NATO - The Ukraine

[Pelican]

Poland sends LoR to buy 500 M142 HIMARS firing MGM-140 ATACMS

WARSAW — Poland wants to purchase approximately 500 M142 HIMARS Missile Launchers [MLRA] from the United States. Poland continues to buy weapons at full speed. BulgariaMilitary.com recalls that yesterday [May 25] Poland sent a letter of the request [LoR] for the purchase of an additional air defense system Patriot [HSS] from the United States yesterday. Today, May 26, it was announced that LoR has been shipped to purchase approximately 500 HIMARS MLRSs.

See - https://bulgarianmilitary.com/2022/05/2 ... 4OY2i1nlb8

[Pelican]

Russian oil's Achilles' heel: insurance

LONDON/NEW DELHI/TOKYO, May 25 (Reuters) - Russia has so far deflected much of the impact of sanctions on its oil trade but the insurance industry threatens to throw a spanner in the works unless Moscow and its customers can plug a gap left by Western underwriters.

Insurers from Europe and the United States, which dominate the international marine market, are curtailing coverage for Russian oil tankers, industry sources say, to avoid breaching sanctions imposed in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. Even non-Russian vessels are now at risk of being dropped by Western insurers if they carry Russian crude.

The moves by Western insurers could undermine Moscow’s recent success in rerouting supplies of crude from Europe and the United States to Asia, accelerate the decline in its European business and blow a bigger hole in energy markets as restrictions ensnare the world’s second-biggest crude exporter.

The pullback is expected to hit over June and July, when policies that were withdrawn this month in anticipation of tougher European Union restrictions fully expire, four shipping and industry sources told Reuters. They declined to be named because of the sensitivity of discussing Russian-linked business.

Continues at - https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodi ... U-WiVPhZGo

[Pelican]

Lithuanian citizens raise €5M to buy Bayraktar TB2 for Ukraine


VILNIUS — Lithuanians collect donations for the purchase of Bayraktar TB2 medium-altitude long-endurance [MALE] unmanned combat aerial vehicle [UCAV] for Ukraine. The goal is to raise 5M euros in three weeks.

See - https://bulgarianmilitary.com/2022/05/2 ... OhTxcDCeP0

[Pelican]

Harpoon Block II: The Missile That Could Sink The Russian Navy

On Monday, Denmark announced that it would supply Harpoon anti-ship missiles and a launcher to Ukraine. It is reported to be the RGM-84L-4 Harpoon Block II, which is currently in service with the Royal Danish Navy’s Coastal artillery units. The truck-based coastal defense missile batteries first entered service some 50 years ago but have been steadily upgraded, while the Block II models feature autonomous, all-weather over-the-horizon capability and can execute both land-strike and anti-ship missions.

What Is the Harpoon?

See - https://www.19fortyfive.com/2022/05/har ... pgQsDtqNLg

[Pelican]

Kalush Orchestra sells Eurovision trophy for $900,000

Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra, the winners of this year's Eurovision Song Contest, have sold their Eurovision trophy at a charity auction for $900,000 and will use the money to buy three drones for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

According to Ukrinform, the band said this on its Facebook page.

"Friends, you are incredible! We are grateful to each of you who donated money to this auction, and especially to the Whitebit team who bought the trophy for $900,000 and have now become the owners of our trophy. Subscribe to them, they really deserve it. Glory to Ukraine! Glory to the Armed Forces of Ukraine," the post reads.

Continues at - https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-societ ... jZ1e8pjO2E

[Pelican]

NEXTA

"Now we have been given so many 'Harpoons' that we can sink the entire Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation," said Sergei Bratchuk, speaker of the Odessa regional administration.
This is what "Harpoon" anti-ship missiles that Ukraine received from Denmark look like.
See - https://twitter.com/nexta_tv/status/1530595593357250560

[Pelican]

Russian invasion of Ukraine: UK government response

See - https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-e ... t-response

And attached.

[greendragon]

That the German Gvt is reluctant to give more and more valuable and needed weapons is no surprise if we have a look back .
When so much criticized former US Pres. Trump was pushing some countries, Germany in particular to invest no less than 2% of the GNP on defense he was called a bad boy or worse.
Some critical voices in Germany were also put under the carpet.
An active duty Germany general criticized his army status of readability and this problem was quickly solved by firing him.
I remember that half - or more - of their helicopter fleet was grounded due to lack of spare parts.
Today they have good excuse - and real one - that heavier equipment in their possession can not be delivered to Ukraine.
They (the Germans) claim in case of taking their army into an operation they would be short of everything.
AA SP guns Gepard has ammunition for six standard ammunition load of each of the vehicle.
There are some voices that the European (EU) countries would be soon on the limits of their ability to transfer weapons to UKR.
This might be true.
The countries which has potential of providing real military supply are limited in number.
US is a leader no doubt.
The good lesson learned was in past during air operation against Serbia .
The air force components of European countries were not enough to provide an effective intensity of strikes and US was (as usual) asked for help which was quickly delivered .
The spirit among Ukrainians is still high and the nation has been very much consolidated since the war started.
There have ben long lines of volunteers before some two weeks ago when age limit was 40y.o. (today is 65, and is sort of drafting) and previous military experience was required.
It is said that some people would like bribing recruiters to join army.
It is also stated that war against Russia was still a fight of David vs Goliath.

gd

[Pelican]

Downed Bayraktar TB2 of Snake Island battle was found in Romania


An unmanned aerial vehicle model Bayraktar TB2 with the insignia of the Ukrainian army was pulled out of the territorial waters between Sulina and Sfantu Gheorghe, Romania, two miles from the coast. It happened in mid-May, and Romanian authorities believe the drone took part in the battle over Snake Island on May 7th and 8th.

See - https://bulgarianmilitary.com/2022/05/2 ... 4dVR-esr1A

[Pelican]

Ukrainian Fighters With WWI Guns Channel 16th-Century Ancestors


Territorial Forces adopt a fierce historical style while using whatever they can to stop the Russia, including a pint-sized Soviet-era 4X4.

Volunteer Ukrainian fighters are tooling around in Soviet-era military vehicles armed with WWI-vintage machine guns while done up as their fierce Cossack ancestors that have challenged Russian authority since the 16th century.

Images and video surfaced online recently that show uniformed members of Ukraine's volunteer Territorial Defense Forces in the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, an area currently seeing intense fighting, groomed to look like traditional Cossacks, toting DP-27 and Maxim machine guns around on a Soviet 4x4 LuAZ-969 vehicle.

The scene, depicted in the documentary-style video below from Ukrainian public broadcaster Suspilne Zaporizhzhya, is a dizzying layer cake of anachronisms.

Continues, including video, at - https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/u ... BTNi5hQptQ

Grandad Cossack summed up Ukraine's fighting ethos and his reasoning for making a stand, even with equipment from last century.

“At least one Cossack will remain — and Ukraine will be reborn,” he said. "No one will live on this land except the Cossacks. And every Ukrainian is a Cossack.”