«My poems is my fight to show what I can do for Ukraine and the world now by Koryu,
like Javelin or Bayraktar.
To stand on the frontline of culture is my great honor, dear my Ukrainian friends!»
(Kurama, Japan)
On this video: concert for the Independence Day of Ukraine "THE ENERGY OF VICTORY" 2024.
No.1
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS DETERRING
‘Gandalf the Green’ had said.
The Kursk operation.
Aimed to capture.
‘Orcs’ soldiers.
- which led to a prisoner swap.
And the release of.
115 ‘elves’.
On Saturday –
Among other goals.
He could not disclose.
He had also said.
The operation was.
A preventative strike.
To deter.
‘Orcs’ attacks.
Towards Sumy.
Despite the sense of.
Justice and retribution.
The Kursk incursion.
Has brought.
It remains.
A risky strategy.
For Kyiv.
The rapid gains must be.
Considered alongside.
Losses in the east of Ukraine.
Where ‘orcs’ continue to make.
Ground in a grinding battle.
‘Orcs’ troops are.
Drawing nearer to the city.
Of Pokrovsk.
Which was home.
To around 60,000.
Before the fighting.
It is one of.
The biggest cities.
In the Donetsk region.
Still under ‘elves’ control.
And is an important hub.
For the defending forces.
An estimated 10,000.
Elite ‘elves’ troops.
Burst across the border.
On 6 August.
Taking more ground.
In a matter of days than.
‘Orcs’ had won in Ukraine.
So far this year.
One of the ‘elves’ fighters.
Now in ‘Mordor’.
In his latest messages.
He revealed that.
The situation was tougher now.
“‘Mordor’ has gotten stronger.
We see this in the number of.
Strikes by drones.”
“By artillery, and aviation.
Their sabotage and.
Reconnaissance groups.
Began to operate too.”
An estimated 10,000.
Elite ‘elves’ troops.
Burst across the border.
On 6 August.
Taking more ground.
In a matter of days than.
‘Orcs’ had won in Ukraine.
So far this year.
All meant the ‘elves’.
Were taking.
More casualties.
He said.
“At the beginning.
Of the operation.
We were on the rise.
We had minimal losses.”
“Now, because of.
The ‘orcs’ firepower.
We are losing.
A lot of guys.”
“Moreover, the ‘orcs’ here are.
Fighting for their land.
Just as we are.
Fighting for ours.”
An estimated 10,000.
Elite ‘elves’ troops.
Burst across the border.
On 6 August.
Taking more ground.
In a matter of days than.
‘Orcs’ had won in Ukraine.
So far this year.
He says his.
Earlier elation is.
Giving way.
To some scepticism.
“Many of us.
Do not understand.
The meaning of.
This operation.”
“It's one thing.
To fight for.
Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia.
It's a different matter.”
“It's a different matter.
For the Kursk region.
Which we don't need.”
“It's a different matter.”
An estimated 10,000.
Elite ‘elves’ troops.
Burst across the border.
On 6 August.
Taking more ground.
In a matter of days than.
‘Orcs’ had won in Ukraine.
So far this year.
‘Gandalf the Green’ had said.
The Kursk operation.
Aimed to capture.
‘Orcs’ soldiers.
Among other goals.
He could not disclose.
He had also said.
The operation was.
A preventative strike.
To deter.
‘Orcs’ attacks.
Towards Sumy.
“It’s a really difficult situation.”
A 23-year-old man.
A former TV journalist.
Now a volunteer.
With the 33rd.
Mechanised Brigade.
Defending Pokrovsk.
Said on a crackly phone line.
You asked if he was.
Aware of ‘orcs’ troops.
Being diverted to defend.
Their own soil.
“No, no, I don't feel that.
I think ‘orcs’.
Have a big resource.
Of troops in the Kursk region.”
“And elsewhere in ‘Mordor’.
And they’re using them.
In this operation that.
The ‘elves’ forces started.”
“It’s a really difficult situation.”
A 23-year-old man.
A former TV journalist.
Now a volunteer.
With the 33rd.
Mechanised Brigade.
Defending Pokrovsk.
Said on a crackly phone line.
You asked if.
It had relieved.
Any pressure on.
‘Elves’ troops in the area.
- a key hope of Kyiv's.
“I don't feel like.
It’s become easier.
We still have enemies.”
“In all directions.
And just last week.
They tried again.
To approach.”
“They used approximately.
10 armoured vehicles.
And infantry to.
Capture our positions.”
“But we made.
A nice defence.
We won this battle.
And now we wait for.”
“And now we wait for.
Their next fight.
So no, they're still here.”
“So no, they're still here.”
“It’s a really difficult situation.”
A 23-year-old man.
A former TV journalist.
Now a volunteer.
With the 33rd.
Mechanised Brigade.
Defending Pokrovsk.
Said on a crackly phone line.
‘Orcs’ forces in August.
Advanced on.
477 sq km.
Of ‘elves’ territory.
- the biggest monthly increase.
By ‘Mordor’.
Since October.
2022 –
Meanwhile, in ‘orcs’ Kursk region.
- where ‘elves’ launched.
A surprise incursion.
On 6 August –
Progress has slowed.
with Kyiv most recently.
Claiming to control.
1,294 sq km of territory.
Including 100 settlements.
Nearly 600 ‘orcs’ soldiers.
Have also been captured.
It added.
Some critics in Ukraine.
Have suggested that.
The incursion in Kursk.
Has diverted.
Seasoned troops.
From the Donbas frontline.
At a critical moment.
However.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Defended the offensive.
On Monday.
Saying it was proceeding.
“According to the plan”.
He said the attack could.
Ease the pressure.
On the eastern front.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Gains on Russian soil shape Ukraine independence celebrations (bbc.com)
Ukraine war: Russian missiles target Kyiv on first day of school (bbc.com)
No.2
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS LUCKIEST
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
Somewhere along.
The 700-mile front line.
Of the war recently.
The tracked AS-90 was.
Located by.
An ‘orcs’ drone.
And came under.
Relentless fire.
In a short period.
The ‘orcs’ attacked.
The 50-ton vehicle.
At least six times.
— damaging but.
Not destroying it.
That the crew may have survived.
Is partly a matter of chance.
But it also underscores.
The importance of.
Artillery fortifications.
In a war where the side.
With the most.
— and most durable —
Howitzers usually.
Wins a battle.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
The ‘orcs’ circulated.
A drone video of the attack.
On the British-made.
AS-90.
— one of at least 50.
The United Kingdom has pledged.
To Ukraine —
On or before Wednesday.
After locating.
The 1990s-vintage.
AS-90.
In its treeline hideout.
Presumably within.
15 miles of the front line.
The range of the AS-90’s.
155-millimeter gun.
The ‘orcs’ attacked.
First, they fired.
Artillery at it.
When the rounds failed.
To score a direct hit.
They flung two explosive.
FPV drones.
At the howitzer.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
As the smoke.
And dust cleared.
The AS-90 was.
Still mostly intact.
More artillery rained down.
And then.
A Lancet strike drone.
Zoomed in.
After six.
Back-to-back attacks.
The AS-90 was.
Apparently badly damaged.
But it didn’t explode and burn.
Meaning its crew had.
A chance to bail out.
And flee on foot.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
There are thousands of.
Artillery pieces.
On both sides.
Of the ‘Mordor’-Ukraine war.
And every day.
And every day.
Some of them.
Come under attack.
The ‘orcs’ went to war with.
around 5,000 big guns.
And rocket launchers and.
Have lost around a third of them.
The ‘elves’ had fewer than.
2,000 guns and launchers.
28 months ago and.
Have lost around 500.
Including at least.
Seven AS-90s.
To replace losses.
Both sides have built.
Both sides have built.
New guns and launchers.
And pulled older systems.
Out of long-term storage.
Ukraine has also.
Acquired hundreds of.
Artillery pieces.
From its allies.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
The intensity.
Of the artillery fight.
Has compelled gunners.
On both sides.
To find tactics.
That give them.
The best chance.
Of surviving.
If there’s.
An artillery consensus.
As the war grinds into.
Its third year.
It’s that drones.
Are the biggest threat.
— and hiding from drones.
Is the top priority.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
It’s now standard practice.
For the crew of.
An ‘orcs’ or ‘elves’ howitzer.
To tuck their gun into a treeline.
Cover it with branches.
And camouflage netting.
And anti-drone screens.
And emerge from hiding.
Just far enough.
And long enough.
To fire a few rounds before.
Scurrying back under cover.
If the gunners.
Relocate their weapon.
To a new firing position.
They do it carefully.
— and only when.
They’re reasonably confident.
Enemy drones.
Aren’t watching.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
The alternative to.
This entrenched approach.
To artillery warfare.
Is a more mobile approach.
Known as “shoot and scoot.”
Where a crew rolls up.
To a new firing position.
Shoots a few rounds.
Then immediately speeds to.
A new position.
Potentially.
Miles away.
The theory behind.
Shoot and scoot is.
That constantly moving.
Can thwart enemy efforts.
To triangulate.
The source of.
Incoming rounds.
— and shoot back.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
Shoot and scoot.
Might’ve worked back.
Before the current era of.
Nearly constant drone surveillance.
But now that all modern armies.
Watch the entire battlefield.
Practically around the clock.
Hitting the road.
— especially during daytime—
Is virtually suicidal.
It’s better to hunker down.
And ride out enemy bombardment.
An analyst, who tallies vehicle losses.
In the ‘Mordor’-Ukraine war.
Has long railed against.
The shoot and scoot philosophy.
He cited the example of ‘elves’.
German-made PzH 2000 howitzers.
Which were designed.
To be highly mobile but.
In Ukraine.
Mostly stick.
To their disguised and.
Fortified firing positions.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
“I've seen a lot of people.
Claim the PzH 2000.
Survives due to.
Shoot and scoot in Ukraine.”
“But every video.
I have ever seen.
Of PzH 2000.
— all of them, without exception—"
“It wasn't shooting and scooting.
And, very frequently.
the reason the PzH 2000.
Survived was because.”
“It wasn’t shooting and scooting.”
“Shoot and scoot”.
Isn’t a thing.
He insisted.
He’d presumably argue that.
The embattled AS-90.
Would’ve taken more hits.
More quickly.
If its admittedly lucky crew.
Had decided to.
Break cover and.
Make a run for it.
The five crew of.
An entrenched ‘elves’.
AS-90 self-propelled howitzer.
Might be the luckiest.
Might be the luckiest.
Artillery crew members.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
The Luckiest Gunners In The Ukrainian Army May Have Survived 6 Attacks (forbes.com)
No.3
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET IN A PLAYGROUND
A 14-year-old girl.
Has been killed after.
An ‘orcs’ guided bomb strike.
Hit a playground.
On the north-eastern.
‘Elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Hit a playground.
Local officials say.
At least six other people.
Were killed and.
59 injured.
As a building was also hit.
As a 12-storey.
Residential building.
Was also hit in the city.
Near the ‘orcs’ border.
Pictures showed flames.
And thick black smoke.
Coming from the upper part.
Of the building.
As firefighters carried.
People to safety.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Renewed his calls.
For all ‘elves’ international partners.
To allow it to hit.
Targets inside ‘Mordor’ in order to.
Prevent such attacks.
His office said ‘orcs’ forces.
Had fired more than.
400 drones and missiles.
At Ukraine over the past week.
The attack came just.
Hours before.
‘Gandalf the Green’ dismissed.
The head of his air force.
A 14-year-old girl.
Has been killed after.
An ‘orcs’ guided bomb strike.
Hit a playground.
On the north-eastern.
‘Elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Hit a playground.
Local officials say.
Regional head said that.
At least 59 people.
Including nine children.
Had been wounded.
With 20.
In a serious condition.
And some.
Requiring amputations.
Further photos showed.
Part of the building's.
Outer wall collapsed and.
Numerous cars outside it on fire.
Regional head said the strikes.
Had been launched.
From ‘orcs’ Belgorod region.
Which sits just across the border.
“Let's say unequivocally.
That there were guidance systems.
On the missiles.
We draw one conclusion.”
“These streets are.
Exclusively parks.
With large gatherings.
Of civilians.”
“This is a residential building.
This is, again.
Mass terror against.
Our civilian population.”
A 14-year-old girl.
Has been killed after.
An ‘orcs’ guided bomb strike.
Hit a playground.
On the north-eastern.
‘Elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Hit a playground.
Local officials say.
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
‘Orcs’ had targeted.
“Ordinary” people and the strikes.
Could have been prevented.
If Ukraine.
“Had the capability to.
Destroy ‘orcs’ military aircraft.
At their bases”.
“This is an absolutely.
Legitimate need.
There is no rational reason.
To limit ‘elves’ defence.”
A 14-year-old girl.
Has been killed after.
An ‘orcs’ guided bomb strike.
Hit a playground.
On the north-eastern.
‘Elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Hit a playground.
Local officials say.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Girl, 14, killed as Russian strike hits Kharkiv playground (bbc.com)
No.4
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS TERRORIZED
‘Orcs’ air strikes.
Have injured.
At least 41 people.
In the ‘elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Regional head said.
Five children were.
Among those wounded.
And he accused.
‘Mordor’ of.
“Aiming exclusively.
At civilian infrastructure”.
In the city.
Among the buildings.
Damaged are a supermarket.
And a sports complex in areas.
Residents go to every day.
People may be buried.
Under the rubble in some areas.
And rescue operations.
Are continuing, he added.
“‘Mordor’ is once again.
Terrorizing Kharkiv.
Striking civilian infrastructure.
And the city itself.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
In the wake of the attacks.
He repeated his calls.
For Western allies to.
“Give Ukraine everything.
It needs to defend itself”.
“Give Ukraine everything.
It needs to defend itself”.
Among the buildings.
Damaged are a supermarket.
And a sports complex in areas.
Residents go to every day.
People may be buried.
Under the rubble in some areas.
And rescue operations.
Are continuing, he added.
Regional head said at least.
10 separate ‘orcs’ strikes.
Had been recorded.
Including the use of ballistic missiles.
From several videos.
Shared on social media.
Of the attacks.
One strike has been located.
To the northeast of.
The centre of Kharkiv.
Along Akademika Pavlova St.
And another.
And another.
Three miles south.
Which damaged the city's.
Palace of Sport buildings.
Images from each attack.
Include the moment of.
Impact and explosion.
From missiles.
Among the buildings.
Damaged are a supermarket.
And a sports complex in areas.
Residents go to every day.
People may be buried.
Under the rubble in some areas.
And rescue operations.
Are continuing, he added.
The attack comes after.
‘Elves’ launched a wave of.
Overnight drone attacks.
Against targets in ‘Mordor’.
Where fire broke out.
At two energy facilities.
No injuries or deaths have been.
Reported by ‘orcs’ officials.
‘Elves’ forces have been.
Stepping up long-range strikes.
Inside ‘Mordor’.
Over the past few months.
Launching scores.
Of drones simultaneously.
At strategic targets.
Several times a week.
The most recent ‘elves’ attacks.
On ‘orcs’ energy facilities.
Also come.
A day after.
An ‘orcs’ guided bomb strike.
On a playground.
In Kharkiv killed.
A 14-year-old girl.
Among the buildings.
Damaged are a supermarket.
And a sports complex in areas.
Residents go to every day.
People may be buried.
Under the rubble in some areas.
And rescue operations.
Are continuing, he added.
A similar attack.
On a residential building.
In the city in north-eastern Ukraine.
Also killed six other people.
It also follows ‘Mordor’.
Hitting ‘elves’ energy grid with.
A massive wave of deadly drone.
And missile strikes last week.
– which led to at least.
Nine people.
Being killed.
Over two days.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Russian air strikes injure dozens in Kharkiv (bbc.com)
No.5
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS SMILING
Teachers and parents.
Tried to keep.
A sense of.
Normality.
With music playing.
While smiling students.
Were welcomed by.
A sea of flowers.
‘Mordor’ has fired.
A barrage of missiles.
At ‘elves’ capital, Kyiv.
Hours before.
Thousands of children.
Returned to school.
For the first day.
Of the academic year.
Teachers and parents.
Tried to keep.
A sense of.
Normality.
With music playing.
While smiling students.
Were welcomed by.
A sea of flowers.
One parent, who hid.
With her daughter at home.
During the missile attack.
Before taking her to school.
Said they were showing.
Once more “that.
This nation is invincible”.
“Children are smiling.”
“Children are smiling.
But you can see the strain.
On the faces of their teachers.
Who carry this burden.”
“I’m so thankful to them.
For all they did.
To make it a real holiday.
For the kids.”
Teachers and parents.
Tried to keep.
A sense of.
Normality.
With music playing.
While smiling students.
Were welcomed by.
A sea of flowers.
‘Mordor’ has fired.
A barrage of missiles.
At ‘elves’ capital, Kyiv.
Hours before.
Thousands of children.
Returned to school.
For the first day.
Of the academic year.
Teachers and parents.
Tried to keep.
A sense of.
Normality.
With music playing.
While smiling students.
Were welcomed by.
A sea of flowers.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Russian missiles target Kyiv on first day of school (bbc.com)
No.6
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS ON A MORNING
For a 33-year-old.
Who was taking.
Her six-year-old daughter.
To school for the first time.
The day was marred by fear.
“Her hands were shaking.
Our apartment started.
To stink of smoke.”
“But we still need to go to school, right?
We are ‘elves’.”
She said she told her daughter.
That morning.
For schoolchildren.
Across the capital.
Monday's bombardment.
Coincided with.
The first day.
Of the school year.
A day of celebration.
In Ukraine.
For a 33-year-old.
Who was taking.
Her six-year-old daughter.
To school for the first time.
The day was marred by fear.
“Her hands were shaking.
Our apartment started.
To stink of smoke.”
“But we still need to go to school, right?
We are ‘elves’.”
She said she told her daughter.
That morning.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Russian missiles target Kyiv on first day of school (bbc.com)
No.7
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET SCREAMING
A student.
At the damaged university.
Said she “started screaming”.
When the air raid alert sounded.
With everyone.
Running into.
Their dormitory's.
Bomb shelter.
Air raid sirens rang out.
For nearly two hours.
During the attack.
Before the skies were deemed.
Clear by the military.
“We were very scared.”
She said, adding they saw a fire.
Following the sound of explosions.
“All our schools.
All higher education institutions.
That are working today.
Are proof.”
“Of the resilience.
Of our people.
And the strength.
Of Ukraine.”
The mayor says.
A water treatment plant and.
The entrance of a metro station.
Used as a shelter were hit.
The mayor says.
Two schools and.
A university.
Were also damaged.
Following the attack.
‘Gandalf the Green’ called.
The first day of school.
“One of the most important days.”
“One of the most important days.
Of the year”.
For children, and.
Their families and teachers.
“All our schools.
All higher education institutions.
That are working today.
Are proof.”
“Of the resilience.
Of our people.
And the strength.
Of Ukraine.”
All of Ukraine.
Was placed on alert.
For several hours.
And neighbouring Nato state.
Poland said it had deployed.
Its own as well as.
Allied aircraft to secure its airspace.
During the ‘orcs’ strikes.
According to ‘elves’ military.
22 cruise and.
Air ballistic missiles were.
Destroyed by the air force.
Local authorities say.
Three people were injured.
By debris from.
Destroyed missiles.
“All our schools.
All higher education institutions.
That are working today.
Are proof.”
“Of the resilience.
Of our people.
And the strength.
Of Ukraine.”
A student.
At the damaged university.
Said she “started screaming”.
When the air raid alert sounded.
With everyone.
Running into.
Their dormitory's.
Bomb shelter.
Air raid sirens rang out.
For nearly two hours.
During the attack.
Before the skies were deemed.
Clear by the military.
“We were very scared.”
She said, adding they saw a fire.
Following the sound of explosions.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Russian missiles target Kyiv on first day of school (bbc.com)
No.8
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN POLTAVA
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
At least 51 people.
Have been killed and.
271 others.
Injured in an ‘orcs’ missile strike.
On the city of Poltava.
In central Ukraine.
A military academy and.
A nearby hospital were hit.
‘Elves’ land forces.
Confirmed that.
Military personnel were killed.
In the attack.
‘Gandalf the Green’ promised that.
What he called “‘orcs’ scum”.
Would pay for the attack.
And repeated calls for more.
More air defences so that.
Ukraine could protect itself.
by carrying out its own.
Long-range missile attacks.
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
People nearby said.
Their windows were blown out.
By the force.
Of the impact.
A 26-year-old cadet.
Only started at the Poltava.
Military Communications Institute.
Two weeks ago.
He described the moment.
The attack unfolded.
Just after 09:00 local time.
On Tuesday morning.
Saying the second missile.
Hit just three seconds.
After the first.
“I ran outside.”
“There was smoke.
And dust everywhere…
Lots of people were outside.
Having a cigarette.”
“And many were killed…”
He says that what he saw.
Has affected him.
Psychologically, that there was.
“Too much blood.
Too many dead bodies.”
“Too much blood.
Too many dead bodies.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Alarms sounded.
At 09:08 local time.
And everyone headed.
To the shelter.
The explosions started.
A few minutes after the alarms.
A thirty-year-old.
Was one of them.
She was woken.
By the air raid siren.
But did not have time.
To reach a shelter.
For her, the attack is personal.
Her husband is fighting.
On the front line.
In the Donbas region.
“Soldiers have died here.
And I know there are still soldiers.
Still under the rubble.
Their wives are waiting for them.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
An ‘elf’ MP said the two minutes.
Between the air raid siren in Poltava.
And the missiles landing.
Was “nothing”.
“You just imagine.
You're on the sixth floor.
Of some building and.
You need to run away downstairs.”
“Is it realistic?
That you can do this?
In two minutes?
Just imagine this life.”
“And like this.
Several times per day.
We can't continue like this.
It's just not fair.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Firefighters have been.
On the scene.
With all their equipment.
Clearing out buildings.
And army personnel.
Outside have stopped people.
They cannot get too close.
Due to the sensitivity of the site.
Earlier, one Poltava resident said:
“The air raid alert started.
In just a minute.
And then there were two explosions.”
“At home, we immediately.
Ran into the bathroom.
With the child, but then.
Gathered ourselves”.
She added that there is.
No bomb shelter “in our radius”.
And it “takes a long time.
To run somewhere”.
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Another local heard.
“Two very strong explosions”.
And called the situation.
“Really scary”.
“Really scary”.
“There is a house nearby.
Everything was blown out.
All the windows.”
“We don't have a basement.
In our house.
So our only option was.
To sit and wait.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Poltava regional governor.
Called the attack.
A “cunning and cynical.
‘Orcs’ strike.”
And later said that.
15 people were still.
Thought to be trapped.
Under the rubble.
He said search groups.
Were on site, and that.
10 residential buildings.
Had been damaged in the attack.
More details could not.
Immediately be given.
Due to security reasons.
The regional governor said.
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
‘Elf’ first lady posted.
On X calling the attack.
“A stunning tragedy.
For all of Ukraine.”
And added:
“‘Mordor’ is taking away.
The most valuable thing.
From us - life.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
In a video, ‘Gandalf the Green’.
Said ‘Mordor’ would be.
Held accountable.
For the strike.
In the clip, which was.
Also posted on X.
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
A “full and prompt” investigation.
Had been ordered.
And that “all necessary services.
Are involved in.
The rescue operation”.
He went on to say that.
Ukraine needed long-range.
Air defence systems “that can.
Protect us from ‘orcs’ terror”.
And added that.
“Every day of delay.
Unfortunately, means.
More lost lives”.
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Officials said.
271 people had been.
Wounded in the ‘orcs’ strikes.
On Poltava.
And by Wednesday afternoon.
