7 Jun 2023 - Robert C. Castel_ After the war of bridges, a war of dams; after the war of the state, a war of private troops
The Chronicle of War with Geopolitical Analysis by Robert C. Castel #1 (until October 2022):
The Chronicle of War with Geopolitical Analysis by Robert C. Castel #2
(late October, early November 2022)
Topics for today's discussion:
Dam Breakdown
A dam at the Kahovka hydroelectric power plant was breached by an explosion early Tuesday morning, but by midday Monday it was apparent that part of the dam wall had been damaged, either directly or accidentally.
What can be said about what happened? Was it an accident or an explosion, perhaps a missile attack? How can a dam be effectively destroyed?
The tragedy is obvious to civilians, but what is the significance of the breach of the Dnieper dam in war planning? Should military maps be redrawn, should offensive or even defensive plans be changed?
In his usual forceful style, President Zelensky wrote about state terrorism and ecocide on Twitter. Are attacks on critical infrastructure included in acts of war?
What is the role of dams and bridges in warfare today? What are some examples of this in modern times?
Who was in a better position militarily after the explosion?
Information warfare
According to the Ukrainian news agency Unian, the Russian military is preparing a large-scale information and psychological operation to mislead the population after the launch of the Ukrainian counter-offensive.
What would such an information operation consist of? What means could be used and for what purpose? Who are the targets? Could it also bring about change on the front line? How can it be defended against?
Situation in Belgorod
There is no let-up in the fighting in the border region of Belgorod, where anti-Putin Russian Free Russian Forces, Polish partisans and international brigades of all kinds have entered Russian territory.
Are we going to have to get used to seeing such unacknowledged front lines developing alongside the 'official' war?
On the other side, we see the role of the Wagner group or even of Kadyrov's Chechens, who are acting as a regular army if you like, or as a private army if you like. How do such actors change the nature of war?
Can we expect the role of such gangs to increase in the future? What are the consequences of not being subject to international law, for example?
At the same time, the Belgian government is questioning Ukraine for using Belgian-made weapons against Russian troops within Russia's borders. Is it possible to maintain nation-state control over arms when there is an uncountable flow of arms into Ukraine?
Ukraine's nuclear weapons intentions
Some speculate that the Belgorod incursion was aimed at seizing a nuclear weapons storage base on the border. This nuclear weapons storage base, number 1150, also known as Belgorod-22, is located just 17 kilometres from the Ukrainian border.
Is it realistic for Russia to store nuclear weapons in such a sensitive location? And what would it mean if Ukrainian freemen were to get their hands on nuclear weapons?
The only deployment of a nuclear weapon so far was in Japan 78 years ago. President Truman used the atomic bomb as a tactical measure to shorten the war against an adversary that did not fear a nuclear retaliation.
Russia, for its part, did not touch this weapon. For the future, is this any guarantee that Putin will not order the use of nuclear weapons now?
Spectator's questions:
Image source: Shuttestock/Puzzlepix
Puttelstocktock: Shuttershot and Shutterspot.com If you haven't already, subscribe to our channel and let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Follow us:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hetek
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hetek.hu/
On Soundcloud:
and online: https://www.hetek.hu
