Peter Zeihan Geopolitical Strategist
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Commentary

Ukraine enters new phase of war against Russia

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Peter Zeihan Geopolitical Strategist
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Ukrainian incursions into Russian home territory, alongside reports of Russian troop desertion and exposed vulnerabilities, have reassured Ukrainian soldiers and their Western allies. In response, however, Russia launched a string of large-scale missile barrages against key Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, and hit vital Ukrainian energy, water and utility targets. The renewed ferocity of fighting on both sides has raised the stakes in what is already Europe’s largest war since World War II.

Watch the above video as Straight Arrow News contributor Peter Zeihan reviews recent developments in the Russia-Ukraine war and explains why these developments signal a new phase in the war.


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The following is an excerpt from Peter’s Aug. 26 “Zeihan on Geopolitics” newsletter:

There are lots of moving parts in the Ukraine war right now, so let’s do a little recap of everything that’s going on. There are four big ones…

First up is the Ukrainian offensive in Kursk. One of my recent videos covered this in more detail, but essentially the Ukrainians have poked into Russian territory and caused significant Russian casualties, destroyed a number of bridges, and cut off key supply lines. They are also bringing some heavy artillery and equipment along with them that will impact the front lines.

Next, the Ukrainians sunk Russia’s last rail ferry. This was a critical piece of transport for the Russians and was one of the few things keeping their supply lines to Crimea open. This is a big win for Ukraine as it will weaken Russia’s position in the Crimean front.

Third is the destruction of a major fuel depot in Russia. A Ukrainian attack set about a third of the storage tanks ablaze at a depot in the Proletarsk district. This fire is still spreading and could cause major setbacks for the Russian forces in Crimea that depend upon this fuel.

Last is the Russian assault on Pokrovsk. While the Ukrainians are seeing big wins across many fronts, they are facing heavy pressure from the Russians in the city of Pokrovsk in the Donbas. The Russians are seeking control of this nexus city, as it would complicate Ukrainian supply lines in the region. Like I said, lots of moving parts… but that means there’s a potential for significant changes. So, stay tuned for further updates.

Hello from Colorado on a somewhat Call Me Saturday. This is the Geneva basin behind me, and I am standing on the crest of Geneva mountain. Today, we’re going to catch you up on everything that’s going on in Ukraine. We’ve got four big things that have evolved over the last couple of weeks. The first one we’ve already discussed quite a bit to find that is the Ukrainian offensive through their northern border into Russia proper, into the Kursk Province, where they’ve triggered a war of movement with the Russians. Everything that we can tell is that the Ukrainians are taking heavy casualties, and the Russians are taking just absolutely astronomical casualties, because the Ukrainians have destroyed the bridges across the SEM river. So the Russian forces that are south of the river and north of the Ukrainian border are just getting chopped up without any support, and the Ukrainians are apparently having a pretty good time of it. They’ve also brought a lot of their longer strike range missiles and mortars and drones we’re very, very close to the border itself, and are launching them to targets up to 100 miles with proper and are just gutting the logistics. Infrastructure and everything in the southern and the western parts of Kursk province. Basically the entirety of the Northern Front of the Ukraine here has now been relocated into Russian territory, so a significant change in Battlefield realities there. And if the Ukrainians are able to keep this up, they’ll be able to cut the infrastructure between Kursk city and Belgorod city, which is how all Russian forces have been supplying for the Northern Front. So very significant has the opportunity to become much more significant in the days and weeks to come. The second big effect is that the Ukrainians have successfully sunk Russia’s last rail ferry. Now, for those of you who haven’t been watching for a while, the primary means that the Russians have been using to supply their forces in the Crimea peninsula in the south of Ukraine has been the Kerch Strait bridge, but after a series of attacks on it over the last two years, the cargo function of the bridge has basically been shut off. They can ship personnel in, but no cargo, so no fuel. So they’ve now been using braille ferries to go from the Black Sea coast of Russia into crime in occupied territory. Well, the Ukrainians, a few months ago, started targeting the rail ferries, and this last week, the final one was hit. And it was hit while it was at dock in port, and it sunk in its berth. So even if the Russians had the equipment and the personnel to clear it, and it’s unclear that they still do. They’re talking about an operation that would probably take a minimum of a couple of months. And even if they did clear it, they have no more rail ferries, and no one will sell them any so this has basically destroyed the capacity of the Russians to ship fuel to the Crimean front. The third thing involves the city of proletes. Only task crystal right

 

here

 

anyway,

 

that is a city further inland cressor crested or Crestor Crestor Cray would basically Republic, and it’s a major fuel depot. 74 of those giant tanks that you see outside of refineries are pretty rehearsal. And so far, the fire that they’ve triggered because of this attack has been so intense that it’s completely destroyed a third of the tanks, and it’s spreading to the rest. Once again, even if the Russians had the equipment and the personnel necessary to fight the fire, which they don’t, and is, I don’t want to call it out of control, but the Russians are barely holding the line, and the Ukrainians have not let up. They’ve done at least a couple more attacks since then, and there’s a very real possibility that this entire depot, which is by far the biggest and most relevant one to the crowbar, is going to be there a couple weeks from now. So not only as the fuel delivery now out of the equation, the fuel storage of the four positioning seems to be going off the leg permanently as well. That would

 

open up a huge opportunity for decrees to press at the Crimean firm, because of the Russian senators in Crimea can’t get small or reinforcements or ammunition and bad but that brings us to the fourth problem, which is absolutely not going Ukrainians way, and that is the Russian assault on the Ukrainian city of prokrusk,

 

prokrum, pros emphasis on the term

 

that is in the Donbas, actually, not too far from one of the regional capitals. Basically, what’s going on here is the Russians have decided that they have to take the city at any cost. They’ve been throwing literally dozens of meat assaults against craniate forces every single day for the last month. And as the Russians are scrambling to move forces north into Kursk or south towards the Caribbean, they have not pulled anything out of procrovsk. In fact, now that they can’t get fuel to Crimea, there’s an argument to be made that the Russians aren’t even going to bother trying to defend Crimea. In the short term, they’re just going to send allos if procrovsk Falls. It’s a major problem for the Ukrainians, because it’s a rail Nexus where seven lines come together, and if it is taken out.

 

It’s not that the Russians, it’s not that the Ukrainians can’t supply the front of the band Donbas. But instead of, instead of having a single point where you can concentrate your forces and have a mailed fist punch back, we’ll have to do it from several different points that require a lot of rerouting, that that could be nearly as effective much better Russians than tribulation other areas, because the Ukrainians up versus Ukrainians have always been trying to make this Antonio, because the Russians have always tried to come as a war of attrition. One of the reasons why the Ukrainians so well, I mean, curse, is they have managed to make a new war with winds. There are no minefields up there, so they’re free to maneuver. But for cross falls, the Russians are going to excuse me, the Ukrainians are going to be running around just to try to hold the front seven different places than hit. Literally, reinforcement be the big problem. So a lot of decisive things going on here. Cursed is in play. Crimea is in play. Enough the Ukrainians can fight. Some more reserves to for free up there. So those are known curse So it’s probably likely to continue to feel advantage of this. And then, of course, the long bus is now in play, so we’re probably going to see more changes at the front line in the next month than we have seen in the last couple of years. Very, very, very dynamic situation, very important. Slayer through basketball. Has the paper handed here, because we have three different things. Different Tanners in place by the legislative Helen i.

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