103 Comments
Apr 13, 2023·edited Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

Hi Tom. Good luck on this platform. Always pleasure to see your opinion and sarcasm.

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Apr 13, 2023·edited Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

Just two notes:

A) the PSU MiG-29 od Dmitro Sklarevskyj was "disintegrated" at 10th February - for some reason - UA censor let the pilot to put forvard warious version´s of his downing. https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=pfbid02zna9uuDQgx1vkJaWK2FD71kVm3k63PNrarp65ftZpfVBPuyyB8YK4YizQ1frCmKel&id=100071807121016

B) that "highly-effective Russian air strikes (some of which have knocked out entire groups of Ukrainian armed vehicles: FAB-500M-62" and that link https://twitter.com/narrative_hole/status/1645109931819819009 is complete rubish. The video of burning BMP-3 column is at least year old and shows in fact russian BMP´s destroyed by UA.

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author

Thx for the correct date on the MiG-29: the other case is the wrong link. Searching for it now (the actually is containing a complaint from one of ZSU troops deployed in the Avdiivka area, and describing the damage caused by VKS air strikes).

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I do not registrate extreme effectivity of RF air strikes: you have perfect noted, they operate in narrow corridors in ZSU air defs and something like 5-20km before front lines, striking ZSU objects on 20-30km deep. And at cost of their SAMs/jammers/mobile and fix radars. Last 10 days we registrate destruction/bad damages of at last 2-3 peaces daily. Such equipment is very limited. Just for example, no evidence of Pantsyr usage since October’22 if i am not wrong. Next, Tors are comming: now the whole european part of RF is as well as uncovered, they are providing object-based defence and even it is mailfunctioning every second day. I feel the RedSquare will be set on fire on the May 9th

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

I do believe they are Ukrainian vehicles. It appears the BTR burning in the center of the video is a Ukrainian BTR, you can tell because they are modified for infantry dismounts from the rear not the side like the original Russian vehicles. I could always be wrong.

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Apr 13, 2023·edited Apr 13, 2023

Means as good as nothing: both side have dozens of captured/recaptured units

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

+ Pilot's last name is Shklyarevskyi, not Sklyarevskyi

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

i will follow you anywhere :)

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author

Thanks a lot!

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

goddamn faggots stop interfering with Tom's work!

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Потрібно ті ТОС якось знищити. Писали, що у рф їх мало.

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author

Yup, that's why the Russians are deploying them in 'hit and run' style.

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You've been arranged a meeting with Bandera, and you're still whining. That's what kind of people they are!

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Поставь ГосУслуги. Военком забронировал тебе билет на концерт Кобзона.

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Apr 13, 2023·edited Apr 13, 2023

Hi, Tom. Thank you for your work!

What is your opinion about recent US intelligence leak?

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author

Well, on one side, I'm not the least surprised. The Pentagon has a rich tradition of being leaky - especially for political purposes. Nowadays, one can add 'social-media-style stupidity' to that.

On the other hand: so far, haven't seen anything 'really new'. Actually, most of data can be collected by throughout (even if very time-consuming) 'online research'.

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

I would say, your reports are more informative and precise as those of Pentagon

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author

Thx. Have heard something similar from few squadron-ready-rooms, too.

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Hi Tom,

glad to see your updates again.

One question (no bad feelings if you don´t have time to answer :) ): do you have any info if Ukrainian Su-24M are still active over the front? Haven´t seen any info about them after some videos from February and confirmed loss from 1th March. I wonder if they are holding them back and try to reconstitute the unit (if they haven´t written off them completely) or this can be just a coincidence.

I still wonder how they use all those Kh-25 and Kh-29 without getting eradicated.

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author

Now that you ask: nope, haven't heard of any additional PSU ops since 1 March.

I would say that the surviving aircraft - plus whatever the PSU can recover of wreckage from earlier times - is undergoing overhauls and adaptation to JDAMs.

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

Tom,

Congrats on moving on new platform!

Looks like deployment of UMPK in numbers combined with Kh-58 make a difference. For a moment ZSU lack systems to repel VKS. UMPK sould rely on GPS/Glossnas for navigation. I hope ZSU will get EMC to counter this threat.

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author

It's not only the UMPKs, but a combination of different tools: EW-systems, UCAV/LPGMs, ARMs etc.

There is never one 'Wunderwaffe'.

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

Yay that you're here. This is my favorite platform, hands down. I have you, Stefan Korshak, Joyce Vance and Timothy Snyder all in one neat package!

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

Thanks Tom. We really appreciate your time. The updates are always interesting and informative. Rob lee.

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author

Glad to be of some help, thanks.

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

I wondered where you'd disappeared to. Feared a terminal cancellation. Keep up the good work!

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Hello Tom, thanks for you time and analysis, and welcone to new platform.

I have a question, if you don't mind: being a Ukrainian, I'm surprised to read this from you: 'I’ve quoted soldiers of the ZSU who called their generals ‘faggots’.

