Russia has attacked hospitals in Kyiv – Russian losses

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Russia once again attacked Ukraine during the night, hitting a hospital in Kyiv among other targets. The attack killed at least two people according to initial reports. Read more at Kyiv Independent.

According to Kyiv Independent, Trump is now reported to have said that he no longer believes Ukraine tried to attack Putin’s summer residence, article here.

Russian Losses

  • 990 KWIA
  • 8 Tanks
  • 2 AFVs
  • 29 Artillery systems
  • 704 UAVs
  • 169 Vehicles & fuel tanks
  • 1 Special equipment

Russian Activities

  • 229 Strider
  • 62 Flyganfall
  • 185 KAB
  • 4016 Artillerigranter (including 84 MLRS)
  • 5,232 Suicide drones

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63 thoughts on “Russia has attacked hospitals in Kyiv – Russian losses”

  2. MXT

    Colombia next target?

    It seems that Colombia is already in the crosshairs. As far as I know, Gustavo Petro is democratically elected and does not oppress his population or the opposition. However, drugs are smuggled from Colombia to the USA, but the reason for the interest likely lies in rare earth metals.

    Trump’s statement could be a serious threat to repeat the same scenario there as in Venezuela, but of course, it could also just be a threat to try to make Colombia more compliant.

    Colombia does not have significant oil reserves, but plenty of coal. However, what Trump might be most interested in is probably their ore deposits. In addition to having gold, copper, and other metals, they also have rare earth metals. There are already attempts at cooperation from the US regarding these, not so much for direct extraction but to secure them to avoid dependence on China.

    The EU is having a similar dialogue with Colombia because we are also trying to find alternative suppliers to China. If the USA takes control, it will also affect us.

    “After the weekend’s attack on Venezuela, US President Donald Trump is turning his attention to the neighboring country of Colombia.

    – Colombia is also a very sick country, ruled by a sick man who likes to produce cocaine and sell it to the USA. And he won’t do it for much longer, I can promise you that, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, Bloomberg reports.

    Trump was then asked if this means that the USA will take military action against Colombia.

    – That sounds good to me, he replied.

    “Colombian President, leftist politician Gustavo Petro, has been at odds with Trump for several months. He has strongly criticized the US intervention in Venezuela.” https://omni.se/donald-trump-hotar-colombia-med-militara-atgarder/a/wrPz2P

    Donald Trump has threatened that Colombia could be next after Venezuela and has accused the country’s President Gustavo Petro of being a drug smuggler and called him a sick man.

    “Stop defaming me, Mr. Trump,” Petro writes in a post on X.

    He further writes that Trump does not know his history and is completely wrong in his criticism of Colombia, urging him instead to listen to his own experts working in the country on drug investigations.

    “We Latin Americans are republicans and independent, and many of us are revolutionaries. Don’t think that Latin America is just a nest of criminals poisoning their people.”

    Colombia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also rejected Trump’s accusations against Petro, stating that the accusations ignore fundamental principles of international law, according to Colombian El Tiempo.” https://omni.se/colombias-president-sluta-fortala-mig-herr-trump/a/k0Jg2a

    1. MXT

      Posted the comment above first in the thread about the USA and Venezuela, but we have never been so careful that it should be specifically about Ukraine in the comments to today’s post so I put it here instead.

    2. 205

      Could have been Colombia 🇨🇴 or maybe it was in Ecuador 🇪🇨, where Thor Heyerdahl in his expedition Kon Tiki ventured through the jungle to find balsa wood to build the raft that took them to Polynesia. It was in the jungle that they were advised by the indigenous people to chew coca leaves, which gave the expedition members extra endurance to push through the dense tropical forest. During World War II, American pilots were given amphetamines to stay awake during their long flight missions. Some in my group in the military tried the same substance when we did FRIAK (Free War), a grueling exercise that was part of the training. With impressive results as they were not tired at all afterwards, after several days without proper sleep.

