- Scott Ritter: John Kirby v. Russian Military Archived Message
Posted by sashimi
on November 1, 2023, 9:38 am
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31 Oct 2023 The Biden administration has a lot to cope with now when it comes to Russia. As the 2023 War in Gaza has drawn attention away from a losing effort in Ukraine, a disastrous NATO-sponsored, Ukrainian counter offensive has run out of steam, with close to 100 percent casualties among the men and equipment participating. (NATO trained a force of 90,000 Ukrainian soldiers for this effort, and supplied them with approximately 300 tanks; Russia has published figures that put the Ukrainian casualties since the start of the counteroffensive at some 90,000 killed and wounded, with some 300 tanks destroyed.) Russia has assumed an offensive posture; the initial reading from the battlefield is that it is enjoying greater success in the first few weeks of its attacks than Ukraine had for its five-month-long counteroffensive. To add insult to injury, US News and World Report just published the rankings of the world's most powerful militaries and Russia edged out the United States for the No. 1 spot. In times like these, the White House turns to its spin doctors to manipulate the narrative, and there is no finer practitioner of the art of spinning in the White House stable than the spokesperson for the National Security Council, John Kirby. "I do want to, if - if you'll allow me to, just to take a couple of minutes," Kirby told the press on Oct. 26, "to update you on the battlefield situation in Ukraine." Russia, it seemed, was on the attack, having, Kirby noted, launched a renewed offensive in eastern Ukraine "across multiple lines," including around Avdiivka, Lyman and Kupiansk. This offensive, Kirby said, "was not a surprise. We've been watching this build and come. And we've warned that President Putin still aims to conquer Ukraine and we've been working to ensure that Ukraine has the equipment it needs to defend its territory." Kirby's tune was different back in June 2022. Then Kirby stated: "They [Ukraine] are getting as much as we can send as fast as we can send it. ... We're going to be committed to helping Ukraine's armed forces defend themselves and try to take back the territory, particularly in the east, in the south, that they're trying to take back now." Now, there is no more talk about Ukraine taking back territory. Instead, Kirby emphasized that a new support package, which focused on air defense and anti-tank missiles, as well as artillery munitions, was enabling Ukraine "to hold on and hold the - on the defense against this offensive, successfully repelling Russian tank columns that have been advancing on Avdiivka." The Russians, Kirby was quick to point out, had "suffered significant losses in this offensive attempt of theirs, including at least 125 armored vehicles around Avdiivka and more than a battalion's worth of equipment." Despite this setback - for which Kirby offered no proof, Russia was expected to continue to attack the Ukrainian lines. "This is a dynamic conflict," Kirby said, "and we need to remember that Russia still maintains some offensive capability and may be able to achieve some tactical gains in the coming months." The difference between "Ukraine is going to recapture lost territory" and "Russia is on the offensive and may achieve some tactical gains" is of an order of magnitude that cannot simply be dismissed. Something is happening on the ground between Ukraine and Russia which has Kirby desperately trying to prepare the American audience for some significant developments on the battlefield that exclusively favor Russia. -- Cont'd at https://consortiumnews.com/2023/10/31/scott-ritter-john-kirby-versus-russian-military/ |
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