This is the latest “SITREP from the front lines” sent by “Juan” to whom I am immensely grateful for sharing this information with us. The Saker ——- A lot has happened since I wrote the last items for the Saker. The situation in the south and east of Ukraine is quite fluid and changes by the hour. Early on 24 May 2014 strong movements of Nats units began, converging on
What was the main demand of the Maidanites? Oh yes, to expel a fat corrupt leader. Now, several months later it sure looks to me that they traded one fat and corrupt leader for another one. The big difference being that Yahukovich at least did not use force against his own people. Poroshenko has no such problems. Ukie oligarchs v2.0 The other difference – of sorts – is, I suppose,
Heavy fighting around Slavyansk increasing in tempo for the last 3 hours. Slavyansk under assault from 7 areas. Artillery is being used, at least one apartment building is burning in one of the outlying towns under assault. Self propelled arty, Msta-S reported, 15.2 cm howitzer type, are on the move with all their support echelons. Tanks are on the move, some heading for Slavyansk, some Donetsk. Grad batteries are on
I think that we can all agree that the situation in the Ukraine is one of total chaos. Renat Akhmetov, the local oligarch-mobster, had declared that his companies will go on a “warning strike” for 3 hours per day because Akhmetov was angered that the authorities of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) had taken over the control of the railways which resulted in losses for his company. One of the
Short news highlights: Popular governor of Lugansk, Valerii Bolotov, shot by sniper, lost lots of blood but is in no danger. 7 Ukie soldiers killed by the resistance, one APC destroyed Lugansk and Donetsk are negotiating a unification The Donetsk Republic is creating its own military EU gives 1 billion to Banderastan Hungarians want a Hungarian autonomous region in southwestern Ukraine Gazprom switches to pre-payment Ukies refuse to pay to
From the reports coming out of the eastern Ukraine it appears that a real, coordinated, attack has been launched on Slaviansk. The attackers use the following tactic: a group of men in plainclothes (Right Sector? Foreign mercenaries? SBU?) attack a checkpoint pinning down the defenders. The checkpoint is then surrounded on both sides by armored personnel carriers and heavily armed infantry. Mi-24 helicopters approach from the air and a heavy
The Ukrainian offensive against the population of the eastern Ukraine is large, but does not seem to yield any tangible results so far. Here is a map of the affected cities: The worst situation appears to be in Kramatorsk were attacking force has fully surrounded the city and a number of elements have penetrated inside using secondary roads. It is hard to get a clear image of what is going
Some of you have understood my reference to Chechnia in the latest SITREP has an indication of the kind of tactics the Russian military would use if/when the Kremlin decides to intervene in the Ukraine.That is not at all what I meant and I apologize for misleading you.What I meant was to say that in extreme circumstances Putin was willing to use extreme measures. But let me reassure you all
What happened in Odessa yesterday is much worse than what the initial reports had indicated: it was truly a deliberate and blood-curling massacre. To summarize:In Odessa the pro-Russian demonstrators had never seized a building, all they did was erecting a small tent city and hanging out there. Hardly any violence had taken place. Yesterday, the neo-Nazis finally made their move:1) They bussed in large numbers of Right Sector thugs.2) They
It appears that a massacre did take place today, but not in Slaviansk, but in Odessa were 38 people died when a building in which they had sought refuge was set ablaze. Here is what RT reports: At least 38 anti-government activists died in fire at Odessa’s Trade Unions House after suffocating with smoke or jumping out of windows of the burning building, Ukrainian Interior Ministry reported. The building was
Today’s events in the Ukraine have seen both a dramatic escalation and yet another complete flop. Let’s restate here the fact which are not in dispute by any part The Ukrainian junta has launched what it calls a major counter-terrorist operation against the city of Slaviansk. Combat helicopters were used. Armored personnel carriers were used. A number of checkpoints have been taken over by the attacking force. Two (possibly three)
China has officially strongly criticized any sanctions saying that they would be useless. Another six cities of the eastern Ukraine have rebelled. Dmitryi Olegovich Rogozin Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia and Deputy Prime Minister of Russia in charge of defense industry has declared that Russia will respond to words with words and to actions with actions. For example, he said, if the US would try to hurt the
The city hall and the city council buildings of the eastern city of Konstantinovka have been taken under control of Russian-speaking insurgents who say that they are here to protect the local authorities (who are opposed to the revolutionary regime in Kiev) from any attack by the junta. Probably lured by the oligarch-galore in the Ukraine, the Jewish oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky has showed up in the Dontesk region to show
Wow! Now things look very serious indeed. RT reports that Russia is starting military maneuvers involving not one, but TWO military districts plus the Air Force: Russia has begun extensive military exercises in Ukrainian border area following the escalation of violence in eastern Ukraine. “The order to use force against civilians has already been given, and if this military machine is not stopped, the amount of casualties will only grow,”
Pretty much all my sources confirm that the junta in Kiev has launched an attack on the city of Slaviansk. Most sources say that only SBU and Right Sector forces are involved, though other source report that the “special forces” (no details) seen on the airport near Slaviansk are also participating. My personal take is that at most the military is providing some support, but that the real fighting is
The situation in the Ukraine continues to be characterized by complete chaos and a gradual and steady strengthening of the resistance in the East.Following the attack by pro-regime forces on a resistance checkpoint in Slaviansk over the week-end Foreign Minister Lavrov has accused the revolutionary regime in Kiev of breaking the terms of the accord.One could argue that this attack was decided by the Right Sector (that is the conclusion
It is still a little early to call this day over, especially considering the time it takes for the information to seep out of the eastern Ukraine and make it to the Internet. Furthermore, we have to be extremely cautious with the news not only because truth is the first casualty of war or because all the information sources have a vested interest in getting out the “right” information “correctly”
The first day of what will become the Ukrainian Civil war has finished and since by tomorrow morning a lot can happen, I have decided to provide this intermediate SITREP update tonight rather than to wait for tomorrow.The short summary of the day is: absolute chaos and local violence.A couple of things stand out: The same source who reported that the CIA Director John Brennan visited Kiev on Sunday or
The situation in the Ukraine has taken a very sharp turn for the worse. Two Presidential candidates from the eastern part of the country were assaulted yesterday by Ukie brownshirts. Mikhail Dobkin got away with only paint and flour thrown at him, but reports say that his bodyguard were hurt. Oleg Tsarev got severely beaten, however, and barely escaped the Right Sector lynch mob. No doubt, this will not prevent
It appears that the next 24 hours will be absolutely crucial for the future of the Ukraine. So far, these are the most important developments:The following cities have seen uprisings taking place over the week-end: Kharkov, Slaviansk, Krasnyi Liman, Kramatorsk, Lugansk, Enakievo, Gorlovka, Donetsk, Khartsyzk, Ilovaisk, Mariupol. To get a feel for the spread, check out this map: Rebel cities in the eastern Ukraine The second big development is the
