The maritime drones are the latest weapon in Ukraine’s arsenal and are believed to have been employed in last month’s successful attack on the Kerch Bridge linking Russia with occupied Crimea. In addition to hosting a Russian naval base, Novorossiysk is a major commercial port and a key facility for Russian exports.
“Ukrainian progress will very likely alternate periods of notable tactical advances with periods, possibly long periods, of pause and some setbacks,” they conclude. “Much as we might hope that the road to the Sea of Azov will simply open for Ukrainian forces the odds are high that fighting will remain hard, casualties high, and frustration will be a constant companion.”
“I know that the performance has been slower than most people hoped for. I think one of the reasons is that Ukraine has gone from being on defense to offense,” Jones said. “Generally, when you are on the offense, you need a three-to-one personnel advantage. You take more casualties.” The current vice chief, Gen. Randy George, will fill in, but his confirmation, along with 300 others, has been blocked by Sen. Tommy Tuberville in his ongoing effort to force the Pentagon to change its travel reimbursement policy for military members and dependents who need to travel to a different state to obtain legal abortions.
MARINES GULF MISSION: The U.S. is drawing up plans to put Marines on commercial ships in the Arabian Gulf in a new effort to deter Iran from harassing and seizing private vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, according to reports by both the Associated Press and the Washington Post. ACCUSED SAILOR SPIES ARRESTED: In separate cases, two U.S. sailors have been arrested on espionage charges, accused of transmitting sensitive military information to China. The two suspected spies were identified as Jinchao Wei, aka Patrick Wei, and Petty Officer Wenheng Zhao, aka Thomas Zhao.