It's a word which I've never head from our guys applied to the officers. I read everything you write, and I re-read again and found, instead, that it was actually you who called the ZSU generals that 'name' in your 20/03 post ("That’s none of your or my business, and no business of all the other possible armchair generals and war correspondents in the social media: that’s the business of ZSU’s ‘faggot generals'' - your words). As a very sensitive matter, it should be clarified I think. You have quite a few Ukrainian readers. Thanks.

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author

Hi Oleksa,

I‘ve received several e-Mails from ZSU troops clearly using that terminology, and have ‚quoted‘ one of them already back in January: 20 March would be the last time I’ve ‚used that expression‘ in sarcasm.

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There are people in the trenches who are not happy with middle rank commanders (and sometimes - rightfully so) but overall those who are spreading some f-word criticism aimed at top generals are nowhere near to ZSU (not even speaking about Chief of Command, etc) at the moment, i.e. see my other comment below about so-called "Arty Green".

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Exactly.

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Not convincing but thanks for answering anyway, Tom. Accusing Ukrainian ZSU troops of insulting UA officers is very serious claim which must be supported by evidence (instead of being published as a 'fact'). Using your own words from last year, 'If I don't see it - it didn't happen' (actual words might have been different but message was like this).

Also, I didn't find anywhere in your earlier texts that you ever 'quoted' our soldiers back in January.

Lastly, even if you ever received such emails - I'm struggling (and failing) to understand: what would be the purpose of bringing this 'fact' to the public in your blog stuffed by your russian and pro-russ friends and open to anyone in the world.

Again: as a native speaker, I can't imagine anyone using that word in the way you claim it was used. Maybe some other swearing, but not that one - its too specific.

So, as it stands now - none of UA troops used the 'f...s' word towards UA generals except you. It was you who called them f...s (post from 20/03), and then made up, in order to secure your reputation, that it was UA troops (even more than one) in private correspondence. And, it will remain this way - questionable, to say the least - until we see the evidence.

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Apr 15, 2023·edited Apr 15, 2023Author

Ah wait.... you didn't even read the original post where I've used that expression, nor the one where I've explained why it's wrong to call ZSU generals that way?

Great. Thanks a lot. This is saving me lots of time with your online psychoanalysis, too. So much so, this is going to be my last reply to you.

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Oleksa, Tom is right. I've been reading the entire while and he was clearly aggravated about criticisms of the generals using that term and since that time would taunt those critics by sarcastically referencing their use of that term. Perhaps his sarcasm was effective and that's why they've stopped using that term?

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Any evidence? Because it's very hard to believe. Really. Thanks.

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Well sorry, but I'm not going to go back and read months past entries just for the sake of this argument. It's a vivid memory, and each time I saw a further echoing I knew that's what it was referring to. ...I would handle that language choice differently myself, but that he was speaking largely in defense of the 'f generals' I didn't take it the way you have. In fact it's an absurd mis-reading to suggest he was using that dated epiphet to describe the generals himself. Why on earth would he?

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One other thought: "...it's not a Ukrainian phrase or saying..." There are literally millions of people of Ukrainian descent in Canada and the US going back a century, and definitely some have joined the fight to stop Russia from again taking over Ukraine. That might account for unlikely choices of phrase., and raw english in videos from the front. As well as extremely motivated Latvians, Chechens, Georgians, Lithuanians and so on. Putin's persecution of gay lives is another reason to diametrically oppose him. It is reason enough in itself.

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Возможно тут проблемы перевода. Обозвать старшего командира "п.д.ром" за глаза ... я не удивлюсь.

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Ні, це слово з початку війни ми використовуєм виключно для пігдогів. До того ж, питання було не тільки щодо самого слова, а щодо доказів, що таке насправді відбулось. Шановний автор їх не надав. Також, щодо доцільності викладання цього в мережу, якщо б це навіть виявилось правдою.

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Шукати доказів ніхто не буде. Якщо ви не довіряєте автору - то навіщо витрачаєте свій час тут?

Шановний автор викладає в мережу те що почуває гідним викласти. За це ми його поважаєм. Тому що Жданова чи наш Генштаб ми знайдемо самостійно.

Щодо свінособак ... то fа-ts... можливо перекласти як "педік". Чи припускаєти ви що військовий так назвав якіхось генералів у пріватному листу?

Я припускаю.

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

Pleased to be able to comment at last instead of silently reading on Facebook! I’ve looked around and so far quite like this ‘hood. Thanks for the update Tom, I was getting sanity withdrawal symptoms!

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Good thing the Leopard 2s are coming to single handedly change the course of this war... :)

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author

Cool joke. ;-)

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Apr 13, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

In the Dutch news they showed a video today of Ukrainian tankers getting an 'extensive' 30 day training on 'ultra-modern' Leopard 2 tanks. What could go wrong, right?

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Apr 14, 2023Liked by Sarcastosaurus

The 93 percent accuracy the first group achieved in its final live-fire exercise suggests the tanks are in good hands.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/04/10/ukraine-russia-war-leopards-tank-warfare/

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Good luck. Great analysis!

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