Has Ukraine collapsed

[Kurokage]

I think the problem is that we all underestimated Putin.

The issue with assassinating is the replacement.

Not to mention the fact that it creates martyrs....

I suggest the majority of the planet constitutes a market for weapons in this day of age.

I honestly think Putin sees withdrawing as impossible and weak, even if it causes Russia to fall from with in.
His mindset has Russia stuck in a conflict he can't get out off without seeing himself as a failure. we're starting to hear remarks form people who'd never usually speak out..

https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-...ne-2025-12

A former chief commander of Russian forces blasted the Kremlin's intelligence services last week for their early performance in Ukraine, saying they prompted an unprepared Moscow to launch its full-scale invasion.
The remarks by Vladimir Chirkin, a colonel general who led Russia's ground forces from 2012 to 2013, are unusually critical for a top Russian military official, even among those no longer serving.

[xpert11]

Noticing that Putin has been very Russian in his conflict with Ukraine, methodically cautious and precise
Slowly moving forward, hard to compare the way Putin wages war with anything that the US has done recently, noting that the nature of modern military tactics have changed so significantly with drones 
Last couple of days, Russia have gained some interesting ground and very rapidly, on motorbikes. Uke soldiers have been retreating en mass.

Kind of wondering if Ukraine soldiers have had enough, not just the fighting but the corruption being reported back in Kiev.
Have the boots on ground reached their limit, realised they are not just fighting Russia but also have to fight their own corrupt leaders in the years ahead

Unlike the post-9/11 U.S.-led counterinsurgency wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the war in Ukraine is more conventional in character. Ukraine is also fighting a war of survival, where its survival is on the line. 

The rise of drones has tilted the Ukrainian battlefields to a Western Front-style deadlock, but that was caused by technological progress, and not Russian design. The challenge for Russia's current offensive is to gain more than small slices of real estate. 

Concerning corruption and its corrosive national impact, it was a significant part of South Vietnam's downfall. U.S.-led forces aren't propping up the Ukrainian government, unlike what occurred in South Vietnam and Afghanistan.

[rickymouse]

War sucks but this war is really bad IMO as you are not safe concealed, in the Air, in a building or a dugout/trench; there is a drone with your name on it looking for you.
[Video: https://youtu.be/vaOaD3Y_UQw]
[Video: https://youtu.be/xMInwcNqh-Y]

I'm guessing that China has a half million of those small attack drones in stock and has the capability and supplies to make as much as they need to win a war.  They could have thousands of those drones already in the USA, brought here then fully armed when they got here...ready to go. 

It is not just drugs and ingredients of fentynol in my opinion that are being shipped from China in shipments to the USA, small drones could be shipped here in retail packages to disguise them that could be armed if their software is in place...it does not take a large charge to disable a vehicle or to do extensive damage if multiple small drones are deployed against a military facility.

I think that our military has already considered this and may be checking shipments....at least I hope they are.

[andy06shake]

I honestly think Putin sees withdrawing as impossible and weak, even if it causes Russia to fall from with in.
His mindset has Russia stuck in a conflict he can't get out off without seeing himself as a failure. we're starting to hear remarks form people who'd never usually speak out..

https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-...ne-2025-12

I suspect you're correct.

If Putin pulls out now he will be forced to answer for his failure.

And that's a death sentence.

Where does that leave the world?

Talk about a sticky wicket.

Because, as you know, give the b@stard in inch....

They can't bend over and accommodate Putin, else where will it end?

[FlyersFan]

 The Ukraine is a region of Russia.

The Ukrainians say otherwise.

[UltraBudgie]

They can't bend over and accommodate Putin, else where will it end?

It's the route that we take to get there that is undecided. Free will and all that.

Everyone who doesn't need to pretend or be pretended to is on the same page.

Obviously now that ECM has been explored with regard to new autonomous tech the next stage is queued up, as it has been from the beginning.

[Creaky]

I honestly think Putin sees withdrawing as impossible and weak, even if it causes Russia to fall from with in.
His mindset has Russia stuck in a conflict he can't get out off without seeing himself as a failure. we're starting to hear remarks form people who'd never usually speak out..

https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-...ne-2025-12

Why would Putin withdraw?

[andy06shake]

It's the route that we take to get there that is undecided. Free will and all that.

Everyone who doesn't need to pretend or be pretended to is on the same page.

Obviously now that ECM has been explored with regard to new autonomous tech the next stage is queued up, as it has been from the beginning.

I would just have gone with "in tears." 

I don't have a real clue as to what in the post Ultra.

Honestly, never pictured the world going in this direction. 

Hey, at least life is surprising. 

[Creaky]

I suspect you're correct.

If Putin pulls out now he will be forced to answer for his failure.

And that's a death sentence.

Where does that leave the world?

Talk about a sticky wicket.

Because, as you know, give the b@stard in inch....

They can't bend over and accommodate Putin, else where will it end?

I remember when Kennedy (I wasn’t alive) stopped Russia delivering nukes to Cuba.
I don’t really see the difference in what Putin is doing compared to Kennedy
Russia doesn’t want Nukes from the West in Ukraine. 
Maybe Rusk could offer Venezuela some Nukes? 

I trust Russia more than the US and the corruption that is now ingrained

[UltraBudgie]

Why would Putin withdraw?

There is a point of view where Russia is eternally on the point of collapse and defeat. Like China and Iran.

It's not difficult to find selected facts that support that view. The media is full of them.

The mythical 'objective perspective' remains more elusive.