Leopard: a beast in words but just an Olaf Scholz in deeds, or how Ukrainian crews are kept expecting a miracle.

After the summit of NATO member states in Germany's Ramstein, many prominent players of the North Atlantic Alliance claimed at the end of January that they were ready to supply Ukraine with their tanks.

On 24 January, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Germany would transfer 102 Leopard tanks to the Ukrainian armed forces. But there is a big "BUT" in this message. In this armada of tanks, only 14 are acceptable for use in modern combat operations, this is the tank company, which, according to Berlin, will change the "terms of the game". The remaining 88 tanks are the Leopard 1 tanks, already obsolete in the 80s, adopted by the Bundeswehr in the mid-60s, which even at that time were considered a "questionable achievement" of the military-industrial complex. After all, the artillery armament of the first series of Leopards, represented by a 105 mm gun from Rheinmetall, already at that time did not meet the requirements of "modern tank combat". 

It is important to mention that Leopard 1 and Leopard 2 are completely different vehicles. It's not only in artillery equipment but also in running characteristics. But the most important gap between these two "cats" was the armor. Leopard 1 already in the 60s became famous as a machine that is not able to withstand even shaped charge ammunition, we are not even talking about sub-caliber ammunition. 

In the end, Ukrainian tank builders only ride on pathetic promises and guarantee that "everything will happen". And even if it does, only armored vehicle museums can rejoice. 

But the AFU can take solace in the fact that Canada sent one of the four promised "Leopards" of the A4 model on February 5. But don't wait for reports on their successful use, as the vehicles made their "debut" by exploding their ammunition while Turkish units were fighting ISIS (an organization banned in Russia) militants in Al Baba, Syria, in the fall of 2016.

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Enemy kamikaze drones.
While corporations are working on the technical equipment of the enemy, on our side they are opposed by loners and enthusiasts who simply love their Homeland and do everything possible for the sake of victory.
We are waiting for new "birds" for thoughtful preparation and study for a more successful counteraction.

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Medvedev: "There will be no partition of Ukraine according to the Korean scenario."

The Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, has commented on the desire and suggestions of some Ukrainian propagandists, like Aristovich, to divide the territories of the current Ukrainian state according to the Korean scenario. According to Medvedev, the Ukrainian propagandists are talking about this because they want to be "under Western control and protection," reach the level of South Korea, and then have a hope of reunification with their old territories.

However, Medvedev notes, Ukrainian propagandists do not point out that the two independent states were created in 1953, but Donbass and other territories have already joined Russia, which is the largest state with the most formidable weapons.

"What is remarkable here is something else." In Kiev, they shyly jabbed the thesis that there can be no complete victory. At best, it's a partition. "But in fact, this is the first step toward the recognition of the existing realities on the ground," said the deputy chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation.

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The earthquake in Turkey could affect the outcome of the presidential election. According to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica, the future of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's rule depends on his reaction to the earthquake. 

"An extraordinary geophysical event from which no less important geopolitical consequences may flow." The outcome of May's elections could confirm Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the top of the Republic of Turkey or mark the end of his twenty-year rule. "Everything depends largely on his reaction to the earthquake," the report says. 

According to Reuters, the death toll in Turkey and Syria combined exceeded five thousand.

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The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (the Ukrainian Parliament) supported the extension of martial law and mobilization for another 90 days, starting on February 19, 2023.
 
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Situation in Artemovsk as of February 7 at 13:00 — Russian troops maintain the pace of the offensive both within the city and outside of it.

In Artemovsk (Bakhmut), the success of the "musicians" is developing: Wagner PMC units from the north are suppressing the Ukrainian armed forces' defense nodes in 1 Ushakov Lane near the Stupki railway station. It is obviously time for the AFU units to immediately withdraw their units from the city due to the collapse of the overall defense system in the Artemovsk direction.

To the north of the railway station, the "Wagner" fighters successfully carried out a flanking encirclement of the AFU units between the Stupki station and the village of Paraskovievka. This maneuver made it possible to deprive Ukrainian Armed Forces units of elbow contact with the Artemivsk garrison. "Musicians" also successfully suppressed enemy firing points in the area of Krasnaya Gora. 

