(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Ukraine Invasion Day 902: UKR's Maskirovka Practices suggest Putin must "get out and call it a day" [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2024-08-12 The Ukrainians, against great odds, were able to conceal their intent for long enough to launch a successful penetration attack and subsequent exploitation into Russian territory. Maneuver warfare practices have never left the battlefield, much like the idea of a radical decentralization of tactics. Russia illegally launched their unprovoked full-scale invasion into Ukraine, on 24 February 2022. Putin said it would take three days, and that Ukraine would welcome Russian occupation. He was wrong. Sigalert from Google x BREAKING: Multiple Russian sources have confirmed that Ukraine has taken control of Sudzha in the Kursk region of Russia. Sudzha was previously the key stronghold of Russian defense in the district, and its loss is expected to lead to further territorial gains by Ukrainian forces… pic.twitter.com/d5pHhle6l2 — OSINT Aggregator (@AggregateOsint) August 13, 2024 x "This is Putin's war against Russia. And if he doesn't like it, if it's making him a little uncomfortable, then there's an easy solution: He can just get the hell out of Ukraine and call it a day," Kirby said. — The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) August 13, 2024 x You can't make this sh|t up! The acting governor of #Kursk, Russia, announced that he will begin evacuating residents to... wait... the occupied area of #Zaporizhia, Ukraine. In my opinion, this is just a way of Putin exacting some revenge by doubling down on his genocidal… pic.twitter.com/Rgo9KzUsh1 — OSINT (Uri Kikaski) 🇺🇸 🇨🇦 🇬🇧 🇺🇦 🇮🇱 (@UKikaski) August 13, 2024 Russian forces conducted limited missile strikes against Ukraine. Ukraine's Southern Operational Command reported that Russian forces targeted Odesa and Mykolaiv oblasts with one Iskander-M ballistic missile each overnight on August 11 to 12, and Mykolaiv Oblast Military Administration Head Vitaly Kim stated that an Iskander-M in Mykolaiv Oblast landed in open fields and contained cluster munitions.[60] Russian sources claimed that Russian forces conducted a missile strike against an ammunition depot near Odesa City.[61] Sumy Oblast officials reported that Russian forces increased the number of guided glide bomb strikes against Sumy Oblast border settlements to about 40-50 glide bombs per day and that Russian forces targeted unspecified infrastructure facilities in Sumy Oblast on August 11.[62] Ukrainian forces reportedly conducted a drone strike against a Russian airbase in Moscow Oblast on the night of August 11 to 12. Russian opposition outlet Astra amplified footage on August 12 purportedly of Russian air defense systems intercepting Ukrainian drones over Shchyolkovo, Moscow Oblast near Chkalovsky Military Air Base.[28] Astra reported that unspecified pro-war Russian Telegram channels claimed that Russian forces successfully repelled a Ukrainian drone strike. No Russian official sources commented on the strike. understandingwar.org/... The Russians attacked Ukraine with 2 Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles and 38 Shahed attack UAVs on the night of 12-13 August. Ukrainian air defence has destroyed 30 Russian drones. x Australia Retires the M1A1 Abrams Tanks, with Potential Future Use by the Armed Forces of Ukrainehttps://t.co/7iIQS7ChLa pic.twitter.com/QmAxm6PmUB — DEFENSE EXPRESS (@DEFENSEEXPRESS) August 7, 2024 As the war in Ukraine has demonstrated, combat losses cannot be avoided irrespective of vehicle capability, and fielding units in sufficient numbers to overcome attrition is a necessity. Any state-of-the-art MBT will only be effective if it can be purchased in adequate numbers. This in part offers one explanation as to why Europe’s two heavy-armour manufacturers are pursuing multiple development pathways. While heavy armour will remain a feature of modern ground combat, the types and timescales of the systems to be pursued by European armed forces are in flux. www.iiss.org/... Key Takeaways: Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to portray himself as an effective and knowledgeable manager of the situation along the Ukrainian-Russian border and to shift responsibility for ongoing challenges in responding to the Ukrainian incursion in the area to other Russian military and government officials. The Kremlin's decision to publish footage showing Putin chastising senior Russian officials is likely a warning to other Russian officials to refrain from commenting about the Ukrainian incursion into Russia. Putin delegated overlapping tasks to the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD), Federal Security Service (FSB), and Rosgvardia in the Ukrainian-Russian border area — further highlighting how the Russian force grouping in Kursk Oblast is struggling to establish