Ukraine, both Military and Civilians are still tenaciously holding their own against the greater Russian forces. So far, only Kherson, Melitipol, Beridiansk, Konotop and a few smaller areas, e.g. the Chernobyl Exclusion area and Polohy are now under Russian Control. Russia’s goal now is to surround Kiev, conquer it and then take the remaining Black Sea ares, including Mykolaev and Odessa.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The US and EU have imposed sanctions on Russia and now President Joe Biden will announce Friday (today) that, along with the European Union and the Group of Seven countries, the U.S. will move to revoke “most favored nation” trade status for Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Jeffress.com – Well…that seems fair to me! We have sanctioned Russia financially in several ways thus far, but it seems to amount to only stepping on Putin’s toes, kicking him in the shins, and locking up his and some of his cronies assets. We have thrown some dollars to Ukraine, but it hasn’t helped much since they have little way to buy anything. I fear that by the time we do decide to really help, it may be too late… like donating a kidney to a corpse. 💀😱
Credit Times, Dan Bilefsky and Marc Santora & brookings.Edu, Steven Pifer Thursday, March 10, 2022
Here are the latest developments in Ukraine.
President Biden on Friday said the United States would join the European Union and other allies in stripping Russia of normal trade relations, raising the stakes in the international effort to punish and isolate President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia for his invasion of Ukraine.
The move, along with other steps to intensify Russia’s economic pain, will be taken in concert with the Group of 7 countries and raise tariffs on Russian goods. Russia will also be denied the ability to borrow from institutions like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank
A comparison of the Ukrainian vs Russian Military by (credit to) Brookings Institute.
How big is Ukraine’s army? According to the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS), Ukraine has 196,600 active military personnel. This splits into 125,600 ground troops, 35,000 air personnel and 15,000 naval troops.2 days ago. By comparison: In land forces alone, Russia has a twofold advantage, with 280,000 troops to Ukraine’s 125,600.Reports say Russia has 12,400 tanks which is the largest in the world with Ukraine possessing 2,586 tanks. Ukraine has 74 T-64 tanks against Russia’s 2,000. Russia’s air force is nearly five times as strong, with 165,00 to Ukraine’s 35,000, so Russia’s air-superiority gives it at least a 3 to 1 advantage or greater.
The fighting has taken a large human toll. As of March 9, the United Nations estimated that more than 500 civilians have been killed (likely a vast undercount) and some 2.1 million refugees have fled the country, numbers that grow by the day, particularly as the Russian military conducts indiscriminate artillery and rocket attacks on major cities. The war has also cost Russia. Its Ministry of Defense reported on March 2 that some 500 Russian soldiers had been killed in action. On March 8, the Pentagon estimated, albeit with “low confidence,” that the war had claimed the lives of 2,000 to 4,000 Russians soldiers.
Both sides share the blame on this issue, but Putin is using this war to regain what was lost in 1991, reclaim access to the Black Sea and defeat Ukraine in violation, basically of agreements made during 1994 & 95 to defend Ukraine again any and all invasion. Ukrainians, military and civilians will fiercely fight to try to save Kiev and Odesa, but the task is going to be humongous. See “Fight to Save Odesa” —> https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/9/russia-ukraine-war-the-battle-for-odesa