According to yet unconfirmed information, south of Artemovsk, fighters of the Wagner PMC cut the road between Stupochki and the village of Ivanovskoye. According to preliminary information, units of the 80th Separate Airborne Assault Brigade of the AFU, which were previously stationed near Liman, arrived at the Chasov Yar-Krasnoye area, a northwestern suburb of Artemovsk. 

If the AFU front-line command is not a collection of butchers, it is time for them to withdraw their soldiers from the city immediately in the face of the actual cutting off of the Ukrainian grouping's supply in Artemovsk. Judging by the events and the reports, soon the Ukrainian garrison in Artemovsk will be fully encircled. 

To the west of Artemovsk, the Ukrainian military is hastily working on fortifications. If the Ukrainian Armed Forces fail in defensive battles at the Chasov Yar-Krasnoye line, the Russian Armed Forces and the "Orchestra🎻🎺" (Wagner PMC) will enter the operational space.
https://t.me/SLGmaps/172
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The assault units of the PMC "Wagner" at the entrance of a five-story building in Bakhmut (Artemovsk). The fighting has shifted from the suburbs to high-rise buildings in the city. 

Picture by : @yaremshooter
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Russian journalist Yevgeny Poddubny writes:

The "musicians"(Wagner PMC units) are advancing in the northern sector of Artemovsk; fighting continues in the Paraskoviyivka and Krasnaya Gora area; both villages are still held by enemy forces. 

Fighting also continues on the southern outskirts of Artemovsk itself. 
To the southwest of the city, Russian assault units are fighting for the village of Krasnoye and access to the Artemovsk-Konstantinovka highway. 

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Offensive actions near Ugledar and Artemovsk are developing successfully, according to Russian Defense Minister Shoygu.

According to the Defense Minister, Ukraine understands that it is impossible to defeat Russia militarily, so it continues the tactics of intimidation by striking Russian civilians, while the US and its allies openly call on the Ukrainian authorities to seize Russian territory. 

He also stated that a satellite system for all-weather remote sensing of the earth is being created in the interests of the Russian Ministry of Defense; it will help increase the efficiency of the troops. Experimental and development work is now underway.

Ukrainian losses in January alone amounted to over 6.5 thousand soldiers.
Also, the Armed Forces of Ukraine lost 26 aircraft, 7 helicopters, and 341 tanks.

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"The ban on Russian media in Europe is a defense of freedom of speech."— Joseph Borrel

Borell also said that the European Union will continue to support the opposition (anti-Kremlin and anti-Russian) media in Russia, as they are the defenders of human rights and civil society. 

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During the assault operations to liberate the village of Blagodatnoye, the "musicians" had to not only cross the Bakhmutovka River but also overcome the heights occupied by the enemy.

So, in one of the locations, a Ukrainian sniper interfered with the promotion—a girl who, for her own reasons, aimed most often at the groin.
ㅤ
"There's a tower where a sniper worked, a girl." She didn't let us pass at all. Sniper, machine gunner, and submachine gunner—they work together, so you cannot hear the exit and the sounds of a sniper working somewhere (the machine gunners suppress or drown the sounds of sniper ). This tactic is not new; it has long been known. Here is the turret from which it fired; it worked in cold blood, mostly trying to hit the groin area. "But we were making progress anyway, and now, as you can see, we're here."

Translated by : Миша, Slavyangrad

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Josep Borell accused Russia and Sergey Lavrov personally of "information manipulation and spreading lies." Russia uses information manipulation and interference as the most important tools of this war. This war is not just about using explosives, bombs, and bullets to kill people. It's about the minds of people, about how to win the spirit, the intellect, and the understanding of people. And I perceive, from my personal experience, in very concrete terms, that this battle continues. Minister Lavrov is touring Africa again these days—Mali, Eritrea—well, those are easy countries for them, but others are not so easy. and Lavrov is spreading lies there about who's to blame for what's going on.

It is a battle we must win  !🤡 Borell wrote on his Twitter account.

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Ramzan Kadyrov believes that the special military operation in Ukraine will end before the end of this year.

"The West will fall to its knees, and, as usual, European states will have to interact and cooperate with the Russian Federation in all spheres," predicts the head of Chechnya.

