Back Story Newsletter
Good morning,
Russian Missile Attacks
It’s not a new phase of the war, but certainly a ferocious more intense chapter as Russia hammers Ukrainian towns and cities with missile attacks this week.
Missile attacks have occurred through out the war launched by Russia back in February but in the last two days this week, Russian forces fired more than 100 cruise missiles and dozens of exploding drones at cities across Ukraine, far more than the nation’s aging air defences were ever expected to encounter.
By the way, about half made it to their targets, while the others were intercepted which shows new air defence systems now being rushed to Ukraine by NATO nations can be effective in stopping Russia’s onslaught.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin ordered the missile attacks in response to the bombing of his Crimean bridge this past weekend. And on Russian TV one commentator said the attacks would last for weeks “to disable all of their infrastructure entirely” so that all of Ukraine “descends into cold and darkness”.
At the NATO meeting in Brussels Wednesday, pledges were made to get air defence in place as rapidly as possible from countries including Britain, France, Germany, Canada led by the U.S.
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said "we're going to do everything we can to make sure that they, they have what's required to be effective".
Although France later admitted its attempts to bolster Ukraines air defences could take weeks, as not only moving intercept systems takes time, but also training Ukrainians and incorporating the systems into the air defence network is complicated.
The air attacks reveal a desperate situation in Ukraine by a Russian army that is in retreat and near collapse. A kind of "‘if we can’t take territory we will destroy everything’ mentality.
Ukraine reportedly advanced in the east yesterday taking another 5 villages, pressing the offensive to regain lost ground.
The Russian media project iStories is reporting Russia has lost 90,000 troops in Ukraine, so called irrecoverable losses, meaning those soldiers are killed, wounded, or have gone missing. iStories quoted two sources in the intelligence community.
The numbers are not far off from other sources, as the Pentagon has said 70-80 thousand Russians have been wounded or killed, while the UK Ministry of Defence has said 80,000 Russian forces have been removed from battle, with KIA at least 25,000.
The General Assembly of the United Nations has condemned Russia's "attempted illegal annexation" of four partially occupied regions in Ukraine and called on all countries not to recognize the move.
Three-quarters of the 193-member General Assembly voted in favour of a resolution that also reaffirmed the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.
Meanwhile, only four countries joined Russia in voting against the resolution - Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. 35 other countries abstained.
Belarus meantime has stepped up its support of the war, moving trains of ammunition to Russian forces and deploying joint Russian-Belarus troop patrols near EU Countries including Poland.
From the start of Putins war, Belarus’s dictator Lukashenko has allowed his country to be used as a launch pad for Russian forces, including drones and manned aircraft missions. That fact increasingly begs the question - should Ukraine attack targets inside Belarus to defend itself? And you can bet that conversation is taking place now.
On Back Story with Dana Lewis podcast this week, we talk to the former Belarus Foreign Minister and opposition figure Andrei Sannikov who says Lukashenko is frightened of fully deploying his army, knowing many of his own soldiers oppose the war in Ukraine, and equally Lukashenko’s brutal internal crackdown on his own people.
I also talked to former U.N. Ambassador and U.S. National Security advisor John Bolton who says America should try to push for regime change in Russia. Bolton says if Putin remains in charge of Russia, security in Europe is now impossible.
Other News…
-The families of eight Sandy Hook shooting victims on Wednesday won nearly $1 billion in damages from the Infowars Alex Jones who for years said the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting that killed 20 first graders and six educators in Newtown, Conn., was a government hoax. Jones faces financial ruin and this case is a warning for others who knowingly spread disinformation and lies.
-Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, says Russia’s invasion of Ukraine should act as a catalyst for changing the global economy, forging democracies closer together and leaving dictators and tyrants out of trade.
-Two Israeli police officers were injured and nine Palestinians were arrested between Wednesday night and Thursday morning as violence broke out across Jerusalem and parts of the West Bank. The clashes are fuelled by IDF operations in Shuafat and Nablus and a visit by Jews to Joseph's Tomb.
-North Korea says its cruise missiles tested can carry tactical nuclear weapons.
-Donald Trump asked for boxes of records at Mar-a-Lago to be moved after receiving a government subpoena to return them, an employee of the former president reportedly told the FBI.
It’s a whirlwind news week folks. Try to have a good few days leading up to a peaceful weekend.
Dana Lewis