By Mortz C. Ortigoza
I was glued to the viewpoints in YouTube of retired general Frederick Benjamin "Ben" Hodges, III - who served as commanding general, United States Army Europe - about the psychological and strategical values of the recent counter attacks to the Russian soldiers by the Ukrainian army in the port city Kherson. It is located at the southern part of the besieged country.
The city serves as the administrative center of Kherson Oblast located in the Black Sea and in the Dnieper River. Kherson is the home of a major ship-building industry and is a regional economic center. In 2021, it had an estimated population of 283,649.
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| United States made M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) |
Hodges thesis was titled: The War in Ukraine with Lt. General Ben Hodges.
The General – who is the current Pershing Chair in Strategic Studies at the Center for European Policy Analysis - said the strikes of the Ukrainians against the Ivans have the following values:
· Kherson is the first and only capital of an Oblast province that was captured by the Russians;
· Tens of thousands of Russian troops that are on the right side of the Dnipro River have been trapped;
· The three bridges in the Dnipro River have been destroyed by the Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) guided multiple launch rocket system (GMLRS) rockets of the accurate hitting United States made M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) because of their relentless bombardments in July and August. Moscow cannot send reinforcement, water, and ammunition to these beleaguered soldiers;
· The 25, 000 to 35,000 Russians (15% of their entire invasion force) have been snagged and trapped in the right of the River after the Ukrainian battalions from Kharkiv cut them behind – ala the famed Inchon landing of Douglas McArthur.
With the Russians – parts of those thousands who left Kharkiv to rescue Kherson - in the left side of the Dnipro River absconding to their motherland by leaving their heavy military equipment, the Ukrainians could be 240 kilometers from Kherson to the Russian's naval base and port city’s Sevastopol of Crimea.
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| AUTHOR (extreme right) who sports a huge tactical helmet and Kevlar vest used by the crew of HIMARS during the Balikatan (military exercise) of the Americans and the Filipinos in Clark Air Base, Pampanga. He is in this photo with the members of the United States Marines who man the GPS guided rocket system manufactured by Lockheed Martin as seen on the background. |
Just like the man-portable air-defense system’s FIM-92 Stinger, tactical air-to-surface anti-radiation’s AGM-88 HARM missiles, and advanced anti-tank weapon system and the fire and forget U.S made Javelin and British and Sweden manufactured N-LAW shoulder carried rockets that flushed out the Russian soldiers on their failed invasion of capital city’s Kyiev in February to April 2022 that cost them 22, 000 dead and 460 tanks and over 2,000 other armoured vehicles destroyed (Oryx), the surgical hitting HIMARS – dubbed by military experts as “The “C” forming Fore Finger God” have been another game changer in President Volodymyr O. Zelensky's successful counterattacks not only in Kherson but in Kharkiv and the city of Izium early and middle of this month. The capture of Izium was a major tactical setback to Russian President Vladimir Putin as the city is a major logistical railway hub of the Russian's military juggernaut as it connects to the Russian's city of Belgorod Oblast.
The head of Russia's administration in Kharkiv told residents to evacuate the province and flee to Russia to "save lives," TASS reported. Witnesses described traffic jams of cars with people leaving Russian-held territory.
What will be the implication to Moscow and Putin if the dozens of HIMARs come near Crimea – invaded and annexed by Russia in February 27, 2014? What will the implication of this Finger of God as the Ukrainian combatants inch to Donbas and Luhansk?
Just like what the accurate GPS navigating rocket of the HIMARs – that can fire its six rockets in a pod every 14 seconds – at a range of 92 kilometers, the Russian soldiers will be deprived again of their gas and ammunition because their depots can be accurately blasted to smithereens by these long range Lockheed Martin's manufactured rockets.
“How can the guided rockets of HIMARS hit the Chinese warships if one of this is posted at one of the islets of the Philippines at the South China Sea?” I asked one of the camouflage clad U.S Marines who manned one of them being displayed at Clark Air Base in April 2016 during the Balikatan (military exercise) among the Yanks and the Filipinos.
“They would be GPS guided,” he retorted as he set the huge fatigue’s Kevlar helmet and the pocketfuls' bulletproof vest intended for the operator of the HIMARS on my head and body for our photo-op (SEE OUR PHOTO SOMEWHERE IN THIS BLOG).
“Is the price of this monster (Himars) $5.1 million apiece?” I posed.
“Naah, its $6 million apiece now”.
“Philippine government should buy some these so we can sink those ships of the Chinks,”I added.
The secret of Ukraine victories against the Ivans is to quote what Oscar Johnson – a researcher of the Swedish Defense University, said:
“This is Ukraine cleverly spotty on the Russian lines with bad opportunities for redeployment coupled with new longer range capabilities (smart rockets like HIMARS) that can impact on Russian forces”.
(Send comments to totomortz@yahoo.com
READ MY OTHER BLOG:
The Lethal, Costly Weapons of a Cobra
MORTZ C. ORTIGOZA
I am a twenty years seasoned Op-Ed Political Writer in various newspapers and Blogger exposing government corruptions, public officials's idiocy and hypocrisies, and analyzing local and international issues. I have a master’s degree in Public Administration and professional government eligibility. I taught for a decade Political Science and Economics in universities in Metro Manila and cities of Urdaneta, Pangasinan and Dagupan. Follow me on Twitter @totoMortz or email me at totomortz@yahoo.com.
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