I wouldn't necessarily believe that the resort to hypersonic missiles is to overcome defenses to missiles. They've had a lot of effectiveness with Islanders and their countermeasures although at least open source analysis now understands a lot of the countermeasures in those missiles. If I had to guess, and I'm speculating, it's just numbers for precision guidance munitions. I think they just shot so many of their others, they're having to use up more of the arsenal. Plus hypersonic is the new cool. I'm not sure generally that it's a smart investment.
Right...I'd read that part but I guess I'm not getting the advantage other than the high speed...though it mentions going into space. So the followup to that is WHY with all the weapons & military advancements here is the US that far behind? If not in having their own hypersonic them a way to defend against it? Same for whatever nuclear defenses we have. It seems like this should've been addressed long ago and feels like the military for lack of a better term "Sat on the score" while others started scoring advancements on us. Hopefully this will emphasize the importance of getting on top of the technological advancements out there. Do we know how many hypersonics they have? It's not like nukes where there's an estimate, right?
Down goes number 5, most highly ranked Russian General yet Ukraine Claims To Have Killed Fifth Russian General Since Start of the War (newsweek.com) Kyiv has said it has killed one of Russia's most senior commanders, in what would be the fifth death of a general from Vladimir Putin's forces since the invasion of Ukraine started. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Lieutenant General Andrei Mordvichev, commander of the 8th General Army of the Southern Military District of Russia's Armed Forces, had been killed. The statement did not say where he died but ex-presidential candidate adviser Oleksiy Arestovych said he was killed when Ukrainian forces struck an airfield in Chornobayivka, in Kherson region, Interfax Ukraine reported.
Further disrupting Russian logistics There is no longer a railway connection between Ukraine and Belarus - head of Ukrzaliznytsia There is no longer a railway connection between Ukraine and Belarus, so the Russian occupiers will not be able to deliver Russian equipment by rail from Belarus. I can't clarify the details, but I am grateful to Belarusian Railways for what they are doing… I believe that these people will be able to prevent Belarusian Railways from transporting military convoys to Ukraine," Kamyshin added. "Currently, the railways are out of order", Kamyshin confirmed, "so Russian equipment from Belarus will not be able to be delivered." Reminder: In the afternoon of 26 February, Ukrainian troops blew up the railway junctions connecting the Ukrainian and Russian railways.
Ukraine war latest: Russia failing to gain control of Ukraine airspace - UK defence ministry - BBC News Summary UK defence ministry says Russia "has failed to gain control of the air and is largely relying on stand-off weapons" launched from Russian airspace Street fighting is stopping rescuers reaching hundreds of survivors trapped beneath a shelled theatre, Mariupol's mayor tells the BBC Russian air raids on Mykolaiv have been taking place throughout the day. Ukraine's President Zelensky has urged Switzerland to crack down on Russian elites and told the country's banks to freeze their funds He also calls on Russia to come to the negotiating table "without delay" Russia's Vladimir Putin accuses Ukraine of stalling peace talks with "unrealistic proposals" in a call with the German chancellor
Would it be wrong to compensate russians against the war to upload malicious software to takeover digital media in Russia? How can satellites be used for program delivery to Russian people or would that be another red line for the mad man?
interesting. Heard a informative discussion Ukraine can most efficiently use their limited resources by attacking the supply line.
it could recklessly embolden them would be my fear. Hopefully they learn enough to devise some effective defenses against the hypersonic weapons.
yep, one reason cyber attacks are not as prevalent as expected...you launch an attack, you give up information.
The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) plays the role of verification / validation of nuclear arsenals for nations that have signed the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty). Every nation that has a nuclear arsenal has not signed the NPT and as the case with those that have all totals are estimates according the Arms Control Association As far as I know there is no tracking mechanism for conventional weapons other than sales. We know what Ukraine has to some extent as totals and cost have been made public with regard to NATO support. Anyone that claims they know what Russia has take with a grain of salt. Pundits who claim they are scrapping the bottom of the barrel or have depleted half of their arsenal are blowing smoke in my opinion employing wishful thinking. Bingo on the capability of hypersonics and use of space. Tracking these missiles is a major issue. Once these guided missiles enter space all bets are off as to where it may come down. The IAEA and the Non-Proliferation Treaty The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) is the centrepiece of global efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to further the goal of nuclear disarmament and general and complete disarmament Nuclear Weapons: Who Has What at a Glance Non-NPT Nuclear Weapons Possessors: India, Israel, and Pakistan never joined the NPT and are known to possess nuclear weapons. India first tested a nuclear explosive device in 1974. That test spurred Pakistan to ramp up work on its secret nuclear weapons program. India and Pakistan both publicly demonstrated their nuclear weapon capabilities with a round of tit-for-tat nuclear tests in May 1998. Israel has not publicly conducted a nuclear test, does not admit or deny having nuclear weapons, and states that it will not be the first to introduce nuclear weapons in the Middle East. Nevertheless, Israel is universally believed to possess nuclear arms, although it is unclear exactly how many. Leaders Discuss Space-Based Sensors That Can Track Missiles The challenge for the MDA is tracking hypersonics or ballistic missiles using their heat signatures. However, that heat signature may be hard to track against the background of the climate. The other challenge is tracking a large number of incoming missiles simultaneously. Both directors discussed their plans to launch and test hundreds of satellites that will form a mesh network in space beginning this year and continuing in the coming years. The space architecture should be operational by next year.
Use of these hyper-sonic missiles are a clear message from Putin. He certainly didn't need to use that kind of missile to achieve the objective of blowing up the target. It was a test and a warning. He's obviously trying to scare the west with the threat of nuclear war with the idea that he has an edge and that he might believe that Russia could survive. It is definitely a concern of course since these missiles have first strike capability with no way of stopping them based on the speed of delivery. What's also scary is that China is far ahead of Russia and the US in hyper-sonic missile technology. Although Putin is crazy. Xi isn't.
Interesting. One regretful sidenote is that appropriate world condemnation of this war has spilled over into attacks on Russian culture and Russians generally. Things like Tchaikovsky performances. Costa Ronin was Oleg in the Americans and a great Russian villain role in a season of Homeland. Pretty sure he lives in US, but I have heard him interviewed a bit and he is still proud of his heritage. In simpler times, you would see him rooting for the Russian national teams. As a side note, he has talked about the fact that many Russians think he is not truly Russian, and would tell him that his Russian speaking in The Americans was off, when he is a fluent native born speaker. But it looks like he may be experiencing some spillover effects. He seems like a great guy in interviews. Not sure his view on the war. Suspect he would condemn but he still has family there so would be hard pressed to be too public.
I just find it incredible that a country with the military capabilities & spending the US has is behind anyone on anything. I get that everyone, from federal to locals, have spent decades switching away from Russian threats/big guns to terrorism. But whatever the US has in mind they'd better fast track that/get something fast. If nothing else in a win/win situation how many plants went under when the Cold War ended? It takes years to get a workforce ready to go/manufacturing going as was pointed out to me before, so sooner rather than later would be crucial, plus would provide some well paying jobs. I was hopeful that maybe we had some top secret stuff but it just sounds like we got passed by and are now exposed. Don't like that one bit.