400 people had.
Already given blood.
At the main regional hospital.
Among them.
Was a man, 38.
Who was badly wounded.
On the frontline.
Last year.
In the fierce battle.
For the eastern city.
Of Bakhmut.
He pointed to scars.
On his neck.
And back where.
He had been shot.
By ‘orcs’ troops.
While he was on patrol.
“At the moment.
I can only give people.
“My blood, my support.
I can talk to them.
And try to understand.
Because I passed through this.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Poltava is observing.
Three days of mourning.
And there was an eerie quiet.
Throughout the hospital.
An ‘elves’ flag flew.
Outside the building.
With a black ribbon attached.
While inside.
The corridors of.
The blood donation ward.
Were filled as people.
Waited their turn.
The doctor in charge of.
Blood donation said.
The people of Poltava.
Had joined together.
At an unimaginably difficult time:
“This is something.
I’ve never seen in my 16 years.
As a chief doctor.”
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
In a statement confirming.
The deaths of military personnel.
‘Elves’ land forces said.
An investigation was under way.
To establish whether.
Enough was done to protect.
Those in the facility.
The missile hit.
People did not have.
Enough time to get.
To bomb shelters after.
The air raid alarm sounded.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine says soldiers among 51 killed in Poltava missile attack (bbc.com)
Seven dead in Lviv in fresh wave of strikes on Ukraine (bbc.com)
No.9
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS UNDER AIR RAID ALERT
Witnesses said.
The city was targeted.
At about 05:40.
In the heart of Lviv.
Lviv’s Mayor said.
‘Orcs’ attack had damaged.
More than 50 buildings.
In the historic heart of Lviv.
Including homes.
Schools and clinics.
He posted a picture.
On social media.
Of a local family.
Saying that.
Only the father.
Had survived.
His wife and.
Their three daughters.
All died.
In their own home.
The attack on Lviv.
In the far west of Ukraine.
Came as all of Ukraine was.
Under air raid alert.
Lviv’s Mayor said.
‘Orcs’ had attacked with drones.
And hypersonic missiles.
Early on Wednesday.
The attack came.
As Ukraine reeled from.
‘Orcs’ deadliest single.
Bombardment this year.
- a strike on a military institute.
In the central city.
Of Poltava that left.
53 people dead.
Explosions were also heard.
On Wednesday over the capital Kyiv.
As air defences targeted.
‘Orcs’ missiles.
Five people were wounded.
In Kryvyy Rih when.
A hotel was hit and.
Nearby blocks of flats were damaged.
The attack on Lviv.
In the far west of Ukraine.
Came as all of Ukraine was.
Under air raid alert.
The ‘elves’ air force said.
‘Orcs’ had fired.
13 missiles and.
29 attack drones.
The ‘elves’ air force said.
Seven cruise missiles.
And 22 drones.
Were shot down.
Lviv’s Mayor said.
Some buildings.
Were struck.
Near the railway station.
And Lviv regional administration head.
Said residential buildings.
Had been damaged.
In the attack.
Lviv has largely been.
Spared the worst of.
The fighting over.
The two and a half years of war.
But last week.
‘Orcs’ strikes targeted.
Its energy infrastructure.
Causing outages.
‘Gandalf the Green’ renewed.
His calls for ‘elves’ Western allies.
To all their long-range weapons.
To be fired further into ‘Mordor’.
The attack on Lviv.
In the far west of Ukraine.
Came as all of Ukraine was.
Under air raid alert.
Witnesses said.
The city was targeted.
At about 05:40.
In the heart of Lviv.
Lviv’s Mayor said.
‘Orcs’ attack had damaged.
More than 50 buildings.
In the historic heart of Lviv.
Including homes.
Schools and clinics.
He posted a picture.
On social media.
Of a local family.
Saying that.
Only the father.
Had survived.
His wife and.
Their three daughters.
All died.
In their own home.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Seven dead in Lviv in fresh wave of strikes on Ukraine (bbc.com)
No.10
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS UNBALANCED IN NOVOHRODIVKA
‘Orcs’ troops advanced into.
The village of Novohrodivka.
In eastern Ukraine.
On Wednesday.
That puts them within.
Five miles of Pokrovsk.
A main objective of ‘orcs’.
Nearly yearlong eastern offensive.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
The ‘elves’ military doesn’t.
Have many extra troops.
To deploy to.
The Pokrovsk front.
Many of the spare.
Brigades it had.
A month ago are.
Now participating.
In ‘elves’ surprise invasion.
Of ‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
‘Elves’ leaders.
Are finally beginning to.
Grasp the urgency.
Of the balance.
Of forces.
On the Pokrovsk axis.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
The coming battle for Pokrovsk.
A city with a pre-war population.
Of 60,000.
—many of whom have now fled—
Is actually an extension.
Of the battle for Avdiivka.
That ended in an ‘elves’ retreat.
In February.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
Avdiivka.
24 miles east.
Of Pokrovsk.
Was a fortress.
That protected.
The settlements.
Railroads and.
Roads to the west.
When the ‘elves’ garrison.
In Avdiivka.
Ran out of.
Ammunition in mid-February.
And fled.
It left the logistical infrastructure.
To the west exposed.
To ‘orcs’ assaults.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
Yes, those assaults.
Have been extremely costly.
To the ‘orcs’.
But ‘Mordor’ has been willing to.
Trade thousands of lives and.
Hundreds of armored vehicles.
For a shot at Pokrovsk.
— and for good reason.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
Pokrovsk is situated.
At a crucial crossroads.
Of multiple railroad lines.
It has become a key delivery.
And railroad distribution hub.
Facilitating the supply of.
‘Elves’ force.
Across a broad frontline.
From Vuhledar to the north of.
Donetsk and beyond.
As of today.
The situation around Pokrovsk.
Is dire and dangerous.
With the potential to create.
A serious operational catastrophe.
If the town is lost.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
In taking Pokrovsk.
‘Orcs’ could weaken.
‘Elves’ defenses.
All along the eastern front line.
— a critical precondition for.
A wider ‘orcs’ advance that could.
Result in the full occupation.
Of Donetsk Oblast.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
When the ‘elves’ command.
Headed by the Gen..
Opted to invade Kursk.
With a strong force.
Of thousands of troops.
Drawn from eight or.
More brigades.
It surprised some observers.
Why weren’t those troops.
Reinforcing Pokrovsk, instead?
One generous reading of,
‘Elves’ strategy in Kursk is.
That the invasion was meant.
To draw ‘orcs’ regiments.
Away from the east.
Relieving the pressure on Pokrovsk.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
Instead of rushing.
Its best troops.
Into Kursk to blunt.
The ‘elves’ advance.
‘Mordor’ scraped together.
A motley counter-invasion force.
Including many young.
And poorly trained conscripts.
These reinforcements.
Have slowed.
But not halted.
The ‘elves’ invasion.
More importantly.
For ‘orcs’ strategy.
They’ve allowed ‘orcs’ to keep.
Its eastern forces intact.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
The result.
Three weeks into.
‘Elves’ invasion.
Of Kursk is.
That the ‘orcs’ offensive.
In the east is.
Not only continuing.
— it’s gaining momentum.
“The situation is.
Extremely difficult.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ conceded.
On Wednesday.
The six or so ‘elves’ brigades.
Defending Pokrovsk are.
Outnumbered around.
Two-to-one.
Without help.
They might have no choice.
But to surrender Pokrovsk.
— and soon.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
If Ukraine’s Invasion Of Russia’s Kursk Oblast Was A Diversion, It Has Failed (forbes.com)
What the fall of Pokrovsk could mean for Ukraine (substack.com)
No.11
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN NEW YORK
The ‘elves’ army’s.
53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Raised a flag atop.
A ruined grain elevator.
In the town of New York.
In eastern ‘elves’.
Donetsk Oblast.
On Friday or Saturday.
The banner signals.
The return of.
‘Elves’ forces to.
Central New York.
A month after.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Mostly captured.
The town.
It’s not an isolated incident.
‘Elves’ troops are counterattacking.
In several sectors.
Along the eastern front.
Blunting the momentum.
Of an ‘orcs’ offensive.
That kicked off.
Late last year.
And has seen ‘orcs’ forces.
Make gains along.
Several eastern axes.
— most notably.
Capturing Avdiivka.
And then marching.
On Pokrovsk and.
Its vital supply lines.
The ‘elves’ army’s.
53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Raised a flag atop.
A ruined grain elevator.
In the town of New York.
In eastern ‘elves’.
Donetsk Oblast.
On Friday or Saturday.
The banner signals.
The return of.
‘Elves’ forces to.
Central New York.
A month after.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Mostly captured.
The town.
New York lies.
13 miles north.
Of Avdiivka.
On a separate axis of.
‘Orcs’ 30-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
The ‘orcs’ are still.
Advancing in some areas.
This weekend they captured.
Parts of Hrodivka.
Eight miles east.
Of Pokrovsk.
But the scattered.
‘Elves’ counterattacks.
Complicate ‘orcs’ planning.
— and offer the ‘elves’.
A glimmer of hope.
In the east.
In the ninth month of.
A long, hard year for them.
A shortage of.
‘Elves’ troops led.
To New York’s capture.
Last month.
The shortage was.
In part the result of.
The controversial decision.
By ‘elves’ top leaders.
To invade ‘Mordor’’s.
Kursk Oblast with.
A strong force drawn from.
Eight or so ‘elves’ brigades.
The ‘elves’ army’s.
53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Raised a flag atop.
A ruined grain elevator.
In the town of New York.
In eastern ‘elves’.
Donetsk Oblast.
On Friday or Saturday.
The banner signals.
The return of.
‘Elves’ forces to.
Central New York.
A month after.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Mostly captured.
The town.
Last year.
The national guard.
Expanded and strengthened.
Several of its brigades.
Lumping them together.
Into a so-called “offensive guard”.
That includes.
The 12th Azov Brigade.
As well as the Kara-Dag Brigade.
Which recently took up.
Positions south of Pokrovsk.
And promptly counterattacked.
The influx of.
National guard troops led to.
New York’s partial liberation.
This weekend.
Bolstered by.
The Azov troopers.
The army’s 53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Was able to go on.
The attack with.
Its T-72.
And T-64 tanks.
And BMP fighting vehicles.
The battle is far from over.
Combat engagements persisted.
In the northern and eastern.
Parts of New York.
North of New York and.
In the eastern part of Nelipivka.
which abuts New York.
To the north.
The ‘elves’ army’s.
53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Raised a flag atop.
A ruined grain elevator.
In the town of New York.
In eastern ‘elves’.
Donetsk Oblast.
On Friday or Saturday.
The banner signals.
The return of.
‘Elves’ forces to.
Central New York.
A month after.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Mostly captured.
The town.
At the same time.
The 53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Was fighting its way.
Into central New York.
‘Orcs’ forces were marching.
Into Pivnichne.
On the eastern edge of.
The city of Toretsk.
Two miles north.
Of New York.
Today the eastern front line.
Is a patchwork.
Today the eastern front line.
Is a patchwork.
Of ‘orcs’ attacks.
And ‘elves’ counterattacks.
— and a mix of.
Small losses and.
Small gains.
For Ukraine.
Still, that mixed news.
Is the best news.
‘Elves’ eastern forces.
Have gotten in months.
The ‘elves’ army’s.
53rd Mechanized Brigade.
Raised a flag atop.
A ruined grain elevator.
In the town of New York.
In eastern ‘elves’.
Donetsk Oblast.
On Friday or Saturday.
The banner signals.
The return of.
‘Elves’ forces to.
Central New York.
A month after.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Mostly captured.
The town.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Boosted By The National Guard, the Ukrainian Army Is Counterattacking (forbes.com)
No.12
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS THREATENING IN SELYDOVE
Potentially hundreds of.
‘Elves’ troops from.
Four brigades are holding.
A vulnerable salient.
South of Pokrovsk.
An ‘elves’ stronghold that sits.
Astride critical supply lines.
In Donetsk Oblast in eastern Ukraine.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
For days.
Some experts have been.
Advising the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
— 30 square miles.
Stretching between.
The village of Ukrainsk and.
The Vovcha River to the east —
To retreat.
In order to avoid.
Getting surrounded.
Cut off and destroyed.
By an ‘orcs’ force.
With a fourfold advantage.
In troops.
And equipment.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
On Wednesday.
They fought.
— and won —
A brutal skirmish.
At a key road and.
Rail intersection between.
The salient and the main.
‘Elves’ sector to the north.
The fight developed.
When at least.
Two ‘orcs’ vehicles.
Seemingly including.
A BTR wheeled armored.
Personnel carrier and.
An MT-LB.
Armored tractor.
Raced along.
The main east-west road.
Into Selydove.
An ‘elves’-held settlement.
That anchors.
The front line.
Between Pokrovsk.
And Ukrainsk.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
It’s obvious why.
The ‘orcs’ central grouping.
Of forces wants to.
Infiltrate Selydove.
— and equally obvious why.
The ‘elves’ are determined.
To hold fast.
In the town.
As long as the ‘elves’.
Hold out in the salient.
To the south.
They pose a threat.
To the left flank of.
The ‘orcs’ 2nd.
Combined Arms Army.
And 90th Tank Division.
— the main units.
Within the local ‘orcs’.
Grouping of forces.
— as they roll toward Pokrovsk.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
“Over the past week.
The command of the center grouping.
Especially the 2nd Army.
And 90th Tank Division.”
“Have shifted.
Their main focus from.
Directly targeting Pokrovsk.
To pushing towards Selydove.”
“And the surrounding areas.
To the east.
And southeast.”
Was reported on Sunday.
“If they succeed.
It will allow them.
To advance further.
On Pokrovsk.”
“And secure the left flank.
Of the forces.
Moving in.
From the south.”
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
The ‘elves’ are trying to.
Ensure the ‘orcs’ don’t succeed.
— and are apparently fighting.
To preserve the salient.
South of Pokrovsk.
In order to maintain.
The threat to.
The ‘orcs’ left flank.
As those ‘orcs’ vehicles.
Rolled into the eastern edge.
Of Selydove.
On Wednesday.
An ‘elves’ drone.
Spotted them.
And an ‘elves’ tank.
— likely a T-64.
From the recently deployed.
Kara-Dag brigade of.
The ‘elves’ national guard.
— moved to intercept from the west.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
The BTR managed.
To disembark.
A squad of a dozen.
Or so infantry.
In what the crew.
Must have believed was.
A safe position:
The road underpass.
Beneath the local.
North-south railway.
But the infantry were still.
Huddled next to the BTR.
When the ‘elves’ tank.
Hit the vehicle.
With a 125-millimeter.
Cannon round.
Damaging the BTR.
And apparently wounding.
Or killing some of the infantry.
The damaged BTR.
Soon had company:
What may have been.
An MT-LB.
But the MT-LB.
Took a hit, too.
— and was on fire.
As the ‘elves’ tank crawled up.
To the underpass.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
The ‘elves’ clearly aren’t.
willing to lose the roads.
And rails connecting Pokrovsk.
To Selydove to Ukrainsk.
And to the adjacent salient.
— not as long as they’re still.
Actively fighting for Pokrovsk.
And not just planning their retreat.
So the three-person crew.
Of that T-64 hit.
The burning MT-LB.
At point-blank range with.
Another 125-millimeter round.
— and then proceeded to shove.
The flaming wreckage clear of.
The overhead rail bridge.
But the ‘elves’.
In the salient.
Aren’t quite ready.
To quit.
The outcome was clear.
The ‘orcs’ assault failed.
With heavy losses.
In people and equipment.
And for the moment.
At least.
The ‘elves’ positions.
Were intact.
And the roads.
Connecting them were clear.
For now, Pokrovsk holds.
— and so does the salient to the south.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Fighting For Pokrovsk, a Ukrainian Tank Hit a Vehicle From Feet Away (forbes.com)
No.13
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS NABBING
There’s a road underpass.
On the eastern edge of Selydove.
A town in eastern Ukraine.
Just south of Pokrovsk.
— the latter, a key ‘elves’ stronghold —
That’s fast becoming.
The locus of the brutal fighting.
In the town.
On Wednesday.
A pair of ‘orcs’ armored vehicles.
Dropped off their infantry.
At the underpass.
— and promptly got blasted.
By an ‘elves’ T-64 tank.
Firing from just.
A few yards away.
A day later.
The crew of a similar.
‘Elves’ tank.
— or maybe.
Even the same one —
Pulled off.
A daring heist.
At the same underpass.
The tankers discovered.
An abandoned.
‘Orcs’ T-72 tank.
— and stole it.
This is not the first time.
‘Elves’ forces have nabbed.
An intact but abandoned.
‘Orcs’ T-72.
In any event.
The tank was a ripe prize.
For anyone brave.
Enough to recover it.
In April.
‘Elves’ troops from.
The 12th Azov Brigade.
Staged a three-day operation.
To swap out the batteries.
In an immobilized.
T-72 and drive it across.
The eastern no-man’s-land.
To the safety of.
‘Elves’ lines around Terny.
What’s special about.
The Thursday heist is.
That it mostly occurred.
Under armor.
Selydove is an extremely.
Dangerous place right now.
As the ‘orcs’ 2nd.
Combined Arms Army.
Closes in.
Aiming to flank Pokrovsk.
This is not the first time.
‘Elves’ forces have nabbed.
An intact but abandoned.
‘Orcs’ T-72.
In any event.
The tank was a ripe prize.
For anyone brave.
Enough to recover it.
So the ‘elves’ tankers.
Towed away the T-72.
Using their own.
T-64 as the tractor.
A drone from.
The ‘elves’ national guard’s.
Kara-Dag Brigade.
Was watching when.
On Thursday.
That T-72 rolled up.
To the underpass.
And sheltered.
Amid the wreckage.
From Wednesday’s skirmish.
In the same location.
The ‘orcs’ tank fired.
The up-armored, camouflaged.
‘Orcs’ tank fired.
At least one.
125-millimeter round.
At something to the north.
And then, shockingly.
The three crew bailed out.
Of the 46-ton tank.
At least one.
‘Elves’ FPV drone.
Targeted the fleeing.
‘Orcs’ tankers.
This is not the first time.
‘Elves’ forces have nabbed.
An intact but abandoned.
‘Orcs’ T-72.
In any event.
The tank was a ripe prize.
For anyone brave.
Enough to recover it.
It’s unclear.
Why the ‘orcs’.
Abandoned their.
Undamaged T-72.
It’s possible.
The vehicle suffered.
Some kind of mechanical failure.
— perhaps an engine problem.
In the April heist.
The sheer density of.
Buried mines made.
The no-man’s-land.
Extremely dangerous.
For armored vehicles.
From either side:
It was safer.
Although hardly safe.
To send soldiers on foot.
To fetch the abandoned T-72.
— albeit only at night.
But mines are apparently.
Less of a threat in Selydove.
Battlefield conditions favored.
An under-armor recovery.
This is not the first time.
‘Elves’ forces have nabbed.
An intact but abandoned.
‘Orcs’ T-72.
In any event.
The tank was a ripe prize.
For anyone brave.
Enough to recover it.
The Kara-Dag Brigade’s.
42-ton T-64s.
Have been roaming the town.
With unusual freedom.
Even in broad daylight.
— perhaps compensating.
For an extreme shortage.
Of infantry.
That has vexed.
The entire ‘elves’ military.
In recent months.
In recent months.
The T-64’s three crew.
Spotted the unoccupied.
‘Orcs’ T-72 and.
Rushed into action.
The drone continued.
To observe as.
Under the cover of.
A smoke screen.
The ‘elves’ attached.
A towing cable.
To the T-72.
A video montage released.
By the Kara-Dag Brigade.
Ends with the T-64 dragging.
The T-72 away to the west.
— toward the main ‘elves’ line.
This is not the first time.
‘Elves’ forces have nabbed.
An intact but abandoned.
‘Orcs’ T-72.
In any event.
The tank was a ripe prize.
For anyone brave.
Enough to recover it.
Losing one tank won’t doom.
‘Orcs’ 11-month offensive.
Along the axis.
From Avdiivka to Pokrovsk.
By the same token.
The ‘elves’ nabbing one tank.
Won’t save Pokrovsk.
Or surrounding towns.
From destruction and capture.
By an ‘orcs’ field army.
That’s four times bigger than.
The local ‘elves’ garrison.
But Thursday’s tank heist.
Is still a win for Ukraine.
Perhaps most importantly.
It’s a morale-booster.
— a demonstration of the kind.
Of courage and ingenuity.
The ‘elves’ will need to eventually win.
The ongoing battle for Pokrovsk.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
A Ukrainian Tank Crew Staged A Daring Heist — Stealing A Russian T-72 (forbes.com)
No.14
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN VIROLIUBIVKA
The International Committee of.
The Red Cross says.
Three of its workers.
Have been killed.
And two others injured.
In a strike.
In eastern Ukraine.
The ICRC did not identify.
The ICRC did not identify.
Who was behind the attack.
But called it.
“Unconscionable”.
That “shelling would hit.
An aid distribution site”.
The ICRC did not identify.
Who was behind the attack.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Posted a photo of.
What he says is.
The scene of the attack.
Earlier, ‘Gandalf the Green’.
Said those killed.
Were ‘elves’ and blamed.
‘Orcs’ for the shelling.
Calling it.
“Another ‘orcs’ war crime”.
Calling it.
“Another ‘orcs’ war crime”.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Posted a photo of.
What he says is.
The scene of the attack.
The agency said.
Its vehicles are clearly marked.
And operate regularly.
In the frontline region of Donetsk.
“I condemn attacks.
On Red Cross personnel.
In the strongest terms.”
Said the agency's president.
“Our hearts are broken today.
As we mourn the loss.
Of our colleagues.
And care for the injured.”
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Posted a photo of.
What he says is.
The scene of the attack.
The ICRC said.
Its team had been.
Preparing to distribute.
Wood and coal briquettes.
To homes.
In Viroliubivka village.
North of Donetsk city.
When it was hit.
The distribution of the goods.
Had not begun yet.
And no residents were.
Affected by the explosion.
It did not confirm.
Any details about.
The identities of.
Those killed.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Posted a photo of.
What he says is.
The scene of the attack.
Earlier, ‘elves’ officials.
Had reported shelling.
In Viroliubivka and said.
Workers had been unloading.
Supplies when the attack happened.
In a post on social media.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Blamed an ‘orcs’ strike.
He shared a photo of.
A white truck in flames.
Branded with the Red Cross logo.
On its side.
“Today, the occupier.
Attacked the vehicles of.
The International Committee of.
The Red Cross humanitarian mission.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Red Cross says three staff killed in shelling in eastern Ukraine (bbc.com)
No.15
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS WELL EARNED
When ‘elves’ forces.
Launched their much-heralded.
—and later much-maligned—
Southern counteroffensive.
In June 2023.
The army’s 47th.
Mechanized Brigade.
Was out in front.
Struggling through.
Dense ‘orcs’ minefields.
In its ex-Finnish.
Leopard 2R breaching vehicles.
Ex-European.
Leopard 2A6 tanks.
And ex-American.
M-2 infantry fighting vehicles.
It was a costly.
Counteroffensive for.
The elite, NATO-trained.
47th Mechanized Brigade.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
In months of.
Difficult attacks.
It lost almost all.
Of its Leopard 2Rs.
In months of.
Difficult attacks.
It lost several.
Of its Leopard 2A6s.
And dozens of its M-2s.
—not to mention.
Potentially hundreds of.
Its 2,000 troopers.
But all that.
Hard fighting didn’t.
Earn the brigade.
A break.
—at least, not.
For another year.
—at least, not.
For another year.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
In early September.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Finally left.
The front line.
