Originally Posted by
mahogany bob
WHAT TO DO ??
- There is no way that Ukraine can WIN the war - prolonged western help will only prolong the agony.
To win a land war you have to be in a position to take land and then hold on to it. So far Putin's men have managed to take some land, most of it an area where they have been fermenting a separatist movement for years, but they have taken ground beyond that region. The price, however, has been a high one in terms of men and equipment and the loss rate in some aspects has been unsustainable. Most of this has been achieved before many of the new weapon systems Ukraine has acquired have been brought to bear. Things are not going to get easier for the Russian Forces. A full mobilisation in Russia will generate more cannon meat, to use the Russian expression, but what fresh equipment does Russia have to bring to the front? The good equipment has not fared well and the old will not do any better.
Putting all that aside, even if Russia did manage to fight to the western edge of Ukraine, how are they going to cope with the resistance movement that will almost certainly be kept supplied by the West. Just how many troops would be need to garrison the country and to make good the losses? Russia pulled out of Afghanistan when their losses reached 10,000. Now they are well over that, possibly double and to coin a phrase, you ain't seen nothing yet.
From a Ukrainian perspective the war is winnable, from a Russian perspective, you cannot get there from here.