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Introduction – Sept 29, 2023

If so many Ukrainians weren’t dying this would be a joke. But with thousands of dead and injured this is no laughing matter.

Only four months ago UK military chief Admiral Sir Tony Radakin told a British parliamentary committee that Russia was now “so weak” that it could no longer wage a military counteroffensive of its own.

Now he’s saying that the Ukrainian counteroffensive has stalled because Russian defences were stronger than anticipated.

That’s a big turnaround in just four months. So either Radakin was arrogantly underestimating Russia’s military capacity when he said that it was all but exhausted. Or he was seriously misinformed. Either way, Radakin’s initial assessment has led to the deaths of tens of thousands of Ukrainians who were ordered to continue offensive operations.

That’s because advice from the likes of Admiral Sir Tony Radakin probably contributed to President Zelensky’s insistence that the Ukrainian counteroffensive continue. Thereby leading to the unnecessary slaughter of young Ukrainian conscripts.

And make no mistake, an epic bloodbath is unfolding in Ukraine. According to recent Russian Ministry of Defense estimates, more than 17,000 Ukrainian conscripts were killed so far this September alone. That’s more than 500 a day killed, and that’s not counting the wounded or those who have lost limbs.

To put that into perspective for western readers: U.S. killed in action during the entire Vietnam War totalled 58,281.

So in less than one month the Ukrainians have sustained almost 30 percent of the casualties that U.S. forces did in the entire Vietnam War.

So why isn’t the Western mainstream reporting this?

That’s because the West is fuelling this bloodbath with arms and ordnance and if Westerners realised how they are sustaining this conflict they might demand their governments withhold this support.

Consequently, the compliant western MSM devotes very little coverage to Ukrainian casualties. Instead, every minor Ukrainian advance is reported as if it were a potential major breakthrough; even if it is only an advance of a few hundred meters, which in most cases it is.

So Ukrainian conscripts are dying by the thousand, while the Western media continues to hide the fact and misrepresent what’s actually happening on the ground. Ed.

Russian defenses stronger than expected – UK military chief

RT – Sept 29, 2023

Admiral Sir Tony Radakin

Russia’s defensive lines have proven to be more resilient than the West had initially anticipated, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, the chief of the British Defense Staff has admitted, noting that the Russia-Ukraine conflict could drag on for some time.

Speaking on ‘War on the Rocks,’ an American podcast, the military official stressed that the West must be “very careful of rushing to easy judgments” about Kiev’s counteroffensive and stated that expectations about what Ukraine’s forces can achieve in the near future should be “adjusted.”

Radakin pointed out that at the start of Kiev’s summer counteroffensive, it was still looking for more equipment and ammunition, the lack of which had impacted the operation. There was also the issue of incorrect assessments of Russia’s strengths. “In actuality, some of those Russian defenses have been stronger than first anticipated,” the admiral said.

Nevertheless, Radakin claimed that Kiev was “grinding through and making progress.” To that end, he insisted that Kiev’s Western backers must continue supporting Ukraine, as its ability to prevail in the conflict depended on it being able to outlast Russia.

“It’s the military that wins battles, but it’s the economics and that sustainability that tends to win wars,” he said.

When addressing the challenges surrounding the counteroffensive’s limited success, the admiral cited the current hindrances faced by Ukrainian generals. These challenges primarily included managing a diverse range of military vehicles within their forces and addressing concerns related to the insufficient training of their soldiers.

“[Kiev’s] force is not a professional soldiers’ force; it’s a citizen army,” Radakin said, noting that there’s a “humility and sobering element” to the fact that it is yet unclear how to get a citizen army to fight in a way that could overcome Russian defenses.

Ukraine launched its offensive in early June but has so far failed to gain significant ground, losing many Western-supplied tanks and armored vehicles.

This week, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that Kiev’s forces had lost over 17,000 service members and more than 2,700 pieces of military equipment in September. Earlier this month, the ministry also claimed that Kiev’s forces had suffered 66,000 casualties and lost over 7,600 pieces of heavy equipment since the start of the counteroffensive operation.

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