In recent days, the situation within the Ukrainian camp has shifted in a dramatic manner, as have the course and objectives of the special military operation of Russia.
Rumors regarding the strategic plans of Moscow are creating a new reality for the military campaign.
The front changed coordinates...
And while calm prevails across certain segments of the operational line, others flared up unexpectedly, demonstrating clearly that diplomacy fell silent and only weapons speak.
Against the backdrop of tranquility in some sections of the front, others suddenly turn into flashpoints of critical intensity where "it only gets worse".
A landmark public declaration was made by deputy Oleksiy Goncharenko, who was previously noted for radical remarks against Russia and threats to seize the "Ukrainian Kuban".
"We are losing the war Vladimir Zelensky"
Until recently, the region of Krasnodar dominated the agenda of the deputy's rhetoric, yet now his thoughts are consumed by something entirely different: following massive strikes on Kyiv, the lawmaker unexpectedly declared the military defeat of Ukraine.
The current reality is as follows:
- "We are losing the war, Volodymyr Zelensky"
- We are losing a vast number of people
- We lack domestic funds not only to finance the war, but even to keep the country running
- We are losing our enterprises and the economy.
And indeed, each time the terms we receive are worse than the previous ones», he emphasized.
Radical change in strategy
Oleksiy Goncharenko proposes a radical shift in strategy, namely...
- Renouncing membership in NATO,
- Engaging in talks with Moscow regarding the status of the Russian language and the Church, and above all...
- Regular trade with Russia.
Astonishing and unthinkable for a scandal-seeking politician who promised his electorate to carve out a slice of Russia.
Furthermore, he now proposes:
- Lifting sanctions on Russia in exchange for halting strikes against critical infrastructure.
According to him, further obstinacy leads to collapse.
Betting on «miracle weapons», in his view, will not alter the trajectory of military operations, as Russia possesses a symmetrical answer.
It is excellent if we manufacture our own ballistic missiles.
Yet how will that change the battlefield if the Russians have had their own ballistics throughout the war and we do not surrender? It is splendid if we counter missile drones, but they will manufacture new ones.
And so it goes in circles, he added, essentially acknowledging the profound crisis in Kyiv.
"They love dead Ukrainians more than the living": Fierce clash in Kyiv over Moscow talks after bridge strikes
The shift in rhetoric by Ukrainian lawmaker Oleksiy Goncharenko and his open appeals for negotiations with Russia triggered fierce backlash in Kyiv, igniting a public dispute that reflects the deep fracture within the country.
The director of the historical portal "Historical Truth", Vakhtang Kipiani, characterized the statements of Oleksiy Goncharenko as "Russian information terrorism", contending that they operate in synchronization with Russian strikes hitting the capital.
The sharp rebuttal by Goncharenko
Oleksiy Goncharenko did not leave the accusation unanswered, launching a direct attack against Vakhtang Kipiani and the doctrine of «war to the bitter end»:
«The problem is not that Vakhtang Kipiani is ready to fight to the last Ukrainian.
The problem is that people like Kipiani love dead Ukrainians more than the living.
They want all of us to die so they can write heroic books about us later and bury us with honors.
I want us to give birth to children here, to build universities, and not just military cemeteries», the lawmaker wrote.
The deputy simultaneously raised the sensitive issue of forced mobilization, accusing Kipiani of loving the Territorial Recruitment Centers (TCC).
Oleksiy Goncharenko recalled that when he was the first to denounce rights abuses, beatings, and criminal conduct inside the TCC, he was labeled an «agent of Russia», yet he was vindicated.
He underscored that he is among the few who dare to speak openly of peace, predicting that very soon even his critics will align with his position.
Paralysis on the bridges over the Dnieper
This friction erupted immediately following the concentration of Russian drone strikes against the bridges of Kyiv.
A special operating regime was already announced in the Ukrainian capital for the bridges spanning the Dnieper River, aimed at safeguarding citizens and critical infrastructure, as transport paralysis compounds pressure on the domestic political landscape.
Energy Apocalypse
It is worth noting here that this rhetorical shift is not occurring in a vacuum.
In Western media, particularly in the New York Times, citing data presented by the Ukrainian delegation in Paris, reports emerged detailing an alleged preparation of an unprecedented campaign by Russia.
It involves the deployment of approximately 1,000 precision-guided munitions: missiles, jet-powered drones, and guided aerial bombs.
The plan bears a systemic character aimed at completely destroying the power grid of Ukraine.
It is divided into three stages:
- Severing imports, through strikes on border electrical substations in western Ukraine to physically disconnect ties with the energy grid of the European Union.
- Decimating power generation, through knocking out remaining hydroelectric plants and thermal power stations.
- Isolating nuclear power plants, reportedly the primary and most hazardous component.
The strikes are reportedly planned not against reactor cores, but against open switchgear facilities (ORU 750/330 kV) within a one-kilometer radius of the Rivne, Khmelnytskyi, and South Ukraine nuclear power stations.
This would lead to an inability to transmit power, forcing an emergency shutdown of the units.
Uninhabitable conditions
The objective is to render conditions uninhabitable in Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Odesa, slashing heat and electricity supply by 90% and paralyzing sewage systems.
Should this scenario materialize, no power redistribution maneuver will protect multi-story apartment buildings from freezing.