In eastern ‘elves’ Donetsk Oblast.
And redeployed to.
The relative safety.
Of Pavlohrad.
60 miles west.
Of Pokrovsk.
The current locus of.
The ‘orcs’ offensive in Donetsk.
There, the 47th.
Mechanized Brigade is.
Apparently inducting.
Fresh troops.
Repairing battle-damaged equipment.
And — perhaps most critically —
Preparing to take delivery.
Of fresh M-2s from the U.S..
One of the ‘elves’ army’s.
Best brigades is.
Getting more of.
Its best vehicles.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
It’s surely no coincidence.
That around the same time.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Finally departed the Pokrovsk front.
The U.S. government.
Announced a 0-million.
Package of military aid.
For Ukraine.
That includes an unspecified number.
Of the tracked, 33-ton M-2s.
Which carry up to 10 people.
— three crew and seven infantry —
And pack powerful 25-millimeter.
Autocannons plus TOW anti-tank missiles.
And reactive armor blocks.
To boost their protection.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
It’s unclear how many.
Of the 1990s-vintage.
Bradleys are in the latest.
American aid package.
Previous packages included.
In total.
Around 300 of.
The multi-million-dollar IFVs.
It wouldn’t be surprising.
If the recent aid.
Includes dozens.
Of M-2s.
The Americans can.
Certainly spare them:
Thousands of surplus U.S. Army.
Bradleys are in storage in the U.S..
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Was — and still is —
Badly in need of.
Fresh vehicles.
After losing many of.
Its Leopard 2A6 tanks.
And most of.
Its Leopard 2R breaching vehicles.
Last year.
The brigade traded away.
The surviving tanks.
To a different brigade.
And inducted, as replacements.
31 M-1 Abrams tanks.
And six or so Assault Breachers.
From the United States.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
But the brigade replaced.
Dozens of destroyed.
And captured Bradleys.
With more Bradleys.
With more Bradleys.
Underscoring the growing.
Importance of the vehicle.
In ‘elves’ service.
Of all the various.
Combat vehicles.
The ‘elves’ have received.
From their allies.
From their allies.
In the 30 months since.
‘Orcs’ widened its war.
On Ukraine.
The M-2.
— with its balance of mobility.
Protection and firepower —
Might be their favorite.
“Works like a clock.”
One experienced.
Bradley commander said.
“Works like a clock.”
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
For the 47th Mechanized Brigade.
The Bradley is.
A blessing.
And a curse.
The brigade is the only.
‘Elves’ unit we know.
For sure operates.
M-2s.
At full strength.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Should have around.
100 Bradleys in three battalions.
It’s because it has M-2s.
That the general staff in Kyiv.
Keeps sending the 47th.
Mechanized Brigade into action.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
When a powerful ‘orcs’ force.
Launched an offensive along.
The Avdiivka-Pokrovsk axis.
In October.
The generals ordered the 47th.
Mechanized Brigade to hurry.
From southern Ukraine to eastern Ukraine.
— and join the defense.
Four months later.
Avdiivka fell.
As its ammunition-starved.
Garrison retreated.
As its ammunition-starved.
Garrison retreated.
Partly under the cover.
Of the M-2s’ autocannons.
The eastern front line.
Briefly stabilized and.
In April.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade was.
Finally preparing to depart.
The front line for its.
First unit-wide rest.
In nine months.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
But then the ‘orcs’.
Broke through ‘elves’ defenses.
Around the village.
Of Ocheretyne.
Launching a steady westward march.
That would ultimately.
Bring them to within six miles.
Of Pokrovsk.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Turned around and.
Rejoined the fight.
Around Ocheretyne.
— and kept fighting.
As the ‘orcs’ advanced.
— and kept fighting.
As the ‘orcs’ advanced.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
Five months later.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Had lost most of.
Its Assault Breachers.
A third of its Abrams.
And another.
20 or so of.
Its Bradleys.
Even with the hard work.
Of a front-line repair battalion.
Turning wrenches to speed battered.
M-2s back into battle.
The 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Is apparently.
Running low on.
Fully operational Bradleys.
That should change.
As the brigade.
Settles into.
Its long-delayed break.
And extra M-2s.
Arrive by ship.
Arrive by train.
And arrive by truck.
How long the 47th.
Mechanized Brigade will.
Get to rest and reset.
Is hard to predict.
The ‘orcs’ are still advancing.
Toward Pokrovsk and also.
Making small gains.
North and south of the city.
When the ‘orcs’.
Break through ‘elves’ lines.
Commanders in Kyiv.
Tend to ask.
Where the 47th.
Mechanized Brigade is.
Where the 47th.
Mechanized Brigade is.
Another emergency could.
Compel the brigade to.
Pile into its Bradleys and.
Roll east toward the front.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
To Keep the 47th Brigade Fighting For 15 Months, the USA Sent 300 M-2s (forbes.com)
No.16
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS FLEEING A TOP PRIORITY
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
After stubbornly.
Staying on.
In the east ‘elves’ city.
Of Pokrovsk.
A 69-year-old.
Is now heeding.
Advice and.
Preparing to leave.
“My heart stops.
When I hear a bang.”
She tells you.
Crying.
She’s holding.
An old push-button phone.
Where emergency contacts.
Are saved.
The front line is.
Less than 8km.
From Pokrovsk.
From her home.
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
The head of the city’s.
Military administration says.
That ‘orcs’ target the city.
Not just with ballistic missiles.
And multiple rocket launchers.
- they also now strike with.
Guided bombs.
And even artillery.
As the city is.
Now within.
The range of.
Those weapons too.
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
Volunteers help her.
To get on an evacuation bus.
Trains no longer.
Run here.
Pokrovsk is a key.
Transportation hub.
If it falls.
Then ‘orcs’ forces will.
Cut off one of.
The main supply routes.
In the region.
This will likely.
Force Ukraine to.
Retreat from Chasiv Yar.
And the front line will.
Move closer to Kramatorsk.
For Ukraine.
This would effectively mean.
The loss of almost.
The entire Donetsk region.
Which ‘Mordor’.
Has fought to capture.
Since the beginning.
Of their invasion.
The ‘elves’ military admits.
That its incursion into.
‘Mordor’’s Kursk region.
Failed to force ‘the One’.
To divert its troops.
From eastern Ukraine.
And some observers.
Argue that this move.
Which certainly helped to boost.
Morale among the soldiers.
Left the strategic supply route.
Vulnerable to ‘orcs’ attacks.
On Sunday.
‘Orcs’ claimed to have taken.
Control of the village.
Of Novohrodivka.
Just 10km.
From Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces have.
Retreated from there.
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
The space on.
The evacuation bus.
Quickly fills up.
Quickly fills up.
A woman with.
A five-year old daughter.
Climbs on board.
This is their second evacuation.
The first time.
It was in 2022.
When they fled from.
A border town.
After ‘orcs’ launched.
Its full-scale invasion.
Of Ukraine.
It was in 2022.
According to the head of.
Pokrovsk’s military administration.
The ratio of forces fighting.
In that direction is.
10 to one.
In ‘orcs’ favour.
This city is clearly.
‘The One’’s top priority.
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
During its latest attack.
‘Orcs’ hit a substation.
In Pokrovsk.
Leaving half the city without power.
The strikes also.
Disrupted water supplies.
The city is quickly.
Becoming deserted.
Just two months ago.
48,000 people were.
Still living here.
Today half of them have already left.
The bustling downtown.
With shops and supermarkets.
Is eerily quiet.
Is eerily quiet.
Banks are closed.
Supermarkets are closed.
Most cafes are closed.
The hospital has been evacuated.
Outside the city.
Excavators are digging.
New trenches.
In the fields.
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
The evacuation bus.
With the woman and.
Her cats on board.
Is full.
They have to take.
A new route as the bridge.
On the way out of town.
Is damaged by the ‘orcs’ strikes.
As the bus starts moving.
People wave through.
The windows and.
Wipe their tears away.
For her, this is.
A scary journey.
Full of uncertainties.
But she knows one thing.
– it will be safer.
In her new home.
Than remaining.
At the front line.
Fleeing the town.
She has lived.
In most of her life.
A woman is taking.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
Just one small bag.
And her two tiny kittens.
“Look what ‘orcs’.
Did to us.
I worked here.
For 30 years.”
“And now I am.
Leaving everything behind.”
She says, breaking down.
In tears.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Russian invaders close in on Pokrovsk (bbc.com)
No.17
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN A PATCHWORK
However, ‘elf’ commander-in-chief.
Says that the army has managed.
To stop the ‘orcs’ advancement.
Towards Pokrovsk.
A battalion commander of.
The 110th brigade.
Said that the front line.
On the northern flank.
Of ‘orcs’ assault.
On Pokrovsk.
Had indeed.
Been stabilised.
However, ‘orcs’ attacks.
Are mostly focused on.
The southern flank, he says.
Where heavy battles are continuing.
One of the areas.
On that flank that.
‘Orcs’ are trying to seize.
Is Selidove.
A small town.
South-east of Pokrovsk.
The 15th Brigade of.
The National Guard defends it.
Relentless ‘orcs’ attacks.
Give them no respite.
“Prepare for action!”
The unit commander orders.
After receiving coordinates.
Of a new target.
All crew members rush to.
An old American M-101 howitzer.
This type of gun was used.
In World War Two.
Now ‘elves’ fire it.
To stop ‘orcs’ attacks.
The commander shouts “Fire!”
And pulls the rope.
The explosion is deafening.
The gun is covered with smoke.
The fighting.
In his sector.
Is very intense.
Says the 31-year-old commander.
“The enemy attacks.
In groups of up to.
15 people.
Sometimes up to 60.”
“We fire up to.
200 rounds a day.
To repel them.”
This is a big change.
This is a big change.
To last winter when.
Big guns stayed silent.
For most of the day.
But the more.
They shell the ‘orcs’ positions.
The greater.
The risk of return fire.
So, after each series of rounds.
They head to a dugout.
To wait out.
‘Orcs’ counter barrage.
And when they hear.
A loud thud.
In the distance.
They go quiet.
“A glide bomb.”
One of the soldiers mutters.
It’s this weapon.
That they fear the most.
It has a devastating effect.
And the gunners.
Have nowhere.
To hide from it.
The commander gives.
An evasive answer when asked.
Whether it would be more useful.
To use ‘elves’ forces.
Involved in the Kursk operation.
To defend the Donbas region instead.
“Commanders have a better view.
To make strategic decisions.”
However, ‘elf’ commander-in-chief.
Says that the army has managed.
To stop the ‘orcs’ advancement.
Towards Pokrovsk.
A battalion commander of.
The 110th brigade.
Said that the front line.
On the northern flank.
Of ‘orcs’ assault.
On Pokrovsk.
Had indeed.
Been stabilised.
However, ‘orcs’ attacks.
Are mostly focused on.
The southern flank, he says.
Where heavy battles are continuing.
The front line here.
Can move quickly.
Sometimes it can be a total.
Surprise for ‘elves’ forces.
Last month.
A group of seven soldiers.
Of the 68th Brigade.
Started their shift.
At the forward position.
In the village of Komyshivka.
15km west.
Of Selidove.
Their task was to stop.
Any attempts of.
‘Orcs’ forces.
To break through.
The next day.
However, they were encircled.
By the ‘orcs’ forces.
Thanks to extremely brave drivers.
And the negligence of.
‘Orcs’ soldiers.
They were evacuated.
Three days later.
However, ‘elf’ commander-in-chief.
Says that the army has managed.
To stop the ‘orcs’ advancement.
Towards Pokrovsk.
A battalion commander of.
The 110th brigade.
Said that the front line.
On the northern flank.
Of ‘orcs’ assault.
On Pokrovsk.
Had indeed.
Been stabilised.
However, ‘orcs’ attacks.
Are mostly focused on.
The southern flank, he says.
Where heavy battles are continuing.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Russian invaders close in on Pokrovsk (bbc.com)
No.18
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET OUT OF “CAULDRONS”
The situation is critical.
An ‘elf’ military officer.
In the east said.
Near the front line.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Orcs’ military strategy.
Now appears.
To be surrounding.
The city.
Which is a key.
Transportation hub.
In the region.
The officer said.
His military leadership.
Want to hold their positions.
At all costs.
Often leading to the loss.
Of troops and resources.
That approach, he says.
Was resulting.
In a number of “cauldrons”.
Large territories.
Surrounded by.
The ‘orcs’ forces.
One of them is.
South of Pokrovsk.
— between Nevelske.
Hirnyk and Krasnohorivka.
“We are not planning.
To advance towards.
The city of Donetsk.
Any time soon.”
“So why are we holding.
Positions near Nevelske.
When we’re losing Hirnyk?”
Said the officer.
Far better to retreat.
To Hirnyk, he believes.
With a minimum loss.
Of resources.
And hold those positions.
“When your enemy has.
More people and resources.
Than you do.”
“This strategy is reckless.”
The ‘elf’ officer added.
“Look at the Donetsk region.
It looks like a squid.”
“To defend all the tentacles.
You need a far bigger.
Number of positions.
Observation posts.”
“You need to hold back.
Far bigger assault groups.
Because the ‘orcs’ are trying.
To attack from all sides.”
So, instead of withdrawing.
And reduce the length of the line.
They need to defend.
The officer says.
Brigades get wiped out.
Fighting along the entire.
Perimeter of the “cauldron”.
Simply because.
Simply because.
The main criteria.
Of success for generals.
Is to hold positions.
One of them is.
South of Pokrovsk.
— between Nevelske.
Hirnyk and Krasnohorivka.
An analyst says ‘elves’ troops.
Have now pulled back from.
The village of Nevelske.
To avoid an encirclement.
That means the threat of.
Being trapped is less acute.
But the military officer.
At the front says.
Pulling back should.
Have been done.
Long before.
Lives and resources.
Have been wasted.
On something that.
They couldn’t hold anyway.
He argues.
One of them is.
South of Pokrovsk.
— between Nevelske.
Hirnyk and Krasnohorivka.
Strategic mistakes made.
In the past mean that.
There is only one way.
Left to defend Pokrovsk.
And stop the ‘orcs’ seizing.
The entire Donetsk region.
According to the officer.
On the front line.
“To have another Bakhmut”.
In his words.
Referring to the city.
In eastern Ukraine that.
Kyiv defended.
For nearly a year.
Before retreating.
With the city in ruins.
“They will throw.
A lot of people and.
Let them die there.”
“To have another Bakhmut”.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Troops fear encirclement in Pokrovsk as Russians near (bbc.com)
No.19
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN KURAKHOVE
‘Orcs’ troops are now.
Advancing towards Kurakhove.
A city 35km.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces in that area.
Confirm the fighting.
In their sectors.
Has intensified lately.
This development is.
Also reflected.
In the daily briefings.
Of ‘elves’ General Staff.
On Thursday they reported.
That there were 32 clashes.
In the Pokrovsk direction and.
48 in the Kurakhove direction.
“They’re trying to strengthen.
Their flanks so that they can.
Get closer to Pokrovsk.
Half encircle it.”
“And then start erasing.
The city to the ground.”
Says Maj from.
The 59th Brigade.
‘Orcs’ troops are now.
Advancing towards Kurakhove.
A city 35km.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces in that area.
Confirm the fighting.
In their sectors.
Has intensified lately.
Lt Col, who commands.
A tank battalion of.
The 110th brigade.
Also says that.
‘Orcs’ forces are now.
Pushing along the sides.
In addition to a direct assault.
On Pokrovsk.
However, he claims.
That the ‘orcs’ are now.
Focusing mostly on.
The southern flank.
– that’s the Kurakhove direction.
‘Orcs’ troops assault.
‘Elves’ positions with.
Small groups.
And often they’re.
Not accompanied by.
Armoured vehicles.
‘Elves’ soldiers say.
‘Orcs’ troops are now.
Advancing towards Kurakhove.
A city 35km.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces in that area.
Confirm the fighting.
In their sectors.
Has intensified lately.
“They send two or three people.
Who try to reach.
A certain point in the field.”
Explains the Maj.
“Then others try to get.
To that point as well.
And when they have.
10-15 people.”
“They try to attack us.”
What makes the Kurakhove area.
Challenging both to defend.
And to advance is that.
It’s flat, says a soldier.
From the 33rd Brigade.
“We constantly shell fields.
‘Orcs’ lose their vehicles and people.”
He says his brigade is.
Successfully holding.
Its position.
On the front line.
‘Orcs’ troops are now.
Advancing towards Kurakhove.
A city 35km.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces in that area.
Confirm the fighting.
In their sectors.
Has intensified lately.
Kurakhove is linked.
To Pokrovsk with road.
That are part of.
The infrastructure.
To move troops and.
Supplies on the front line.
If the ‘orcs’ take.
That city.
Then they can go north.
To attack Pokrovsk.
From a new direction.
Says the analyst.
‘Orcs’ troops are now.
Advancing towards Kurakhove.
A city 35km.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces in that area.
Confirm the fighting.
In their sectors.
Has intensified lately.
Another possibility is.
That they might attack.
‘Elves’ troops in Vuhledar.
From behind, he adds.
That’s a city.
On the southern part.
Of the Donbas frontline.
That the ‘orcs’ have been.
That the ‘orcs’ have been.
Trying to seize.
Since the beginning.
Of their full-scale invasion.
‘Orcs’ troops are now.
Advancing towards Kurakhove.
A city 35km.
South of Pokrovsk.
‘Elves’ forces in that area.
Confirm the fighting.
In their sectors.
Has intensified lately.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine war: Troops fear encirclement in Pokrovsk as Russians near (bbc.com)
No.20
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN THE KREMINNA FOREST
“Five-star” is how one of.
The prisoners rated his capture.
“I think we were captured.
Beautifully,” another said.
This summer.
‘Elves’ national guardsmen.
From the 12th Azov Brigade.
Liberated a small section.
Of the Kreminna Forest.
In eastern Ukraine.
For the most part.
The brigade fought.
Like it usually fights:
With swift, violent.
Infantry assaults.
But in one case.
A team of Azov guardsmen.
Posing as ‘orcs’ soldiers.
Tricked three ‘orcs’ into.
Surrendering without a fight.
— and captured the whole farce.
On video.
Even the ‘orcs’.
Were impressed.
“Five-star” is how one of.
The prisoners rated his capture.
“I think we were captured.
Beautifully,” another said.
The three ‘orcs’.
Held a trench presumably.
At the forward edge.
Of the battlefield.
— two from the 153rd.
Tank Regiment and.
One from the 69th.
Covering Brigade —
They were a border patrol unit.
Their commander had left.
To look for food …
And never came back.
The three men.
In the trench said.
They assumed.
He’d been wounded.
They didn’t have a radio.
— and besides, ‘elves’ jamming.
Made communication difficult.
Even with a fully charged radio.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
A 52-year-old rifleman.
With the 153rd.
Tank Regiment.
Took the kettle.
And left the trench.
To fetch water.
That’s when he met.
Three soldiers.
Who appeared ‘orcs’, because.
They spoke ‘orcs’ language.
And were presumably dressed.
In ‘orcs’-style uniforms.
The Azov troopers played.
The role of ‘orcs’ air assault.
Reconnaissance troops who.
They claimed, had been sent.
By the ‘orcs’ command.
To locate the three.
Lonely ‘orcs’.
In their isolated trench.
The ‘elves’ feigned irritation.
“Why do we have to go.
And look for you here?
Don't we have anything else to do?”
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The other ‘orcs’.
Left their trench unarmed.
In order to meet.
Their supposed allies.
The ‘elves’ made small talk.
With the three ‘orcs’.
— mocking their absent commander.
And claiming he’d called the three “idiots”.
— and then distracted.
The hungry ‘orcs’.
With a Snickers bar.
Split three ways.
And then punchline to.
This elaborate joke.
“You've ended up.
In the hands of.”
“You've ended up.
In the hands of.
A purebred ‘elf’.”
One of the Azov troopers said.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The ‘elves’ instructed.
The ‘orcs' to lie down.
And put their hands.
Behind their heads.
“Behave well.”
One ‘elf’ said.
“Everything will be fine.”
“Everything will be fine.”
Back at the Azov base.
The ‘orcs’ prisoners.
Feasted on coffee, sausages.
Buns, waffles and fruit.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The three ‘orcs’ were.
Hungry and thirsty.
The rifleman recalled how.
He’d wound up in the army.
— and then far from home.
In Ukraine.
He said he was drinking.
At a friend’s bar.
In Moscow when recruiters.
Rolled up in a van.
And forced him.
To sign an army contract.
His training was worse.
Than cursory, he said.
Asked to rate it.
From one to 10.
He said, “Zero.”
That might explain.
His ambivalence.
Toward his captivity.
“Mom, brother, I’m fine.”
He said, addressing.
He said, addressing.
His family back home.
“Everything’s okay.”
“Everything’s okay.”
“Five-star” is how one of.
The prisoners rated his capture.
“I think we were captured.
Beautifully,” another said.
This summer.
‘Elves’ national guardsmen.
From the 12th Azov Brigade.
Liberated a small section.
Of the Kreminna Forest.
In eastern Ukraine.
For the most part.
The brigade fought.
Like it usually fights:
With swift, violent.
Infantry assaults.
But in one case.
A team of Azov guardsmen.
Posing as ‘orcs’ soldiers.
Tricked three ‘orcs’ into.
Surrendering without a fight.
— and captured the whole farce.
On video.
Even the ‘orcs’.
Were impressed.
“Five-star” is how one of.
The prisoners rated his capture.
“I think we were captured.
Beautifully,” another said.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Three Russians, Starving In A Trench, Got Tricked Into Surrendering (forbes.com)
No.21
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IMPLYING JUST OUTSIDE PETROVSKIY
For at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Gathered out.
In the open.
For training.
Or inspection.
Within range of.
‘Elves’ American-made.
Artillery rockets.
And for at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
‘Elves’ batteries hit.
The assembled ‘orcs’.
With rockets.
Packed with.
Hundreds of.
Grenade-sized submunitions.
—inflicting awful carnage.
In an instant.
For at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
And for at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
The most recent strike.
Apparently took place.
This week.
At what seems to be.
An outdoor shooting range.
Just outside.
The Petrovskiy district.
Of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.
15 miles.
From the front line.
A video from the aftermath.
Of the attack depicts.
At least a dozen.
Dead ‘orcs’ troops.
Plus wrecked vehicles.
Strongly implying.
The ‘elves’ rocket or rockets.
— likely GPS-guided.
M30/31s fired by wheeled.
High-Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems —
Rained down.
As the ‘orcs’ were training.
It’s happened before.
— and in the same area.
For at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
And for at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
There’s a roughly.
100-square-mile patch.
Of Donetsk Oblast.
South of Donetsk city.
Where there’s a high concentration.
Of ‘orcs’ troops.
— and a lot of lazy.
‘Orcs’ commanders.
‘Elves’ HIMARS have struck.
‘Orcs’ training grounds.
In this area.
At least three times.
Since February.
Killing around 100 people.
In this area.
At least three times.
Two more ‘elves’.
Rocket strikes.
In the same period.
— one each in southern.
And northeastern Ukraine —
Added at least another.
150 trainees.
To the death toll.
For at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
And for at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
How the ‘elves’ army.
Has pulled off.
These strikes.
Is no secret.
Drones are everywhere.
All the time.
Tens of miles.
In both directions.
Along the 700-mile.
Front line of.
‘Orcs’ 30-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
And all of.
‘Orcs’-occupied Ukraine is.
Within the 57-mile range.
Of M30/31 rocket.
Within the 57-mile range.
Of the 650-pound
M30/31 rocket.
Or within the 190-mile range.
Or within the 190-mile range.
