Permission to win — U.S. administration’s weapons restrictions “giving Russia sanctuary from which they’re murdering innocent Ukrainian people,” says former commander. “We haven’t even tried to actually help Ukraine win yet.”

by marketrent

5 comments

  2. Matt Seyler spoke with Lt. Gen. (R) Ben Hodges and ISW’s George Barros:

    *Zelenskyy has been vocal about the importance of using long-range Western weapons, like the U.S.-provided Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS), against military targets in Russia.*

    *”There is no moral, legal, or military reason for restricting them from using ATACMS, or any other weapon that we give them across the border,” said retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, who led all U.S. Army forces in Europe.*

    *”I believe [limited permission] is actually just fear of escalation,” George Barros, leader of the Institute for the Study of War’s Russia team, told ABC News on Friday.*

    *Hodges and Barros believe the administration has been unduly cowed by the Kremlin into not doing “what it takes.”*

    *With its current restrictions, the U.S. is “giving Russia sanctuary from which they’re murdering innocent Ukrainian people,” Hodges said.*

    *Changing the policy to instead help deny Russian forces sanctuary on their home turf could have a major impact on how the war plays out, according to Barros.*

     

    *”One of the most decisive things that the administration can do, but that it really, earnestly, has not done, is unambiguously remove all the sanctuary space and allow the Ukrainians to conduct strikes in the deep and operational rears with all the U.S.-provided weapons,” Barros said.*

    *The way you defeat their only advantage, which is mass, is with precision,” Hodges said. “Precision out to 300 kilometers allows you to destroy headquarters, logistics, artillery, long-range fires – if you can destroy those, then you completely emasculate the Russian army.”*

    *A policy change from Biden could disrupt Putin’s war machine even before Ukraine launched its first U.S. missile deep into Russia, according to Barros.*

    *Just the threat of use would force Russian commanders to make hard decisions on whether to move any of its limited air-defense systems away from the front lines to cover its rear areas, leaving one or both at least partially exposed.*

    *”We haven’t even tried to actually help Ukraine win yet,” Hodges said.*

  4. Exactly, rhetoric was “not let Ukraine lose”, I hope we will have win idea soon.

  5. In my dreams Biden makes Ben Hodges his National Security Advisor in his second Term

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