A good read where the Saker gives his view on what's happened since the start of the operation.After 3 month break Saker is back. Still reading this, but didn’t see it shared yet either - it’s a long one:
Five months into the Special Military Operation – a summary | The Vineyard of the Saker
A bird's eye view of the vineyardthesaker.is
Western governments have invested much in Ukraine. Washington bankrolled Kiev with billions, despite facing major economic shortfalls at home. While Western corporate giants have also been very generous.
In recent years three giant Western companies – Cargill, DuPont and Monsanto – bought seventeen million hectares of Ukrainian agricultural land, despite fierce local opposition.
That seventeen million hectares means that nearly 60 percent of Ukraine’s total farmland is now owned and controlled by foreign transnational corporations!!!
It seems that Monsanto in particular intended to use its Ukrainian farmland as a means to break the European boycott of its genetically engineered produce. The hope was that with its Ukrainian farmland, Monsanto could circumvent the ban of its GM produce in some European countries.
Russia’s invasion will obviously change that as Moscow has banned Genetically Modified produce. So whether Monsanto makes good on its investment or not depends on what happens on the battlefield.
And right now things aren’t looking too promising for Kiev, or Monsanto. Ed.
A bipartisan group from the US Congress on a junket to Kiev have called for the Biden Administration to begin sending US military "advisors" to Ukraine. Not to the frontline (right away) they say. What could go wrong? Also today: Hungary's Orban delivers a blistering speech on Europe's failed Ukraine policy. And...in North Carolina the whole police force quits. You'll never believe why.
Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., the first Green Beret elected to Congress.Congressman Waltz used to work for Dick Cheney. He’s nothing but trouble.
"We've seen bipartisan support for Ukraine's fight for freedom," Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., who was part of a bipartisan congressional delegation that went to Kyiv over the weekend, said after Wednesday's briefing with Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl; director of operations for the Joint Staff Lt. Gen. Douglas Sims II; and other officials.
Минобороны: ВСУ ударили по СИЗО с пленными «азовцами» из HIMARS (ВИДЕО 18+)The Ministry of Defense: the APU hit the pre-trial detention center with prisoners of "Azov" from HIMARS (VIDEO 18+)
The news is being updated
29.07.2022 - 11:19
The Russian Defense Ministry in a morning briefing reported details about the AFU strike on the pre-trial detention center with prisoners of "Azov" from the HIMARS MLRS.
As a result of the blatant provocation of the Ukrainian side, dozens of Ukrainian prisoners were killed.
"A bloody provocation was purposefully committed by the Kiev regime last night. A missile strike from the American multiple launch rocket system HIMARS was launched at the detention center near the settlement of Elenovka, where Ukrainian military prisoners of war, including militants of the Azov formation, are being held.
40 Ukrainian prisoners of war were killed and 75 wounded. In addition, eight employees of the detention center received injuries of varying severity.
Currently, a large number of Ukrainian servicemen voluntarily lay down their weapons, knowing about the humane attitude towards prisoners of war from the Russian side. This blatant provocation was committed with the aim of intimidating Ukrainian servicemen and preventing their surrender," the Defense Ministry stressed.
В Липецке ФСБ задержала диверсантов «Правого сектора» за подготовку терактаIn Lipetsk, the FSB detained saboteurs of the "Right Sector" for preparing a terrorist attack
Russian special services prevented a terrorist attack in Lipetsk — the Federal Security Service (FSB) of Russia detained three saboteurs of the extremist organization "Right Sector" banned in Russia. On Friday, July 29, RIA Novosti reports.
The suspects were detained in the village of Goritsy in the Dorovsky district of the Lipetsk region. According to the FSB, the saboteurs — a man and two women with Ukrainian citizenship — were preparing a terrorist attack in a crowded place of one of the objects of the Lipetsk transport structure. One of the saboteurs admitted that the object of the attack was supposed to be the Lipetsk Sokol bus station.
The detainees found elements of an improvised explosive device (IED) of high power
In addition, operatives found correspondence of saboteurs with other participants of the banned "Legal Sector", proving their intentions to stage a terrorist attack.
Saboteurs were trained in a camp with foreign instructors
According to the FSB, the detained leader of the saboteurs had previously been repeatedly convicted of pedophilia. Together with his accomplices, he was part of a sabotage and intelligence group under the patronage of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU). According to the FSB operative, the saboteurs were trained at the training center of the Ukrainian army under the guidance of foreign instructors.
The detained persons received special training at the training center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine "Desna" under the guidance of foreign instructors to conduct reconnaissance and sabotage behind enemy lines
Detention of Ukrainian saboteurs caught on video
The FSB showed on video the preparation of Ukrainian saboteurs for a terrorist attack in Lipetsk and their subsequent detention. The footage shows the Sokol bus station in Lipetsk, where the terrorist attack was planned, and also shows surveillance footage of a sabotage group inspecting the site of the planned explosion, and their subsequent detention by FSB special forces.
Then one of the detainees points out the location of the cache of an improvised explosive device and says that he acted on the instructions of the "Right Sector". The video also shows footage found in the phone of one of the detainees of training saboteurs as part of a paramilitary unit in Ukraine.
You know, if you can call it propaganda, it is not Russian at all. Yes, it was filmed about Russia, but it wasn't done by a Russian or not for Russians or both. I do not know what words to explain it, but I do not feel my Homeland in this clip.More Russian propaganda... or not?