Of the 3,700-pound.
M39 rocket fired by.
‘Elves’ tracked M270 launchers.
For at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
And for at least.
The fifth time.
In a little more than.
Six months.
Ever-present drones.
“Are making it difficult.
To concentrate forces.”
Wrote a fellow.
Guided rockets make.
Those concentrations.
Potentially fatal.
For the troops involved.
‘Orcs’ troops.
Gathered out.
In the open.
For training.
Or inspection.
Within range of.
‘Elves’ American-made.
Artillery rockets.
‘Elves’ batteries hit.
The assembled ‘orcs’.
With rockets.
Packed with.
Hundreds of.
Grenade-sized submunitions.
— inflicting awful carnage.
In an instant.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russian Troops Got Together for Training 15 Miles From The Front Line (forbes.com)
Drones are Transforming the Battlefield in Ukraine But in an Evolutionary Fashion — War on the Rocks
No.22
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS ALL THE WAY TO TOROPETS
In the pre-dawn hours.
On Tuesday.
A large flock of.
‘Elves’ drones winged north.
From Ukraine.
All the way to Toropets.
A town in western ‘Mordor’.
That hosts the 107th Arsenal.
A sprawling ammunition dump.
Feeding the ‘orcs’ force.
Fighting in Ukraine.
300 miles to the south.
The arsenal exploded with.
Enough force to register.
As a small earthquake.
Draw the attention of.
NASA fire-spotting satellites.
And compel local authorities.
To order an evacuation.
Of nearby residents.
In the pre-dawn hours.
On Tuesday.
A large flock of.
‘Elves’ drones winged north.
A lot of ‘orcs’ munitions.
Went up in flames.
Which munitions.
Is unclear.
It has been documented.
That the arsenal stored.
122-millimeter rockets.
82-millimeter mortar bombs.
And 7.62-millimeter.
Ammunition for.
Rifles and.
Machine guns.
But it’s also possible.
The arsenal contained stocks.
Of much more powerful.
And rare weapons.
In the pre-dawn hours.
On Tuesday.
A large flock of.
‘Elves’ drones winged north.
That so many of ‘orcs’.
Best munitions were.
Reportedly concentrated.
In a single location.
Explains why.
Ukraine devoted.
Such a large force.
To the attack.
It was claimed.
More than 100 drones.
Were involved.
— potentially making.
The Toropets raid.
The biggest ‘elves’ strike.
On a target inside ‘Mordor’.
Since ‘orcs’ widened.
Its war on Ukraine.
30 months ago.
Without exaggeration.
This is a very significant achievement.
We’re likely looking at.
The loss of thousands of tons.
Of explosive materials.
Shells and rockets.
In the pre-dawn hours.
On Tuesday.
A large flock of.
‘Elves’ drones winged north.
For Ukraine.
The Toropets raid.
Could represent.
A turning point.
For many months.
Officials in Kyiv have pleaded.
With their European.
And American counterparts.
For permission to use.
Donated long-range munitions.
— British Storm Shadow and.
French SCALP-EG cruise missiles.
And American.
Army Tactical Missile System rockets.
— on targets deep inside ‘Mordor’.
Including munitions stockpiles.
But the Europeans.
And Americans have.
Consistently withheld.
That permission.
Even as the civilian.
Death toll from ‘Mordor’’s.
Own deep strikes.
Has mounted.
In the pre-dawn hours.
On Tuesday.
A large flock of.
‘Elves’ drones winged north.
Clearly frustrated.
The ‘elves’ have doubled down.
On the production of.
Locally-developed weapons.
— drones and missiles —
That they can fire at targets.
Inside ‘Mordor’ without.
Asking anyone’s permission first.
In blowing up.
The Toropets arsenal.
Those homemade weapons.
May have struck.
Their biggest blow yet.
— and saved potentially scores.
Of ‘elves’ lives by.
Preventing future ‘orcs’ attacks.
“A very important result.
Was achieved.”
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
Just hours after Toropets exploded.
In the pre-dawn hours.
On Tuesday.
A large flock of.
‘Elves’ drones winged north.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russia Stockpiled Missiles In Toropets; Ukraine Hit It With 100 Drones (forbes.com)
No.23
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS PERSEVERING WITH FURY
Back in May.
‘Elves’ developers revealed.
A new armed ground robot.
— the Fury.
Four months later.
A Fury has fought.
— and reportedly won —
The type’s first major skirmish.
On or just before Thursday.
One of the four-wheeled.
Shopping-cart-sized.
Furies assaulted a trench.
In ‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
Dodging mines and.
Firing its machine gun.
In coordination with.
Explosive drones and mortars.
The ’bot defeated.
A small group of.
‘Orcs’ soldiers.
“The result:
Part of the enemy.
Was destroyed.
The rest fled.”
The 1st Detachment of.
The 8th Special Purpose Regiment.
The ’bot’s operator.
Announced on social media.
“The robot received.
Several hits.
From RPGs.
And FPVs.”
— rocket-propelled grenades.
And first-person-view drones —
“But persevered, completed the mission.
And returned to recovery.”
Back in May.
‘Elves’ developers revealed.
A new armed ground robot.
— the Fury.
Four months later.
A Fury has fought.
— and reportedly won —
The type’s first major skirmish.
The Fury is.
One of several armed.
Unmanned ground vehicles.
‘Elves’ engineers have developed.
In the 30 months.
Since ‘Mordor’ widened.
Its war on Ukraine.
— and one of the first types.
— and one of the first types.
To see major combat.
A Fury has four wheels.
A radio for receiving.
Operator commands.
Video cameras and.
A remotely-aimed.
Machine gun.
It’s thickly built.
With armor plates.
Protecting its most.
Vulnerable components.
Back in May.
‘Elves’ developers revealed.
A new armed ground robot.
— the Fury.
Four months later.
A Fury has fought.
— and reportedly won —
The type’s first major skirmish.
“The Fury robot attacks.
The ‘orcs’ positions and.
Covers our defenders.
During the assault.”
‘Elf’ innovation minister.
Wrote in May.
“The military liked that.
It was easy to control.”
“And noted the robot’s.
High level of radio and.
Video communication.
As well as its good sight.”
“And automatic fire.
Both day and night.”
The Fury isn’t unique.
The Fury isn’t unique.
— the ‘orcs’ have armed.
Ground robots, too.
But in winning.
And surviving.
But in winning.
And surviving.
Its first big fight.
The Fury stands out.
Back in May.
‘Elves’ developers revealed.
A new armed ground robot.
— the Fury.
Four months later.
A Fury has fought.
— and reportedly won —
The type’s first major skirmish.
Where aerial drones.
Can maneuver freely.
In three dimensions.
Ground drones struggle.
Ground drones struggle.
With the many obstacles.
They routinely encounter.
Even on paved surfaces:
Even on paved surfaces:
Potholes and craters.
Fallen branches.
Steep slopes.
Unpaved surfaces are.
Even more difficult to traverse.
Simply reaching a battlefield.
Is a big challenge.
For an unmanned ground vehicle.
— to say nothing of.
Doing anything useful.
Once it arrives.
The Fury’s developers.
Wisely emphasized mobility.
And gave their ’bot.
Big wheels.
A low center of gravity.
And a high chassis.
With plenty of.
Ground clearance.
Back in May.
‘Elves’ developers revealed.
A new armed ground robot.
— the Fury.
Four months later.
A Fury has fought.
— and reportedly won —
The type’s first major skirmish.
It’s interesting.
Where the Fury fought.
Its first major skirmish:
In the ‘orcs’ village of Volfino.
Just across.
The ‘Mordor’-Ukraine border.
Volfino is.
On the western end.
On the western end.
Of ‘elves’ second major thrust.
Into ‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
Which kicked off last week.
While a large ‘elves’ forces.
Fights to hold.
The 400 square miles.
Of Kursk.
It captured back in August.
A much smaller force — including.
The 8th Special Purpose Regiment.
And its Fury robot —
Is trying to advance into.
Kursk 20 miles.
To the west.
Apparently aiming to.
Apparently aiming to.
Encircle ‘orcs’ forces.
Between it and the main.
‘Elves’ salient.
It’s a long-shot operation.
For an overstretched.
‘Elves’ military.
But it’s got.
A little high-tech help.
In the form of.
At least one gun-armed.
Ground robot.
Back in May.
‘Elves’ developers revealed.
A new armed ground robot.
— the Fury.
Four months later.
A Fury has fought.
— and reportedly won —
The type’s first major skirmish.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukraine’s Gun-Armed Ground 'Bot Just Cleared A Russian Trench In Kursk (forbes.com)
No.24
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS DETERMINING
The ‘orcs’ are determined.
To break through.
‘Elves’ lines.
Outside Kurakhove.
Just west of Donetsk.
In eastern Ukraine.
‘Elves’ lines.
Outside Kurakhove.
On 12 September.
The ‘orcs’ attacked.
With 46 vehicles.
— a record for that sector.
Exactly a week later.
On Thursday.
They broke their own record.
— and attacked with 52 vehicles.
Both attacks failed.
The ‘elves’ 46th.
Air Mobile Brigade.
Holding the line between.
Donetsk in the east.
And Kurakhove in the west.
Fought back with.
Thermite-spewing drones.
Artillery, tanks.
And infantry.
— and destroyed.
Disabled or damaged.
44 of the 98.
Attacking vehicles.
While killing 72 ‘orcs’.
On Thursday alone.
“Whoever of the enemies.
Managed to turn.
Their heels in time.
Consider them lucky.”
The 46th.
Air Mobile Brigade.
Quipped on social media.
“They will live longer.”
This staggering wastage.
Of people and equipment.
Is weighing on the ‘orcs’.
Offensive in the east.
Which is mainly focused.
On capturing.
The ‘elves’ stronghold.
Of Pokrovsk.
20 miles.
Northwest of Kurakhove.
The ‘orcs’ offensive.
Made steady progress.
Starting late last year.
— rolling over the fortress city.
Of Avdiivka and toward Pokrovsk.
In violent fits and starts.
Until last month.
When ‘orcs’ troops.
Were just six or so miles.
Outside Pokrovsk.
Weeks later.
Those same troops.
Are still six miles.
Outside Pokrovsk.
“The ‘orcs’ advance.
On the Pokrovsk direction.
Has slowed.”
A report noted last week.
“Whoever of the enemies.
Managed to turn.
Their heels in time.
Consider them lucky.”
The 46th.
Air Mobile Brigade.
Quipped on social media.
“They will live longer.”
It’s not an isolated development.
‘Orcs’ attacks in Zaporizhzhia.
In southern Ukraine.
Have also slowed.
— as has the ‘orcs’ counterattack.
Targeting the ‘elves’ salient.
In ‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
It’s not an isolated development.
“A lack of resources.
For conducting.
Simultaneous offensive actions.
On multiple fronts”.
Is the main reason.
For the offensive slowdown.
The report concluded.
But the ‘orcs’ aren’t the only ones.
Who are overstretched.
As ‘Mordor’’s wider war.
On Ukraine grinds toward.
Its 31st month.
The ‘elves’ are struggling.
To mobilize enough people.
And equipment for.
Their defensive operations.
In southern and.
Eastern Ukraine and
Their simultaneous offensive.
In Kursk.
“Whoever of the enemies.
Managed to turn.
Their heels in time.
Consider them lucky.”
The 46th.
Air Mobile Brigade.
Quipped on social media.
“They will live longer.”
The arrival of fresh brigades.
From the ‘elves’ national guard.
Helped to stabilize.
The eastern front last month.
But there are only a few.
Fully-equipped offensive brigades.
In the national guard — and.
It’s possible they’re all deployed now.
The ‘elves’ army is.
Standing up 14 new brigades.
And could send them east.
To relieve older brigades.
That have been fighting.
For more than a year straight.
And are badly.
In need of rest.
Perhaps most notably.
The elite 47th Mechanized Brigade.
Finally left the line.
Of contact in the east.
Early this month.
After fighting for 15 months.
Without a break.
But Ukraine has enough.
Modern armored vehicles.
For just four of.
The 14 new brigades.
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
These brigades are undamaged.
… but also fragile.
These brigades are undamaged.
… but also fragile.
“Whoever of the enemies.
Managed to turn.
Their heels in time.
Consider them lucky.”
The 46th.
Air Mobile Brigade.
Quipped on social media.
“They will live longer.”
Haphazardly hurling.
People and equipment.
At ‘elves’ defenses.
West of Donetsk.
The ‘orcs’ military is like.
A bloodied boxer.
Whose strength is fading.
But who refuses to tap out.
This might be an opportunity.
For the ‘elves’ military.
To hit back with.
Some powerful blows.
— if it weren’t equally exhausted.
This might be an opportunity.
For the ‘elves’ military.
To hit back with.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
98 Russian Vehicles Barreled Toward Kurakhove in Back-To-Back Record Assaults (forbes.com)
Russia's war on Ukraine. 16.09.24 — CDS’s Substack
No.25
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS TRIGGERING IN TIKHORETSK
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
Four days after.
Blowing up a huge.
‘Orcs’ ammunition stockpile.
In the town of Toropets.
In western ‘Mordor’.
300 miles from Ukraine.
‘Elves’ drones.
Struck again.
— landing a second blow.
On arsenals in Toropets.
On Saturday morning.
While also triggering.
A massive blast in Tikhoretsk.
In southern ‘Mordor’.
Just 200 miles from.
The front line in Ukraine.
It’s increasingly evident.
Though not yet confirmed.
That the ‘elves’ are using.
Their latest explosive.
Unmanned aerial vehicle.
— the jet-propelled Palianytsia.
“Missile drone” —
For these devastating raids.
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
The ammo dump in Toropets.
Reportedly held large stocks.
Of small arms rounds.
Mortar shells, artillery rockets.
And long-range ballistic missiles.
Potentially including.
‘Orcs’-made Iskanders.
And North Korean KN-23s.
According to the ‘elves’ general staff.
The dump in Tikhoretsk.
“Is one of the three largest.
Occupying ammunition storage bases.”
“And is one of the keys.
In the logistical system.
Of ‘orcs’ troops.”
The general staff estimated.
2,000 tons of ammo.
Including North Korean-made rounds.
Were in the Tikhoretsk dump.
When the drones struck.
The towering fireball.
Resulting from the impact.
Seems to confirm.
That estimate.
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
And also draw the attention of.
NASA’s fire-spotting satellites.
The back-to-back ammo dump raids.
Signal a shift.
In ‘elves’ campaign of.
Deep strikes targeting.
Strategic targets.
Inside ‘Mordor’.
For many months.
Officials in Kyiv have pleaded.
With their European.
And American counterparts.
But the Europeans.
And Americans have.
Consistently withheld.
That permission.
To use donated.
Long-range munitions.
On targets.
Deep inside ‘Mordor’
Clearly running out of patience.
The ‘elves’ have doubled down.
On the production of.
Locally-developed weapons.
— drones and missiles —
That they can fire at targets.
Inside ‘Mordor’ without.
Asking anyone’s permission first.
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
The recent attacks.
Also signal an increase.
In the scale of.
‘Elves’ deep strikes.
Previous raids, some hitting.
Targets as far as.
1,100 miles.
Inside ‘Mordor’.
Have been logistically impressive.
But small in size.
— often involving just a handful.
Of slow, propeller-driven drones.
By contrast, the recent raids.
Have been much more destructive.
Seemingly pointing to.
A drone type.
That might not fly as far.
But packs more destructive power.
— and is available.
In large numbers.
That might mean ‘elves’.
New jet-powered Palianytsia.
Which is a cruise missile.
In all but name.
‘Orcs’ on the ground in Toropets.
Reported hearing jet engines.
Overhead before the local.
Munitions stockpile exploded.
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
The winged, turbojet-propelled.
Palianytsia has been in development.
For more than a year but only.
Recently made its combat debut.
On 24 August.
At least one Palianytsia struck.
A target in ‘orcs’-occupied Crimea.
‘Gandalf the Green’ announced.
The Palianytsia boasts.
An AI-PBS-350.
turbojet engine.
Jointly developed by.
A firm in the Czech Republic.
And an ‘elves’ firm.
The 220-pound.
AI-PBS-350 produces.
3,400 newtons of thrust.
— enough to propel.
A one-ton missile.
Several hundred miles.
That makes the Palianytsia.
Roughly similar to ‘elves’.
Turbofan-powered.
Neptune cruise missile.
At least in terms of.
Size, speed and range.
At least in terms of.
Size, speed and range.
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
Where the Neptune.
And the Palianytsia.
Substantially differ.
Is in their engines.
The Neptune boasts an efficient.
But expensive turbofan.
The Palianytsia’s simpler.
Turbojet is probably less efficient.
But also cheaper.
— meaning Ukraine could afford.
To build more Palianytsias.
Than Neptunes.
Potentially a lot more.
Firing more missiles results.
In more destruction.
Where Neptune attacks have.
Usually involved just.
A handful of missiles.
The first Toropets may have.
Involved a hundred missiles.
The initial Toropets raid.
And the later Tikhoretsk raid.
Were both big enough to.
Register as small earthquakes.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukrainian Drones Just Blew Up 2,000 Tons Of Ammo in Southern Russia (forbes.com)
No.26
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN A RAY OF LIGHT
Workers salvage.
A sculpture of him.
From his destroyed museum.
From once his home.
It was late.
At night.
On 7 May.
2022.
When an ‘orcs’ missile.
Hit a museum.
That was once home.
To an ‘elf’ poet.
The 18th-Century.
Poet and philosopher.
“It's a miracle.
That it did.”
“The roof was.
Completely blown off.
The walls are burnt and.
Only his statue survived.”
Says deputy director.
Of the museum.
In the Kharkiv region.
Of north-eastern Ukraine.
A ballet performance.
In Lviv dedicated.
To the 18th-Century.
Poet and philosopher.
The management.
At the museum.
Knew it might.
Come under attack.
And most of.
Its valuable artefacts.
Had been evacuated.
To a safer location.
There was nothing military.
About the museum.
Or its surroundings.
There was nothing military.
A ballet performance.
In Lviv dedicated.
To the 18th-Century.
Poet and philosopher.
But amid all the gloom.
The deputy director.
From the museum.
Believes that.
‘Elves’ have also.
Started to value more.
What is under threat.
From the ‘orcs’ invasion.
“It's like in a relationship:
To understand.
What you've lost.
It has to be taken away.”
“We're uniting.
Not around aggression.
Or anger.
But around cultural values.”
“Which each of us.
Will hand down.
To future generations.
It gives us a ray of light.”
Workers salvage.
A sculpture of him.
From his destroyed museum.
From once his home.
It was late.
At night.
On 7 May.
2022.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Heritage under attack: Ukrainians revive interest in culture (bbc.com)
No.27
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS AWAKEN
“For them it's.
The best medicine.
Just to get away.
From reality.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
The destruction of.
So much of their culture.
Has not just pushed.
‘Elves’ farther away.
From the ‘orcs’-dominated.
Cultural space.
They shared for decades.
Under Soviet rule.
It has also awakened.
A hunger for.
Their own culture.
Described by.
One daily newspaper.
As an “‘elves’ cultural boom”.
A hunger for.
Their own culture.
“For them it's.
The best medicine.
Just to get away.
From reality.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
In total.
139 religious sites.
Have been hit.
214 buildings of.
Historical or artistic interest.
31 museums.
32 monuments.
15 libraries and one archive.
“For them it's.
The best medicine.
Just to get away.
From reality.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
Den newspaper.
Describes how bands.
Performers and.
Writes are appearing.
With new plays premiered.
And theatres full.
‘Elves’ numerous volunteers.
Have not just provided.
Vital provisions.
And supplies of.
Clothing and medicines.
But musical instruments too.
“Children said that.
Music helped them emotionally.
It took them.
To a place.”
“Where they don't hear.
Bombs or sirens.
It helps them enormously.”
A musician said.
“For them it's.
The best medicine.
Just to get away.
From reality.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
“And live in a world.
Of beauty and happiness.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Heritage under attack: Ukrainians revive interest in culture (bbc.com)
No.28
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS PLUNDERED
‘Elves’ museums in areas.
Occupied by ‘orcs’.
Have faced.
A very different problem.
The full extent.
Of plunder.
By ‘orcs’ troops.
Came to light.
In the final days.
Of the occupation.
Of the southern city.
Of Kherson.
Entire truckloads.
Of artworks and.
Historical artefacts.
Were removed by ‘orcs’.
— ostensibly.
For “safekeeping”.
One museum says.
It has identified.
120 artworks.
Taken to Crimea.
— another occupied area.
Of Ukraine.
But the total number.
Of artefacts.
The museum has lost.
Is more than 10,000.
In some museums.
In occupied parts of Ukraine.
‘Orcs’ removed exhibits.
For propaganda purposes.
For example.
An exhibition on.
‘Elves’ modern history.
In Berdyansk.
Has been replaced.
With one glorifying.
The “special military operation”.
— ‘the One’’s official name for the war.
‘Elves’ museums in areas.
Occupied by ‘orcs’.
Have faced.
A very different problem.
The full extent.
Of plunder.
By ‘orcs’ troops.
Came to light.
In the final days.
Of the occupation.
Of the southern city.
Of Kherson.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Heritage under attack: Ukrainians revive interest in culture (bbc.com)
No.29
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS HIT ON PURPOSE
Last May.
Another aspect of.
Modern ‘elves’ culture.
Came under attack.
With the destruction of.
A printing house in Kharkiv.
Used by almost all.
‘Elves’ book publishers.
Not every.
Cultural building.
Has been hit.
On purpose.
Although the attack.
On the printing house.
Which killed.
Seven people.
And destroyed.
50,000 books.
Was widely seen as.
A targeted strike.
Other buildings.
Have been hit.
Because of.
Their proximity.
To other buildings.
Or to make them unusable.
For ‘elves’ officials.
Or troops.
Not every.
Cultural building.
Has been hit.
On purpose.
One publisher described.
The destruction of books.
At the printing house.
As leading to.
A decline.
In morale.
In society.
And the disappearance.
Of numerous cultural sites.
In Ukraine has placed.
Its very social fabric.
Under strain.
Not every.
Cultural building.
Has been hit.
On purpose.
They are vital.
For the cohesion and.
Resilience of communities.
At a time of war.
Says the head of.
Unesco's desk.
In Ukraine.
They are vital.
“What I've seen.
Is communities.
Really asking for culture.
And their cultural centres.”
“They recognize.
Its importance.
For the community.
And they need it.”
“For their resilience.
Culture is.
Very important.
For healing trauma.”
Not every.
Cultural building.
Has been hit.
On purpose.
‘Elf’ acting culture minister.
Believes that.
‘Mordor’ is.
Deliberately targeting.
The country’s spiritual.
And historical symbols:
“Not just military targets.
And critical infrastructure.”
“But also anything.
That allows ‘elves’.
To speak of their own.
Identity and statehood.”
As part of this policy.
‘Orcs’ forces.
Have been removing.
And destroying.
‘Elves’ books.
From schools.
And libraries.
In occupied areas.
Not every.
Cultural building.
Has been hit.
On purpose.
Last May.
Another aspect of.
Modern ‘elves’ culture.
Came under attack.
With the destruction of.
A printing house in Kharkiv.
Used by almost all.
‘Elves’ book publishers.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Heritage under attack: Ukrainians revive interest in culture (bbc.com)
No.30
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS TRAINING
For the previous.
72 hours.
The menacing whirr.
Above your heads.
Has belonged to.
‘Orcs’ suicide drones.
Passing over and then.
Bearing down on their targets.
Now the buzz.
Comes from an ‘elves’.
Unmanned aircraft.
Which has not been.
Sent up to kill.
But to relay footage.
