IMO - the importance of the the current situation in LYMAN is being severely downplayed here. A significant portion of Russian troops are encircled there and about to be wiped out Custer style.
It provides huge impetus for Putin to use tactical nukes to save them - if Putin leaves them to die I think it is going to be the biggest loss of the war thus far and as bad as morale supposedly is - this will crush it further and make Putin look helpless and weak.
I don't think he can withstand such a loss from a morale / PR standpoint at this time. He needs a victory and he has an opportunity to stand up and show he absolutely is not bluffing just like he said. And he does that by nuking the attacking Ukrainian forces.
If I am wrong about that - and Putin allows those men to be slaughtered - all it does is put his back further against the wall and make any probable nuclear response even worse in the future - think using a few tactical nukes now versus nuking Poland or Kyiv later for example.
I really hate to say this - but unless Putin has some kind of near instant plan for a huge conventional attack to save those guys - that war is about to get way worse.
It provides huge impetus for Putin to use tactical nukes to save them - if Putin leaves them to die I think it is going to be the biggest loss of the war thus far and as bad as morale supposedly is - this will crush it further and make Putin look helpless and weak.
I don't think he can withstand such a loss from a morale / PR standpoint at this time. He needs a victory and he has an opportunity to stand up and show he absolutely is not bluffing just like he said. And he does that by nuking the attacking Ukrainian forces.
If I am wrong about that - and Putin allows those men to be slaughtered - all it does is put his back further against the wall and make any probable nuclear response even worse in the future - think using a few tactical nukes now versus nuking Poland or Kyiv later for example.
I really hate to say this - but unless Putin has some kind of near instant plan for a huge conventional attack to save those guys - that war is about to get way worse.
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