ADVERTISINGIn southern Ukraine, Russian units defending the strategic city of Kherson struggled to hold their positions against persistent Ukrainian attacks. “We understand your questions and concerns” about Ukraine, he told Xi at a summit meeting in the central Asian city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. That plan failed when Ukraine, bolstered by Western military aid and U.S. intelligence, halted Russia’s attempt to seize its capital, Kyiv. Now Putin’s Plan B, the conquest of eastern and southern Ukraine, is teetering on the edge of failure as well. The government has continued to reassure Russians that this is a limited “special military operation” and has even prohibited describing it as a “war.”“He’s still desperately trying to avoid mass mobilization,” Vershbow said.

Source: Los Angeles Times September 21, 2022 03:04 UTC