From the training ground.
To commanders back at base.
You’ve been brought to.
A secret training location.
In the Chernihiv region.
Where the latest army intake.
Is being fast tracked.
To the battlefield.
In the renewed effort to.
Blunt ‘orcs’ grinding advance.
In the hail of.
Machine gun fire and.
Instructors’ commands.
The most striking aspect.
Of the scene is.
The age of the new recruits.
Most seem to be.
In their 40s and 50s.
Among the grey-haired.
Contingent, a man.
Whose wife and.
Two children are waiting.
For him back home.
In the Odesa region.
A month ago.
He was a driver.
Next month he could.
Find himself fighting.
On ‘Mordor’’s soil.
With Ukraine vowing to.
Hold on to the land.
It seized in the Kursk region.
During its lightning incursion.
A month ago.
“I think this is.
The right thing to do.”
He says of the operation.
“Look how long.”
“They’ve been on our land.
We’ve been suffering.
For so long.
We have to do something.”
In the hail of.
Machine gun fire and.
Instructors’ commands.
The most striking aspect.
Of the scene is.
The age of the new recruits.
Most seem to be.
In their 40s and 50s.
“You can't just sit there.
While they are capturing.
Our territory.
What will we do then?”
“Will we become their slaves?”
The training schedule.
You’re witnessing reflects.
The accelerated programme.
New army joiners are.
Undergoing as Ukraine tries to.
Deal with the sheer mass of men.
‘Mordor’ is committing.
To the frontline.
Under the scorching sun.
The new ‘elves’ recruits.
Jump in and out of.
American-made armoured.
Fighting vehicles.
And open fire.
On enemy positions.
In the hail of.
Machine gun fire and.
Instructors’ commands.
The most striking aspect.
Of the scene is.
The age of the new recruits.
Most seem to be.
In their 40s and 50s.
In a nearby woodland.
A simulated ‘orcs’ attack.
On ‘elves’ trenches.
Is repelled.
While the boom of.
Grenade target practice.
Shudders across.
The plain.
Two and a half years.
Into the war.
And Ukraine is desperate.
For more troops.
And brought into force.
A new conscription law.
Which lowered the age of men.
Joining from 27 to 25.
Military service for women.
Is not mandatory.
The drive for younger conscripts.
Has not hit this group of men.
All the recruits.
You see before you.
Have already had.
30 days of basic training.
And today it’s.
More advanced care.
Using medical equipment.
Sent from the UK.
More advanced care.
— dealing with broken bones.
Gunshots and.
Catastrophic bleeding —
Light-hearted moments.
— a decidedly wonky tourniquet.
Here or there —
Punctuate a heavy air.
There’s no escaping the fact.
The simulated emergency care.
Being given.
Under shade of spruces.
Could be carried out.
In grim reality.
In the coming weeks.
And months.
All the recruits.
You see before you.
Have already had.
30 days of basic training.
One soldier.
Who’s accompanied you.
To the site says that.
If the new intake.
Have not acquired.
Enough fighting skills.
They will not be sent.
To the frontline.
“We’re not going to send.
Them to their deaths.”
He says sharply.
Still, we have heard complaints.
Notably from professional soldiers.
That raw recruits.
Have been sent to other fronts.
Without adequate training.
And thrust prematurely.
Into frontline combat.
Ukraine is on the back foot.
In key parts of.
The battlefield at home.
Most notably around.
The strategically important city.
Of Pokrovsk in Donetsk.
All the recruits.
You see before you.
Have already had.
30 days of basic training.
But last month’s incursion.
Into ‘Mordor’ has boosted morale.
And has added.
A new dimension to the war.
However, Kyiv is.
Now fighting a battle.
On yet another front.
And this is.
A huge personal gamble.
For ‘Gandalf the Green’.
A huge personal gamble.
For ‘Gandalf the Green’.
His generals have.
Tough strategic decisions.
To make about where to send.
Their new recruits.
All the recruits.
You see before you.
Have already had.
30 days of basic training.
A 30-year-old builder.
By trade looks to be.
The most youthful.
Of the cohort.
“We need to train.
Train and train again.
The more we train.
The more we will learn here.”
“It will help us.
On the frontline.”
Where will that be?
“We are ready to defend.”
“Our land either in Donbas.
— or Kursk.”
He says proudly.
But with a nervous laugh.
The exhausted soldiers.
Loll on the training ground.
— water bottle and cigarette.
In hand for many.
‘Gandalf the Green’ argues that.
Much greater American and.
European assistance.
In air defence is.
More vital than ever.
And that permission to use.
Foreign-made long range missiles.
To strike further into ‘Mordor’.
Urgently needs to be granted.
Especially now that.
Kyiv is fighting a battle.
At home and abroad.
The exhausted soldiers.
Loll on the training ground.
— water bottle and cigarette.
In hand for many.
The man, who longs to.
Return to his Odesa.
Believes his president.
Is absolutely right.
“The ‘orcs’ can reach.
Our territory with.
Long range weapons.
And we don't have.”
“Such a weapon.
To reach their territory.
We can't stand this anymore.”
He explains.
“We would like to hit Moscow.
To end this dirty war.
Children and civilians suffer.
Everyone does.”
Another rocket-propelled grenade.
Thunders across.
The parched training field.
Next time, it won’t be a drill.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russia-Ukraine war: Meeting the recruits preparing for battle (bbc.com)
No.31
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS ON FOREIGN SOIL
In ‘elves’ Sumy region.
You travelled under.
Military escort to.
A new ‘elves’ base.
Just a few miles away.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
Just a few miles away.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
Along the way.
You passed whole streets.
Blasted to pieces by.
Previous ‘orcs’ artillery fire.
The civilians had long gone.
And the only human life.
Was clad in the green and.
Driving army vehicles.
As you arrive at the camp.
An armoured personnel carrier.
Fresh from the Kursk incursion.
Roars into life.
And springs up backwards.
Out of its sunken.
Hiding place.
It pivots and then.
Speeds off through.
The canopy lined track.
Leaving a huge plume.
Of copper-coloured dust.
What was it like?
Fighting the ‘orcs’?
On their home soil?
“I worried for myself.”
“And for my group.
For my servicemen.
For everyone.
Of course, there was fear.”
“The ‘orcs’ soldiers who surrendered.
We took as prisoners of war.
The ‘orcs’ who attacked us.
We killed.”
It’s a blunt synopsis.
From the ‘elf’ commander.
His 22nd Mechanised Brigade.
Was the first to enter.
‘Orcs’ territory and now.
He’s returned to tell the tale.
“We went far into the Kursk region.
We were alone.”
“As the forward team.
We were on foreign soil.
And we felt like foreigners.
Not in our home.”
What was it like?
Fighting the ‘orcs’?
On their home soil?
“I worried for myself.”
“And for my group.
For my servicemen.
For everyone.
Of course, there was fear.”
A father of five.
With five degrees.
He cuts a distinctive shadow.
In the dense forest.
A giant of a man.
With greying goatee.
And military tattoos.
On the skin.
Not covered by.
His army fatigues.
And body armour.
“That’s us, in there.”
He says showing you.
A video on his phone of.
An APC tearing through.
The ‘Mordor’’s countryside.
What was it like?
Fighting the ‘orcs’?
On their home soil?
“I worried for myself.”
“And for my group.
For my servicemen.
For everyone.
Of course, there was fear.”
Like all of.
The ‘elves’ military you met.
He is understandably reluctant.
To give any operational information.
Which may help the ‘orcs’.
So when you ask if he knows.
How long he’ll stay on ‘orcs’ territory.
When he returns.
It is an answer.
Predictably long.
On patriotism and.
Short on specifics.
“We are fulfilling.
An order.
We'll be there.
As long as we are told to.”
“If we are told to move forward.
We will move forward.
If they tell us to withdraw.
We will withdraw.”
He continues.
In the same vein:
“If we have an order.
To move forward.”
“We can get to Moscow.
- and we'll show what Ukraine means.
And what are our guys are like.
- real Cossacks.”
What was it like?
Fighting the ‘orcs’?
On their home soil?
“I worried for myself.”
“And for my group.
For my servicemen.
For everyone.
Of course, there was fear.”
It’s been reported.
That Ukraine sent up to.
10,000 elite troops.
Into ‘Mordor’.
As part of its rapid advance.
The ‘orcs’ defence ministry.
Claims Kyiv has suffered.
Thousands of casualties.
The head of the ‘elves’ army.
Gen announced the ‘orcs’.
Had now sent 30,000.
Troops to defend Kursk.
In ‘elves’ Sumy region.
You travelled under.
Military escort to.
A new ‘elves’ base.
Just a few miles away.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
Just a few miles away.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
In another clandestine location.
A team clambers out of.
A German-made Bergepanzer.
Armoured recovery vehicle.
The driver is.
A father of two.
Who hasn’t seen his.
Two children for three years.
They escaped to Italy.
With their mother in the weeks.
After ‘orcs’ full-scale invasion.
In February 2022.
While we’re unable to.
Ascertain the level of.
‘Elves’ losses.
It’s clear that.
He has been busy.
Bringing back.
Damaged and destroyed.
Vehicles from inside ‘Mordor’.
“I want this war.
To come to an end.”
He tells you wearily.
In very good English.
“That’s because there is.
No reason for this war.
One man, ‘the One’.
Attacked our country.”
“So what do we have to do?
We must defend our home.
Defending, defending, defending.
But Ukraine is the smaller country.”
While we’re unable to.
Ascertain the level of.
‘Elves’ losses.
It’s clear that.
He has been busy.
Bringing back.
Damaged and destroyed.
Vehicles from inside ‘Mordor’.
The mismatch between.
‘Orcs’ and ‘elves’ remains.
A key thread.
Of ‘Gandalf the Green’’s.
Ongoing call for.
Greater Western help.
Through taking the fight into ‘Mordor’.
Ukraine galvanized its public.
But worried some allies.
Who remain fearful of.
‘The One’’s response and.
The spectre of a wider conflict.
So far, ‘the One’.
Has largely ignored.
At least publicly, the wound.
Inflicted on his country’s side.
Ukraine says that.
Unlike ‘Mordor’.
It doesn’t have.
Unlimited reserves.
Of conscripts to catapult.
To the frontline.
Ukraine says that.
Unlike ‘Mordor’.
In ‘elves’ Sumy region.
You travelled under.
Military escort to.
A new ‘elves’ base.
Just a few miles away.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
Just a few miles away.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russia-Ukraine war: Meeting the recruits preparing for battle (bbc.com)
No.32
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS ACROSS THE BOARD
‘Orcs’ brutal war.
Against Ukraine has now.
Spilled over on to.
The world of chess.
Following ‘orcs’.
Full-scale invasion.
In 2022.
The International Chess Federation.
Voted to ban.
The ‘orcs’ national team.
And officials.
From competitions.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
A vote at next week's.
Fide general assembly in Budapest.
Could fully reinstate ‘Mordor’.
In international chess competitions.
The ‘elves’, supported by allies.
From the UK, Germany.
And other nations.
Are trying to stop them.
“’Mordor’’s control.
Of Fide is absolute.”
Says the head of.
The English Chess Federation.
Fide's president is a former.
‘Orc’ deputy prime minister.
And the English head.
Speaks of ‘Mordor’.
Staging a slow takeover.
Of the federation.
By making changes.
To its constitution.
By making changes.
To its constitution.
Affecting the way.
Decisions are made.
“We have a sort of.
A manifestation of.
What used to be known.
In Soviet days.”
“As a ‘power vertica.’”
He explains.
“Any vote that ‘Mordor’ wants.
Passed always gets passed.”
Fide is affiliated to.
The International Olympic Committee.
And the English head wants.
The IOC to.
Exert pressure.
On the federation.
To maintain sanctions.
Against ‘Mordor’.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
The motion to lift.
All sanctions.
Against ‘Mordor’.
Has been tabled by.
The Chess Federation of.
Kyrgyzstan.
A key ‘orcs’ ally.
In Central Asia.
However, other countries.
Are expected to.
Support ‘Mordor’.
At the Fide congress too.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
German Chess Federation head.
Says every federation.
Has one vote.
And that many states.
In Africa and Asia.
Are “easy to be influenced.
To vote.
In ‘Mordor’’s favour”.
“You can see pro-‘orcs’.
Are trying to take over.
It’s really worrying.”
“It’s really worrying.”
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
In a separate move.
A Fide commission applied.
Sanctions to the ‘Mordor’’s.
Chess Federation last June.
Excluding it for two years.
For “bringing chess into disrepute”.
And violating.
The international organisation's principles.
It found that the ‘Mordor’’s federation.
Had organised tournaments.
In areas of Ukraine.
Illegally occupied by ‘orcs’ forces.
And reprimanded.
Fide's ‘orc’ president.
For his membership.
Of the CF‘M’ board.
But next week’s crucial vote.
At the Fide General Assembly.
Concerns separate sanctions.
Applied in 2022.
— namely, the exclusion of.
The ‘Mordor’’s national chess team.
Flag, anthem and officials from.
All international chess events.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
Ukraine's bid to stop ‘Mordor’.
Taking control of.
The global chess body.
Goes right to the top.
‘Gandalf the Green’ has given.
the task to his adviser.
On strategic affairs.
One ‘elf’, who made his name.
At the start of the war.
For keeping Ukraine's.
Railways on track.
Despite repeated attack.
“I was quite surprised.
With this vote in Budapest.”
Says the man, who is the new head.
Of the Ukrainian Chess Federation.
“We’ve had 21 chess players.
Killed in this war.
It’s not fair to raise.
This issue in the agenda.”
“While ‘Mordor’ is.
Killing our civilians.
Our chess players.
In Ukraine.”
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
The English Chess Federation head.
Fears that if.
‘Mordor’ is let back.
Into the chess fold.
If ‘Mordor’ is let back.
Into the chess fold.
It would be.
A “huge propaganda coup”.
“They'll be able to.
Point to it and say.
Look, we've been allowed.
Back into chess.”
“They could demonstrate.
To their citizens.
They don't have to suffer.
As many privations as.”
“They don't have to suffer.
As many privations as.
They should be suffering.
Because of the war.”
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
But now, ‘the One’.
Is fighting back.
For Ukraine.
And its Western allies.
Chess is just.
One element.
Of their campaign.
To maintain sanctions.
Pressure on ‘Mordor’.
Across the board.
But after two and.
Half years of war.
The calls.
For ‘Mordor’.
To be welcomed back.
Into the international community.
Are growing louder.
Are growing louder.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It is a crushing defeat.
‘Mordor’’s chess team is.
To remain banned from.
International competitions.
Officials have ruled.
In a dramatic move.
Fide general assembly.
Meeting in Budapest voted.
To maintain sanctions.
Against ‘Mordor’.
And its ally, Belarus.
Both countries were.
Kicked out of the federation.
After ‘Mordor’.
Invaded Ukraine.
In February.
2022.
Those supporting the move say.
Chess in ‘Mordor’ is.
Controlled by ‘the One’.
With people including.
With people including.
The Kremlin spokesman.
Sitting on the board which.
Runs the game domestically.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It is a crushing defeat.
A majority of delegates.
In Budapest voted.
In favour of a motion.
To conduct consultations.
With the IOC regarding.
The possibility of lifting.
Some restrictions against.
Children and vulnerable groups.
However, bans against.
The ‘Mordor’’s national team.
Officials, flag and anthem in.
International competitions will remain.
The final decision now rests.
With the federation's strategic body.
The Fide Council, which is unlikely.
To overturn the results of the ballot.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It is a crushing defeat.
The English Chess Federation head.
Said the result was.
A “crushing defeat”.
For ‘Mordor’.
“There is no doubt that.
Many delegates feared.
Consequences for.
The governing body’s relationship.”
“With the IOC.
If policy diverged.”
“With the IOC.
If policy diverged.”
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It is a crushing defeat.
Sixty-six countries.
Supported the motion.
With 41 opting.
For a third option.
— that all restrictions.
Should remain in place.
Just 21 countries.
Voted to lift sanctions.
As well as ‘Mordor’.
And Belarus.
They included several.
Former Soviet republics.
And other ‘Mordor’’s allies.
In Africa and Asia.
The highly anticipated vote.
Was seen as a test of.
Western resolve to maintain.
Pressure on ‘Mordor’.
In culture, sport.
And diplomacy.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It was a bitter blow.
For a country.
With a history of.
Dominance in chess.
It is a crushing defeat.
Before voting began.
Ukraine called on delegates.
To reject the proposal.
To lift sanctions.
“It’s a victory.
For Ukraine.”
Said The new head of
The Ukrainian Chess Federation.
“This vote means that.
‘Mordor’ does not.
Have enough support.
That they assumed they had.”
“‘Mordor’ is.
An aggressor and invader.
And the aggressor must be.
Punished in all spheres.”
“Of their life.
Including sport.
It's important.
To keep the sanctions.”
“Or even strengthen them.
For them to recognize.
Their crimes.”
“Their crimes.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russia squares up to Ukraine in battle for control of chess (bbc.com)
Checkmate for Russia as global chess ban upheld (bbc.com)
No.33
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS AFTER A BLITZ
‘Mordodr’ has struck.
An apartment block.
In the north-east.
‘Elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Killing at least.
Three people and.
Injuring 31 more.
Say local officials.
Shortly after Tuesday's.
Blitz in Kharkiv.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Issued a statement.
Sharing pictures of.
The destroyed residential tower.
- which showed a gaping hole.
In the middle of the building.
The wave of strikes.
Which officials said.
Had hit four districts.
Was conducted with.
The use of guided glide bombs.
On Tuesday.
‘Gandalf the Green’ said.
“The targets.”
“For ‘orcs’ bombs are.
A residential building.
A bakery.
A stadium... that is.”
“The ordinary life.
Of ordinary people.”
“The ordinary life.
Of ordinary people.”
Shortly after Tuesday's.
Blitz in Kharkiv.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Issued a statement.
Sharing pictures of.
The destroyed residential tower.
- which showed a gaping hole.
In the middle of the building.
The attack comes.
As fighting intensifies.
In the country's east.
With ‘orcs’ troops.
Encircling and.
Closing in.
On the largely destroyed.
Town of Vuhledar.
Shortly after Tuesday's.
Blitz in Kharkiv.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Issued a statement.
Sharing pictures of.
The destroyed residential tower.
- which showed a gaping hole.
In the middle of the building.
He called on allies.
To “stop the terror”.
He is in New York to address.
the UN General Assembly's annual congress.
Having arrived.
On Monday reiterating.
Ukraine's need for.
Timely US military assistance.
“There is much discussion now.
At the UN General Assembly.
About collective efforts for.
Security and the future.”
“But we just need.
To stop the terror.
To have security.
To have a future.”
Shortly after Tuesday's.
Blitz in Kharkiv.
‘Gandalf the Green’.
Issued a statement.
Sharing pictures of.
The destroyed residential tower.
- which showed a gaping hole.
In the middle of the building.
Meanwhile in Kharkiv.
Officials said the block.
That was hit had previously.
Been struck at the start of the war.
“It was almost repaired.
All the windows were put in.
Insulated, and prepared.
For the heating season.”
“The enemy hit it.
A second time.
With a KAB glide bomb.”
Said Kharkiv's mayor.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russia-Ukraine: Russia strikes Kharkiv apartment block killing three (bbc.com)
No.34
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS OF SAINT PANTELEIMON
Nine people have been killed.
In twin ‘orcs’ drone strikes.
On a hospital in ‘elves’.
North-eastern city of Sumy.
‘Elves’ officials say the building.
Was hit on Saturday morning.
And was struck again when.
Rescuers were evacuating people.
A nurse and a police officer.
Who had been aiding.
The evacuation were among.
Those killed in the strikes.
At least 12 people were injured.
In the attack that destroyed.
Several floors of the hospital.
And triggered a fire.
‘Elves’ state emergencies service.
DSNS says.
122 people.
Have been evacuated.
A nurse and a police officer.
Who had been aiding.
The evacuation were among.
Those killed in the strikes.
Sumy, about 30km.
From the ‘orcs’ border.
Has seen almost daily.
‘Orcs’ attacks in recent weeks.
Sumy borders.
‘Mordor’’s Kursk region.
Where Ukraine launched.
Its surprise incursion in August.
A nurse and a police officer.
Who had been aiding.
The evacuation were among.
Those killed in the strikes.
The Saint Panteleimon hospital.
In Sumy was hit.
By Shahed kamikaze drones.
‘Elves’ officials say.
Adding that dozens of patients.
And staff were inside at the time.
Several residential buildings.
In the area were also damaged.
A nurse and a police officer.
Who had been aiding.
The evacuation were among.
Those killed in the strikes.
The DSNS said three floors of.
The four-storey building.
As well as the roof.
Were partially destroyed.
It said a fire.
That broke out.
After the strikes.
Was later contained.
A nurse and a police officer.
Who had been aiding.
The evacuation were among.
Those killed in the strikes.
Saturday's strikes come a day.
After ‘Gandalf the Green’ met.
The Republican presidential nominee.
In New York.
The nominee has repeatedly criticized.
The ‘elf’ leader on the US campaign trail.
And a meeting between the pair.
Had seemed unlikely until hours before.
A nurse and a police officer.
Who had been aiding.
The evacuation were among.
Those killed in the strikes.
Reacting to the ‘orcs’ strikes.
‘Gandalf the Green’ urged.
The world to “pay attention.
To what ‘Mordor’ is targeting.”
“They are waging.
War on hospitals.
Civilian objects.
And people’s lives.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Sumy: Ukraine says nine killed in twin Russian drone strikes on hospital (bbc.com)
No.35
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS ON DEFENDERS DAY
A small crowd had gathered.
At a memorial site.
On Maidan Square.
In Kyiv.
Since ‘Mordor’ launched.
Its full-scale invasion.
In February.
2022.
Thousands of ‘elves’ flags.
Have been planted here.
Alongside framed pictures.
Of fallen soldiers.
Soon, the sound of.
The ‘elves’ national anthem.
Could be heard echoing.
Through the still streets.
It was at around that time.
That the strike.
On Kherson city took place.
In southern Ukraine.
Her 29 year old son.
Was killed fighting.
In the Kherson region.
In July 2022.
“He was a platoon leader.
A junior lieutenant.”
She said, clinging on.
To a photo of him.
Holding back tears.
“He was a very nice guy.
His comrades came recently.
And told how he fought.”
“His comrades came recently.
And told how he fought.
And how he died.
It’s very hard for me.”
Soon, the sound of.
The ‘elves’ national anthem.
Could be heard echoing.
Through the still streets.
It was at around that time.
That the strike.
On Kherson city took place.
In southern Ukraine.
As the silence began.
You watched as cars.
Stopped in the middle.
Of a busy road.
And people.
Stood solemnly.
In the streets.
In a moment.
That felt charged.
With emotion.
Sorrow and.
Intense national pride.
Soon, the sound of.
The ‘elves’ national anthem.
Could be heard echoing.
Through the still streets.
It was at around that time.
That the strike.
On Kherson city took place.
In southern Ukraine.
Separately, 21 people.
Have reportedly.
Been wounded.
Due to ‘orcs’ glide bombs.
Hitting residential.
And industrial areas.
In the regional capital city.
Of Zaporizhzhia.
Soon, the sound of.
The ‘elves’ national anthem.
Could be heard echoing.
Through the still streets.
It was at around that time.
That the strike.
On Kherson city took place.
In southern Ukraine.
A small crowd had gathered.
At a memorial site.
On Maidan Square.
In Kyiv.
Since ‘Mordor’ launched.
Its full-scale invasion.
In February.
2022.
Thousands of ‘elves’ flags.
Have been planted here.
Alongside framed pictures.