      1. Proxima

        Interesting. Speaking of Coca leaves. When we loaded bananas in “banana America,” elevators were mostly used. But not in all ports. For example, in Colombia and Ecuador, the stevedores ran on board using so-called chicken ladders up the side of the ship where there were banana ports. The stevedores could carry three boxes at a time. One on each shoulder and one leaning from the head down towards one of the boxes. A Tallyman on the quay kept track of how many boxes each stevedore carried on board. To cope with this, the stevedores chewed on coca leaves. Their eyes were completely red and saliva ran down these underpaid wretches. They did not live long. Drugged and full of pain before they turned 30. We provided them with ice water mixed with lime juice, and the stevedores were grateful for that. Unfortunately, we couldn’t do more. Today, bananas are loaded in refrigerated containers. Much easier for the stevedores.

    4. CB500four

      Interesting, I had missed that Trump had also picked a fight with Colombia. There is probably a risk they will try a similar “military special operation” there.

  5. johan No.1

    The dollar is going up – as “someone” has said for a while, Trump is doing things that are good for the USA, probably.

    Venezuela is extremely good for the USA.

    Europe has a new reality to relate to.

    1. MXT

      Just like Putin thought it was good for Russia to go after Ukraine, but a big difference in approach (and result, even though it’s not entirely clear where it will end up).

      Yes, if Trump continues on the same track, it will affect the EU.
      There is currently no shortage of oil, but in a few decades those oil reserves could become critical. One of the reasons why we should try to switch, for example, from fossil cars is that electricity can be produced anywhere. Of course, oil is needed for so much more, but it’s unnecessary to be more dependent than necessary.

      By the way, the US economy is difficult to interpret right now.

      I actually think it has been good for the USA to have a low dollar to maintain its exports. Their GDP surged at the end of the year, partly due to exports, but mostly due to reduced imports.

      Reduced imports are not a good sign, the USA has hardly had time to switch to increased domestic production and it is usually a sign of a slowdown and reduced consumption.

      However, consumption does not seem to have decreased. It could be that people are buying less but prices have risen, but on the other hand, inflation looks completely fine.
      GDP increased significantly at the end of the year and also looks good right now (but due to reduced imports).

      At the same time, there are reports of both an increased number of unemployed and an unusually large decrease in the number of employed. The small businesses are the ones laying off people, they are the ones who struggle the most when times get tougher.

      For larger companies, some of the growth is attributed to AI whose market has grown, but also that larger companies should have been better at initially using AI. This may be true in an initial phase when investing and even needing to hire, but once AI is in place and proven to work, it is rather the larger companies that should be laying off people. I conclude that it is the companies within the “AI bubble” that are driving the growth, not yet those using AI.

      Trump wants to lower interest rates and that may be right to tackle unemployment, plus the national debt does not cost as much, on the other hand, interest from foreign investors will decrease. It’s not an easy balancing act as the national debt continues to grow.

      It will be interesting to see how things unfold in the coming months. It feels like it could go either way.

        

    2. 205

      Still haven’t seen anything that has gone Russia’s way. That’s the reality closest to Europe. Some disturbances in Ukraine but otherwise quiet. Instead, Russia is busy preserving its energy production infrastructure at home. And there they haven’t received any help from the USA either. According to NYT, the USA has rather hindered Russia when the CIA directed Ukraine on how to most effectively throw a wrench in the works. As mentioned, quiet.

    3. schoolbook

      He probably does, but I strongly doubt that his actions on the Ukraine issue are in the best interest of the United States. One of several reasons why I believe that long-term treason is the most likely explanation, however sick it may seem.

  6. 205

    Record, Kursk/Pokrovsk level in Hulliapil in number of attacks.

    N Slobozhansky-Kursk 0
    S Slobozhansky 8↘️
    Kupyansk 3↘️
    Lyman 10💥↘️
    Slovyansk 6
    Kramatorsk 1
    Kostjantynivka 18💥
    Pokrovsk 54💥💥💥↗️
    Oleksandrivskij 24💥💥
    Huliaypillia 65💥💥💥↗️
    Orikhivsk 8↗️
    Prydniprovskij/Dnipro 0

    Sum sectors 197↗️
    Unlocalized 32
    Total 229↗️

  7. MXT

    “USA currently does not want to discuss the Greenland issue, announced President Donald Trump during the night towards Monday.

    – I don’t want to talk about Greenland. I want to talk about Venezuela, Russia, and Ukraine, said the American president to reporters on Air Force One.

