13 Jun, 2023 14:52

Ukraine has lost hundreds of pieces of Western-supplied hardware – Putin

Up to 30% of the heavy equipment sent to Kiev has been destroyed by Russian troops, the president has said

Ukrainian forces havealready lost dozens of tanks and hundreds of armored vehiclesin their attacks on Russian positions, President Vladimir Putin told war correspondents on Tuesday.Kiev’s troops have so far failed to achieve success on any of the frontsin their long-touted counteroffensive, he added.

Russian positions have faced attacks in four major directions, the president said during a meeting at the Kremlin. He added thatUkrainian reserves, including those equipped with Western-supplied military hardware, had alsobeen thrown into the fray.

However, the offensive has led to massive losses in personnel and materiel for Kiev, Putin stated. Ukraine has lost“at least 160 tanks and 360 armored vehicles,” and the military hardware destroyed by Russian troops accounts for between 25% and 30% of all Western military equipment supplied to Ukraine, the president estimated.

“There are also losses that we do not see, which are a result of long-range high-precision strikes,” Putin said, claiming that Ukraine’sactual losses are likely higherthan the figures he had given. Regarding personnel, Putin saidRussian casualties were “ten times lower” than among Ukrainian forces.

The president also reiterated that the “fundamental goals” of the Russian military operation in Ukraineremain the same, and that the Kremlin does not plan to change them. At the same time, Putin maintained that Moscow “sincerely sought” to reach an agreement with Kiev and resolve the differences involving former southeastern Ukrainian regions, which have since joined Russia following a series of referendums in autumn 2022.

After long touting a counteroffensive, Ukraine finally launched its operation last week, although thus far it has apparently failed to bring about any dramatic changes on the front line.

The Russian Defense Ministry has reported that Ukrainian forces have lost dozens of pieces of military hardware in their attacks, including tanks and armored vehicles supplied by the West. The ministry has also published videos showing Russian forces successfully striking Ukrainian heavy equipment.

On Tuesday, one such video showed Russian soldiers seizing a German-made Leopard 2 main battle tank and US-produced Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. Kiev has demanded more tanks from Berlin amid the intense fighting.

https://www.rt.com/russia/577964-putin-ukraine-russia-losses/

13 Jun, 2023 17:44

Putin hints at Ukraine operation goals

Moscow does not plan to “march on Kiev” right now, the president has implied in a conversation with war correspondents

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made certain revelations regarding Moscow’s current goals in its military campaign in Ukraine.Russian troops are unlikely to mount an offensive targeting Kiev as of now, he hinted while discussing the operation with military correspondents and bloggers on Tuesday.

His comments came as the president was discussing a potential new mobilization campaign in Russia, the need for which would be defined by the operation’s goals, he said.

“Do we need to march on Kiev? If we do, then we need mobilization. If we don’t, then not,”Putin said, adding that “there is no need” to launch a new military draft campaign “today.”The president also said that Russian troops have enjoyed a steady inflow of volunteers. Over 150,000 people have signed a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry since January, he revealed.

Speaking about Russia’s “fundamental” goals in Ukraine, the president confirmed that they remained the same and that the Kremlin had no plans to change them.Missions are adapted based on developments on the battlefield, he added.

Back in February 2022, when Russia launched its military campaign in Ukraine, Putin cited the need to protect the people of Donbass, as well as Kiev’s failure to implement the 2014-2015 Minsk peace accords as the reasons for the move. He also said Russia was seeking the “demilitarization” and “denazification” of Ukraine, which included commitments by Kiev to maintaining a neutral status and abandoning plans to join NATO at the time.

On Tuesday, speaking about Ukraine’s NATO aspirations, Putin referred to the late St. Petersburg mayor Anatoly Sobchak. Putin had served as Sobchak’s deputy in the 1990s and once called the politician “his mentor and friend.”

“[Sobchak] was a clever man … he was right to say: ‘You want to leave? Leave. But leave only with something you had come with’,” the president told the military correspondents and bloggers.

