By David Sole
The United States military is moving quickly to centralize its control over the Ukraine proxy war against the Russian Federation. The Pentagon is establishing a new, high-level command called the Security Assistance Group-Ukraine to be based in Germany. The command, with around 300 personnel, will “oversee how the United States and its allies train and equip the Ukrainian military” according to the New York Times.
The announcement from the Defense Department also included another $400 million in heavy weapons for Ukraine, including 45 heavy tanks, 1,100 drones and boats. The stated goal is “to ensure we are postured to continue supporting Ukraine over the long term” said Pentagon press aide Sabrina Singh.
The true nature of the Ukraine proxy war was revealed months ago by U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin when he admitted the U.S. aim is to “weaken Russia.” In June almost 5,000 U.S. troops from the 101st Airborne set up camp on the Romanian side of the Ukraine border where they have been carrying out war games.
It has been revealed that U.S. troops are being stationed inside Ukraine to reportedly help keep track of the arrival and deployment of billions of dollars worth of military equipment.
It is also known that the Pentagon and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have personnel situated with the command and supply departments of the Ukrainian military. They are supplying military intelligence and advising on military tactics.
Heavy fighting in the northeast theater has continued. The rapid advance of Ukrainian forces in the Kharkiv area ended after the withdrawal of Russian Federation forces to more defensible lines. Russian troops have counter-attacked in several areas making some gains.
Fighting may intensify greatly in the southern front around the Russian held city of Kherson. Ukraine has made the taking of Kherson a major military and political goal and both sides seem to be preparing for a major battle. Despite most western media hype about the Ukraine military, Aljazeera gave a more balanced assessment. Quoting a Ukrainian army commander on the ground, the news agency reported that the Ukrainian “counteroffensive had slowed in recent days, partly because Russian troops were heavily dug into fortified positions….we are lacking in equipment to move forward….The Russian army should not be underestimated.”
An aide to Ukraine President Zelensky estimated that Russia has positioned 30 battalions around Kherson, each consisting of 800 soldiers.
The Russians have an overwhelming superiority in air, missile and artillery support for their troops, who are heavily dug into defensive positions in three layers around Kherson. A large percentage of Kherson’s civilians have been evacuated to the east bank of the Dnieper River and there are reports of Russian troops setting up defenses inside buildings throughout the city, should the Ukrainians break through the outer defense lines.
Running short of equipment and trained military personnel, Ukraine may be gambling everything on a victory in Kherson. But even should that happen, it isn’t clear that Ukraine could follow up a costly battle having depleted much of its military strength. In the rear areas Ukraine’s entire electric grid is being destroyed day by day by Russian drones and cruise missiles. Recently an official of the Kyiv municipal government admitted that 450,000 people in the capital city were without power.
The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine passed a bill banning any negotiations with Russia as long as President Putin remained in power. Zelensky signed the bill into law on October 4. He has ruled out any talks until Ukraine drives Russia out of the 20% of the country it occupies and has annexed into the Russian Federation – goals that are unlikely to transpire no matter how much money, weaponry and intelligence the U.S. and NATO supply.
Zelensky knows that his position is untenable. That is why, in a speech on October 6, he called “upon NATO to consider ‘preemptive strikes’ against Russia, rather than ‘waiting for the nuclear strikes first.’” Russia’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denounced the statement “essentially a call for the start of a world war.” Zelensky’s own press secretary backtracked, saying that the call was for NATO to strike the Russians with conventional weapons. Either way, it exposed the complete dependence of the Ukrainian puppet regime on the U.S. and NATO.
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