I have been wondering how to introduce this fellow to the Forum community. Because he is a former Soviet/Russian Naval officer I expect there are people here who will refuse to hear anything he has to say. They may even speak unkindly about me because I think he is worth listening to.
Nevertheless, Andrei Martyanov is not easy to dismiss. He is a Russian ex patriot living in America. In 2014 the prestigious U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings published an article he wrote that was critical of Russian naval strategic development in light of geopolitical realities.
Well, that’s as much as I need to say. If you watch the video, or read his blog:
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/
you will see that Martyanov is a colorful character in addition to being a man of obvious knowledge and experience. Having known quite a few, I’d say these are the typical traits of a genuine warfighter.
Tidewater News and Opinion Forum 
I listened to this fellow, but he lost me with his story about MSM distorting the Russian draft. I have seen several mentions of the new draft of about 135,000 raw recruits and each story I saw made it clear that this draft is routine just as this fellow said it was. So, when someone starts down a path that I know from personal experience is wrong, I lose interest.
Here, for example, is Reuters story. . .
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-drafts-134500-conscripts-says-they-wont-go-ukraine-2022-03-31/
and here is WAPO . . .
“The Russian military began its spring draft Friday, aiming to sign up 134,500 conscripts and stoking fears among young men that they may end up on the front lines of the invasion of Ukraine.”
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You are saying that Martyanov is correct, but you find him to be wrong?
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Is English not you first language?
I said this fellow was WRONG about how the media covered the Russian draft. I showed how he was WRONG with some very MSM sources. If he is WRONG about something so easy to be right about, I need hear no more. He has an agenda, but the Truth is not it.
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Is logic a foreign country for you?
You might be able to show that Martyanov made a mistake if you knew the MSM sources that inspired his observation. But picking MSM sources of your own proves nothing.
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Uh, I thought all the MSM played out of the anti-Putin hymn book?
I think it was you who at the beginning said that Putin was going to expose America under “Stumble Joe’s” leadership as a “paper tiger.” If not you, then one of you people. In fact, it is Russia’s incompetent, corrupt, and cowardly military that has been exposed for what it is. Feeding ill-prepared and badly led young people into meat grinders may have worn down Russia’s enemies in the past, but no more. Young Russians are not willing to be cannon fodder anymore – especially in a fratricidal war of choice by a loser. Putin has set his country back decades and the trains still going West have been packed to the limits with the best and most talented young Russians fleeing his regime. All very sad for the Trump crowd seeing another hero face plant, but there it is.
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Let’s not forget the Syrian forces that are moving towards Ukraine to “pay back” Putin for his wonderful work in that country.
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RE: “In fact, it is Russia’s incompetent, corrupt, and cowardly military that has been exposed for what it is.”
Baghdad Bob couldn’t have said it better.
As I write this, Mariopul is under Russian control, 1/3 of the Ukrainian army is nearly encircled just west of Donbas and Russia is reinforcing its positions freely in preparation for the start of a major offensive expected to begin some time next week.
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RE: “Let’s not forget the Syrian forces that are moving towards Ukraine to “pay back” Putin for his wonderful work in that country.”
Are you referring to the 40,000 Syrians Russia recruited to fight for Russia in Ukraine?
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So, what? Why would Putin go to Syria to recruit? His country has a lot more people than Syria and he can’t “conscript” enough of his own people to participate in his dirty little war.
ANd to your other point, The Russian Army is pulling back from Kyiv and the Ukrainian army has recaptured most of the country around that capital.
ANd wrt to Mariopul, it goes to my earlier post for an alternative reason for the”special Military operation”. More commonly known as an unwarranted invasion of a neighboring country that offered NO THREAT to Russia. Oil reserves and coastal areas from which to control their transport.
Putin and his army of misfits has lost a great deal of standing based on their performance and being made to look incompetent against a much smaller force.
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RE: “Putin and his army of misfits has lost a great deal of standing based on their performance and being made to look incompetent against a much smaller force.”
