donetsk, Luhansk, Russian, Russia’s Belgorod, Moscow, Kyiv

☆ Russia's army is impossible to outflank so you have to go 'straight up the middle,' a US veteran training Ukrainian forces says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russian forces in Ukraine can't be outflanked, a US veteran training Ukrainian troops said. He told Insider that Ukraine has no choice but to take the risky move of going "straight up the middle." "You are going to have to go straight up the middle and you're just going to have to pick where the middle is." In fact, he said the only advantage that anyone fighting Russian forces has is that "they don't know the exact second that you're coming." Get it wrong and "all you end up doing is pocketing your own forces for Russia to completely, completely destroy," he said.

Persons: Jackie Organizations: Service, Ukrainian Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Afghanistan, Iraq, Kupiansk, Bakhmut

At one point, Russian officials even claimed to have kicked Ukrainian forces back out of the village, which Ukraine staunchly denied. “That’s the hardest part.”Images from drone footage show the extensive damage to Staromayorske, Ukraine. Ukraine’s position is made harder still given Russian forces are on the eastern side of the river, able to use its natural boundary from which they can fire artillery. The wall graffiti is equally bleak: “There is no love.” “God is for Russia.” “Welcome to Mordor.”It is a nihilism that only amplifies a key question Ukrainian forces have: Why do the Russian troops fight so hard for these tiny settlements? The fact that Russian forces fight so persistently for each settlement has raised doubts about claims that Russia’s defensive line is fierce but thin.

Persons: Ukraine’s, Krivyh Rih, ” Krivbas, ’ Krivbas, Neskuchne, Krivbas, ”, ‘, haven’t, Reva, deminer Organizations: Ukraine CNN, Ukrainian, Ukraine, Staromayorske, Marines, CNN, Pentagon, ‘, Russian, Storm, AK Locations: Neskuchne, Ukraine, Staromayorske, Mariupol, Krivyh, Russian, “, Russia, Mordor

☆ The making of a fake war hero: An American who reinvented himself as a social-media soldier in Ukraine is accused of 'stolen valor'
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-16 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

Four foreign fighters and volunteers in Ukraine who knew Vasquez told Insider it was widely known he wasn't actually taking part in front-line fighting. A Pentagon representative, however, told Insider that Vasquez was never deployed to either of those places — or anywhere else. "I had to tell a million lies to get ahead," Vasquez told the Times. When Ashton-Cirillo took to Twitter to expose Vasquez, Huggett said she felt compelled to make a video to back her up. Huggett told Insider: "I'm tired, but I'm not sorry I exposed the lying scammer.

Persons: James Vasquez, Vasquez, Tucker Carlson, Adam Kinzinger, wasn't, he'd, Tina Vasquez, Libkos Vasquez, Sarah Ashton, Huggett, James, Tim, I'm, Viktor Yatsunyk, Vasquez —, Ashton, Cirillo, James messaged, I've, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Wagner, Vasquez's, Peg Leg, that's, selflessly, Ripley's, hadn't, John, Twitter John, Da Vinci, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Da, Malcolm Nance, Nance Organizations: Service, Twitter, Operation, Storm, Pentagon, New York National Guard, Army Reserve, The New York Times, Army, Times, New York Post, AP, Territorial Defense Force, Armed Forces of, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Wagner Group, UN, United Nations, Ukraine's Territorial Defense Forces, Armed Forces, Legion, Ripley's, New York Times, Da Vinci Wolves, Wolverines, Wolves, National Police, Security Service, MSNBC, Ukraine's International Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Russia, Connecticut, Soledar, Kuwait, Iraq, Ukrainian, Bakhmut, Donetsk region, American, Armed Forces of Ukraine, Maidan, Geneva, Ashton, US

☆ Ukrainian frontline commander 'Witch' explains why they're so determined to hold on to Bakhmut: 'We are exhausting them morally and psychologically'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Ukraine has faced questions about why it will not retreat from Bakhmut, now mostly held by Russia. With Russian forces now holding the majority of the city, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has faced questions over whether Ukraine can — or even should — try to hold on to the city. Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. But with "even a few units" of precise, modern weapons Ukraine has "a tangible advantage" over Russian forces, she said.

☆ A lawyer-turned-fighter codenamed 'Witch' has gained viral fame defending Ukraine as a mortar commander in the fiercest battlefronts of the war
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar is better known in Ukraine by her callsign "Witch." Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. A baptism of fireJunior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces. Junior Lieutenant mortar platoon commander Olga Bigar of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces.

☆ Western countries have scrambled to deliver billions of dollars of military gear to Ukraine. Getting it to the frontlines is a whole other problem.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Stavros Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

For a military at war, it's a challenge to get the right gear to the right troops at the right time. Western countries have scrambled to deliver that gear to Ukraine, overcoming political debates and logistical hurdles, but getting it to the frontlines presents a whole other problem. Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesThe restricted operational environment makes Ukraine's logistics that much harder. Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesFurther complicating the situation is the fact that the Ukrainian military is a dynamic force. Many Ukrainian troops are also rotating through the US and European countries for training.

☆ 'My call sign is 'Grandad.'' The retirees who are frontline fighters for Ukraine against the Russian invaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-11 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Some volunteer fighters in Ukraine are considerably older than the average age of a typical soldier. 63-year-old Leonid Onyschenko, for example, is fighting for Ukraine near the city of Bakhmut. While the classic image of a soldier in battle evokes a fit young person with a chiseled jawline, the diverse volunteer fighters in Ukraine defy this expectation. The Territorial Defense Forces (TDF) — a volunteer military reserve — said that Onyshchenko had been serving the country for nine years since Russia's invasion and illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. Many of the older volunteers the news outlet spoke to appeared eager to stay in eastern Ukraine at the time.

☆ A decade of quiet preparations helped Ukraine turn the tables on Russia's bigger, better-armed military, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Following Russia's 2014 attack, Ukraine's military set out to improve and modernize its forces. In the years that followed, Ukraine's military underwent a period of preparation that helped it blunt the full-scale invasion that Russia launched in February 2022. Training for artillery troops was also intensified. However, Russia's tanks still outnumbered Ukraine's nearly four to one when the invasion started. Prior to 2022, Ukraine's military had struggled to retain troops, but high turnover during those years meant Ukraine had a large pool of civilians with military training.

☆ Putin's new troops will suffer heavily in Ukraine as they will have basically no training, UK intel says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The first Russian conscripts have arrived at military bases, a UK intelligence briefing said. Putin's new troops will be provided with "low-level initial training," the intel briefing said. As a result, they will suffer a "high attrition rate" in Ukraine, it added. His announcement was largely seen as a sign of the failure of Russia's military in Ukraine so far. "Even if they [Russian conscripts] don't have motivation, they'll have a gun."

☆ The US pledged to 'defend every inch of NATO territory' after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. So which countries does that include?
▼ + stars: | 2022-02-25 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

The US and NATO pledged to protect "every inch of NATO territory" amid Russia's assault on Ukraine. "Our forces are not going to Europe to fight in Ukraine, but to defend our NATO allies." But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has appealed directly to NATO members in the year since Russia's invasion — a plea, he said, that was initially met with silence. Allowing Ukraine to join NATO at the current moment would require all NATO members to come to Ukraine's immediate defense, prompting near-global war against Russia. Here is a full list of NATO members and the year they joined the organization:

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