    In an interview with The Atlantic, published on Sunday, Trump reiterated his message that the USA “needs Greenland,” which led to strong reactions from Denmark.

    – We will worry about Greenland in about two months. Let’s talk about Greenland in 20 days, said Trump last night.”
    https://omni.se/usa-lagger-gronlandsfragan-pa-is-i-20-dagar/a/aJwnM2

    “Denmark has not done enough to protect Greenland. Donald Trump continues to claim this as the USA takes an increasingly aggressive stance towards the island.

    On Sunday, an interview was published in The Atlantic where Trump once again said that the USA “needs Greenland” because it is “surrounded by Russian and Chinese ships.” He repeated the statement on the presidential plane last night.

    – Our need for Greenland is based on our national security, and it is a task that Denmark cannot solve, I can say that.

    – Do you know what Denmark recently did to increase security in Greenland? They sent a dogsled there. It’s true, Trump continued.”
    https://omni.se/trump-hanar-danmark-de-skickade-en-till-hundslade/a/ExWPpl

    2. CB500four

      So Denmark (Europe) has a couple of months, plus a possible “Trump coefficient,” to strengthen Greenland.

      Strange how Trump never has “cooperation” as an option. If there is something he wants, he always starts by mocking and bullying the other party, then when the other party gets annoyed by his kindergarten behavior, he starts threatening first with economic sanctions and then military. A bit like Putin, but in a more transparent way.

  9. MXT

    “Following the fall of Maduro, many Russian war bloggers are starting to realize in what bad shape Russia is. The events in Venezuela are unanimously considered a strategic Russian defeat, and they admit that Russia is currently too weak to help any Russian allies.

    Not only the “investments” are gone, the very future of Russia is at stake. Russian allies such as Syria, Iran and Venezuela are getting lost or neutralized, without Moscow having even a chance to counter it.

    The commentator “RND” even went this far: “Russia has long been past the point of assistance in America, Africa, or the Middle East. We need to help ourselves, at least, to get out of the Special Military Operation in a draw.” Yes, they would consider a “draw” at least a partial success.

    As I predicted before, Russians will change their tune and express their relative “content” and in fact relieve, if they can keep what they taken to this point. Kyiv, Kharkiv and Odesa are not feasible and they know it.

    This is why they are so hellbent to get the rest of the Donbas, since this is the only chance, where they can at least mimic a partial victory, or as RND said it, “draw”.

    And this is exactly, why we have to deny them even this “draw”. Russia is weak and it is time to knock them out for good, so that we do not have to deal with this problem in the future, again.”

    1. CB500four

      The countries that Russia has been “allied” with have never had any benefit to expect from the alliance. Russia is there to ensure that Russian interests are favored, keep the right dictator in place, and help him oppress the population. The USA’s agenda is somewhat similar, but Russia primarily uses open violence, while the USA tends to be more sophisticated. 

      1. MXT

        Johan usually writes that the USA are not our friends.
        I wonder if Russia’s “friends” usually think the same about Russia, and if not before, they should now start to understand that’s exactly how it is. They are only “friends” until things heat up, then suddenly Russia doesn’t show up anymore, and the weapons bought from there also turn out to be worthless.

        The only thing that seems to work is that as a leader, you can come and hide in Russia (if you manage to do so, of course).

  11. MXT

    “News of another major train derailment in Russia’s far east Amur region. 35 freight wagons came off the tracks on the Gonzha-Gudachi section of the Trans-Baikal Railway. All services are suspended. No reason has been given for the incident, but tracks have been badly damaged.”

  17. MXT

    A person in Stockholm has been arrested on suspicion of espionage, reports Expressen. The individual was detained on Sunday.

    – A person has been detained and arrested since yesterday. The suspicions concern espionage. The person is based in central Sweden, says Gabriel Wernstedt, press spokesperson for the Security Service. He adds that the investigation has been ongoing for a long time.

    The crimes are said to have been committed in Stockholm County and are suspected to have taken place from 2022 until the arrest, according to documents that Expressen has seen.

    The police are to conduct interrogations as soon as the person has been provided with a public defender.

  19. MXT

    Oops.

    “High electricity prices have triggered the oil-fired Karlshamn power plant on Monday, reports SVT.