Of fallen soldiers.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Six dead in market attack as Ukraine remembers war dead (bbc.com)
No.36
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS IN A SILENCE
It was at 08:55.
On Tuesday.
That people observed.
A 10-minute silence.
That people in Kyiv.
And throughout Ukraine.
Observed a10-minute silence.
For Defenders Day.
Six people have been killed.
In a local market area.
In the southern ‘elves’ city.
Of Kherson.
According to.
Regional authorities.
The ‘orcs’ shelling happened.
At around 09:00.
That was just as people.
Across Ukraine.
Had stopped to remember.
Their war dead.
“Defenders Day”.
Is held annually.
In honour of.
The armed forces.
The shelling near.
A local market.
And bus stop.
Was probably.
From ‘orcs’ “barrel artillery”.
According to the region’s.
Prosecutor’s office.
One image.
From local media.
Showed a body lying.
On the pavement.
By boxes of fruit.
That was just as people.
Across Ukraine.
Had stopped to remember.
Their war dead.
“Defenders Day”.
Is held annually.
In honour of.
The armed forces.
Initial reports said seven.
Had died doctors were able to.
Save one person who.
Had been “considered dead”.
That was just as people.
Across Ukraine.
Had stopped to remember.
Their war dead.
“Defenders Day”.
Is held annually.
In honour of.
The armed forces.
Kherson was occupied.
By ‘orcs’ troops shortly.
After ‘Mordor’ launched.
Its full-scale invasion.
Of Ukraine.
In February 2022.
And was liberated.
By Ukraine in November.
It still lies extremely close.
To the frontline with.
Fierce fighting on the other side.
Of the Dnipro River.
That was just as people.
Across Ukraine.
Had stopped to remember.
Their war dead.
“Defenders Day”.
Is held annually.
In honour of.
The armed forces.
Six people have been killed.
In a local market area.
In the southern ‘elves’ city.
Of Kherson.
According to.
Regional authorities.
The ‘orcs’ shelling happened.
At around 09:00.
It was at 08:55.
On Tuesday.
That people observed.
A 10-minute silence.
That people in Kyiv.
And throughout Ukraine.
Observed a10-minute silence.
For Defenders Day.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Six dead in market attack as Ukraine remembers war dead (bbc.com)
No.37
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS PROTECTED
As part of Defenders Day.
‘Gandalf the Green’ paid tribute to.
Those who had been killed.
In the fighting, saying:
“You sacrifice yourselves.
So that Ukraine.
Does not have to.
Be sacrificed.”
Her partner served as.
An army medic treating people.
During the devastating siege.
Of Mariupol.
Before he was captured.
By ‘orcs’ troops.
“I have a daughter.
She’s five years old.”
“So I think she helps.
Me a lot.
Because she’s my sense.
Now to live.”
“I need to be strong.
And I need to be now.
A mother and a father.
In one person.”
As part of Defenders Day.
‘Gandalf the Green’ paid tribute to.
Those who had been killed.
In the fighting, saying:
“You sacrifice yourselves.
So that Ukraine.
Does not have to.
Be sacrificed.”
Her partner was one of dozens.
Who died in the July.
2022 explosion.
At Olenivka prison.
Which Kyiv believes.
Was a deliberate attempt.
By ‘Mordor’ to destroy.
Evidence of war crimes.
Which Kyiv believes.
Was a deliberate attempt.
Although Moscow blamed.
‘Elves’ missiles.
For countless ‘elves’ families.
Remembrance is.
A private act.
As well as a public one.
As part of Defenders Day.
‘Gandalf the Green’ paid tribute to.
Those who had been killed.
In the fighting, saying:
“You sacrifice yourselves.
So that Ukraine.
Does not have to.
Be sacrificed.”
She says she wants.
To her daughter.
To remember.
Her father:
“What he did for us and.
Everything we have now.
Is because of him.
He was protecting us.”
As part of Defenders Day.
‘Gandalf the Green’ paid tribute to.
Those who had been killed.
In the fighting, saying:
“You sacrifice yourselves.
So that Ukraine.
Does not have to.
Be sacrificed.”
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Six dead in market attack as Ukraine remembers war dead (bbc.com)
No.38
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS ELIMINATING
Ukraine knew ‘Mordor’ was.
Planning a summer offensive.
But not where.
It would start.
That became clear.
On 10 May.
As ‘orcs’ forces penetrated.
The border area near Kharkiv.
They have since grabbed.
A number of villages.
On ‘elves’ northeastern frontier.
And are trying to.
Push forward.
As ‘elves’ outgunned forces.
Try to shore up.
A weakened front line.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
By entering Vovchansk.
Only 3 miles inside Ukraine.
And seizing large areas of.
‘Elves’ territory in the Kharkiv region.
‘Orcs’ forces may be trying.
To create a buffer zone.
To fend off ‘elves’ own.
Cross-border attacks.
Having seen the relatively.
Poor state of ‘elves’ defences.
They may also have.
Far more ambitious plans.
‘The One’ has for some time.
Talked of setting up.
Some kind of.
“Sanitary zone”.
That would protect.
The southern Belgorod region.
From drone or.
Missile attack.
Belgorod has also.
Proved vulnerable to.
Cross-border incursions by.
Two Ukraine-based ‘orcs’ paramilitaries.
‘Mordor’ could be planning.
A further cross-border push.
Towards the northern city.
Of Sumy, to the north-west.
‘Elves’ military spy chief.
Believes a “small group of forces”.
Is waiting there.
Ready to act.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
The new head of ‘Mordor’’s.
Security council has said.
Only that the military is.
Advancing in all directions.
That could involve pushing.
Deeper into Ukraine.
Either to force Kyiv.
To divert forces.
From the fiercest front line.
In the eastern Donbas.
Or seize increasing amounts.
Of territory.
‘Orcs’ forces are also pushing.
Towards the village of Lyptsi.
Some 20km from.
The northern outskirts of Kharkiv.
Suddenly capturing.
‘Elves’ second biggest city.
Could be in ‘orcs’ sights.
Could be in ‘orcs’ sights.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
With a pre-war population.
Of 1.4 million.
Kharkiv comes behind.
Only Kyiv and Dnipro.
In its economic importance.
To Ukraine.
It is too close to the border.
To have sufficient air defence.
And has repeatedly come under.
Lethal ‘orcs’ bombardment.
From ballistic and remodelled.
Anti-aircraft missiles and glide bombs.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
‘Gandalf the Green’.
On a visit to Kharkiv.
Said the situation.
In the region was.
“Generally under control”.
Although the area remained.
Extremely difficult.
“Generally under control”.
An ‘elf’ military blogger says.
Too many mistakes were made.
In defending the border and.
Now that ‘orcs’ forces have seen.
How thinly spread.
The defences are.
They could try to set up both.
A buffer zone and a bridgehead.
To launch deeper.
Into ‘elves’ territory:
“Of course, this is their goal.”
“Of course, this is their goal.”
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
For many months.
The war has dragged on.
With ‘orcs’ forces.
Securing minor gains.
At great human cost.
Especially in the eastern.
Region of Donetsk.
At great human cost.
When ‘Mordor’ launched.
Its full-scale invasion.
In February 2022.
Its declared goal was.
To seize the entire.
Donbas region.
Made up of Donetsk.
And Luhansk.
Three months on from.
The capture of Avdiivka.
The ‘orcs’ military has set.
Its sights on other targets.
Northwest of the city.
Including the strategically.
Important hilltop town.
Of Chasiv Yar.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
‘Elves’ troops.
Who were based.
In Chasiv Yar.
Are thought to have been.
Moved to Kharkiv.
Leaving Ukraine.
With fewer units.
Available there.
Losing Chasiv Yar would.
Make ‘elves’ cities in Donbas.
Even more vulnerable.
To ‘orcs’ attack.
By forcing Ukraine.
To commit troops.
Air defences and artillery.
To the defence of its second city.
Pressure would also.
Be put on.
The frontline further south.
Near the Dnipro river.
And then threatening.
And then threatening.
The big south-eastern city.
Of Zaporizhizia.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
‘Orcs’ forces have already.
Claimed the capture of.
One southern village that.
Ukraine recaptured last summer.
Even if Ukraine is still.
In control of that village.
Of Robotyne.
It is clear that ‘orcs’ offensive.
In the north places.
Considerable pressure.
On ‘elves’ outnumbered.
Forces elsewhere.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
In Kyiv, they believe.
‘Orcs’ force in Ukraine.
Now numbers more than.
Half a million.
That has left ‘elves’ military.
Outmanned as well as.
Outgunned with ‘the One’.
Now devoting.
An estimated 8.7%.
Of ‘Mordor’’s entire GDP.
To defence and security.
But the reinforcements.
Waiting over.
The northern border number.
Only a reported 20,000.
And for all the reports of.
‘The One’ plans to mobilise.
300,000 more ‘orcs’.
There is no evidence.
Of anything like that.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Although ‘elves’ total.
Military force is.
About 800,000.
‘Mordor’ has.
A big numerical advantage.
In the major combat zones.
A senior ‘elf’ general said.
In places.
The ratio was as high as.
10 to one.
A similar advantage is.
Reported in terms of shells.
Ukraine recently signed.
Into law an act lowering.
The age of mobilization.
By two years to 25.
And that could increase.
The size of its military.
By a reported 100,000.
But that change will take time.
As will the arrival of.
US arms supplies as part of.
The aid package voted through.
By the US Congress in April.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
And the man appointed.
‘Elves’ commander-in-chief.
In February is considered.
The architect of ‘elves’ fightback.
In September 2022.
When the army pushed ‘orcs’ units.
Out of more than 500 places.
In Donbas and.
The Kharkiv regions.
One of the villages.
They liberated.
Was Vovchansk.
The difference now is.
That ‘orcs’ commanders.
Will have learned.
From their mistakes.
“The city of Kharkiv and.
The entire Kharkiv region.
Is now the point of.
Our efforts.”
“To make the lives.
Of Kharkiv residents safer.”
‘Elf’ Foreign Minister.
Said this week.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
‘Elves’ forces have captured.
Dozens of ‘orcs’ troops.
In the embattled town.
Of Vovchansk.
Just south of.
The ‘Mordor’-Ukraine border.
Dealing a major setback to.
‘Orcs’ faltering northern offensive.
In heavy fighting.
Over the weekend.
‘Elves’ troops surrounded.
As many as 400 ‘orcs’.
In and around.
A chemical plant.
In central Vovchansk.
Thirty ‘orcs’ surrendered.
After repeated attempts.
To rescue them failed.
After repeated attempts.
To rescue them failed.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
On May 10.
A force of tens of thousands.
Of ‘orcs’ troops opened.
A new front.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
Attacking south across.
The ‘Mordor’-Ukraine border.
‘Orcs’ battalions quickly.
Captured a chain of.
Lightly defended border villages.
— and then advanced.
On Vovchansk.
The first big town between.
The border and the city of Kharkiv.
25 miles to the south.
It was there.
In Vovchansk.
That the ‘elves’ chose.
To stand fight.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Elements of several.
‘Elves’ brigades.
— including the elite.
82nd Air Assault Brigade—
Rushed north and.
In several weeks.
Of hard fighting.
Blocked the ‘orcs’ advance.
Just north of the Vovcha River.
Which threads from east to west.
Through central Vovchansk.
The ‘orcs’ rallied.
The equivalent of.
At least two battalions.
With hundreds of.
Infantry stormed.
The PJSC Volchansky.
Chemical plant.
On the Vovcha River’s.
Right bank.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Factories and other.
Industrial facilities are.
Often the locus of.
The fighting in Ukraine.
As their big sturdy buildings can.
Shelter troops and.
Protect them from.
Artillery and drones.
The ‘orcs’ plan was.
Apparently to capture.
The chemical plant.
And then, from there.
Launch a river-crossing operation.
In order to force.
Their way into.
Southern Vovchansk.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
The plan failed.
When ‘elves’ troops.
Attacked west of.
The chemical plant.
— perhaps from.
The 9th Rifle Battalion.
‘Orcs’ Volunteer Corps.
Or 36th Marine Brigade—
The plan failed.
When ‘elves’ troops attacked.
And advanced several blocks.
To the north.
Cutting off the ‘orcs’.
In the plant.
From their comrades.
To the west.
“The ‘orcs’ are surrounded here.
With zero chances of.
Evacuation or reinforcements.”
One ‘elf’ drone operator crowed.
“A bunch of dead and.
Wounded orcs.”
‘Orcs’ commanders knew.
They were in trouble.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
This weekend.
They ordered their troops west.
Of the chemical plant to fight.
Their through the ‘elves’ positions.
Two attempts to break through.
To the surrounded ‘orcs’ forces.
Were repelled by.
The ‘elves’ defense forces.
That’s apparently when.
The surrounded ‘orcs’.
Began surrendering.
En masse.
While ‘orcs’ and ‘elves’ forces.
Routinely capture.
Each other.
They rarely do so by the dozen.
The biggest captures.
Tend to take place.
During major urban sieges.
And chaotic hasty retreats.
Early in the war.
Hundreds of ‘elves’ troops.
Surrendered after.
Holding out for weeks.
In the besieged southern city.
Of Mariupol.
Nearly two years later.
In mid-February.
Advancing ‘orcs’ regiments.
Captured dozens of ‘elves’.
Retreating from the ruins.
Of Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
That so many ‘orcs’ surrendered.
At the same time Vovchansk.
A town that neither side.
Fully controls.
And which very much remains.
In contention.
Should startle.
‘Orcs’ commanders.
The ‘orcs’ army.
Wasn’t supposed to.
Get bogged down.
In Vovchansk.
And it certainly.
Wasn’t supposed to.
Lose potentially scores of troops.
In a failed attempt.
To capture a staging base.
For an eventual attempt to cross.
One narrow river.
In the middle of the town.
It should go without saying that.
Whatever the ‘orcs’ goals were.
When they crossed the border.
Into northern Ukraine last month.
They’re not only.
Not achieving them.
— their prospects for eventual success.
Are slipping farther away.
As their forces.
Get blocked.
Cut off and.
Forced to surrender.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Hundreds of ‘orcs’ troops.
Are surrounded in.
A chemical plant.
In Vovchansk.
The main battleground.
In ‘orcs’ northern offensive.
At least 30 of the ‘orcs’.
Surrendered over the weekend.
The others have.
Nowhere to run.
And nowhere to hide.
And now the ‘elves’ air force.
Has taken aim at them.
— with precision glide bombs.
Has taken aim at them.
— with precision glide bombs.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Over the weekend.
The equivalent of several.
‘Orcs’ battalions captured.
The PJSC Volchansky plant.
In central Vovchansk.
Vovchansk was.
The first major target.
Of ‘orcs’ northern offensive.
Which kicked off.
On May 10.
And may have aimed to.
Ultimately capture Kharkiv.
But the ‘orcs’ northern.
Grouping of forces.
Tens of thousands of soldiers strong.
Never got past Vovchansk.
Several ‘elves’ brigades.
Including the elite 82nd.
Air Assault Brigade raced.
North to meet the ‘orcs’.
Freshly re-armed with.
Munitions rush-shipped from.
The United States.
The ‘elves’ fought the ‘orcs’.
Street by street.
Building by building.
— and halted their advance.
In late May.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
After a few weeks of.
Grueling urban combat.
‘Orcs’ commanders.
Made a bold move.
They ordered a large force.
To capture PJSC Volchansky.
— apparently in order to.
Use the plant and.
Its sturdy concrete buildings.
As a base for.
An attempted crossing.
Of the Vovcha River.
Which threads east to west.
Just south of the plant and.
Forms a natural fortification for.
The ‘elves’ defending southern Vovchansk.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
But a swift ‘elves’ attack.
Apparently along the north-south.
Soborna street just west of.
The chemical plant.
Reportedly cut off.
The 400 ‘orcs’ sheltering.
In the plant.
On Monday.
A map of the front line.
Still indicated the plant was cut off.
From the main body of ‘orcs’ troops.
West of Soborna Street.
And now the ‘elves’ air force.
Has joined the battle.
— Mikoyan MiG-29s.
Sukhoi Su-27s or both —
The air force’s fighters are lobbing.
American- or French-made.
Precision glide bombs.
At the plant.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
An analyst identified.
Three videos depicting ‘elves’.
Glide bombs striking.
The plant’s main complex recently.
One ‘orc’ blogger.
Likened the fighting.
In Vovchansk to.
Two of the most brutal battles.
In ‘orcs’ 28-month.
Wider war on Ukraine:
The long ‘orcs’ sieges.
Of Bakhmut and Avdiivka.
The ‘orcs’ air force.
Dropped scores of.
Glide bombs a day.
On Avdiivka.
Gradually reducing.
The city to rubble and.
Compelling the ‘elves’ garrison.
To retreat in February.
“The bad news.”
The ‘orc’ blogger wrote.
“Is that the enemy has a lot of.
His own guided Hammer bombs.”
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
France pledged.
50 Hammer glide bombs.
A month to.
The ‘elves’ war effort.
The United States has given.
Ukraine presumably thousands.
Of similar bombs.
With pop-out wings.
Satellite guidance and.
— depending on the model —
potentially hundreds of.
Pounds of explosive fill.
By flying low and fast.
And climbing at the last minute.
Before releasing their munitions.
‘Elves’ fighters armed with up to.
Six glide bombs apiece.
Can avoid ‘orcs’ air defenses.
And hit targets from.
25 miles away or farther.
— 40 miles in the case of.
The U.S.-made Small Diameter Bomb.
“It’s not easy to fight them.”
The ‘orc’ blogger explained.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
In pummeling those.
Hundreds of troops.
Cowering in the chemical plant.
The ‘elves’ are giving.
The ‘orcs’ a taste.
Of their own medicine.
The ‘orcs’ a taste.
Of their own medicine.
It’s standard practice.
For the ‘orcs’ air force.
To glide bomb ‘elves’ positions.
Before a ground attack.
It’s a terrifying experience.
For the ‘elves’.
“These bombs completely.
Destroy any position.”
Wrote a trooper.
With the ‘elves’ army’s.
3rd Assault Brigade.
Which fought in Avdiivka.
Now it’s the ‘orcs’ turn.
To be afraid.
— and get buried.
In concrete.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
On May 10.
‘Orcs’ troops surged across.
The ‘Mordor’-Ukraine border.
North of the ‘elves’ city of Kharkiv.
Attacking south through.
Sparse ‘elves’ defenses.
The ‘orcs’ quickly occupied.
Much of Vovchansk.
A month later.
Amid furious fighting.
In Vovchansk.
‘Orcs’ troops captured.
A key stronghold.
In the center of.
The increasingly.
Devastated town:
The PJSC Volchansky.
Chemical aggregate plant.
A sprawling complex of.
30 tough concrete buildings.
The aggregate plant.
Could’ve functioned.
As a kind of base.
Covering ‘orcs’ forces.
Crossing the Vovcha River.
Just south of the plant.
Instead, it became.
A trap.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
‘Elves’ troops held the line.
Just outside the plant.
And then counterattacked.
Advancing a few blocks.
North of the plant.
— and cutting it off from.
The main ‘orcs’ force.
It took a grueling three months.
But commandos from.
The ‘elves’ intelligence directorate.
— also known by its acronym GUR —
Finally cleared the plant.
Of the last ‘orcs’ occupiers.
On Tuesday.
“The fighters of the GUR.
Carried out a systematic sweep.”
“Of the plant's buildings.
Constantly engaging in contact battles.
With the enemy.
In densely built-up conditions.”
The directorate announced.
“In some cases.
‘Elves’ special forces engaged.
In hand-to-hand combat.”
“With the enemy.
The GUR completely.
Liberated the territory of.
The Vovchansk aggregate plant.”
“And destroyed the occupiers.
In all the buildings.
Of the enterprise.”
The directorate added.
Some ‘orcs’ were killed;
Others were captured.
Some ‘orcs’ were killed;
Others were captured.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
It’s unclear how many.
‘Orcs’ were still alive.
In the plant at the time.
Of its liberation.
Early in the battle.
There were reportedly.
Hundreds of ‘orcs’ spread.
Across the 30 buildings.
— a daunting force.
They enjoyed some.
Fire support from.
‘Orcs’ artillery staged.
To the north.
And reportedly got.
Some supplies delivered.
By small drones.
The ‘elves’ dropped bombs.
Harassed the ‘orcs’ in the plant.
With drones and snipers.
… and waited.
For months.
The aggregate plant was.
Like a “shooting range”.
For the ‘elves’.
Who could shoot at it.
At their leisure.
And from all directions.
“The ‘elves’ armed forces.”
“Took pleasure.
In destroying.
The occupiers.”
A report noted.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
As the ‘orcs’ offensive.
In Vovchansk.
Petered out.
This summer.
‘Elves’ counterattacks.
Gradually pushed the front line.
In the town.
Farther north.
Leaving the ‘orcs’.
In the chemical plant.
Even more isolated.
Than before.
The intelligence directorate.
Waited until.
The surviving ‘orcs’.
Were exhausted.
— and then assaulted.
The complex with.
At least four.
Separate commando teams.
They breached.
The plant and.
Cleared it.
Room by room.
In what the directorate.
Described as.
“An extremely complex and.
Successful operation.”
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Liberating the PJSC.
Volchansky plant.
Eliminates the admittedly.
Small danger.
The ‘orcs’ in the plant.
Posed to ‘elves’ forces.
Advancing north.
Into ‘orcs’-held Vovchansk.
It’s also revenge.
For ‘elves’ troops.
Whose comrades have been.
On the other end.
Of more than a few.
Brutal urban sieges.
Since ‘Mordor’ widened its war.
On Ukraine 31 months ago.
But it doesn’t mean.
The ‘elves’ have turned.
The tide of.
The wider war.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
The fighting remains.
Highly fluid.
As winter looms.
As winter looms.
‘Elves’ troops have invaded.
Southern ‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
Along at least two axes.
But ‘orcs’ troops are still inching.
Toward the eastern city.
Of Pokrovsk.
— and are also threatening.
To surround the stubborn ‘elves’.
72nd Mechanized Brigade.
In the eastern town of Vuhledar.
Once an impregnable fortress.
For the ‘elves’.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
A week after.
‘Elves’ commandos.
Cleared the last few.
‘Orcs’ troops hunkering.
In the besieged.
PJSC Volchansky.
Chemical aggregate plant.
In Vovchansk.
In northern ‘elves’.
Kharkiv Oblast.
The ‘orcs’ sought revenge.
The ‘orcs’ sought revenge.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
It ended in disaster.
— for the ‘orcs’.
Assaulting ‘elves’ positions.
Northwest of the 30-building.
Chemical campus.
The equivalent of half.
An ‘orcs’ battalion.
Crashed into a wall.
— 17 MT-LB armored tractors.
Three tanks and.
No fewer than.
100 infantry —
Crashed into a wall.
Of ‘elves’ firepower.
It ended in disaster.
— for the ‘orcs’.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
The ‘elves’ army’s.
57th Motorized Brigade.
Blasted the ‘orcs’ assault group.
With hovering drones.
Dropping grenades.
— among other weapons.
Most likely.
When the smoke cleared.
16 MT-LBs and.
A tank lay wrecked.
There were literal piles of.
Dead and mangled ‘orcs’.
Around the smoldering hulks.
“Now the guys are finishing off.
The remaining infantry.”
One ‘elf’ blogger reported.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
It’s not hard to.
Understand what happened.
It’s not hard to.
Understand what happened.
The ‘orcs’ infantry rode.
Into battle on top of.
The 13-ton MT-LBs.
Around 10 men per vehicle.
— apparently calculating that.
The top-down drone threat.
Was less serious than.
