There was never much doubt that in a military confrontation between Russia and Ukraine, those whom President Donald Trump called a ‘war machine’ (Russians) would prevail.
Sure enough, once an unprecedented alliance of Western powers sent countless billions in money and military aid, the calculations had to be remade – but it soon became apparent that, while this help would considerably delay the outcome, it would not fundamentally change it.
While the Mainstream Media spent two full years lying and engaging in wishful thinking disguised as analysis, they now have to give in to the reality of facts as Russian troops ramp up pressure on the outgunned and outmaneuvered Ukrainian forces.
Moscow is reportedly preparing to conquer more territory as soon as the muddy tundra fields dry out and ‘allow tanks, armored vehicles and other heavy equipment to roll to key positions across the countryside.’
Associated Press reported:
“Russia has increasingly used satellite-guided gliding bombs — which allow planes to drop them from a safe distance — to pummel Ukrainian forces beset by a shortage of troops and ammunition.
Despite Moscow’s advantage in firepower and personnel, a massive ground offensive would be risky and — Russian military bloggers other experts say — unnecessary if Russia can stick to smaller attacks across the front line to further drain the Ukraine military.
‘It’s potentially a slippery slope where you get like a death by a thousand cuts or essentially death by a thousand localized offensives’, Michael Kofman, a military expert with the Carnegie Endowment, said in a recent podcast to describe the Russian tactic. If the Russians stick to their multiple pushes across the front, he said, ‘eventually they may find more and more open terrain’.”
The much-hyped Ukrainian ‘counteroffensive’ was doomed from the start, as the advancing units got trapped on vast Russian minefields and massacred by artillery and drones while never breaching the monumental Russian defense lines.
The Russians, the AP report acknowledges, have no reason to make that same mistake, since warfare has changed and the ISR capabilities both sides now have mean there is no such thing as a ‘surprise attack’ anymore.
However, the expected Ukrainian defensive trenches, fortifications, and bunkers that should be built behind the 600-mile-long frontline have not been completed to content.
Construction work moved slowly, leaving vast areas unprotected.
“After capturing the Ukrainian stronghold of Avdiivka, Russian troops are zeroing in on the hill town of Chasiv Yar, which would allow them to move toward Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, key cities in the Kyiv-controlled part of the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.”
As a first priority, Russia meant to conquer the rest of the Donetsk oblast – as Ukraine just doesn’t have the firepower or the manpower to repel the Russian attacks.
“Gen. Christopher Cavoli, head of U.S. European Command, sounded the alarm before Congress last week, warning that Ukraine will be outgunned 10 to one by Russia in a matter of weeks if Congress does not approve more military aid.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed to establish a ‘buffer zone’ to protect Russia’s border regions from Ukrainian shelling and incursions.
Besides the push across Donetsk, Moscow could also conquer Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkov, with 1.1 million inhabitants.
Russia has ramped up strikes on power plants in the northern area, inflicting significant damage and causing blackouts.
Military Russian forces could alternatively envelop and blockade it.
Watch: Russian cluster munition attack on Ukrainian airfield.
Meanwhile, high US officials like CIA Director William Burns are warning that Ukraine could ‘lose’ the war against Russia by the end of the year.
CNN reported:
“Just a month ago, Burns had warned in testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee that if Congress did not move to authorize additional support — long hampered by conservative opposition in the House of Representatives — ‘Ukraine is likely to lose ground and probably significant ground in 2024’.”
Yesterday (18), during an appearance at the George W. Bush Center, Burns warned that Ukraine could be forced to capitulate entirely.
“’With the boost that would come from military assistance, both practically and psychologically, I think the Ukrainians are entirely capable of holding their own through 2024′, Burns said.
‘Without supplemental assistance, the picture is a lot more dire’, he continued. ‘There is a very real risk that the Ukrainians could lose on the battlefield by the end of 2024, or at least put Putin in a position where he could dictate the terms of a political settlement’.”
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The post MSM Finally Admits Russian War of Attrition Is Winning the Conflict in Ukraine – CIA Director Burns Says Moscow May Be Victorious by Year’s End appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.