    – We’re up and running, yes. The short and simple answer is that prices are high now, and that’s why we have been called upon by the market, says Björn Magnusson, communications manager for the Karlshamn power plant, to Sveriges Television.

    The last time the Karlshamn power plant was in operation was at the beginning of December and now one of the two blocks has started up again due to the cold weather and the calm wind.

    The electricity price on Monday is 1.50 SEK/kWh on average, the same across the country, according to the Nord Pool electricity exchange.”
    https://bsky.app/profile/militarynewsua.bsky.social/post/3mbocghtrmk2q

  21. 205

    ”Yet after the president’s return from Mar-a-Lago, everything changed. A turning point followed. The information Zelenskyy brought back from the United States ultimately led him to a different decision. Whether that decision was shaped by official talks—where it became clear that Trump could not bend Putin on territorial issues—or by a personal meeting focused on guarantees for the president, his family, and his closest circle remains a matter of speculation.”

    “Zelenskyy did not intend to appoint Budanov as head of his office.”

    https://zn.ua/eng/successor-or-neutralization-why-the-president-chose-budanov-to-lead-presidential-office.html

    1. MXT

      Interesting reading.

      I admit that I am too unfamiliar with Ukraine’s political shenanigans to be able to judge the credibility, but to me it feels a bit speculative.

      They do not take a neutral stance but argue that it is about political power games and maneuvering from Zelenskyy’s side, and then they have created a list with several different points (they call them factors anyway and not facts) to support that. The list is also numbered so one should believe that all points are valid and interrelated, even though each point in itself is speculation.

      Two of the points exclude each other (which they do acknowledge) but for the reader it is easy to still be convinced and believe that there are six factors that together prove that Budanov was appointed due to power games from Zelenskyy’s side. Which is partly contradicted by the fact that Budanov himself applied for the position.

      Then they write that everything depends on whether Zelenskyy will run in the next election or not, but it also gives the impression that if he runs in the election, it means that the starting point of the article is correct. 
      A way to create a kind of retroactive confirmation that is a logical fallacy intended to increase credibility already today when reading it.

      (A common adjacent tactic here is to predict things, if one is right, they can then point it out themselves to show how accurate they are, if they are wrong, 99% of the readers have already forgotten about it and then they remain silent).

      At the same time, when I have looked around, it seems that the newspaper (or the site as it is now) has high credibility and is supposed to be politically neutral, so they should not have any direct agenda against Zelenskyy.
      They also seem to focus a lot on scrutinizing those in power and corruption, perhaps it is more that they start from the assumption to believe the worst and angle their articles in that direction.
      And, they may of course be completely right, because there are few politicians who do not engage in some form of political game even though I hope that Zelenskyy does not devote much energy to that, if Ukraine loses, there is not even a presidential post to hold, so the country’s best interests should be the top priority.

      1. 205

        You have read it more carefully than I, I looked at selected parts and found the article interesting to share. So not a close reading. The person who shared the article was a Twitter Maria Drutska ex-diplomat Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs whom I follow and who is also followed by a number of other credible individuals, including you, I see.

        Then it’s probably Ukrainian domestic politics that well (if one momentarily overlooks the fact that the country is at war) hardly differs from any other democratic country when it comes to political games. As mentioned, there is war and no elections planned according to the Ukrainian constitution, so it automatically becomes speculation about potential candidates.

        1. MXT

          There was no criticism towards you, the article was clearly interesting if you want to get an insight into the political game and there is certainly a lot of substance in it.

          I just reacted to the fact that it felt like it was written as if they had an agenda based on the structure of the article. But I don’t think that anymore after looking for more information about them.

          Yes, I also follow Maria and I also think she seems credible.

          I had missed that post and then I saw that I hadn’t added her to my Ukraine list.
          I always check that list, but not always the regular feed. In the list, I have most of the accounts that are interesting, when it comes to Ukraine, in the regular feed there is so much noise and repetitions that sometimes I don’t check there for several days. 

          Yes, the war probably affects a lot in different ways.

  22. 205

    From the post above ☝️

    ”Russia has long been past the point of assistance in America, Africa, or the Middle East. We need to help ourselves, at least, to get out of the Special Military Operation in a draw.” Yes, they would consider a ”draw” at least a partial success.”

