https://archive.li/Z0m5m

The Russian commander of the “Vostok” Battalion fighting in southern Ukraine said on Thursday that Ukraine will not be defeated and suggested that Russia freeze the war along current frontlines.

Alexander Khodakovsky made the candid concession yesterday on his Telegram channel after Russian forces, including his own troops, were devastatingly defeated by Ukrainian marines earlier this week at Urozhaine in the Zaporizhzhia-Donetsk regional border area.

“Can we bring down Ukraine militarily? Now and in the near future, no,” Khodakovsky, a former official of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic, said yesterday.

“When I talk to myself about our destiny in this war, I mean that we will not crawl forward, like the [Ukrainians], turning everything into [destroyed] Bakhmuts in our path. And, I do not foresee the easy occupation of cities,” he said.

    • barsoap@lemm.ee
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      1 year ago

      It does: It dissuades the aggressor.

      Germanic tribes, and this continues over to Ukraine culturally (because Rus), had the battle cry “better dead than slave”. A village would fight down to the last woman, elderly, and child. Because even if the aggressor overcame them they’d be left with nothing but their own losses. Thus, they wouldn’t even try.

      If Russia is allowed to get away with this, Taiwan will be next. A gazillion of small-scale empires in unstable regions all around the world will say “well, seeing that noone cares our time to get away with it”.

      Millions if not billions of people more will be dead.

      • Sinonatrix [comrade/them]@hexbear.net
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        1 year ago

        I’m sorry but this is definitely shit you only say when you’re very far from the action. Would you want your grandpa drafted and sent into a minefield to “dissuade the aggressor”? Grandma and the children too apparently, better dead than governed by another neighboring authoritarian shithole?

        I think I’d rather just flee with my family to a country right next door that has a nuclear deterrent and NATO membership. Literally why would “they need to all fight to the death instead” be your first thought? I can’t imagine it coming from a position where you think Ukrainians are as human as you are.

        • barsoap@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          1 year ago

          People back then couldn’t flee like that. You’re taking it all well too literally.

          And yes I have Ukrainian refugee neighbours. Soldiers knowing their families are safe with friends isn’t exactly bad for morale, either.

          • notceps [he/him]@hexbear.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            lol no you don’t, you’ve been lying through this entire thread, I bet even if you had them you wouldn’t know about it because when I asked you to go outside and talk to people you ignored it, literally stop being a NEET go outside and talk to people

            • barsoap@lemm.ee
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              0
              ·
              1 year ago

              How, pray tell, would I know my neighbours are Ukrainian when I never talk to people?

              Checkmate, projectionist.

              • notceps [he/him]@hexbear.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                1 year ago

                You are a german NEET go outside, maybe when you spend some time among real life people you can get your priorities straight like instead of arguing with the scary putin-bot tankies online you can figure some way to organize so that the AfD, that’s the fascist party in case you forgot, doesn’t poll in second place. Unless you yourself aren’t a NEET but a fascist and want the AfD to ‘Take back Germany’ in which case fuck off.

      • Ram_The_Manparts [he/him]@hexbear.net
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        1 year ago

        Germanic tribes, and this continues over to Ukraine culturally (because Rus), had the battle cry “better dead than slave”. A village would fight down to the last woman, elderly, and child.

        So when are you going to Ukraine to sign up for the frontline?

        You’re definitely gonna do that right?

        • barsoap@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          edit-2
          1 year ago

          I’ll have to inform you that I’m a conscious objector (spent my time in catastrophe relief) and by now too old.

          But yes there’s plenty of German reservists in Ukraine. Also what does that have to do with anything I said, I was glossing Ukrainian sentiment. Did you merely wanted to be right on the internet (in your own mind).

            • barsoap@lemm.ee
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              0
              ·
              1 year ago

              Dude I’m two countries away. If Russia gets through Poland and half of Germany, sure, I’ll be in the trenches. Probably wouldn’t do much good but if I can’t be of more use somewhere else, that’s where I’ll be.

              • trompete [he/him]@hexbear.net
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                1 year ago

                Well that’s better! Someone so interested in tales of Germanic valor should be ready for another Volkssturm. What I don’t get is why you wouldn’t sacrifice yourself in Ukraine, what with the blood relation and all. Maybe Ukrainians aren’t quite as Germanic in your mind after all?

      • brain_in_a_box [he/him]@hexbear.net
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        1 year ago

        If Russia is allowed to get away with this, Taiwan will be next. A gazillion of small-scale empires in unstable regions all around the world will say “well, seeing that noone cares our time to get away with it”. Millions if not billions of people more will be dead.

        Holy shit mate, stop watching Marvel movies and get some perspective; this isn’t the first time one nation has invaded another. The world didn’t end when America invaded Iraq.

        • barsoap@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          0
          ·
          1 year ago

          The Iraq war was wrong for a multitude of reasons, and many countries (including mine) wanted to do nothing to do with it, but one thing sets it apart very clearly from the current situation:

          Iraq wasn’t a war of conquest. Russia’s war against Ukraine is. The US hasn’t waged a war of conquest IIRC since Hawaii, it’s always been foreign meddling instead but never out-right imposition of rule and they’ve gotten less and less bad at how they’re doing it over time. I mean compare the Iraqi or Afghani government during occupation with the likes of Batista.

          Then, and this (as well as that Marvel reference I couldn’t give less of a fuck) makes me think you’re American: It’s the first war by a major power in Europe since WWII. We thought we had that shit behind us, that Yugoslavia was a regrettable exceptions caused by small-minded autocrats exploiting ethnic tensions for their own benefit. But, nope, actual full-scale war has come back to Europe because unlike the rest of Europe Russia hasn’t gotten the memo that imperialism is soooo 18hundreds. As a yank you wouldn’t understand.

          • Ram_The_Manparts [he/him]@hexbear.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            Ah yes, the US murdering millions of people in Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Afghanistan, Iraq and so on was just “foreign meddling”.

            You are fucking disgusting.

          • Frank [he/him, he/him]@hexbear.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            edit-2
            1 year ago

            Iraq wasn’t a war of conquest.

            Please, for god’s sake log off before you strain something.

            less and less bad at how they’re doing it over time.

            This is actually disgusting and you should be ashamed of yourself. The Americans murdered a million Iraqis, and in the last few years at least 400,000 Yemenis, plus god knows who else and in what numbers.

          • MoreAmphibians [none/use name]@hexbear.net
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            1 year ago

            It’s the first war by a major power in Europe since WWII.

            Are you a child, an american, or did you only start paying attention to history in February 2022?

            1. The Troubles (UK vs occupied Ireland)
            2. Cyprus War of Independence(UK vs occupied Cyprus)
            3. Bombing of Yugoslavia (Nato vs Yugoslavia)
            4. Russo-Georgian War (Russia vs Georgia)