Can anyone remember a time when the U.S. provided lethal weapons for the purpose of being used directly against Russian military forces during an active war?
I can’t. Sure, we’ve supplied such aide to forces that were fighting against proxies who were financed, equipped and maybe even trained by by Russia - in the mideast and SE Asia. I’m thinking Korea, Vietnam, Iraq / Iran. But I can’t remember this degree of application of our military power / technology directly against Russian military personnel in an ongoing war.
(Maybe when Russia was in Afghanistan? )
If accurate, I wonder what the longer term significance may be …
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Haven’t done my homework. Best recollection is these are shoulder launched. Anything more sophisticated might require active presence of U.S. military “advisors.”
A must see, if you can find the movie online or wherever.
Charlie Wilson's War.............fact based, U.S. Congressman and the Afghan war
Yes- "Stingers", generally used against relatively low-flying aircraft. In Afghanistan they were mainly used against Russian helicopters. Most likely still effective for that. Russia knows that there are a fair number of them now in Ukraine, with more being supplied by NATO nations- that may be why there has been relatively little air support for the Russian ground forces, although they wouldn't be very effective against high-altitude bombers or fighters.
Spot on discussion. The weapons of choice right now are Stingers and Javelins and RPGs.
The Stinger, as mentioned is a shoulder fired Surface to Air guided missile. Great for choppers. Javelins are the modern-day bazookas. Again, shoulder fired, range to 3,000 meters, and once you lock on, you can fire and forget while you beat feet. Rifle Propelled Grenades and cheap, easy to carry and fire (6-8 RPM) and deadly but only have an effective range of 300 or so meters. Iron sites.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIM-92_Stinger
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FGM-148_Javelin
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket-propelled_grenade
The issue right now is the logistical nightmare of the Russians. They weren't planning on any resistance and brought gear for a weekend. They're out of food and fuel and trying to resupply their frontlines so they can resume the taking of Kyiv. That makes fuel trucks and lorries the primary targets for the Ukrainians. Tanks without fuel are easy meat. In addition, troops are coming from everywhere. This has become a cause celebre not unlike the Spanish Civil War. And the western door is wide open. Will this work?
WTF do I know? Damn, we're dealing with a very strange man who seems to want to be remembered along with Peter the Great. Put Mother Russia back together. He seems apt to have temper tantrums when he doesn't get his way and right now he's not.
What is delightfully ironic is that two of his objectives were to destroy or at least weaken NATO. The other being cause further division in the US. In both cases, he's accomplished the opposite. teehehe,
peace,
rono
Here’s where I’m having a problem. I don’t generally subscribe to or like conspiracy theories … however the fact that Ukraine became entwined in the first Trump impeachment trial has perked my interest.
Excerpts from Politico -
While Biden hosted Zelenskyy at the White House last fall, Trump allies often point out that the former president didn’t entirely deprive Ukraine of military aid during his tenure — the U.S. did deliver Javelin missiles and other arms, a fact Trump backers cited during his first impeachment trial to blunt Democratic charges of coziness with Russia. But Trump also pushed Zelenskyy to pursue politically motivated investigations that might hurt Biden’s White House bid as Zelenskyy sought more missiles from the United States.
“We are ready to continue to cooperate for the next steps. Specifically we are almost ready to buy more Javelins from the United· States for defense purposes,” Zelenskyy said on a July 25, 2019, call, the transcript of which became key evidence in Trump’s first impeachment. Trump replied: “I would like you to do us a favor, though, because our country has been through a lot, and Ukraine knows a lot about it.” (Zelensky refused) From Politico
Bottom Line: (A) Zelenskyy apparently incurred Trump’s ire by not publically announcing an investigation into Hillary as a way to help him fight impeachment. (B) Trump’s a self acknowledged supporter / fan of Putin. (C) A year after Trump leaves office Putin decides to invade Ukraine.
Hmmm …. Pure coincidence?
Last I heard ,time out to evacuate the wounded. Time to resupply the invasion ?