I guess this headline is pretty much what everyone agrees on. The peace talks yielded nothing except very limited prisoner exchanges.
War has to be the most wasteful of all human endeavors. But, Ukraine is fighting a war of survival, as Russia seeks to dominate Ukraine, and ultimately annex the country. It will be a very sad day for the 33 million Ukrainians if Russia succeeds.
Russia invasion began in February 2022 with tanks coming through the Ukraine/Belarus border ready to destroy Kyiv. Some thought the war would end in months. It was classic warfare, with the combination of troops and tanks, but obviously Ukraine could see it coming, and defeated the initial assault.
The war has changed in term of tactics. It is a troops and armaments-restrained war. Each side makes assessment of what their adversary has, and their ability to replenish their weapons. Russia is at a disadvantage, as every advance of their troops, requires a supply line of weapons and troops to maintain their control. .
A cheap, long range, high speed and accurate missile doesn’t exist. Plus, it is desireable to load a missile with smart gudance to be highly maneuverable, to avoid detection. Russia is ramping up production of the RM48U missile, which is summarized by an AI search as:
The RM-48U (frequently searched as “rm480u”) is a Russian target missile originally developed for training air defense crews, which Russian forces have modified into a quasi-ballistic surface-to-surface weapon to attack ground targets in Ukraine. Derived from the 48N6-series interceptor line used in the S-300 and S-400 anti-aircraft systems, it acts as a low-cost, mass-deployed strike alternative to primary ballistic missiles.
Depleting Air Defenses: Because the RM-48U mimics a true ballistic threat, it is deployed en masse to exhaust Ukraine’s limited supplies of advanced air defense interceptors like the U.S.-made Patriot system.Preserving High-End Stockpiles: Utilizing modified training munitions allows Russia to conserve its more precise and powerful strike missiles—such as the Iskander, North Korean KN-23, and hypersonic Zircon systems—for critical strategic campaigns.
Low Accuracy, High Collateral Damage: Unlike custom-built tactical strike platforms, converted air-defense missiles feature a relatively large circular error margin, deviating by an average of 300 meters from their intended targets. Russian forces mitigate this limitation by aiming them at expansive, low-value, or broad area objectives, such as large industrial facilities, food warehouses, and logistics.
So, it is easy why President Zelensky needs more Patriot missiles, which are strictly defensive missiles. The situation right now is pretty dire as the US supply of Patriots have been sent to Arab countries, since the Iran war began. The Russians know this, hence the change in tactics to deplete Ukraine’s remaining supply.
Exclusive: Ukraine reveals its Achilles’ heel to CNN as Patriot missile launchers run dry
Trump recently signed into a law a bill that gives him the authority to raise tariffs up to 100% against Russia and other countries, including China and India.
House passes Russia sanctions bill championed by Graham, sending it to Trump
Some Democrats were skeptical of this bill, as Trump seems quick to threaten tariffs to acheive his goals, but the trade wars have resulted in adding to inflation. Trump’s last initiative, to supply Ukraine with the technology to build their own Patrior missiles was DOA (dead on arrival). Patriot missile systems (launchers and missiles) are complex, and protected by patents.
Stay tuned,
Dave