Бывший командир «Азова» объявил охоту на причастных к удару по СИЗО в ЕленовкеThe former commander of "Azov" announced a hunt for those involved in the strike on the pre-trial detention center in Yelenovka
The former commander of the nationalist Azov regiment, Andrei Biletsky, announced a hunt for those involved in the missile strike on the pre-trial detention center in Yelenovka in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), where the captured fighters of the unit were being held. He announced this in his Telegram channel.
He called the incident a planned act and a violation of customs and laws of war. "On behalf of the Azov units, I declare a hunt for everyone involved in the mass murder. Every ordinary performer and every organizer is responsible, regardless of their position and place of residence," Biletsky wrote.
The former commander of "Azov" also promised to find and eliminate the perpetrators.
The Russian Defense Ministry earlier reported that on the night of July 29, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) launched a missile strike from the American HIMARS multiple launch rocket system at the pre-trial detention center in Yelenovka, where Ukrainian prisoners of war, including soldiers of the Azov battalion, are located. According to the Russian ministry, as a result of the strike, 40 people were killed and 75 Ukrainian prisoners of war were wounded. 8 employees of the pre-trial detention center were also injured. Later, representatives of the DPR clarified that the death toll had increased to 53.
The APU denies involvement in the strike. Representatives of the General Staff blamed the Russian army for the incident and said that Moscow was thus trying to hide the torture and murder of Ukrainian prisoners of war held in jail. In turn, the DPR authorities believe that the APU hit the isolation ward because the prisoners began to testify about war crimes.
РИА Новости: обломки боеприпаса РСЗО HIMARS найдены в СИЗО в ЕленовкеRIA Novosti: fragments of HIMARS MLRS ammunition found in the pre-trial detention center in Elenovka
It is noted that parts of the numbers have been observed on some of the wreckage.
The Investigative Committee of Russia opened a criminal case after the Ukrainian Armed Forces hit the detention center in Yelenovka in the Donetsk People's Republic.
According to the latest data, the death toll from the impact has increased to 53.
The head of the DPR, Denis Pushilin, said that the spelling of the detention center could have occurred due to the fact that captured militants began to testify.
On July 26, it was reported that the Ukrainian military fired at Alchevsk in the LPR from the HIMARS MLRS. It is noted that five missiles were fired from the HIMARS MLRS.
Северная Македония отдала Украине российские танки Т-72North Macedonia gave Ukraine Russian T-72 tanks
It is not specified how many combat vehicles were transferred
This was reported by the Serbian national TV channel RTC with reference to the statement of the Ministry of Defense of Northern Macedonia.
We are talking about the "third generation" tanks from the battalion, which is planned to be disbanded soon.
The number of tanks is not reported, but it is known that there were 31 tanks of this type in the arsenal of the Army of Northern Macedonia.
All armored vehicles were transferred to the country of the Balkan Peninsula by Russia. Skopje received tanks in 2000 as part of assistance from Moscow against the background of the opposition of the Macedonian army to Albanian separatists from the National Liberation Army.
Spiegel: у украинской армии возникли проблемы с немецкими гаубицамиSpiegel: the Ukrainian army has problems with German howitzers
MOSCOW, July 29 — RIA Novosti. Several of the German self-propelled howitzers of the Panzerhaubitze2000 type delivered to Ukraine are already in need of repair, the German magazine Spiegel writes.
"A month after the delivery of German artillery systems to Ukraine, some of the howitzers are already showing signs of wear," the article says.
The text notes that the German side considers Ukrainian servicemen guilty of what happened due to violation of proper operating conditions.
The German media also talked about the problems with the Cheetah anti-aircraft missile systems. According to the publication, this machine "could not recognize" ammunition from the Norwegian manufacturer.
On Wednesday, Spiegel reported that the German government had agreed to the direct sale of one hundred Panzerhaubitze2000-type howitzers to Ukraine. We are talking about "long-term strengthening of the Ukrainian army," since the production of all howitzers will take several years.
Russia sent a note to NATO countries because of the supply of weapons to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. The Foreign Ministry noted that NATO countries are "playing with fire" by supplying weapons to Ukraine. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed that pumping Ukraine with weapons from the West does not contribute to the success of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative effect.
https://www.interfax.ru/world/854512The Russian military reported that the Ukrainian ship was blown up by a mine at the mouth of the Danube
Moscow. July 29. INTERFAX.EN - The small geographical vessel "Shlyakhovich" was blown up by a Ukrainian mine at the mouth of the Danube River, said Mikhail Mizintsev, head of the National Center for Defense Management (NCMS) of the Russian Federation.
"On July 28, 2022, when measuring the depths of the fairway at the mouth of the Danube River, the small geographical vessel Shlyakhovich (State Hydrographic Service of Ukraine) was blown up on a Ukrainian drifting mine," Mizintsev said at a briefing on Friday.
"70 foreign vessels from 16 states remain blocked in six ports (Kherson, Nikolaev, Chernomorsk, Ochakov, Odessa and Yuzhny). The threat of shelling created by official Kiev and the high mine danger do not allow ships to freely enter the open sea," the Russian military said.
According to him, the Kiev authorities continue in every possible way to avoid interaction with representatives of foreign states and ship-owning companies in resolving the issue of ensuring the safe exit of blocked vessels to the collection areas.
"At the same time, there remains a danger for navigation and damage to the port infrastructure from the drift of Ukrainian mines torn from their anchors along the coast of the Black Sea states," Mizintsev said.
"The Russian Federation is taking a full range of measures to ensure the safety of civil navigation in the waters of the Black and Azov Seas," he said.