  24. MXT

    Russian forces slog den amerikanskägda oljefabriken Oleina i Dnipro, vilket orsakade en massiv läcka med gator översvämmade av solrosolja. Anläggningen ägs av det amerikanska företaget Bunge. Borgmästare Borys Filatov delade bilder från attacken.

  27. MXT

    If the USA were to make the threat of taking over Greenland a reality, it would mean the end of NATO. That’s according to Magnus Christiansson, university lecturer and NATO researcher at the Swedish Defence University, in an interview with DN.

    “I believe it would completely shatter the entire foundation of the alliance.

    However, there is resistance among Republicans in Congress against breaking the transatlantic link,” he adds.

    Denmark and other individual NATO countries strongly react to the US threat, but there is silence from the alliance – pretending as if nothing is happening and wanting to try to resolve internal conflicts behind closed doors for as long as possible, according to Christiansson.

    1. Proxima

      If NATO ceases to exist and the JEF takes over with Northern European countries including Ukraine and Canada, and perhaps one more country, what will happen to the American defense industry? Not so good, I think.

    2. Flurrevuppen

      https://open.substack.com/pub/shankarnarayan/p/the-atlantic-case-for-greenlands

      Apparently, the patrolling of the straits Greenland – Iceland – UK has ceased since the wall fell.

      Trump’s Greenland policy can be interpreted as him pointing out this security policy gap and if the other NATO countries do not step up, the USA will be forced to take matters into its own hands, so to speak.

      He probably wouldn’t mind if Canada-Denmark-Norway-UK foot the bill for re-establishing patrolling. We’ll see if they take the lead and if Sweden also plays a role.

       

  28. MXT

    Russia Builds Underwater Drone Fleet That Could Target NATO Cables and Pipelines

    Russia is developing a new ecosystem of large autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), officially designated for scientific and civilian purposes, but with potential military applications against subsea infrastructure.

    According to Defense Express on January 5, citing OSINT analyst H. I. Sutton, the program may be geared toward targeting underwater cables and pipelines, particularly in the Baltic Sea.”
    https://united24media.com/latest-news/russia-builds-underwater-drone-fleet-that-could-target-nato-cables-and-pipelines-14761

  29. MXT

    “A series of explosions was reported in Russian-occupied Khartsyzk, Donetsk region. Local sources confirm multiple blasts. Details remain unclear until now.”

  30. MXT

    “Ukrainian forces from the 412th “Nemesis” Unmanned Systems Brigade located and destroyed a 9S32 radar system, part of the Russian S-300V air defense complex.”

  31. MXT

    “A transformer from the Rheinhafen-Dampfkraftwerk Karlsruhe power plant in Germany has arrived in Ukraine to support its energy grid amid ongoing Russian attacks. The delivery was coordinated with the help of GIZ Ukraine, as part of the German-Ukrainian energy partnership backed by the German government.”

  32. 205

    Maryan Zablotskiy 🇺🇦

    🇺🇦 ✍️🇸🇪 In the media, a number of strange, sometimes even pro-Russian theses have emerged in our information space. I have been working with relationships with Venezuelans since 2014 and allow myself to propose a view based on hundreds and thousands of hours of interaction with them.

    1. Has Russia secretly agreed with the USA on an operation in Venezuela, and will this affect our negotiations negatively?

    Absolutely not. As you correctly pointed out, Venezuela is the country with the largest oil reserves in the world. It is a diamond on the list of regimes that Russia controls. The Russians in Venezuela have reduced oil production from 3.5 million barrels per day to 0.5-1 million. At the same time, Venezuela can easily produce 10+ million barrels per day with modern technology – just like Russia. In the long run, such an increase in production will cause the prices of black gold to plummet. Even just an additional 3 million barrels per day, which Venezuela, as a member of OPEC, has full right to produce, will destroy Russia’s economy. Venezuela is a strategically important country for them. The Russians are surely shocked by what has happened. And this humiliation is even more painful because of how easily everything went. And thus, they have even fewer arguments for their “victory” over us. Russia will still try to strike back at Venezuela. This definitely benefits our negotiating position.