the joint command and control (C2) structures necessary to coordinate operations. Putin offered several assessments about Ukrainian operations in Kursk Oblast, including one that undermined a long-standing Kremlin information operation falsely portraying Ukraine as unwilling to engage in legitimate, good-faith negotiations and putting the onus for peace negotiations on Ukraine. Ukrainian forces appear to be advancing further within Kursk Oblast despite recent milblogger claims that Russian forces were stabilizing the frontline in Kursk Oblast. Regional Russian officials appear to be offering notably frank assessments of the ongoing Ukrainian incursion. Senior Ukrainian officials provided updates about the ongoing Ukrainian incursion into Kursk Oblast and warned that Russian forces may stage war crimes in Kursk Oblast in order to discredit Ukraine and Western support for Ukraine. Ukrainian forces reportedly conducted a drone strike against a Russian airbase in Moscow Oblast on the night of August 11 to 12. Russian forces recently advanced near Vovchansk, Chasiv Yar, Toretsk, and Pokrovsk. Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) emphasized Russia's international defense ties at the Army-2024 International Military-Technical Forum in Moscow, likely in an effort to expand international military-technical cooperation and posture strong defense relations with Russia-friendly states. x ⚡️ WAR IN #UKRAINE - AUG 12, 2024 ■ Increased engagements, casualties below 7-day average ■ Drone, MLRS & artillery losses above average ■ Janovsky: 47 🇷🇺 16 🇺🇦 added to records; 30-day ratio at 2.9x ■ Fewer strikes on both sides See dashboard for further data#UkraineWar… pic.twitter.com/f5Y6ThZabp — Ragnar Gudmundsson 🇮🇸🇺🇦 (@ragnarbjartur) August 12, 2024 The attack on Kursk has had some positive effect. The number of air bomb strikes on Kharkiv Oblast has sharply decreased, according to the regional administration. Previously, there were 30-60 such strikes per day, but now their number does not exceed 10. understandingwar.org/... understandingwar.org/... understandingwar.org/... understandingwar.org/... Russian forces recently advanced southeast of Toretsk and Ukrainian forces recently recaptured positions south of Toretsk amid continued Russian ground attacks in the area on August 12. Geolocated footage published on August 10 indicates that Russian forces recently marginally advanced in southwestern Zalizne (southeast of Toretsk). Additional geolocated footage published on August 11 indicates that Ukrainian forces recently recaptured positions in western and central Niu York (south of Toretsk). understandingwar.org/... Russian forces recently advanced east of Pokrovsk amid continued ground attacks east and southeast of Pokrovsk on August 12. Geolocated footage published on August 12 indicates that Russian forces advanced east of Pokrovsk within Ivanivka and southeast of Hrodivka. Russian forces recently advanced east of Pokrovsk amid continued ground attacks east and southeast of Pokrovsk on August 12. Geolocated footage published on August 12 indicates that Russian forces advanced east of Pokrovsk within Ivanivka and southeast of Hrodivka.[45] The Russian Ministry of Defense and Russian milbloggers claimed on August 12 that Russian forces advanced in northern Karlivka and seized Lysychne (both east of Pokrovsk).[46] The spokesperson for a Ukrainian brigade operating in the Pokrovsk direction stated on August 12 that frontline Ukrainian forces have not observed a decrease in Russian activity in this direction following the beginning of Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast on August 6.[47] The spokesperson reported that Russian forces have not withdrawn any significant forces from this direction but noted that Russian forces appear to have limited their drone and armored vehicle use in the area. The spokesperson reported that Russian forces are attacking in small groups of two to three personnel through forest areas and that these tactics make it difficult for Ukrainian forces to track the groups. Russian forces continued offensive operations east of Pokrovsk near Vozdvyzhenka, Novooleksandrivka, Kalynove, Yelyzavetivka, and Hrodivka and southeast of Pokrovsk near Skuchne, Novohrodivka, Zhelanne, Orlivka, Mykolaivka, and Karlivka on August 11 and 12.[48] understandingwar.org/... x Exclusive: According to secret files, Russia has trained its navy to target sites deep inside Europe with nuclear-capable missiles in a potential conflict with Nato https://t.co/UceMmcH6qd pic.twitter.com/nt5y7rCQvD — Financial Times (@FT) August 13, 2024 [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2024/8/12/2262526/-Ukraine-Invasion-Day-902-better-Maskirovka-Practices-suggest-Putin-must-get-out-and-call-it-a-day?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=trending&pm_medium=web Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/