Putin has previously repeatedly stated that southern and easternUkrainian regions that have now joined Russia were once Russian regionsduring the Russian Empire and were only made part of Ukraine by the Bolsheviks after the 1917 revolution.

https://www.rt.com/russia/577975-putin-hint-ukraine-operation-goals/

13 Jun, 2023 17:53

Kakhovka dam disaster helped Ukrainian troops – Putin

Crossing the Dnieper would have been “really bad” for Kiev’s forces, the Russian president said

Ukraine was to blame for the collapse of the Kakhovka dam, whichhelped its soldiers avoid a battlefield bloodbath, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

“It is clear who is to blame. The Ukrainian side was aiming for this,” Putin told the war correspondents gathered at the Kremlin. While no large explosions were recorded before the dam collapsed, Kiev’s forces had repeatedly targeted it with US-supplied HIMARS rockets, in an effort to destroy it and cause the Dnieper to flood downstream, he added.

“Unfortunately – this may sound strange, but still – unfortunately, this thwarted their counteroffensive in this direction. Why unfortunately? Because it would’ve been better if they attacked there. Better for us, because it would’ve been very bad for them to attack there.But since the flood occurred, then, accordingly, the offensive did not take place,” the Russian president said.

Ukraine has had no success on any of the fronts, and has taken “massive losses,” Putin told the correspondents. According to Russian estimates,Kiev’s forces lost “at least 160 tanks and 360 armored vehicles” and anywhere between 25% and 30% of all military equipmentsupplied by the West for the grand offensive.

“There are also losses that we do not see, which are a result of long-range high-precision strikes,” Putin said, estimating Ukraine’s actual losses to be even higher. Meanwhile, Russia has lost around 54 tanks, and its casualties in manpower were “ten times lower” than on the other side, he added.

The Kakhovka dam broke a week ago, flooding the city of Kherson and displacing more than 20,000 people. Ukraine has blamed Russia, while Moscow has pointed out Kiev’s previous targeting of the facility – and the fact that Ukraine continued releasing water from another dam upstream to make the flooding worse.

Putin said that Russia is doing everything it can to help mitigate the flooding, evacuate the civilians affected, and contain the environmental consequences.

“Many domestic and wild animals died, unfortunately,” the Russian president said. Moreover, cemeteries and burial grounds for domestic animals were disrupted by floodwaters. Moscow has dispatched chemical and biological defense specialists to deal with the “serious, but solvable” problem, Putin added.All local residents will receive assistance fully in line with Russian law, including compensation for property damage.

Kherson Region was among the four that voted to join Russia in a referendum last September. Ukraine has refused to recognize the result, calling Russian control of the territory an illegal occupation.

https://www.rt.com/russia/577971-putin-kakhovka-dam-offensive/

13 Jun, 2023 15:58

Putin blasts Kiev’s reverence towards Nazi collaborator

The Russian head of state says he is surprised at Vladimir Zelensky’s support of neo-Nazis

Russian President Vladimir Putin has criticized Ukraine’s decision to remove Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin from the public square and replace him with Nazi collaboratorStepan Bandera, whom he called a “scoundrel and a fascist.”

Speaking at a meeting with war correspondents on Tuesday, the president said he was “surprised” by how Ukrainian President VladimirZelensky, who has Jewish heritage, could possibly support neo-Nazis.

“I just don’t understand it,” Putin said, pointing out that the Nazis had been responsible for brutally slaughtering the country’s civilian Jewish population.

The Russian leader stated that “bastards like Bandera” have been put on a pedestal in Ukraine along with others like him, and that now there are people walking around with their posters.

“Well if they don’t want communism – God bless them, who wants it these days?KEK They’re throwing the founder of Ukraine, Lenin, off the pedestals – okay, that’s their business. But putting Bandera up in his place? He’s a fascist,” Putin stated.

The president reiterated thatone of Russia’s goalsin launching its military operation last yearwas the “denazification” of Ukraine. He saidMoscow and Kiev had even reached a dealin March 2022 that Ukraine wouldintroduce legislation to outlaw neo-Nazi movementsin the country. However, as soon as Russia’s forces pulled back from Kiev, the Zelensky administration immediately scrapped the agreement, Putin explained.

Stepan Bandera (1909-1959) was the head of the ultranationalist Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) which was known for its radical anti-Semitic ideology and collaboration with Nazi forces. During World War II, the OUN’s paramilitary wing, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of Poles and Jews in Ukraine.

DespiteBandera being internationally recognized as a Nazi collaborator, in 2010 Kiev declared him a national hero and Ukrainian nationalistshave regularly marked his birthday on January 1 with torchlit marches and demonstrations across the country.

https://www.rt.com/russia/577967-putin-ukraine-stepan-bandera/