'Everything is burning': Battles rage outside Kharkiv as Ukraine tries to hold back Russian advance

[sarisataka]

‘Everything is burning’: Battles rage outside Kharkiv as Ukraine tries to hold back Russian advance

There are some towns that Ukraine can just never afford to lose, and Lyptsi is one of them.

But the grip the nation keeps is tenuous: The streets are aflame from an airstrike moments earlier when we race in, under the cover of darkness. Night affords them the only respite from drone assault; the hours before we arrive have seen the town hit eight times.

Yet the soldiers of the 13th Khartiia National Guard have to endure, as the stakes here are huge. Russia’s relentless onslaught has a key goal: If they take Lyptsi, then they can position artillery within range of Ukraine’s second city, Kharkiv, 20 minutes down the road.

Down in a bunker, Oleksandr, a commander, looks at one of his many drone feeds. “You saw yourself how everything is burning. It is like that every night.”

https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/22/europe/ukraine-russia-lyptsi-kharkiv-intl/index.html

Much more at link

[msongs]

1. one reads younger generations of ukraine are hiding from their military. soon they will be forced to speak russian

[getagrip_already]

3. meh, things were tough thanks to the gop and ammo starvation, morale is much higher now

It's being reported across all fronts. All the Ukranians needed was some ammo to shoot back with. Troops are much happier now. Russians are dying much faster and much further away.

Sorry comrade.

[former9thward]

6. Not true.

Ukrainian young people have fled the country. Including to the U.S. We have been hearing these reports without links of the Ukrainian victory is just around the corner for over two years now.

[Kaleva]

9. And we see posts about how Russia will win

Despite only having an economy the size of Italy's or Canada's.

Good news is the reports of how the recent arrival of artillery shells from the US is already making a difference on the fronts in favour of Ukraine . It's much easier to wipe out groups of attacking Russian soldiers with cluster munitions fired from artillery then with bomb dropping drones. The ECM equipment seen mounted on top of Russian tanks and vehicles offer no protection from incoming artillery.

[DFW]

11. More than three quarters of them do, anyway

Russian is not just the native language of about a third of all Ukrainians already (not to mention “you-know-who” next door), but also of all of former Soviet Central Asia.

My nephew is currently living in Kyiv. If all you speak is Russian, they are understanding, and there is almost no one with no working knowledge of Russian.

[getagrip_already]

2. the russians aren't trying to advance to take the city, they are trying to get to artillery positions to level it.....

That is there goal. They don't want to occupy it. They want to depopulate it, destroy it building by building. They are taking out power plants, water plants, sewer plants, roads, highways, hospitals, schools, stores, anything they can reach.

If they can get closer, they will just move block by block. They will turn it into a ghost town.

They can do that with artillery and gliding bombs. They don't need tanks, or ifv's, or infantry once they get close enough.

Getting that close is costing them dearly howveer. Ukraines shell shortage is over. They are taking out every advance as it appears. Turtle tanks with mine clearing sweepers aren't helping any longer. Drones are cleaning up the infantry left behind after the armor is blown to pieces.

Russia is losing 1500 troops a day, and dozens of vehicles including tanks and ifv's. Even they can't keep this up. And there logistics are being shredded behind the lines.

It's not looking good for poor old vlad, despite some advances. Yes, there are advances. Yes, some areas are being destroyed. For now.

Tick tock.

Slava Ukrani.

[Kaleva]

4. Zelenskyy reports no artillery shell shortage

"Ukraine reports no artillery shortages for first time in war, says Zelenskyy"

https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraine-reports-no-shortages-artillery-shells-first-time-zelenskyy-2024-5

Seen reports earlier today that Ukraine has been able to devastate recent Russian assaults with their artillery now that they have an ample supply of shells .

[Hermit-The-Prog]

12. We should move ammo in faster than Ukraine can use it up.

[Kaleva]

13. Yes

[Igel]

5. That's the Russian PR.

It's what Putin says.

Some think Putin speaks only the truth.

Some think Putin speaks only the opposite of the truth.

I think neither of the two "somes" can actually think. This is distressing to me.

Here's my view. Putin says what's expedient at the time to suit him and his goals as then perceived--maybe the truth, maybe the opposite of the truth, maybe an ad hoc mix. For him, the truth is irrelevant. Speech acts are a means to manipulate others towards his goal(s), as he, at the time of speaking, thinks will be most advantageous. Now what he says is the unvarnished truth, now what is says is the unvarnished truth flipped pi radians, now it's a mix and tomorrow it's the same mix + pi radians. It's all equally convincing given his mien, intonation, and reception.

Years ago I told a kid playing a game on his cell phone to put his phone away. "I don't have a cell phone." He answered sincerely, given my decades of listening to liars and truthtellers. Not a hint of falsity. I held out my hand. "I told you," he said, "I don't have a cell phone." I took it out of his hands--a violation of policy. "Give me back my cell phone." "I thought you said you didn't have one." "I don't. Never have. Give it back."

I'm told 1% of the population is sociopath or psychopath. I had 160 students that year, and even accounting for some being removed from the student population, odds are I have at least one in my classroom per year.

[former9thward]

7. Where are you getting the 1500 a day?

During WW 2 Russians lost an average of 9590 a day every day of the war. And that was with a smaller population base that they have now.

[Kaleva]

8. Estimated vary. Here is one source

https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-losing-about-1000-soldiers-daily-not-stop-mass-attacks-2024-4

[B.See]

10. The MAGA stonewalling of Ukrainian aid and their COMPLICITY/COLLUSION WITH PUTIN will lead to

his continued warfare against former Soviet Union countries he dreams of conquering. Putin will NOT stop at Ukraine.