The view from the front: military matters and motivation for 5/27/22.
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In Ukraine news, the biggest news of late is this.
But that is actually huge news because of late, Ukraine has been dealing with this:
The rockets we’re talking about have far greater range than the artillery that’s been sent, so it would help equalize the fight.
The rockets shown above are partly why Russia has made some slight advances in part of their lines. I’ll show that in three images below.
First, here’s a broad perspective of where the fighting is currently happening:
And here it is zoomed in around that purple in the middle of the image above:
And finally, here’s a look at the changes over the past two weeks. If you pause on the image below a moment, you’ll see it’s a gif that changes and shows you the changes.
As you can tell in the bottom image, the moving image is just slightly above the purple areain that second map.
The Russians are trying to advance in that narrow zone, primarily, as well as trying to cut off some additional Ukrainian cities.
Moving along, I mentioned in the last newsletter (and the one before that) the situation regarding the Russian blockade of Ukraine’s grain. (If you haven’t read up on that, definitely give it a quick read.)
But so far, there’s been no changes to the situation. (See below.)
Further moving along, while the war drags on and the wheat sits, Europe and the West has split into two main sides on how to end the war.
The Economist explained that on one side is the “peace party,” which desires an end to the fighting and a deal cut with Russia as quickly as possible.
On the other side is the “justice party,” which seeks to punish Russia and pummel the outcast country for its outrageous and illegal conduct. (See below.)
The Economist states that the peace camp is comprised of Germany, Italy, and France (who wants a peace deal without “humiliation” for Russia). On the other side is Poland, the Baltic states, and Britain.
In the middle, stands the United States, which seems torn about which side to stand on. The article lays out instances of when America has seemed to seek peace and other examples of when it’s seemed to seek justice.
The article also makes a chilling point I had never considered, as well as hints to the impermanence of the conflict.
“The paradox of the situation is that both sides still believe they can win,” says Volodymyr Fesenko, a political analyst in Kyiv. “Only if we really reach a stalemate, and Moscow and Kyiv recognise it as such, can any talk of compromise be possible. Even then, it is likely to be temporary.”
That is certainly an unsettling thought to consider, but as we used to say in the Marines all the time, “If you want peace, prepare for war.”
Let’s end with the military matters there. (Honestly, I could go on quite a bit longer, but I never know how much you all want. My fear is that if the newsletters become too much, they will never get opened and could become seen as “work” to read. And I certainly don’t want that.)
Nonetheless, here’s some motivation and wisdom to chew on, before you head out for your weekends.
That’s it for this edition.
As a reminder, please be kind and endeavor to love your fellow Americans. We need to pull this country together, and that starts with all of us.
Semper Fidelis,
Stan R. Mitchell
P.S. Don’t forget to check out my books. I’ve written a CIA/Marine sniper series, a detective series, a private investigator series, an action-packed Western, a leadership/biography book, and two realistic war novels: one about World War IIand one about Afghanistan.
P.P.S. And here’s a short bio about me and what I’m trying to do with the newsletter.
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