Russian Federation has deployed 75% of its tactical combat units to the Ukraine border.
Estimates are at least 175,000 troops mobilized. Russian military equipment and troops at forward bases have tripled in strength during the last month.
Putin intends to conquer all of east Ukraine to the Dnieper River.
War is coming.
yes… Russian troop counts are now higher
USMIL assessment of 175k troops was last month.
Russia is going "all in" for invasion of Ukraine.
They are dredging deep into their storage depots.
Here is a battalions worth of 122mm M-30 (aka M-1938) howitzers railing somewhere. Weather matches the recent December patterns.
These were mostly phased out of active service in the 1960's.
They do use the same grenades as D-30.
>Why would Putin want to do that?
Why?
1) To prevent Ukraine (and all other border states of the former Soviet Union) from joining NATO.
2) To create a land bridge from Russia to Crimea.
3) To create a territorial buffer zone between Russia and NATO with the Dneiper River as a natural boundary.
4) To reclaim territory of the former Soviet Union empire and humiliate the West.
5) to take advantage of military opportunity while the USA is lead by an incompetent leader with dementia.
Taken today… Logistic and Fuel support being unloaded at a train station located 20km south of the Lesnovka base that I mention in the tweet below.
This station probably supplies a base that has not yet been found as Lesnovka would probably be supplied by the station in Klintsy.
Combat elements have already been forward deployed. Logistical follow up deployment is confirmation of intent to initiate combat ops.
Russia can not afford a long drawn out war. It will be blitzkrieg, with the expectation that NATO will not defend Ukraine so long as the Russians stop at the Dneiper River.
Forward deployed Valuyki base near Ukraine border.
Equipment has doubled since December 5th.