    2. How does this war affect us (Ukraine 🇺🇦 my note)?

    Unlike the regime in Cuba, Maduro did not send mercenaries to fight in Ukraine. But Venezuela was the center for the production of shahids for the Kremlin. In the country, there were huge workshops for assembly: individual circuit boards, blocks, processors. Venezuela was not subjected to sanctions as harsh as, for example, Russia or Iran. Additionally, the workforce there was not only cheap – people were willing to work literally for food. In the Russians’ criminal mentality, this is an ideal place for assembly. All of this was loaded onto passenger planes, whose air traffic increased significantly with the start of drone cooperation. So over time, we should feel some relief for our air defense.

    3. Is this a military defeat specifically for Russia?

    It is an unconditional defeat for Putin personally, for Russia as a whole, and for their weapons – and moreover, an unexpected and humiliating defeat. In addition to oil and shahids, there are other aspects. The Wagner soldiers have been Maduro’s personal bodyguards since 2019. Russia has delivered a huge amount of air defense systems to Venezuela: two S-300 complexes, nine Buk systems, 44 S-125 (and that’s just official). Plus 14 Su-30 aircraft. Plus their Tu-160 aircraft that flew there. Plus helicopters and thousands of Russians who “handled” all of this. In recent months, the Kremlin has been actively moving troops and drones to Venezuela. A large number of Russian Il-76 transport planes flew to deliver FPV technology and specialists. The Americans destroyed all of this in the time it takes to eat lunch. All this “analog” equipment worth billions of dollars did not help in any way against the American operation, which lasted for several hours. And now, remember how the Syrian Bashar al-Assad fled. And why do dictators then need such Russian “protection”? There isn’t even a hundred percent guarantee of being able to flee to Moscow if needed.

    4. Is the USA legally and morally right in capturing Maduro, and is there any analogy with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?

    There is no analogy with us. Morally and legally, the USA is right. In Venezuela, there has been a brutal criminal dictatorship under Russia’s control since 2002. That is, this nightmare has been going on for 24 years. Out of 28 million inhabitants, 8 million have left the country. There have been more refugees from Venezuela than from Ukraine, despite Venezuela having a smaller population. People there literally died of starvation. Already in 2017, the government publicly criticized citizens for not eating rabbits but keeping them as pets. People were massively arrested after FSB’s “training” and killed in the thousands without any reason. This is how the FSB taught the local regime to do what they do to us (Ukraine 🇺🇦, my note). The leading role in torture, however, was often taken by representatives of the Cuban regime – due to their total lack of empathy for “foreign” citizens. Such horror is difficult to imagine. And yes, Maduro, together with the FSB, led the world’s largest drug cartel – the “Sun Cartel”. The name comes from the suns on the epaulets of Venezuelan generals (they use suns, not stars). The USA has announced a reward as part of a real criminal investigation – so from a legal perspective, everything is correct.

    5. Why could there be protests in the EU?

    There is one thing that the media never directly writes about, so I will try to be as diplomatic as possible. Despite the terrible sacrifices among Venezuelans, some socialist parties in the EU – and not only in the EU – sympathize with Maduro’s regime. Because socialism cannot be bad. The same socialist, New York Mayor Zogran Mamdani, also expressed support for Maduro – and his statement was for some reason very actively picked up by our media. There is another nuance. Once a Spanish-speaking socialist said, after listening to my plans for cooperation with the opposition against the dictatorships in Cuba and Venezuela: “Do not interfere in our affairs.” This attitude is well known, especially among American Cubans – for example, Marco Rubio. Both Cuba and Venezuela have fought against Spain for their independence for most of their history. Therefore, all imperialistic tendencies irritate them immensely, and the attitude towards the Maduro and Castro regimes is often a source of serious tensions between the USA and the EU.

    What happens now? For us, it’s excellent. Additionally, it was difficult to capture Maduro without also killing a lot of Russians – something they prefer not to talk about. Just like a few years ago in Syria, when the Americans killed several hundred Russians after their “brilliant” idea to storm an oil refinery controlled by the Kurds with US support. Putin didn’t say a word. The same thing here: when they have been slapped on the fingers, they will remain silent about their dead.

