Russia has deployed 53,000 soldiers on Ukrainian border

[Kailash Kumar]

Kyiv: Russia has deployed 53,000 soldiers on Ukrainian border

January 1, 2019

Russia is maintaining vast military forces along the Ukrainian border, with as many as 53,000 soldiers there at the end of December 2018, according to a press release by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry.

“The Russian Federation is continuing to expand its military groups close to the Ukrainian state border. Notably, as of the end of December 2018, on Ukraine’s border and in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea, 28 tactical battalion groups were deployed. The total number of the mentioned troops (without taking into account those stationed in the temporarily occupied Donetsk and Luhansk provinces) is roughly 53,000 soldiers,” the ministry reported.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko recently said that Russia has been reinforcing its military presence on the Ukrainian border throughout autumn. According to Poroshenko, Russia currently has 28 tactical battalion groups there, with 80,000 soldiers, 1,120 tanks, 2,600 armored vehicles, 1,230 artillery systems, 442 multiple rocket launchers, and 6 tactical operational missile systems.

http://uawire.org/kyiv-russia-has-deployed-53-000-soldiers-on-ukrainian-border

 

[Gangetic]

How big would an invasion force need to be? 400k men?

 

[Kailash Kumar]

How big would an invasion force need to be? 400k men?

Ukraine has around 182000 active personnel, but also around 1000000 reservists.

Although it depends on how well trained and equipped the reservists are, I would say that 400000 could be enough.

 

[Foxtrot Delta]

God damn its an invasion force! Ukraine won't be able to fight. But i think its more for show. Putin can't afford to have a war with ukraine.

 

[FalconStar]

They are having Presidential elections in March so this might be just for theatrics, Putin will surely wait and try to engineer for the pro Russia candidate to win.
Volodymyr Zelensky who is somewhat pro Russia is number three in the polls right now.

 

[FuturePAF]

If Russia Invades; it will employ the new hybrid warfare techniques it has been refining over the last 15 years. Should an invasion occur, these would be the same techniques India's new war doctrine calls for. Pakistan should keep a close eye on this invasion force and the tactics used by it and against it.

 

[jhungary]

They are having Presidential elections in March so this might be just for theatrics, Putin will surely wait and try to engineer for the pro Russia candidate to win.
Volodymyr Zelensky who is somewhat pro Russia is number three in the polls right now.

A few fun fact about 2019 Ukraine Presidential Election

Current poll leader is Yulia Tymoshenko, if the poll result carry on the next election. She will be the first female President of Ukraine since separated from USSR

Yulia Tymoshenko started her business career by opening a video rental store in Ukraine SSR

Presidents of Ukraine are Head of States (basically in charge of Foreign Affair) while Prime Ministers of Ukraine are head of Government (basically in charge of domestic affair), majority believe Prime Minister have more power than the President of Ukraine.

Yulia Tymoshenko is pro-West, Volodymyr Groysman, current Prime Minister of Ukraine is also Pro-West.

Yulia Tymoshenko met her husband when her husband misdial and the call got connected to Yulia Tymoshenko, he called back and ask her out on a date and the two started a relationship that way

Volodymyr Zelensky (currently second/third in poll) is an actor, he played Ukrainian President (A post he is contesting in 2019) during a TV series in 2015. (Which is a surprisingly good political drama in Ukraine)

Volodymyr Zelensky in a TV interview publicly decry both Rebel Leader in War in Donbass as puppet, he claim he would talk to Russia directly.

Volodymyr Zelensky is Pro-Ukrainian (Not Pro-West/Anti-West or Pro-Russia/Anti-Russia) he supported Euromaiden and Ukrainian Army position during War in Donbass