Actually, the Russian army in Ukraine is the smaller force, originally about 200,000 compared to 600,000 Ukrainians. Despite their numerical disadvantage they took control of territory the size of Great Britain in under five weeks.
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“Actually, the Russian army in Ukraine is the smaller force”
As Shakespeare put it… “Quibble, Quibble, Drool and Dribble” or something like that.
As the invasion began, Russia had about 1.0 million people in its active duty military. Ukraine had 0.2 million. 5x advantage Russia. Including reserves Russia had 3.5 million vs 1.2 million for Ukraine. 3x advantage Russia. So, the smaller military is thwarting the larger military. Simpe fact.
But, Ukraine having been invaded has called up its reserves. Russia hasn’t and – for political reasons – has even had to pledge not to use its very numerous draftees. So sure, on the battlefield Ukraine has both advantages in numbers and the inherent advantages of defense and home territory. Accepting numerical inferiority is probably inescapable for Russia since they are already failing logistically.
None of this was a secret before the invasion. Understanding such matters is Military Strategy 101 making Russia’s blunders and stupidity even more egregious.
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RE: “So, the smaller military is thwarting the larger military.”
On the battlefield, Russia’s is the smaller military. That’s what matters, because that’s where the bullets are being fired.
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On the battlefield, they are committing war crimes. Yet here you are trumpeting the great Russian military.
Where do you cash a check written based on Rubles?
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Define battlefield. Is it the whole country or is it where people are fighting.
It is very widely reported that very small Ukrainian units are successfully attacking much larger Russian units. Ukraine has to defend the whole country. The invader can decide where to strike with superior forces locally.
But, it is wrong of me to quibble with you. It makes no difference to the basic facts – Putin’s invasion is a fiasco of incompetence, corruption, and cowardice. Just what one should expect from a kleptocracy.
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RE: “On the battlefield, they are committing war crimes.”
Can you name one?
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RE: “Putin’s invasion is a fiasco of incompetence, corruption, and cowardice.”
That’s the narrative. I expect it to be tested in the next few days.
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“That’s the narrative. I expect it to be tested in the next few days.”
It has already been tested.
The incompetence, corruption and cowardice are already manifest. The strategic and tactical disasters have already occurred. I will not bother to list them again. It is a long list.
You seem to be hoping that somehow Putin will get his act together and impose a fascist government on the Ukrainian people. I hope they don’t. I hope that Putin is removed and Russia comes to its senses.
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Can you name one?
Indiscriminate bombing of civilians.
– Widely documented
Executing civilians in their areas of control.
https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/04/03/ukraine-apparent-war-crimes-russia-controlled-areas
Leaving behind illegal anti-personnel mines as they retreat.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/ukraine-crisis-positive-signals-do-not-silence-the-explosion-of-russian-shells-says-zelensky-dgbhdnkx8
And then this may not be a war crime, but it is now widely reported that Russian soldiers are being dogged by Soviet style execution squads who will kill them if they try to retreat or surrender. Here is one story from the Jerusalem Post. There are many more.
https://www.jpost.com/international/article-701071
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I appreciate the links, but I note that none of the incidents they report are confirmed and at least one — the massacre at Bachu — is strongly disputed. Also, I wouldn’t trust anything SBU sources say.
TASS reports that Russia, too, is collecting evidence of war crimes, particularly those resulting from Ukrainian forces’ use of civilians as human shields in various contact zones.
My view of all such reports from both sides is that they are unreliable. We’ll have to wait until the war is over to figure out who did what to whom. In the meantime anyone who accuses one side or the other of war crimes is operating without facts.
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RE: “You seem to be hoping that somehow Putin will get his act together and impose a fascist government on the Ukrainian people.”
I want the war to end and I want people in the United States to stop believing the propaganda they are fed.
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The war could end tomorrow if the Russians went home to their own country.
What propaganda do you prefer for Americans to believe?
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“My view of all such reports from both sides is that they are unreliable”
I will agree with you on that one.
The press releases of neither government should be taken at face value.
With that said, the offerings of the Ukraine government are subject to on-going verification by journalists while it is more difficult – even illegal – to challenge Russian claims.
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