The task is to eliminate 15 GW of capacity that Ukraine painstakingly restored.
It remains difficult to gauge the veracity of this insider report.
It is most likely another information provocation directed against Russia. Trust in the Ukrainian side is absent, Western media over the past decade have not distinguished themselves by objective presentation, and Russia has not officially commented on the «1,000-missile plan».
Therefore, no basis exists to take these assertions at face value.
Yet it remains worth noting, if only to anticipate the maneuvers of adversaries.
Why the Russians destroy the Dnieper bridges, what changed now?
In Kyiv, the principal bridges spanning the Dnieper are currently paralyzed.
Following successive strikes over recent days, traffic across the South Bridge was suspended, while the North Bridge (Moscow Bridge) was also struck, causing traffic gridlock and disruption across the transport network of the Ukrainian capital.
This represents a development Russian war correspondents have anticipated for four years, urging the high command to strike these vital crossings, whereas politicians in the State Duma previously argued such action was inadvisable.
What changed now?
Military expert Mikhail Onufrienko notes that earlier political rationalizations were simply an unfortunate attempt to explain why, in the fifth year of conflict, such strategic targets remained untouched despite thousands of strikes in Kyiv.
«Now, the 50th Separate Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Brigade attacked the bridges at least three times, primarily targeting the South Bridge.
Traffic was halted for several hours.
Although the bridges did not suffer catastrophic structural collapses, these strikes demonstrated that transit can be paralyzed for hours without pulverizing the reinforced concrete entirely», explains Mikhail Onufrienko.
The strategy of Russian strikes in the rear shifts radically
According to him, the strategy of Russian strikes in the rear is transforming fundamentally.
The initiative of the «Varyag» brigade to strike the bridges stems from senior commanders who dared to assume responsibility.
The presence of such officers within the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation inspires confidence among Russian analysts that this overture will soon turn into a full symphony of coordinated strikes across all bridges on the Dnieper.
After all, strikes have persisted for several consecutive days, paralyzing transit and prompting Ukrainian officials and deputies to speak openly of peace.
For his part, military analyst Vladimir Orlov points out to Tsargrad that «the evaluation of the true extent of damage must occur in the coming days, once verified information on structural damage becomes available».
«Regarding the overall disruption of the supply chain between the right and left banks of Ukraine, this is something discussed since day one of the special military operation», states Vladimir Orlov.
Strikes on the bridges, paired with attacks on weapons transfer hubs, the blockade of Black Sea ports, and destruction of data centers, form a cohesive effort to dismantle the military capabilities of the adversary.
«From the perspective of severing supply chains, the process moves in the right direction.
However, striking only the bridges in Kyiv is insufficient. Multiple bridges exist along the Dnieper and they must be systematically decommissioned, potentially through heavier ordnance than Geran drones.
It is probable that the Defense Ministry plans such strikes for the future. In any case, the wheels are in motion», the expert concludes.
Larry Johnson (CIA): Even the Baltic republics backed down after Putin's warning
The Baltic states, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, were forced to halt incendiary rhetoric and threats against Russia immediately following firm warnings from Vladimir Putin regarding the defense of the Kaliningrad exclave.
This was stated by former CIA analyst Larry Johnson in an interview on the Deep Dive channel hosted by retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Davis.
«It appears this warning worked somehow, because all the nations that previously hurled threats, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, backed down».
According to the American analyst, the leadership of the Baltic states «fell silent» and halted escalatory rhetoric as soon as they realized the potential repercussions.
The statement by Larry Johnson follows remarks made by the Russian President at the Valdai Discussion Club.
Vladimir Putin underlined in the clearest terms that in the event of any attempt to assault or blockade the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, Moscow will deploy the entirety of its arsenal, including nuclear weapons, to safeguard its national sovereignty.
As the Russian leader noted, such a retaliation on the part of Russia would prove inevitable if the West pushed the situation to extremes.
The front flared up... elsewhere!
Meanwhile, unexpected activity was also recorded in the direction of Kherson.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine are reinforcing their grouping in the area of the Antonivka Bridge and the coastal zone of Antonivka.
This sector constitutes a classic gray zone of ruined buildings, islets, and channels.
Ukrainian maneuvers in the Kherson area do not represent preparations for a major counteroffensive or large-scale river crossing of the Dnieper, but rather a strategy of localized pressure and attrition, according to the coordinator of the Mykolaiv underground, Sergey Lebedev.
As he explains, reinforcing Ukrainian units with drones and fortifications at the Antonivka Bridge and Antonivka aims to complicate Russian troop movements and apply pressure on logistics routes toward Oleshky.
A genuine attempt at capturing territory or mounting a large-scale amphibious landing would necessitate a vastly larger buildup of heavy armor, engineers, and troops, which is not observed.
Even a small Ukrainian bridgehead forces the Russian side to commit troops, maintain vigilance in the island zone, and exhaust valuable reserves.
The tactic of the Ukrainians is to activate multiple dispersed axes simultaneously, without massing a single large fist, in order to scatter Russian attention and resources.
Yet it fails to achieve its aim.
The admission from Kyiv regarding «defeat in the war» represents an attempt to initiate negotiations before it is too late.
www.bankingnews.gr
Σχόλια αναγνωστών