    Maryan Zablotskiy,

    https://www.facebook.com/share/1H1hKb7zgM/?mibextid=wwXIfr

    • 16K followers • 647 following

    • Politician • Founder of Ukrainian Arsenal of Liberty • Elected member of Ukraine’s highest parliament • Former Chairman of the Ukrainian Agricultural Association • Former Director of the Ukrainian Society for Economic Freedoms • Former Head of Economic Research Department at Erste Bank • Former Head of Investment Fund Department at Optima Capital

    1. CB500four

      Very interesting, thank you for this.

      So, it hurts more in Putin’s ass than one thought, that’s why he’s been so quiet. 🙂

      And if it’s true that Russia has been so involved in Venezuela, with weapons manufacturing and drug cartels, then I might have to admit that Trump might have had something other than oil in mind.

      Great, and if now Trump and the USA allow Venezuela to return to some kind of democracy, then it’s just to congratulate Trump on a job well done.

    2. Flurrevuppen

      Agreed, very interesting, thank you!

      If the above is true, Trump may have given Putin a consequence for his peace-sabotaging and for the lies about the drones against his dacha. This while aligning it with his “Donroe doctrine” and making it appear as an America-first thing.

    3. MXT

      Interesting, especially 1 to 3.

      However, I would like to point out that the original text reads:

      “Unlike the Cuban regime, Maduro did not send mercenaries to fight against Ukraine. But Venezuela was a center of mines production for the Kremlin. In the country operated huge workshops with collection: separate plates, blocks, processors.”

      It is not Shaheds they have manufactured for Russia but mines.

      However, there is information that Venezuela has cooperated with Iran to start its own production of Shahed-like drones, but there are no reports whatsoever showing that they would have exported these to Russia.

      —
      Since I am a bit focused on rhetoric, I also want to point out that he uses dishonest rhetoric where he tries to “shoot the messenger” instead of arguing about the message. He attacks those who are critical of the approach by labeling them (and dismissing them) as socialists (or leftists may fit better in Swedish). Ultimately, it is a way to try to silence those who disagree, because they do not want to be perceived as negative.  

      (Unfortunately, this has become very common, if you try to argue against someone from the SD party, you are called left-leaning, and if you try to argue against someone far to the left, you are called a Nazi.)

      1. 205

        Here is my translation via DeepL:

        Original:

        A number of strange, sometimes even pro-Russian theses have appeared about Venezuela in our information space. I have been dealing with Venezuelans since 2014 and allow myself to offer a vision based on hundreds and thousands of hours of interaction with them.

        1. Did Russia secretly agree on an operation in Venezuela with the USA, and will this have a negative impact on our negotiations?

        Definitely not. As correctly noted immediately, Venezuela is a country with the largest oil reserves in the world. This is a diamond on the list of regimes controlled by Russia. The Russians in Venezuela reduced oil production from 3.5 million barrels per day to 0.5-1 million. At the same time, with modern technologies, Venezuela can easily extract 10+ million barrels per day – just like Russia itself. In perspective, such an increase in production will collapse oil prices. Even just an additional 3 million barrels per day, which Venezuela as an OPEC member has every right to extract, will destroy the Russian economy. Venezuela is strategically the most important country for them. The Russians are definitely shocked by what happened. And this humiliation is even more painful because of how easily it all happened. Therefore – even fewer arguments in their “victory” over us. Russia will still try to recapture Venezuela. This definitely benefits our negotiating position.

        2. How does this specifically affect the war against us?

        Unlike the Cuban regime, Maduro did not send mercenaries to fight against Ukraine. But Venezuela was a center for producing shaheeds for the Kremlin. There were huge assembly plants in the country: individual boards, blocks, processors. Venezuela was not under such harsh sanctions as, for example, Russia or Iran. Plus, the workforce there was not just cheap – people were willing to work literally for food. In the criminal mentality of the Russians, this was an ideal place for assembly. All this was loaded onto passenger planes, the frequency of flights of which sharply increased with the start of drone cooperation. So over time, we should feel some relief for our air defense systems.