The bottom-up threat from mines.
It wasn’t a totally.
Unreasonable assumption:
the obsolete, thinly-armored.
MT-LBs are.
Notoriously prone to burn.
When struck from below.
By mines.
But the ‘orcs’ seemingly.
Underestimated how much damage.
The 57th Motorized Brigade’s.
Grenade-dropping drones could inflict.
On massed mechanized forces.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
The ‘elves’ have steadily improved.
Their drone-dropped munitions.
Adding more sensitive fuses and.
More powerful explosive fills.
So the top-riding infantry.
Rolling toward the chemical plant.
May have been fairly safe.
From mines.
But they were catastrophically.
Vulnerable to drones.
This is a problem.
For the wider ‘orcs’ military.
As it pulls more.
1970s-vintage.
MT-LBs out of.
Long-term storage to replace.
Some of the thousands.
Of newer and.
Heavier BMP.
Fighting vehicles.
The ‘orcs’ have lost.
In 31 months.
Of hard fighting.
In Ukraine.
The infantry attached to.
These MT-LB units.
Will face the same.
Impossible choice:
Risk mine blasts while riding.
Inside the old tractors.
— or risk drone attacks.
While riding atop them.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
It’s not a uniquely.
‘Orcs’ problem, of course.
As the ‘elves’ armed forces are also.
Regenerating old MT-LBs.
In order to replace.
Newer and heavier vehicles.
They’ve lost.
They’ve lost.
But the ‘elves’ are defending.
But the ‘elves’ are defending.
In more sectors.
Than they’re attacking.
The ‘orcs’ are attacking.
The ‘orcs’ are attacking.
In more sectors.
Than they’re defending.
The defending ‘elves’.
Can leave their.
MT-LBs behind.
And dig in.
The attacking ‘orcs’.
Often have no choice.
But to roll out.
In their death-trap vehicles.
And try to cross.
Contested terrain.
In order to reach.
‘Elves’ lines.
A buffer zone?
Or a deeper push?
Is Kharkiv at risk?
What does ‘the One’ want?
Unless and until.
The war’s momentum shifts.
And the ‘elves’.
Go on the attack.
More widely along.
The 700-mile front line.
‘Elves’ troops can.
— for the most part —
Wait for ‘orcs’ troops.
To come to them.
Wait for ‘orcs’ troops.
To come to them.
More and more.
The ‘orcs’ will attack.
On top of aged armored tractors.
Easy targets for hovering drones.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
War in Ukraine: Key weeks ahead for Russia’s offensive in Ukraine (bbc.com)
400 Russian Troops Got Cut Off in Vovchansk. Now They’re Surrendering. (forbes.com)
Russians Are Cut Off In A Chemical Plant As Ukrainian Bombs Rain Down (forbes.com)
Ukrainians Just Cleared The Last Russians From A Fortress In Vovchansk (forbes.com)
17 Russian MT-LBs & 100 Infantry Attacked Vovchansk; Slaughter Ensued (forbes.com)
No.39
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS LIKE TITANS
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
In January and February.
2023.
The 11th and 12th months of.
‘Orcs' wider war on Ukraine.
The ‘elves’ army’s.
72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Defeated an ‘orcs’ force.
Twice its size.
Outside Vuhledar.
A fortress town.
In ‘elves’ Donetsk Oblast.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Has defended Vuhledar ever since.
Protecting a key sector of.
The 700-mile front line.
— the spot where.
The west-to-east southern.
Front line turns north and.
Threads through eastern Ukraine.
All the way to.
‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
Where ‘elves’ troops.
Have carved out.
A 400-square-mile salient.
But after 20 months in Vuhledar.
The 2,000-person.
72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Is surely tired.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Having tried and failed.
For nearly two years.
To force the ‘elves’ brigade.
Out of Vuhledar.
The ‘orcs’ 40th Marine Brigade.
And other brigades.
And regiments are now.
Trying to bypass it.
And cut it off.
And they’re slowly succeeding.
While the fighting slows.
In many other sectors.
It might accelerate around Vuhledar.
As the ‘orcs’ exploit an opportunity.
They’ve fought for.
Since early 2023.
An ‘elves’ analysis group recommended.
“Keeping an eye on Vuhledar.
As the situation there.
Could get very dynamic.”
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
The mine-strewn roads.
And fields around Vuhledar.
Have become a death trap.
For attacking ‘orcs’.
It’s common for the ‘orcs’.
To attack in dozens of.
Armored vehicles plus.
Motor bikes and golf carts.
It’s equally common for the ‘elves’.
To destroy most of the attackers.
With mines, drones, artillery.
And anti-tank missiles.
But the roads.
Through Vodiane.
A few miles to the north.
Are less dangerous.
And it’s here.
The ‘orcs’ are advancing.
Under the cover of warplanes.
Lobbing powerful glide bombs.
A report logged.
Six ‘orcs’ attacks.
In the area.
On Sunday.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Is reasonably well-equipped.
With T-64 tanks.
BMP-2 fighting vehicles.
And M-109 howitzers.
But even the best-equipped.
Brigade can’t hold.
The line forever.
Just ask the ‘elves’ army’s.
47th Mechanized Brigade.
That brigade fought nonstop.
In the south and east.
Starting in June 2023.
Receiving a steady supply of.
American-made M-2 Bradley.
Fighting vehicles to keep.
Its battalions up.
To full strength.
But after 15 months of combat.
The brigade was exhausted.
— and finally rotated off.
The front line this month.
Despite a shortage of well-equipped.
Brigades to replace it.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Has achieved a rare feat:
Defending the same.
Front-line town.
For nearly two years.
Against a consistently.
Larger enemy force.
Now it needs help.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— if not replacement.
But by which unit?
The ‘elves’ armed forces.
Are simultaneously.
Attacking in Kursk.
While defending in.
The east and south.
They’re stretched thin.
And 14 new brigades.
The army is standing up.
Are desperately short.
Of modern vehicles.
‘Gandalf the Green’ admits.
There are enough vehicles.
To fully equip just.
Four of the brigades.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
In the 31 months of.
‘Orcs’ wider war on Ukraine.
Both sides have seen.
Their fortunes rise and fall.
In the early months.
Of 2022.
The ‘orcs’ barreled.
Toward Kyiv.
Only to outpace.
Their supply lines.
And get chased back.
To the south and east.
The ‘elves’ successfully.
Counterattacked in the east that fall.
But a second ‘elves’.
Counterattack in the south.
In the summer of.
2023.
Got bogged down.
In dense ‘orcs’ minefields.
A few months later.
The ‘orcs’ launched a fresh offensive.
— and made steady albeit.
Costly progress.
The ‘elves’ countered.
Last month with.
A surprise invasion.
Of ‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Through it all.
There’s been at least.
One geographic constant.
One geographic constant.
Regardless of who.
Was winning.
At the moment.
Vuhledar held.
A mining town with.
A pre-war population of.
14,000 in eastern ‘elves’.
Donestk Oblast.
Vuhledar quickly became.
A fortress for the resident.
‘Elves’ army formation.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
But now that fortress is.
On the verge of falling.
But now that fortress is.
On the verge of falling.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
On Wednesday morning.
‘Orcs’ forces bombarded.
And assaulted the town.
And unlike many previous assaults.
This one appears.
To be succeeding.
“It’s clear that the situation.
In Vuhledar is critical.”
“And we are likely.
Witnessing the final stages.
Of its defense.”
Warned an analyst with the group.
“I can only hope.
That the right orders.
Have been given.
Prioritizing the lives of soldiers.”
“Over any desire.
To hold the ground.”
There are signs.
That’s the case.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
It seems that.
As ‘orcs’ forces threatened.
The town’s flanks.
Last week.
The 2,000-person.
72nd Mechanized Brigade.
began quietly withdrawing.
To more defensible positions.
“I am under the impression.
That Ukraine withdrew.
Their forces gradually.
Over time to surrender.”
“The area to ‘Mordor’.”
Other analyst noted.
How much Vuhledar is.
Worth to either side.
Is a matter of debate.
It anchors the corner.
Where the southern front.
Meets the eastern front.
But it’s possible.
Bohoyavlenka.
A few miles to the north.
Could perform the same function.
Time will surely tell.
As Bohoyavlenka is.
The likely backup base.
As the 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
As the 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Initiates—or completes—
Its retreat.
Time will surely tell.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
“‘Orcs’ potential seizure.
Of Vuhledar is unlikely to.
Fundamentally alter the course.
Of offensive operations.”
“In western Donetsk Oblast.”
A report concluded.
But it’s worth asking why.
Vuhledar finally fell.
After holding out.
For so long.
The answer is obvious.
The answer is obvious.
While ‘orcs’ forces are.
Overextended all along.
The 700-mile front line.
Of the wider war.
Outnumbered ‘elves’ forces.
Are even more overextended.
‘Elves’ defenses in the east.
Were buckling before.
The general staff in Kyiv.
Ordered parts of.
Eight or so brigades.
To attack.
Across the border.
Into Kursk Oblast.
Last month.
Now they’re buckling faster.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
In early September.
The ‘elves’ armed forces.
Deployed a new kind of drone.
— a so-called “dragon drone”.
That flies low and slow.
Over enemy trenches.
Spewing thermite.
A lava-like metal incendiary.
That burns as hot as.
5,400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Now the ‘orcs’ armed forces.
Have dragon drones, too.
— and they’ve deployed them.
For their final push into.
The fortress town.
Of Vuhledar.
The fortress town.
Of Vuhledar.
In eastern ‘elves’.
Donetsk Oblast.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Late Wednesday or early Thursday.
The ‘orcs’ Vostok drone group.
Posted a video.
On social media.
Depicting one of its.
Dragon drones torching.
A treeline just outside.
The devastated mining town.
Vuhledar’s defenders.
From the ‘elves’ army’s.
72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Had presumably.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Had presumably.
Dug a trench.
Under those trees.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Both sides in ‘orcs’ 31-month.
Wider war on Ukraine.
Have long deployed.
Drones for surveillance.
Long-range strikes.
Deep inside enemy territory.
And short-range attacks.
Along the front line.
The dragon drones.
Represent a twist.
On existing drone tactics.
On existing drone tactics.
They’re as much.
Terror weapons as.
They are practical tools.
Of targeted destruction.
Metal incendiaries burn so hot.
So quickly, that there’s no.
Real way to suppress them.
Once they strike.
The only option.
For the unfortunate soldiers.
Underneath the fiery deluge.
Is to flee.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
“Combat soldiers.
On the battlefield.
Never try to fight.
Flame/thermal hazards down.”
“But rather escape from.
Them as soon as possible.”
The U.S. Army explained.
In a 2000 study.
But a soldier must.
Get out from underneath.
The incendiary spray.
Within 10 seconds.
Within 10 seconds.
In order to avoid.
Deep burns.
The Army concluded.
The U.S. Air Force.
And U.S. Navy.
Advised fleeing even faster.
— just three seconds.
Retreat too slowly.
Retreat too slowly.
And your chance of.
Survival is slim.
“Sprayed flame.
With velocity could hit.
A target directly.”
The Army report noted.
“When the adhesive or cohesive.
Fuels hit the protective clothing.
The likelihood of survival.
Would be very small.”
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
For the ‘orcs’ assaulting Vuhledar.
Adding dragon drones.
To the bombardment.
Is probably overkill.
After trying and failing for.
Nearly three years.
To capture Vuhledar.
The ‘orcs’ military finally.
Massed enough forces.
To overwhelm its weary.
‘Elves’ garrison.
Last week.
In recent days.
The ‘orcs’ have hit Vuhledar.
With glide bombs.
Cluster rockets.
The ‘orcs’ have hit Vuhledar.
With other munitions.
Leveling many of.
The surviving buildings.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Clearly appreciating that.
Vuhledar is lost.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
May already be withdrawing.
From the increasingly ravaged.
And surrounded town.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
May already be withdrawing.
In the video it’s not clear.
There are any ‘elves’ troops.
In the trench the ‘orcs’.
Dragon drone is targeting.
If there were.
They likely.
Fled quickly.
— or burned.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Since late 2022.
‘Orcs’ forces have been.
Trying to capture Vuhledar.
A mining town.
With a pre-war population.
Of 14,000 that.
Anchors the point.
In ‘elves’ Donetsk Oblast.
Where the southern front line.
Bends left and.
Threads north through.
Eastern Ukraine.
They may finally be.
On the cusp of succeeding.
A determined assault.
By the ‘orcs’ army’s.
57th Motor Rifle Brigade.
That kicked off this week.
Has breached.
The defenses.
Of the ‘elves’ army’s.
72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Now ‘orcs’ troops are.
In southern Vuhledar.
— and the weary.
‘Elves’ garrison may.
Already be retreating.
To the north.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
If the ‘orcs’ army.
Captures the bomb-blasted.
Ruins of Vuhledar.
In the coming days.
It’ll be a victory.
For ‘Mordor’.
— but a highly.
Qualified one.
Just reaching the outskirts.
Of Vuhledar has cost.
The ‘orcs’ armed forces.
Around a thousand vehicles.
And potentially several.
Thousand troops.
Just reaching the outskirts.
Of Vuhledar has cost.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade’s.
Stubborn defense of Vuhledar.
— with mines, artillery.
Anti-tank missiles and drones —
The 72nd Mechanized Brigade’s.
Stubborn defense of Vuhledar.
Has destroyed entire.
‘Orcs’ brigades.
A monthslong series.
Of ‘orcs’ assaults.
Across the fields.
Outside Vuhledar.
In late 2022.
And early 2023.
May have been the costliest.
For the ‘orcs’.
At the time.
‘Orcs’ operations in this sector.
Were led by.
A pair of marine units.
Belonging to the ‘orcs’.
Navy’s Pacific fleet:
The 40th and 155th.
Naval Infantry Brigades.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
The marines’ failed attacks.
On Vuhledar between.
November 2022.
And February 2023.
Were among the bloodiest.
Of the war to this point.
The 155th Naval Infantry Brigade.
Which on paper had around.
3,000 troops.
Lost as many as.
300 troops a day.
For days on end.
And was “nearly destroyed”.
And was “nearly destroyed”.
By February 2023.
According to a Polish report.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
‘The One’ sent replacement troops.
— and ordered.
The 155th Naval Infantry Brigade.
Back into action.
It promptly got destroyed again.
“The 155th has.
Likely been reduced.
To combat ineffective status.”
“At least twice.
In the last six months.
Due to being committed to.
Tactically flawed frontal assaults.”
“Near Vuhledar.”
The U.K. defense ministry.
Concluded in April.
2023.
The 40th Naval Infantry Brigade.
May have fared.
Slightly better.
But not by much.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Altogether, the marine brigades.
And supporting army units.
Also wrote off around.
A thousand tanks.
Fighting vehicles.
Trucks and artillery pieces.
According to a tally.
By a collective.
Not coincidentally.
That’s around two brigades’.
Worth of vehicles.
— and nearly six percent.
Of all vehicles.
‘Mordor’ has lost.
In 31 months of.
Hard fighting in Ukraine.
‘Elves’ forces’ own losses.
In and around Vuhledar.
Were much lighter.
As they mostly hunkered.
In their trenches and bunkers.
And blasted the attacking ‘orcs’.
From a distance with mines.
Artillery, missiles and drones.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Today, the 40th Naval Infantry Brigade.
Has shifted a few miles.
To the west along.
The southern front.
Leaving the current attacks.
On Vuhledar to the army.
The third iteration of.
The 155th Naval Infantry Brigade.
Is up north in.
‘Mordor’’s Kursk Oblast.
Counterattacking.
Invading ‘elves’ forces.
Whether the occupation of.
The ruins of Vuhledar.
Justifies the repeated.
Destruction of one or both.
Justifies the repeated.
Destruction of one or both.
Of these brigades.
Is a question.
Only ‘the One’.
And the survivors.
Of the ill-fated units.
Can answer.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
‘Orcs’ troops have taken.
Complete control of.
The eastern city.
Of Vuhledar.
Which ‘elves’ forces have been.
Defending since the beginning of.
‘Orcs’ full-scale invasion.
Two and a half years ago.
‘Elves’ eastern military command.
Confirmed on Wednesday.
That they had told.
The troops still fighting.
The troops still fighting.
In parts of the Vuhledar.
To pull back to avoid.
Becoming surrounded.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
For more than two years.
‘Orcs’ have been trying.
To take this city.
In order to advance.
Further north and reach.
Regional transportation hubs.
Such as Kurakhove.
And Pokrovsk.
Donetsk regional authorities.
Confirmed on Tuesday.
That ‘orcs’ troops had almost.
Reached the city centre.
And some reports said.
‘Elves’ forces are still.
Hanging on.
In some districts.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Two soldiers from.
The 72nd brigade.
Managed to leave the city.
Before the final assault.
And take up new positions.
In the same area.
They claim that their troops.
Have withdrawn from the city.
Over the past few days.
‘Elves’ soldiers had to find.
Their own way.
Out of Vuhledar by foot.
Out of Vuhledar by foot.
As it was impossible.
To evacuate them otherwise.
A machine-gunner said.
Many were wounded.
And killed by.
‘Orcs’ drones.
And artillery.
As they tried to leave.
Another soldier says.
Many more are.
Still missing.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
‘Mordor’ has launched.
Numerous attacks.
To seize the city.
Since the start of.
The full-scale invasion.
In February 2022.
But they all failed up.
Until now.
One of the biggest tank battles.
Took place there last year.
Instead of launching.
Frontal assaults.
The ‘orcs’ army recently.
Switched to its favourite tactic.
– advancing along the flanks.
To surround the target.
Last month they seized.
The village of Prechystivka.
To the west and Vodyane to the east.
To complete a pincer movement.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
‘Orcs’ enormous advantage.
In weapons and troops.
— some soldiers have estimated.
The ratio of forces as seven to one –
Enabled them to break through.
‘Elves’ defence lines.
Along the flanks.
And approach Vuhledar.
It became clear.
That the city was doomed.
When the ‘orcs’.
Effectively cut off.
The only remaining.
Lifeline route.
– the road from Vuhledar.
To Bohoyavlenka.
‘Orcs’ troops advanced so close.
That their artillery and kamikaze drones.
Targeted anyone and anything.
Moving on that road.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
“We tried to send supplies.
Organise evacuation of.
Our wounded and dead soldiers.
But without any success.”
Another soldier said.
“We lost a number of.
Vehicles and then had to.
Stop such operations.”
By Tuesday.
About 100 civilians.
Remained in Vuhledar.
Donetsk regional head said.
“Thank God.
We evacuated all children.
Regarding the 107 people.
Who are still there.”
“It's difficult.
To reach them.
And bring them.
Humanitarian aid.”
“Drinking water.
Medicine, because.
An active stage of war.
Is under way.”
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
The situation became critical.
When ‘orcs’ troops.
Entered the city.
And ‘elves’ units started.
Retreating without.
Retreating without.
Waiting for the order.
To pull out.
“If a withdrawal.
Is not organized.
It ends up being chaotic.”
The machine-gunner explained.
‘Elves’ defenders.
Were like Titans.
Trying to stop the ‘orcs’.
But some groups.
He added, had become.
Completely disoriented.
Because of.
A communication blackout.
Their radios were down.
And when they came.
under heavy fire.
They had to make.
Quick decisions.
On their own and.
Often it was.
To retreat.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
‘Elves’ defence lines.
Were devastated by.
‘Orcs’ aviation bombs and.
Thermobaric weapon systems.
Such as its Solntsepek.
Heavy flame-thrower.
In addition to drones.
And multiple rocket launchers.
Facing such an onslaught.
Withdrawing from.
Certain positions.
Became unavoidable.
Another soldier argued.
“You either die or retreat.”
Facing such an onslaught.
“You either die or retreat.”
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
But getting out from a city.
That had been nearly.
Surrounded was.
Extremely dangerous.
During the daytime.
It became close to.
A suicide mission.
‘Elves’ troops mostly tried.
To escape at night.
Having to cross mine fields.
Via designated paths.
To avoid the road.
Because it was closely.
Monitored by the ‘orcs’.
Until recently.
Evacuation vehicles.
Had been able to drive in.
Under cover of darkness.
With their headlights off.
Another soldier explained.
But once ‘orcs’ troops had.
Reached the centre of the city.
The only way to escape.
Was on foot.
Those who managed.
To get out are.
Exhausted.
And depressed.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
They are also angry.
At their commanders.
For not ordering.
The retreat earlier.
Because they argue it was.
Obvious for some time.
That ‘elves’ forces wouldn’t be.
Able to hold the city for long.
“I don’t know why.
They didn’t give the order.”
The machine-gunner said.
“Maybe it’s fear.”
“Maybe it’s fear.
Of the military leadership.
Or maybe it was.
An order.”
“From the top.
To hold positions.
With our blood.
Until the very end.”
Wednesday morning’s briefing.
Said merely that.
“The enemy launched.
Unsuccessful attacks.”
“On our positions.
In Bohoyavlenka’s direction”.
Without mentioning.
The situation in Vuhledar at all.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
— and two years is.
A long time to be.
In combat without.
A unit-wide break.
— and the ‘orcs’.
Keep coming.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
A Ukrainian Brigade Has Held Vuhledar 2 Years; It Might Get Cut Off (forbes.com)
Ukraine’s Fortress In Vuhledar Held For 31 Months. It’s About To Fall. (forbes.com)
You Have 10 Seconds To Escape A Thermite-Spewing Russian Dragon Drone (forbes.com)
Russia May Finally Capture Vuhledar. It Has Cost Thousands Of Troops. (forbes.com)
Russians claim key city of Vuhledar in Ukraine's east (bbc.com)
Six dead in market attack as Ukraine remembers war dead (bbc.com)
No.40
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS COOKING AROUND MINKIVKA
On or before Thursday.
The ‘elves’ army’s.
30th Mechanized Brigade.
Holding the line around Minkivka.
40 miles north of.
The ‘elves’ fortress town.
Of Pokrovsk.
Spotted a solitary ‘orcs’ tank.
— perhaps from the nearby ‘orcs’.
North-V Volunteer Brigade—
Rolling along a treeline road.
In broad daylight.
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
As an ‘elves’ drone observed.
From a distance.
‘Elves’ troops struck the tank.
— possibly with an anti-tank missile.
The initial hit immobilized.
The up-armored “turtle tank”.
Making it an easy target.
For a follow-on attack.
It seems one of.
The 30th Mechanized Brigade’s.
Dragon drones was.
In the best position.
To finish off the tank.
It hovered overhead.
Spraying the lava-like thermite.
All over the tank.
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
Soon, the tank was a pyre.
“Probably the first documented case.
Of a dragon drone.
Striking ‘orcs’ armored vehicles.”
Commented an Estonian analyst.
That incendiaries are effective.
Anti-tank weapons.
Should come as no surprise.
Even if it took.
A few weeks.
For ‘orcs’ and ‘elves’.
Drone operators to appreciate it.
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
“When napalm is splashed.
Onto a tank.
The combustible material.
On the surface of the tank.”
“May catch fire.
Rubber on the tracks.
And road wheels.
May ignite.”
“Exposed hydraulic hoses.
May rupture and.
Engine compartments.
May be damaged.”
The U.S. Army noted.
In a 2000 study.
The damage would be worse.
In cases where.
Infantry are riding on.
Top of the tank.
— a common tactic in ‘orcs’.
31-month wider war on Ukraine.
“Napalm also can ignite.
Exterior-mounted ammunition.
Which may then cause.
Secondary blast or.”
“Which may then cause.
Secondary blast or.
Fragmentation damage.
When it cooks off.”
The U.S. Army observed.
“This secondary blast or fire.
Can be a serious threat.
