Russia’s Success in Syria’s Civil War Doesn’t Mean Much for Its Chances in Vast, United Ukraine

As Russia appoints a veteran of the war in Syria as its overall military commander in Ukraine, who is expected imminently to launch an offensive in the Donbas industrial area, pundits ask if the tactics that proved successful in Syria could now be employed in Ukraine.

The new appointee is General Alexander Dvornikov, who was sent to Syria in September 2015 when Russia intervened directly in the war to stop a rebel offensive backed by Saudi Arabia which was making ground against the forces of President Bashar al-Assad.

Russian International Affairs Council Director Kortunov: Within Russia, Two Fundamentally Incompatible Approaches To Ending The War Are Contending

Andrey Kortunov the director-general of the Russian International Affairs Council admitted in an interview to Sky News that the launch of Russia’s military operation caught him by surprise. “I was shocked because for a long time, I thought that a military operation was not feasible. It was not plausible.”[1] In an article posted on the RIAC website, Kortunov listed the negative effects of the invasion:

Chinese Pundit And Military Expert Song Zhongping: The Bucha Massacre Was Staged By The Ukrainians

Popular Chinese military scholar and TV host Song Zhongping said in a video he uploaded to the Chinese short video sharing platform Douyin on April 4, 2022 that the massacre in Bucha, Ukraine was staged by the Ukrainian government, and that there is video evidence showing some of the dead bodies standing up. Like much of China’s domestic media, Song’s claims echo Russian propaganda about the massacre, even though the Chinese government has not openly expressed support for Russia.

U.S., India Take Steps to Increase Cooperation, Ties Between 2 Largest Democracies

U.S. and Indian leaders took steps today to deepen the cooperation and ties between the two largest democracies in the world.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken hosted their Indian counterparts, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar for the fourth Ministerial Dialogue between the two countries.

Treasury Targets Actors for Destabilizing Behavior Throughout the Western Balkans

Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated seven individuals and one entity across four countries in the Western Balkans pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14033. This is the second action OFAC has taken under E.O. 14033 targeting persons who threaten the stability of the region through corruption, criminal activity, and other destabilizing behavior. Today’s action reinforces Treasury’s commitment to promoting accountability for actors in the Western Balkans region engaged in destabilizing and corrupt behavior. Such corrupt behavior undermines the rule of law and economic growth, and it deprives people in these countries of opportunities and stability.

China’s Lessons From Russia’s War in Ukraine

China is learning from Russia’s troubled war in Ukraine to improve its battle strategies and prepare for economic sanctions if Beijing ever attacks self-ruled Taiwan, experts believe.

The country may also be looking harder at peaceful solutions for Taiwan, they say.

In Russia’s War On Ukraine, Effective Satellites Are Few And Far Between

By all accounts, Russia’s war on Ukraine isn’t going well.

The estimated death toll among Russian soldiers is about the same as Soviet losses for the entire 10-year Afghan war. Russian forces have failed to achieve strategic goals such as taking Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, or the major port city of Mariupol. More than two-thirds of Russia’s battalion tactical groups — its basic fighting units — have been deployed. Its forces have been plagued by major interoperability and communication failures.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy Warns of Russia’s Use of Chemical Weapons

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he fears Russia could use chemical weapons in Ukraine and urged the West to impose more severe sanctions against Russia to prevent it from using such weapons.

His comments Monday in his nightly video address came amid unconfirmed reports that chemical weapons have already been used in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol.

After Putin

A failed military intervention. The genocidal killing of citizens. Economic isolation by the international community. The arrests of anti-war protestors at home and the shuttering of independent media.

Any one of these factors could mark the end of an ordinary political leader. Yet Russian President Vladimir Putin has not only weathered these challenges, his popularity has actually risen. According to the independent Levada polling center, Putin has improved his support among Russian citizens from a 69 percent approval rating in January to 83 percent in recent days. That’s significant even when you discount the steady impact of government propaganda on the Russian capacity for critical thinking.