Ukraine's Summer Offensive: the Clear-Eyed POSTEX
...from Austria with honesty...
From the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War, one of the best briefers was and continues to be Colonel (General Staff) Markus Reisner, AUT A.
If you’ve been avoiding a direct discussion of what happened - or did not happen - in Ukraine this summer, well … tough. You have to watch anyway.
This is worth every second of the 27+-minutes.
I will keep saying this until my last breath: war remains war. It is will, mass, culture, and capability.
Nothing is written. Nothing is granted. Decision makers at peace are usually surrounded by advisors who are telling them what they want to hear, not what they need to hear.
If you plan for a short war, you will get a long war whose outcome is uncertain. If you prepare for a long war, you have a chance to end it quickly on your terms.
Also, America can be a fickle friend. Always has been; always will be. Plan for it.
Our history over the last hundred years or so has been not just fickle, but openly untrustworthy. Ever since we sent troops into Russia during WWI we’ve abandoned not only our Allie’s, but our own troops to political expediency. It is shameful how many of our allies and own citizens we’ve left to fend for themselves. Honestly, all of our treaties should come with a warning label.
Well done, Cdr. A comprehensive, succinct analysis. Absolutely worth the 27:22 minutes.