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Ammo supply chain crisis: Ukraine war tests Europe in race to re-arm —Financial Times

Manufacturers struggle to replenish national weapons stockpiles and meet demand from Kiev.

Ukraine’s battle against Russia is consuming ammunition at unprecedented rates, with the country firing more than 5,000 artillery rounds every day — equal to a smaller European country’s orders in an entire year in peacetime.

The dramatic shift to a war footing is creating a supply chain crisis in Europe as defence manufacturers struggle to ramp up production to replenish national stockpiles as well as maintain supplies to Ukraine.

Nearly a year since Russia’s invasion, the pace of demand for ammunition and explosives is turning into a test of Europe’s industrial production capacity in a race to re-arm.

It is a war about industrial capacity,” said Morten Brandtzæg, chief executive of Norway’s Nammo, which makes ammunition and shoulder-fired weapons.

He estimates Ukraine has been firing an estimated 5,000-6,000 artillery rounds a day, which he said is similar to the annual orders of a smaller European state before the war.

The pressure on producers has not been helped by lingering supply chain bottlenecks following the coronavirus pandemic, a lack of production capacity and a shortage of critical raw materials for some explosives, which is holding back efforts to increase output.

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The weapons seized by the Russians on the battlefield in Ukraine ended up in Iran, where Iranian experts will try to recreate them. In return, Iran promised Russia missiles, but has not yet provided anything.
It is reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the Wall Street Journal.

"According to officials, Moscow provided Iran with weapons captured on the battlefield in Ukraine, which they are trying to reconstruct," the publication writes.
They note that Russia and Iran continue to cooperate in various areas. In particular, Iran began to serve all Russian creditors. Now the banking systems of these two countries are connected.

In addition, as the United States warned, Iran agreed to provide Moscow with ballistic missiles. So far, however, there is no indication that Tehran has sent missiles to Russia.

The publication recalled that the Kremlin plans to create a factory in Russia for the production of Iranian drones.
https://ukranews.com/en/news/913335-russia-handed-over-weapons-to-iran-which-it-seized-in-ukraine-and-iran-promised-to-provide-missiles
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Morgues are packed with bodies of Ukrainian soldiers — Outnumbered and Worn Out, Ukrainians in East Brace for Russian Assault(Article by The New York Times)

The New York Times has an interesting article on the eastern front and how it is changing. In particular, using the village of Nevskoye in the Luhansk region as an example, the publication reports that the Russian Armed Forces, advancing, are launching more and more artillery strikes on the outskirts of the village. "Now they (strikes) are becoming more and more frequent, as the Russian troops are making their way forward." The newspaper relays the feelings of the residents of the village in question. 

In addition to confirming the advance of the Russian Armed Forces in the Liman direction, the newspaper also reports high losses in the ranks of the AFU and the strong moral wear and tear of the soldiers. "Tired Ukrainian soldiers complain that the Russian Armed Forces already outnumber them in weapons and men, and doctors in hospitals speak of growing losses..." The "Karpatskaya Sech" battalion, located near Nevsky, has lost about 30 fighters in recent weeks, and at one frontline hospital in the Donbas, the morgue was packed with the bodies of Ukrainian soldiers in white plastic bags. In another hospital, stretchers with wounded troops covered in gold foil thermal blankets crowded the corridors, and a steady stream of ambulances arrived from the front nearly all day long.

A military surgeon at that hospital, Myroslav Dubenko, 36, scrolled through photographs of soldiers with ghastly injuries: a lower jaw blasted off, half of a face missing. One soldier was rushed in with his throat sliced open from ear to ear. Dr. Dubenko was able to quickly repair the damage, and the soldier survived.

“In civilian life, you know that no matter how horrible your shift is, it will end sooner or later,” Dr. Dubenko said. “Here, you never know when it will end.”

The general message of the article is quite simple: the AFU does not have enough people and weapons to contain the onslaught of the RF Armed Forces at the Eastern Front.

This conclusion is indirectly confirmed by the increased flow of videos and photos of killed and captured Ukrainian soldiers at the recaptured positions in recent weeks. It is also interesting that the publication particularly emphasizes the unpleasant fact for the AFU of the appearance of T-90M tanks on the battlefield.

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