        3. Is this a military defeat specifically for Russia?

        This is an absolute defeat for Putin personally, for Russia as a whole, and for their weapons – unexpected and humiliating. In addition to oil and shaheeds, there are other aspects. The Wagnerians have been Maduro’s personal bodyguards since 2019. Russia supplied Venezuela with a huge amount of air defense systems: two S-300 complexes, nine “Buk” systems, 44 S-125s (and that’s just official). Plus 14 Su-30 aircraft. Plus their Tu-160s flew there. Plus there were helicopters and thousands of Russians managing all this. In recent months, the Kremlin has been actively transferring troops and drones to Venezuela. A significant number of Russian Il-76 cargo planes made flights to deliver FPV technologies and specialists. All this was destroyed by the Americans in the time it takes for a lunch break. All this “analog” equipment worth billions of dollars did not help in any way against the US operation, which lasted several hours. And now remember how the Syrian Bashar Assad fled. And why do dictators need such a Russian “roof” then? There is no longer a hundred percent guarantee of escape to Moscow in case of anything.

        4. Are the USA legally and morally justified in capturing Maduro, and is there an analogy with the Russian invasion of Ukraine?

        There is no analogy with us. Morally and legally, the USA is justified. In Venezuela, from 2002, there was a brutal criminal dictatorship under Russian control. So this nightmare lasted for 24 years. Out of a population of 28 million, 8 million left the country. There were more refugees from Venezuela than from Ukraine, with a smaller population. People there were literally dying of hunger. Back in 2017, the government publicly criticized citizens for not eating rabbits and keeping them as pets. People were mass arrested after FSB “training” sessions and killed by the thousands for no reason. This is how the FSB taught the local regime what they do to us. Representatives of the Cuban regime often played a leading role in torture, due to a complete lack of empathy for “foreign” citizens. It’s hard to imagine such horror. And yes, Maduro, along with the FSB, led the world’s largest drug cartel – the “Cartel of the Suns.” The name comes from the suns on the epaulets of Venezuelans (they use suns, not stars). The US announced a reward within the framework of a real criminal case – so everything is correct from a legal point of view here.

        5. Why could there be protests in the EU?

        There is one point that the media will never write about directly, so I will try to be as diplomatic as possible. Despite the horrific casualties among Venezuelans, certain socialist parties in the EU sympathize with the Maduro regime – not only in the European Union. Because socialism, supposedly, cannot be bad. The same socialist, New York Mayor Zogran Mamdani, also spoke out in support of Maduro – and for some reason, his statement was extremely actively picked up by our media. There is another nuance. Once, a Spanish-speaking socialist, after hearing my plans for cooperation with opposition movements against dictatorships in Cuba and Venezuela, said: “Don’t step on our territory.” This attitude is well known, especially among American Cubans – for example, for Marco Rubio. Both Cuba and Venezuela fought the lion’s share of their history against Spain for their independence. Therefore, any imperial ambitions greatly annoy them, and the attitude towards the Maduro and Castro regimes is often a a source of serious tension between the USA and the EU.

        What’s next? For us – great. Moreover, it was difficult to capture Maduro without destroying a bunch of Russians – about which they prefer to remain silent. Just like a few years ago in Syria, when the Americans destroyed several hundred Russians after their “brilliant” idea to storm the oil refinery controlled by the Kurds with US support. Putin didn’t even squeak then. The same here: having been hit on the cheek, they will remain silent about their dead.

      2. 205

        Översättning JohanNo1: chess.

        Översättning DeepL:

         

        2. How does this affect the war against us?

         

        Unlike the Cuban regime, Maduro did not send mercenaries to fight against Ukraine. But Venezuela was the center of production of shahids for the Kremlin. There were huge assembly workshops in the country: individual boards, blocks, processors. Venezuela was not under such harsh sanctions as, for example, Russia or Iran. Plus, the labor force there was not just cheap — people were willing to work literally for food. In the criminal mentality of Russians, this is an ideal place for assembly. All this was loaded onto passenger planes, the frequency of which increased sharply with the start of drone cooperation. So, over time, we should feel some relief for our air defense.

      3. 205

        Original text: “шахедів”

        Шахед-136 line

        Iranian unmanned aerial vehicle
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        This is a stable version, checked on December 31, 2025.
        Not to be confused with Shahed-131 – a smaller and lighter drone.

        Shahed-136 (Persian: شاهد ۱۳۶ /ʃɒːˈhed/, English: Shahed, Persian: “witness” or “Heron-2” in the Russian army[1]) – an Iranian kamikaze drone developed by Shahed Aviation[2].

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahed-136

        En mina??

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