The Ukrainian advance into Russia’s Kursk oblast took almost everyone by surprise. Perhaps not the Russians stationed on the border, who reportedly tried to warn of a Ukrainian troop buildup, but the rest of us who watch the conflict closely did not think the Ukrainian army – under increasingly severe pressure in Donetsk oblast further […]

The post Kursk has put Putin on the back foot – for now appeared first on Asia Times.

On August 6, 2024, Ukrainian soldiers crossed the border into Kursk province, marking the first invasion of foreign troops into Russian territory since World War II. In the days since, Russian television viewers and social media users have been confronted with images of burned-out houses and captured Russian soldiers. The attack caught the Russian armed […]

The post Kursk incursion wrecks Moscow’s war narrative appeared first on Asia Times.

Some Weapons and Strategy readers say that there is a strong resemblance between the current Kursk battle and the Battle of the Bulge, which raged in December 1944 and January 1945. It is a topic worth exploring.  The Battle of the Bulge was an attempt by the Nazi forces to break the Allied advance into Germany. Hitler […]

The post Kursk invasion looks like WWII’s Battle of the Bulge appeared first on Asia Times.

The Kursk submarine disaster on August 12, 2000, was the worst military humiliation of Vladimir Putin’s early years as president of Russia, with all 118 sailors killed when an accidental explosion sank the nuclear-powered vessel. Almost exactly 24 years later, Ukraine’s daring decision to cross its borders and invade the region (and site of a famous World […]

The post Kursk shows it never pays to underestimate Ukraine appeared first on Asia Times.

United States officials, lawmakers and non-profit organizations have called for sanctioning Hong Kong firms and banks after NATO on July 11 condemned Beijing’s support of the Russian defense sector.  US Secretary of State Antony Blinken plans to make a complaint, during a meeting in Laos with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, over Russian shipments. He […]

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China has vowed to take necessary measures to safeguard its rights after American officials said the United States may sanction Chinese banks for facilitating transactions related to shipments to the Russian defense sector.  The US is preparing a new round of sanctions against Chinese entities that supplied dual-use items to Russia’s war machine in Ukraine, […]

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The past few days have marked a significant moment in the maritime war between Russia and Ukraine. On Monday, July 15, Ukraine’s navy spokesman, Dmytro Pletenchuk, claimed: “The last patrol ship of the Black Sea fleet of the Russian Federation is bolting from our Crimea just now. Remember this day.” This symbolic milestone is a […]

The post Russia has upper hand in ground war – but not at sea appeared first on Asia Times.

Volunteers have been the lifeline of various frontline units since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Former tech workers have led the charge in driving innovation for the Ukrainian army, leveraging the creativity and resourcefulness of the Ukrainian people to resist a larger power. The Russo-Ukrainian war has underscored the vital role volunteers will play […]

The post How geeks of war mobilized Ukraine drone operations appeared first on Asia Times.

After more than 28 months of devastating combat, earlier expectations of a decisive Russian victory have given way to the reality of a grinding war of attrition in Ukraine.   “Putin’s theory of victory is to make creeping advances in Ukraine indefinitely,”  wrote the Institute for the Study of War, a private US military think […]

The post All sides aiming for a long war of attrition in Ukraine appeared first on Asia Times.

The danger of the Ukraine war spilling over to Europe is rising. The risk of a European war has never been so high.  The general consensus among military experts is that Ukraine is slowly, but inexorably, losing the war against Russia. But what does that mean? On its face, Ukraine does not have enough soldiers to […]

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In his latest report from the frontlines, Ukrainian-American journalist-activist David Kirichenko shares his efforts to deliver crucial supplies, including high-tech surveillance drones, to Ukrainian soldiers in Donetsk Oblast and Zaporizhzhia Oblast. He bears witness to the emotional toll inflicted on these troops after more than two years of war and reflects on how freedom for […]

The post Crowdfunding weapons as Ukraine soldiers fight, die appeared first on Asia Times.

In his latest report from the frontlines, Ukrainian-American journalist-activist David Kirichenko shares his efforts to deliver crucial supplies, including high-tech surveillance drones, to Ukrainian soldiers in Donetsk Oblast and Zaporizhzhia Oblast. He bears witness to the emotional toll inflicted on these troops after more than two years of war and reflects on how freedom for […]

The post Frontline Ukrainians: ‘We need drones and freedom’ appeared first on Asia Times.

President Vladimir Putin says that it might be possible to reach a deal with Ukraine based on the failed Istanbul Communique and taking into account recent territorial changes in Ukraine. The Istanbul Communique was dead by April, 2022. Could the deal be revived? Was Putin serious in suggesting it as a basis for a settlement with Ukraine? […]

The post Putin’s Ukraine deal talk: mostly smoke, no mirrors appeared first on Asia Times.

When missiles fired from Ukraine destroyed an S-300/400 air defense battery on Russian territory over the weekend of June 1 and 2, it immediately gave rise to speculation that the missiles were from US high mobility artillery rocket systems, or HIMARS. It was assumed they were part of the large package of military aid that […]

The post US shift on targeting Russia gives Ukraine a fighting chance appeared first on Asia Times.

On May 23 drones launched from Ukraine hit a Russian strategic radar station in Armavir, Russia. This is not the first time that nuclear facilities in Russia have been targeted and hit, but it represents a significant escalation that could trigger Russian retaliation on NATO suppliers or even a nuclear response by Russia. The core of Russian […]

The post Attack on Russian radar is a significant escalation appeared first on Asia Times.

Military experts believe that the US policy prohibiting Ukraine from using American weaponry to attack targets inside Russia is giving the invader an important advantage as it develops its recent offensive in the northern Kharkiv region. The latest offensive began on May 10, but Kharkiv itself – Ukraine’s second-largest city – has come under daily […]

The post Attack Russian territory with Western weapons? appeared first on Asia Times.

Modern warfare is awash with cutting-edge technology – from AI to drones to hypersonic missiles – yet one technology that is more than a century old is still proving its worth: Morse code. The staccato streams of tones that would be instantly recognizable to a railroad man from more than 150 years ago are still […]

The post Dit, dah, dit: Russia’s army still uses Morse code appeared first on Asia Times.

As Asia Times has noted in updated versions of a Stephen Bryen article that appears on our home page, France denied Russian non-governmental reports of a French Foreign Legion deployment to Ukraine – and the Associated Press put out a “fake news alert.” We remain unpersuaded that the basic report of legionnaires sent to Ukraine […]

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Editors’ Note, May 6, 2024: A link originally indicating a source for this report has gone dead. A new link to the same source, a Sputnik page, is given bellow. The author in an addemdum posted on his Substack blog May 6 has discussed the sourcing. The first two paragraphs immediately below accordingly represent a […]

The post France sends troops to Ukraine: Russian report appeared first on Asia Times.

NATO is starting to deploy combat troops to Ukraine. Soldiers from Poland, France, the UK, Finland and other NATO members are arriving in larger numbers. Although Russia says there are over 3,100 mercenaries in Ukraine, these newly arriving troops are not mercenaries. They are in uniform, home country proclaimed via insignia. They mostly are concentrated in the western part […]

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