381. Ben Hodges - The Siege of Crimea has Begun as Ukraine Takes Control over the Black Sea and Coastline

Strikes on Russian oil refineries have a significant impact on Russia’s
ability to conduct warfare. Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, Commander of
U.S. Forces Europe in 2014-17, stated this during the 16th annual Kyiv
Security Forum. “Of course, attacks on oil refineries have a significant
impact. Russia is less able to pay for this war, and it also deprives
it of the necessary fuel to continue hostilities. I would recommend
ignoring the calls for an end to such attacks.”

The Lieutenant General emphasized that sanctions against Russia need to
be strengthened. He also added that 2024 will be the year of industrial
competition. “Ukraine and the West should win this competition. I am
talking about of course building up ammunition supplies, but also moving
forward maintenance capabilities so that the Ukrainian soldiers can fix
forward equipment that is broken or damaged on site, as well as
increasing their ammunition stocks.”

According to Hodges, Ukraine should put pressure on Russian logistics,
particularly in Crimea, to make the peninsula unusable for Russian
troops. “I would not expect a dramatic drop in Ukraine’s ability to
defend itself. The job of (new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of
Ukraine) Syrskyi will be to stabilize the situation on the front line,
but industrial competition will play a role here, while the Ukrainian
army needs new units to ensure rotation”.
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Ben Hodges is a retired United States Army officer, who became commander
of United States Army Europe in November 2014, and held that position
for three years until retiring from the United States Army in January
2018. He was most recently a Senior Advisor to Human Rights First, until
summer 2023, and serves as NATO Senior Mentor for Logistics. Until
recently was the Pershing Chair in Strategic Studies, at the Centre for
European Policy Analysis, specialising in NATO, the Transatlantic
relationship and international security.
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CHAPTERS:
00:01:07 Introduction - what's happened since the last conversation
00:01:55 What we're still getting wrong about Vladimir Putin
00:03:39 Russia crimes - using Ecocide and Energy as Weapons if war
00:06:14 The grey fleet breaking oil sanctions and threatening disaster
00:11:29 Ukraine's revolution in military tactics in the air and at sea
00:14:17 Has siege of Crimea begun, and will it become untenable for Russia
00:16:25 The failing Western strategy of extreme 'escalation manangement'
00:22:29 How has Ukraine still held the line, depite ammunition famine
00:29:42 Why was Jake Sullivan in Kyiv, and does it involve appeasement?
00:30:32 We are giving Putin signals thate he can act with total impunity
00:36:15 What are immediate requirements of Ukraine and how can we meet them?
00:40:41 Is the strategy of 'risk management' built on incorrect assumptions?
00:43:51 Western strategy increases global risk of conflict and chaos
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LINKS:
https://twitter.com/general_ben
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Hodges
https://cepa.org/author/ben-hodges/
https://warsawsecurityforum.org/speaker/hodges-ben-lt-gen/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-hodges-1674b1172/
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CHAPTERS:
00:00:00
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TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:
Save Ukraine
https://www.saveukraineua.org/

Superhumans - Hospital for war traumas
https://superhumans.com/en/

UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in
Ukraine
https://unbroken.org.ua/

Come Back Alive
https://savelife.in.ua/en/

Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchen
https://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraine

UNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyy
https://u24.gov.ua/

Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation
https://prytulafoundation.org
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