To mounted soldiers.”
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
The drones’ incendiary spray.
Is fairly inaccurate.
Which is why.
The 30th Mechanized Brigade had to.
The 30th Mechanized Brigade had to.
Immobilize that ‘orcs’ tank.
Before the brigade’s dragon drone.
Could swoop in.
But drone operators.
In the ‘Mordor’-Ukraine war.
Learn fast.
Some ‘elves’ operators of.
Nimble first-person-view drones.
Are so skilled that.
They can strike ‘orcs’ drones.
In mid-air.
— or maneuver their explosive FPVs.
Underneath the lips of.
The add-on armored shells.
On ‘orcs’ turtle tanks.
With time.
The dragon drone operators.
Will become.
More skilled, too.
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
In early September.
‘Elves’ forces began.
Deploying hovering drones.
Equipped with tanks.
Deploying hovering drones.
Equipped with tanks.
Full of thermite.
A metal incendiary.
That sprays like a liquid.
And burns.
As hot as.
5,000 degrees Fahrenheit.
‘Orcs’ forces cobbled together.
Their own versions of.
The ‘elves’ “dragon drone”.
A few weeks later.
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
The dragon drones have.
Mostly attacked bunkers.
Trenches and.
Their occupants.
— the operators apparently.
Calculating that.
Structures and troops.
Are most vulnerable.
To sticky incendiaries.
That can kill.
A human being.
In seconds.
Don’t expect.
A sudden surge in.
Dragon drone attacks.
On tanks.
But it might not be long.
Before they can burn down.
Enemy tanks while the tanks.
Are still on the move.
But incendiaries work against.
Armored vehicles, too.
As one ‘elves’ brigade.
Apparently discovered.
— more accurately.
Rediscovered —
In eastern Ukraine.
This week.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
On this video: Dragon drone spews molten thermite on russian tank in explosive Ukraine frontline combat.
No.41
Kurama
(Japan)
A POET REMAINING
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
On Sunday morning who went?
Afishing in the Moskva,
And catched a fish upon whose heuk?
Who thowt leukt vary queer?
But whatnt kind oer fish is it was,
Young who couldn’t tell?
Who waddnt fash to carry it hyem?
So who hoyed it in a well?
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
Noo who felt inclined to gann?
An fight in neighbour wars,
Who joined a troop of Cossacks that cared?
For nowther wounds nor scars,
But ‘the One’ got fat an growed and
Growed, an growed an aaful size.
He’d greet big teeth and a greet big gob
An greet big goggly eyes.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
An activist-turned-fighter.
Was killed when soldiers.
From his volunteer battalion.
Came under ‘orcs’ artillery fire.
In the Kharkiv region.
Of north-eastern Ukraine.
“He was, and.
He remains a hero”.
For now, there are.
No more details.
“He was, and.
He remains a hero”.
And the Legion itself.
Won’t comment whilst.
It says a military operation.
Is still active.
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
He became known.
In ‘Mordor’.
A decade ago.
For his persistence.
In staging.
Peaceful protests.
As political repression.
There intensified.
He was the first person.
Prosecuted under.
A new Article 212.1.
That in 2014 made it.
A criminal offence to.
Commit repeat violations of.
‘Mordor’’s increasingly.
Restrictive rules on protest.
In his case.
That simply meant.
Standing on the streets.
Of Moscow with a banner.
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
Sentenced to.
Two and a half years.
He was placed.
In a punishment cell.
And immediately.
Went on hunger strike.
His prison guards then.
Tortured him to get him to stop.
Soon after his release.
In 2017.
He described being hung from.
A wall by his cuffed wrists.
The guards had then.
Threatened him with rape.
He admitted that the brutality.
Nearly broke him.
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
“I can’t sit by.
And do nothing.
And so become an accomplice.
To ‘orcs’ evil, to its crimes.”
He explained his decision.
To sign-up.
Just as principled and.
Intense as you remembered him.
He’d always considered.
Himself a pacifist.
But now listed his reasons.
For taking-up arms:
“The aggression.
The mass killing.
The torture.
Rape and looting.”
Still, he chose.
The callsign Gandhi.
Still, he chose.
The callsign Gandhi.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
He felt deeply that.
That he bore personal responsibility.
For ‘orcs’ full-scale invasion.
Of its neighbour.
He argued that.
He and fellow ‘orcs’.
Had failed to.
Stop ‘the One’.
Allowing themselves to.
Be scared off the streets.
By police violence.
And the threat of prison.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
“The main thing.
Now is to act.
According to.
My conscience.”
He wrote to you.
One night from.
Near the frontline.
In Sumy.
He initially signed-up.
With the Siberian Battalion.
In June 2023.
Before moving to.
The Freedom of Russia Legion.
Last winter.
— both officially part of.
The ‘elves’ Armed Forces.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
Recruits are mainly.
‘Orcs’ citizens who.
Hope that helping Ukraine.
Defeat ‘the One’ will be.
A first step.
Towards ending.
His rule.
In ‘Mordor’.
Their numbers.
Aren’t clear.
Nor their effectiveness.
As a fighting force.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
They have claimed some successes.
Including a cross-border incursion.
Into ‘Mordor’ earlier this year.
At the time of ‘the One’’s re-election.
But for him.
The experience wasn’t.
Quite as.
He’d hoped.
He felt that some of.
The missions his unit were.
Sent on were “pointless”.
In any military sense.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
He described one battle.
Where he ended up.
Pinned down for eight hours.
By ‘orcs’ fire in a bomb crater.
With a drone trying to.
Drop a grenade on him.
Whilst a fellow volunteer soldier.
Bled to death.
And like many ‘elves’ soldiers.
He was exhausted.
Fighting with barely any days off.
And limping from a wound to his hip.
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
But he was clear.
His conscience would not.
Allow him to sit.
“On the sidelines”.
Not whilst ‘elves’ were.
Being killed.
As he put it.
“By ‘orcs’ criminals”.
“I tried to stop ‘Mordor’.
— but did I do it?
No,” he berated himself.
“No,” he berated himself.
“And thousands of people.
Have been killed.
Because I did not.
Do enough.”
Those who sent him.
To fight, disagree.
“He was strong, brave.
Principled and honest.”
“He was, and.
He remains a hero”.
“That’s how we should.
Remember him.”
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
On Sunday morning who went?
Afishing in the Moskva,
And catched a fish upon whose heuk?
Who thowt leukt vary queer?
But whatnt kind oer fish is it was,
Young who couldn’t tell?
Who waddnt fash to carry it hyem?
So who hoyed it in a well?
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ aa’ll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An’ Aa’ll tel ye ‘boot ‘the One’.
Noo who felt inclined to gann?
An fight in neighbour wars,
Who joined a troop of Cossacks that cared?
For nowther wounds nor scars,
But ‘the One’ got fat an growed and
Growed, an growed an aaful size.
He’d greet big teeth and a greet big gob
An greet big goggly eyes.
‘Beware the Jabberwock, my son!
The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!
Beware the Jujub bird, and shun
The frumious Bandersnatch!’
’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
All mimsy were the borogoves,
And the mome raths outgrabe.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Russian opposition activist Ildar Dadin killed fighting for Ukraine (bbc.com)
No.42
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS BLOWING UP NEAR OKTYABRSKY
An ‘elves’ attack on.
A warehouse in southern ‘Mordor’.
Blew up 400 Iranian-made.
Shahed attack drones.
That’s nearly five percent.
Of all the 440-pound Shaheds.
‘Mordor’ has deployed so far in its.
31-month wider war on Ukraine.
Video of the resulting.
Conflagration near Oktyabrsky.
Seems to confirm.
The strike.
“An accurate hit on.
The target was recorded.”
The ‘elves’ general staff noted.
“A secondary detonation was observed.”
How the ‘elves’ struck.
That drone stash is unclear.
But the attack on the Shahed warehouse.
Is part of a wider trend.
The propeller-driven.
Satellite-guided Shahed is.
One of ‘orcs’ main weapons.
For deep strikes on ‘elves’ cities.
Since acquiring the first Shaheds.
From Iran in 2022.
‘Orcs’ have launched more than.
8,000 of the explosive drones.
‘Elves’ air defenses have.
Shot down most of the Shaheds.
‘Orcs’ forces have deployed.
On any given night.
How the ‘elves’ struck.
That drone stash is unclear.
But the attack on the Shahed warehouse.
Is part of a wider trend.
According to a tally.
The ‘elves’ have destroyed.
91 percent of all incoming.
Shaheds since March.
But nine out of 100.
Get through.
Striking homes.
And businesses.
With their 110-pound.
Warheads, maiming.
And killing.
Indiscriminately.
Nearly 600 ‘elves’.
Civilians died.
And 2,700.
Were injured.
In ‘orcs’ strikes.
In the three months.
Ending on.
31 Aug.
How the ‘elves’ struck.
That drone stash is unclear.
But the attack on the Shahed warehouse.
Is part of a wider trend.
Blowing up 400 Shaheds should.
Blunt the pace of ‘orcs’ strikes.
“Destruction of the storage base.
Of the Shahed …”
“Will significantly.
Reduce the opportunity.
Of ‘orcs’ occupiers.
To terrorize.”
“Civilian residents of.
‘Elves’ cities and villages.”
The general staff in Kyiv stated.
But it’s a temporary victory.
‘Orcs’ can always acquire.
More of the drones from Tehran.
It’s also producing copies.
At a factory in ‘Mordor’.
How the ‘elves’ struck.
That drone stash is unclear.
But the attack on the Shahed warehouse.
Is part of a wider trend.
The general staff.
Attributed the raid.
To the ‘elves’ military.
And counterterrorism ministry.
Oktyabrsky is just 140 miles.
From the front line.
In eastern Ukraine.
Placing it within range of.
A wide array of.
‘Elves’ munitions.
But we can probably rule out.
‘Elves’ best Western-made munitions.
— its American Army.
Tactical Missile Systems rockets.
British Storm Shadow cruise missiles.
And French SCALP-EG cruise missiles.
‘Elves’ continue to be denied.
Permission to use.
These weapons for strikes.
On ‘Moedor’’s soil.
How the ‘elves’ struck.
That drone stash is unclear.
But the attack on the Shahed warehouse.
Is part of a wider trend.
There are no restrictions.
On ‘elves’-made munitions, however.
‘Elves’ Neptune cruise missiles.
Can reach into southern ‘Mordor’.
And the long-range strike drones.
The ‘elves’ intelligence directorate.
Has developed can range hundreds.
Of miles past Oktyabrsky.
Rather than expending.
Expensive air-defense missiles.
To shoot down the drones.
Near their targets.
The ‘elves’ are making.
An effort to strike.
“Left of the boom.”
To borrow a U.S. military idiom.
That is, they’re trying.
To hit ‘orcs’ munitions.
Before the ‘orcs’.
Can launch them.
How the ‘elves’ struck.
That drone stash is unclear.
But the attack on the Shahed warehouse.
Is part of a wider trend.
The Shaheds aren’t.
The only targets.
The Shaheds aren’t.
The only targets.
‘Elves’ raids have also.
Blown up ‘orcs’ stockpiles.
Of satellite-guided.
Glide bombs.
Last week.
An ‘elves’ drone raid.
On an ‘orcs’ air base.
Near Voronezh.
120 miles north of.
‘Elves’ northern border.
With ‘Mordor’, reportedly targeted.
A warehouse full of bombs.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Watch 400 Shahed Attack Drones Explode At The Same Time In Southern Russia (forbes.com)
No.43
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS TESTING
One unfortunate ‘orc’ soldier.
Became an unwilling test subject.
For a new kind of ‘elves’ drone.
This week.
With the ‘elves’ army’s.
118th Mechanized Brigade.
Holding the line.
In southern ‘elves’ Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
A drone operator.
Was patrolling the front.
With their quadcopter-style drone.
When they spotted.
A solitary ‘orc’.
Marching along a dirt path.
A solitary ‘orc’.
Marching along a dirt path.
Tiny explosive drones.
Are some of.
The most lethal weapons.
In the war.
As a second drone.
Observed from overhead.
The explosives-laden FPV drone.
— probably weighing just a few pounds —
Zoomed over the soldier’s head.
Then dove.
Zoomed over the soldier’s head.
Then dove.
The direct hit.
Killed the ‘orc’.
“Maneuverability is impressive.”
Noted a popular ‘elf’ blogger.
The technology on display.
In the bloody combat trial.
Promises to transform.
‘Elves’ drone force.
As ‘orcs’ wider war on Ukraine.
Grinds toward its 32nd month.
‘Orcs’ own drone force is.
Undergoing the same transformation.
Both sides.
In the wider war.
Deploy hundreds of.
Thousands of FPV drones.
Every month.
Striking vehicles.
Trenches and even.
Individual soldiers.
Tiny explosive drones.
Are some of.
The most lethal weapons.
In the war.
But for the first two years.
Of the wider conflict.
The drones’ lethality.
Depended almost entirely on.
The skill of their operators.
Typically, a human pilot.
Wearing a virtual reality headset.
Remotely steers.
An FPV in real time.
The overall greater.
Experience and talent.
Of ‘elves’ operators.
Including the famed drone commander.
Explains why.
‘Elves’ FPVs are often.
More effective than ‘orcs’.
More effective than ‘orcs’.
Early this year.
The ‘orcs’ introduced.
New tech that erased.
Some of the ‘elves’ skill edge.
Artificial intelligence installed.
In an FPV’s onboard processor.
Can recognize the outline.
Of a human being.
And automatically.
Steer the drone.
In the final few seconds.
Of its flight.
When aiming is most difficult.
For many operators.
When aiming is most difficult.
For many operators.
Tiny explosive drones.
Are some of.
The most lethal weapons.
In the war.
The famed drone commander realized.
The ‘orcs’ had deployed.
These guided FPVs.
Back in January.
In a video he shared.
With his many followers.
He outlined a hypothetical.
A.I. drone sortie.
By an untalented.
‘Orc’ operator.
“Who may not be.
Very good at controlling.”
“He goes somewhere.
Into the target zone.
Notices a target.
And points at it.”
He explained.
“And then the drone.
Directs even at a moving.
Target to hit.”
The ‘elves’ military.
Moved quickly.
To develop.
Its own guided FPVs.
Tiny explosive drones.
Are some of.
The most lethal weapons.
In the war.
By this spring.
‘Elves’ A.I.-assisted drones.
Were in testing.
By this spring.
Six months later.
They’re on the front line.
For combat use.
— and further refinement.
If the 118th Mechanized Brigade’s.
Brutal test strike against.
A live ‘orc’ is.
Any indication.
The drones already.
Work pretty well.
The famed drone commander promised.
‘Elves’ guided FPV drones.
Would get better, fast.
Would get better, fast.
“We will continue.
To develop them further.”
Tiny explosive drones.
Are some of.
The most lethal weapons.
In the war.
One unfortunate ‘orc’ soldier.
Became an unwilling test subject.
For a new kind of ‘elves’ drone.
This week.
With the ‘elves’ army’s.
118th Mechanized Brigade.
Holding the line.
In southern ‘elves’ Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
A drone operator.
Was patrolling the front.
With their quadcopter-style drone.
When they spotted.
A solitary ‘orc’.
Marching along a dirt path.
A solitary ‘orc’.
Marching along a dirt path.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
Ukrainian Army Spotted A Lone Russian & Tested A Deadly Drone On Him (forbes.com)
No.44
Kurama
(Japan)
POETS OF 17 SADOVA STREET
Her home in the small.
Mining city of Vuhledar.
In eastern Ukraine.
Was her pride and joy.
17 Sadova Street was.
Little more than a shell.
When she and her husband.
Bought it.
They lovingly renovated the house.
Painting cherry blossom and doves.
- symbols of love and well-being –
In their bedroom.
They built a swimming pool.
In the garden.
And a sauna.
In the basement.
“Everything was planned.
With such passion.”
She says, but the peace.
Wasn’t to last.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
In February 2022.
‘Orcs’ launched.
Its full-scale invasion.
Of Ukraine.
Her husband went to fight.
While she took.
Their children.
And ran.
Before fleeing.
She recorded what she thought.
Could be her last glimpse.
Of their home.
“My dear house.
I don’t know.
If you will stand or not.
I don’t know.”
“If we’ll ever return here...
Or if we’ll.
Even survive at all.”
She said in a video.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
The next time.
She saw her home was.
A year later.
In February 2023.
Through the eyes of.
An ‘orc’ soldier.
In bodycam footage.
Posted on social media.
A marine was.
In her living room.
Flicking through photos.
Of her and her family.
“Beautiful,” he said.
Looking at one photo.
It was a chilling image.
That made her angry.
“I wish I had taken.
The albums with me.”
The fleeing homeowner says.
It was a chilling image.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
Ukraine spent two and.
A half years defending Vuhledar.
And although ‘orcs’ forces.
Had launched.
A major offensive.
In 2023.
They never fully managed.
To capture the city.
Until the start of.
October 2024.
During the long battle.
As the front line shifted.
The ‘orc’ marine had led.
A group of soldiers.
To the suburbs.
In late January 2023.
And got caught in heavy fighting.
On Sadova Street.
He and some others.
Entered her home.
As his bodycam footage.
Went viral back home.
The ‘orc’ marine was hailed.
As a hero.
Official documents show that.
He was recalled from.
The front in February 2023.
Because of a leg wound.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
But what the footage.
Didn’t show was that.
The ‘orcs’ were keeping.
An ‘elf’ soldier captive.
In her basement.
Who was starving and.
In desperate need.
Of medical care.
Before the war.
The ‘elf’ soldier worked.
As an IT specialist.
When ‘orcs’ invaded his country.
He volunteered to fight.
And later became.
A drone operator.
In Vuhledar.
His love of dancing earned.
Him the nickname Dancer.
When the ‘orcs’ broke.
Through ‘elves’ lines.
In late January.
2023.
He and his comrades.
Tried to retreat.
But some of them.
Including him were shot.
Wounded, they were taken.
From house to house.
By ‘orcs’ soldiers.
With him eventually ending up.
In the basement of her home.
He was held captive.
For almost a month.
- ‘orcs’ footage uploaded online.
Shows him wrapped in.
One of her carpets.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
During the battle for Vuhledar.
There was a point.
When the ‘orcs’ soldiers retreated.
And they left him behind.
In all he spent.
46 days in her house.
And for much of that time.
He had barely any food or water.
Injured, starving.
And dehydrated.
He was unable to.
Leave the building.
“I was able to find.
Some crumbs on the floor.
There was a piece of cracker.
Which a mouse stole.”
“Which a mouse stole.
From me at night.
I hid it.
And then the mouse.”
“Probably stole it.
Because I couldn’t find it.”
But hunger was nothing.
Compared to thirst.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
One day, after.
The ‘orcs’ had left.
The desperate need for water.
Almost killed him.
He tore panels from.
A sauna in the hope that.
There might be water.
Inside the pipes.
He managed to break.
One open and drank.
Some of the liquid inside.
But it was antifreeze.
Those few sips.
Caused internal burns.
And were nearly fatal.
Then, in March that year.
When ‘elves’ forces retook.
Parts of Vuhledar.
And reached Sadova Street.
And reached Sadova Street.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
Another video went viral.
It shows ex-New Zealand soldier.
Entering number 17.
And finding him.
“New Zealand.
New Zealand, it’s me!”
The ‘elf’ prisoner shouts.
At his colleague.
Who had travelled.
To fight for Ukraine.
The colleague died in battle.
Just two weeks later.
The starving prisoner.
Was carried out.
Of the house.
And to safety.
Had he been left.
Just a few more days.
He says he wouldn’t.
Have made it.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
He still has a bullet.
In his back.
- doctors have told him.
It is too dangerous to remove it.
Several other ‘elves’ and ‘orcs’.
Soldiers are known to have died.
In and around Sadova Street.
During the battle for Vuhledar.
“Thank God he survived.
But the fact that people died.
In my house.
It shocked me.”
The fleeing homeowner says.
“There is only death in there.”
“There is only death in there.”
The fleeing homeowner says.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
Half a year after.
The ‘elf’ prisoner’s rescue.
His ‘orc’ captor was.
Being lauded at home.
Asked about the video.
From Sadova Street.
Particularly where he flicked.
Through the photos of her family.
He said he was.
Playing a “psychological trick”.
On himself due to.
The incoming gunfire.
“I grabbed the album and.
Started looking at the photos.
To distract myself.
You know, actually.”
“I felt so cold-blooded.
For a second, to be honest.
These thoughts ran through.
My mind - about who lived here.”
But when asked about her.
Directly, he said he didn’t want.
To answer any more questions.
And ended the call.
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
She is now in Germany.
As time passes.
She is trying to build.
A new life.
Learn a new language.
And find bits of work.
Here and there.
- but she still grieves.
Her lost home in Vuhledar.
“It’s so hard.
I can still see.
My house in my dreams.”
“It’s always in my head.
I still hope that.
Ukraine will win.
And everything will be fine.”
“We will come back.”
“My land is there.
The air is mine.”
“We will come back.”
A family home.
In the small city of Vuhledar.
Became the backdrop.
Of three lives.
Caught up in war:
The ‘elf’ fleeing homeowner.
The ‘elf’ starving prisoner.
And the ‘orc’ soldier.
But back on Sadova Street.
There is almost nothing left.
Of her beloved house.
Which once again is.
No more than a shell.
It can be recognized.
In drone footage shot.
From the air.
By a blue spot.
Where her swimming pool.
Used to be.
Standing out against.
Where her swimming pool.
Used to be.
Standing out against.
A backdrop of grey rubble.
Source: https://www.koryu-meets-chess.info/
Please read the original story:
‘Russians invaded my house and held a Ukrainian soldier captive there’ (bbc.com)
On this video: From Dream Home to Battlefield. The Harrowing Story of One House in Ukraine — BBC World Service.
Read more:
"Aware of a poet?
A poet of Cossack broods over the land.
Not noting a bullet.
Not noting a bullet.
You see a poet of Cossack in Borodyanka."
(Kurama)
.jpg)
"Коли закінчиться війна,Я хочу тата обійняти,
Сказати сонячні слова
І повести його до хати,
Ти – наш Герой! Тепер щодня
Я буду дякувати Богу
За мирне небо, за життя,
Всім, хто здобув нам ПЕРЕМОГУ!"
Думки українських поетів про рідну країну, їхні відчуття до української землі і нашого народу — все це юні читачі зможуть знайти в представленій добірці віршів про Україну від Ганни Черінь, Юрка Шкрумеляка, Наталки Талиманчук, Іванни Савицької, Уляни Кравченко, Яни Яковенко, Василя Симоненка, Івана Франка, Володимира Сосюри, Катерини Перелісної, Богдана-Ігоря Антонича, Марійки Підгірянки, Миколи Чернявського, Володимира Сіренка, Іванни Блажкевич, Грицька Бойка, Миколи Вінграновського, Платона Воронька, Наталі Забіли, Анатолія Камінчука, Анатолія Качана, Володимира Коломійця, Тамари Коломієць, Ліни Костенко, Андрія Малишка, Андрія М’ястківського, Івана Неходи, Бориса Олійника, Дмитра Павличка, Максима Рильського, Вадима Скомаровського, Сосюра Володимир, Павла Тичини, Петра Осадчука, Варвари Гринько та інших відомих українських поетів.
Дуже корисними для вивчення іноземних мов є саме вірші, пісні, казки, римівки, а також ігри. Природнім шляхом діти розвивають слух, навчаються вимові, інтонації та наголосу; вивчають слова та мовні структури. Пісні та римівки чудово сприймаються дітьми, малята люблять усе ритмічне та музичне, вони засвоюють це легко та швидко, тому що дістають від цього задоволення.