From other reporting we know that Zelenski's 'victory plan' demands include:

• to allow unrestricted long range missile strikes into Russia
• to invite Ukraine in the borders of 1991 to join NATO at a nearby date
• to immediately negotiate and accept Ukraine's membership in the the European Union
• to permanently supply advanced heavy weapons to Ukraine
• to provide additional hundreds of billions of dollars for 'reconstruction' without any restrictions attached to it

"Before the offensive, I received intelligence that the Russians were going to assault Ocheretyne, where we had no troops at the positions," the officer says. "I passed this information on to my commanders straight away, but the commander of the brigade stationed there [the 115th Separate Mechanised Brigade – ed.] responded: ‘We have forces there, they’re all there.’

Next morning the Russians started to walk into [Ocheretyne], moving through what were officially minefields – but in fact there were no mines there. After we surrendered Novobakhmutivka, Ocheretyne and Soloviovo, the front started to collapse at the rate we’re seeing now."

"When the Russians captured Ocheretyne, there was no stable contact line as such," Vitalii the drone crew member adds. "No one knew where the front was. Soldiers in the villages of Sokil, Yevhenivka and Voskhod were walking around with guns in their hands, asking each other for passwords to figure out if they were dealing with one of us or the enemy."

...

"The first problem on the Pokrovsk front is personnel numbers, the second is their level of training, and the third is the skills of the unit command. And then we run into the defence-related issues – tactics, measures, and so on." This, a soldier from the 47th Brigade tells Ukrainska Pravda, is the order of priority of the reasons for the Russians’ super-fast advance.

...

"The backbone of the brigades was lost during the battles near Avdiivka, and the replenishments that arrived later left a lot to be desired," says a source from the 68th, explaining the shortage of motivated people. "The mobilisation failed. Let's be honest – each subsequent replenishment was less motivated and trained. So they could not reliably hold the defence.

In Semenivka we had about 90% experienced people in the unit and 10% newcomers. Now we have about the same ratio, but the other way round. And the average age of the newcomers can even be 55+, not 45+."

...

Bunkers and connected trench lines were indeed built on the Pokrovsk front – but there’s a catch. Many of these fortifications are unsuitable for serious defence. They’re frequently located in the middle of fields, which makes them visible to the enemy and difficult for the defence forces’ personnel, ammunition and supplies to reach.

"When [Ukrainian MP Mariana] Bezuhla posts photos of empty trenches and asks why nobody was defending them, I know exactly why. Because it’s stupid to sit in a hole in the middle of a bare field. Sooner or later an FPV drone will fly right into your face," Vitalii tells Ukrainska Pravda angrily.

"On the Pokrovsk front, trenches and dugouts had been made right in the middle of fields, making logistics impossible. They dug anti-tank ditches that led directly from enemy positions to our rear positions, and it’s impossible to monitor them. These fortifications help the enemy advance more than they help us defend.

To occupy the dugout strongpoints on the Pokrovsk front I’d need to deploy an entire platoon, which I just don’t have.

It's one thing not to have a good observation post. It's quite another to leave positions in front of you that you’re unable to occupy, while the Russians have four alternatives with overlaps that allow them to move to the rear of your positions. I think the individual responsible for these fortifications should face criminal charges."

From Ukrainska Pravda no less.

On September 20, Russia’s Investigative Committee announced that Russell Bentley, an American pro-Kremlin fighter who participated in Russia’s war against Ukraine in 2014 and was killed under previously unclear circumstances, was tortured to death by Russian soldiers.

Russia’s Investigative Committee, which investigates serious crimes, has identified the suspects as Russian Armed Forces servicemen Vitaly Vansyatsky, Vladislav Agaltsev, Vladimir Bazhin, and Andrei Iordanov.

I asked a few weeks ago what happened to Russell Bentley. Looks like we have confirmation that the rumours are unfortunately true, and the alleged perpetrators are hopefully going to be charged with torture and murder.

It is alleged that three Russian servicemen Vitaly Vansyatsky, Vladislav Agaltsov and Andrey Iordanov, a tank crew from Moscow’s 5th Zakharchenko Brigade violently kidnapped Bentley, took him to an unidentified location where they interrogated and tortured him which, in the words of the committees indictment involved “actions that clearly went beyond their authority and which through negligence resulted in the death of the victim.” Kyiv post

TASS.RU link (in Russian): https://tass.ru/proisshestviya/21912695

Surprising no one except the most rabid and delusional NATO/Ukraine supporters.

"Shitballoons, Randy!"

South Korea's military confirmed on Wednesday that North Korea had sent over more than 260 balloons carrying feces and trash to the South on Tuesday night, marking the largest-ever daily balloon launch from the North.

Some balloons were still airborne on Wednesday morning.

North Korean defector groups occasionally launch balloons containing materials denouncing the Kim Jong-un regime.

Tuesday's incident of launching “dirty balloons” is not unprecedented. A similar event occurred in 2016 when North Korea sent balloons packed with cigarette butts and used toilet paper.

Hilarious if true.

The firepower imbalance might prove decisive as the battle rages on. Sensing an opportunity and apparently feeling confident in their chances, Russian commanders have shoved the 15th and 74th Motor Rifle Brigades into the salient along with elements of the 90th Tank Division and some special forces.

At least seven Ukrainian brigades and a separate battalion are fighting back: the 23rd, 25th, 47th, 100th and 115th Mechanized Brigades, the 25th Air Assault Brigade, the 3rd Assault Brigade and the 425th Assault Battalion. The brigades typically deploy just one battalion at a time.

It’s apparent the Russians have, in all, more than 10,000 troops in or near the salient. Just 3,000 or so Ukrainians oppose them, if the Center for Defense Strategies’ estimate is accurate.

Before their arrival, the Western warplanes had been held up by some as a potential war-winner that could turn the tide of the conflict in Kyiv’s favour.

“Often, we just don’t get the weapons systems at the time we need them – they come when they’re no longer relevant,” a Ukrainian high-ranking officer told the Politico news website.

“Every weapon has its own right time. F-16s were needed in 2023; they won’t be right for 2024.”

L M A O

Good analysis (as always) from b on Moon of Alabama.