larry johnson is obviously well informed and level headed as well as he presents some realities for our consideration; 

 

I received the following email and question from a friend, a man with extensive experience in the US defense realm, who is a solid analyst. His question is legitimate and I will attempt to answer it. He wrote:

Dear Larry 

I read your interesting message. I am at the hospital so I can is only use my phone. Here is my question. If your numbers are correct then how come the Russians seem to be unable to defeat the Ukrainians? They seem to find it difficult to make much territorial progress and now are under heavy pressure in Crimea. I also think they are having major problems defending critical infrastructure including refineries and ports and thus have serious fuel shortages. 

In short the Russians are not effectively converting their superiority in supplies into battlefield results and are having difficulty protecting key assets on their territory.

Would be interested in your comments

What does it mean to defeat the Ukrainians? At the outset of the Special Military Operation, the Russians were not intent on conquering Ukraine. In his televised address broadcast at 5:30 AM Moscow time on February 24, 2022, Putin announced the invasion with these words (from the official Kremlin English translation):...........more.........