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Washington's Hand: Why Vance Knows More About Ukraine Than Zelensky
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.by Artemy Sharapov [REGNUM] The unprecedented spat between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky, which has finally destroyed the White House's trust in the still-in-force Kiev regime, will long excite the world community. The 40-minute "show flogging" was by no means a simple exchange of unpleasantries, but gave reason to pay attention to many details in Washington's relations with its Ukrainian "partners".  So, to the quite reasonable remark of Vice President J.D. Vance: “You should thank the president (Trump) for trying to end this conflict,” Zelensky brazenly snapped: “Have you ever been to Ukraine to see what problems we have?” After which Vance pointed out to the Kyiv guest that he was showing disrespect and allowing himself to attack the US administration. After all, Zelensky openly stated that the top leadership of the United States does not have information about what is happening in Ukraine (and therefore is incompetent in this matter). From this, Trump and Vance could conclude that their counterpart was either extremely impolite, inadequate, or “out of the loop.” In fact, the intelligence services, the diplomatic corps, and therefore the top political leadership of the United States have full information about the situation in Ukraine. Which Zelensky's office could not help but know, given how many American advisers of the highest level are "on the ground" and daily collect information about the situation. THEIR PEOPLE ARE IN KYIV It is no coincidence that the media and officials call cooperation between American and Ukrainian intelligence agencies “unprecedented.” In 2015, the CIA helped Ukraine “recreate” the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) of the Ministry of Defense, which is responsible for planning sabotage operations and political assassinations. According to open data (cited, for example, by ABC News ), the CIA has sent millions of dollars to finance the training and equipment of Ukrainian intelligence officers and the construction of facilities on the border with Russia. The two services also began conducting joint operations “around the world,” journalists note. The former head of the GUR (in 2015-16), General Valeriy Kondratyuk, stated in a commentary to the ABC television channel that the CIA trained Ukrainian officers in combat tactics and espionage. The training took place at a base in one of the countries of the North Atlantic Alliance in Europe. In other words, the CIA is not only closely connected with Ukrainian military intelligence, but is essentially its “parent organization,” since it independently selects both personnel and technical means for the GUR. According to unconfirmed information, the CIA, as well as the US National Security Agency (NSA), also have the closest ties with the Security Service of Ukraine. The authoritative publication The New York Times adds that even after the start of military actions in Ukraine, there remained a group of CIA employees who constantly exchanged information with the Ukrainian special services. These specialists allegedly advised Kyiv on planning strikes with long-range weapons, using, among other things, data transmitted by Ukrainian special services. How, under such circumstances, the US “does not know” about something that Kyiv knows is a big question. Especially since cooperation between Kiev and Washington was established not only through the special services, but also at the level of the highest military command. "COOPERATION" ON A SHORT LEASH In fact, the United States has never hidden the presence of its military advisers directly on Ukrainian territory. In April 2024, US Defense Department spokesman Pat Ryder directly stated that a group of Pentagon officers was permanently stationed at the American embassy in Kiev. The officers operate under the Office of Defense Cooperation, or ODC. “During this conflict, the Department of Defense has reviewed and adjusted our presence in the country as the security environment has changed,” Ryder told Politico. Officially, ODC staff "perform various advisory and support tasks." The mission is staffed exclusively by U.S. Department of Defense personnel, but formally operates under the direction of the ambassador in Kyiv and the State Department. The mission's mandate includes overseeing the supply of American weapons and servicing high-tech equipment. As Politico notes, as of spring 2024, there were at least 60 Pentagon specialists in Ukraine as part of the ODC alone. And these are only those who were officially reported. According to unconfirmed reports, high-ranking Pentagon officers also participate in planning all Ukrainian Armed Forces operations, transmit intelligence to Kyiv obtained through technological means and agents, in a word, they are not just “in the know,” but, in fact, they themselves determine the course of events. A group of American specialists is also located at the Polish Air Force base in Rzeszow, which has been transformed into the largest hub for the supply of military aid to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. It is worth remembering that the US (logically) has not only all the information about the supply of its weapons, but also about the military cooperation between Kiev, the EU and NATO countries. The lion's share of weapons supplied by European countries to Ukraine, such as F-16 fighters, were produced in the US. Consequently, any transfer of military equipment, as well as the necessary documentation and technical equipment, is sanctioned by the US Congressional Defense Committee. But even if we assume that the US President and Vice President, for some unknown reason, do not have access to the documentation of the intelligence agencies, the Pentagon, the State Department and Congress, they can look into open sources to learn about the situation in Ukraine. DELIVERIES AND LOSSES ARE EVIDENT Statistics can tell us much more eloquently about the state of the Ukrainian Armed Forces than rumors and fragmentary “insider” information from Western media. As both Trump and Vance rightly reminded Zelensky, the United States is the largest supplier of military aid to Ukraine. The Pentagon has transferred thousands of units of military equipment to Kyiv, and some of it will not be returned. During a series of unsuccessful offensive operations, Ukrainian troops lost a lot of weapons, and the losses had to be replenished not with “fresh” products, but with equipment taken from warehouses, that is, from the arsenals of the US Army, which affected its combat capability. The exact data on the losses of the warring parties is kept secret, but some information can be gleaned from open sources, as users of the Lostarmour portal do. According to researchers, the Ukrainian Armed Forces lost at least 120 American-made M1 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. The average cost of one BMP is estimated at 4-4.5 million dollars, meaning that the US financial losses from the supply of armored vehicles can be estimated at approximately 500 million. Officially, the US delivered about a hundred vehicles of this model to Ukraine, but later the deliveries most likely continued, but without public coverage. In the case of Stryker armored personnel carriers, everything is a little "better" - only about 50 vehicles were destroyed. With an average price of $5 million per unit, we are talking about "only" $250 million. Let's not include in these statistics such "trifles" as dozens of destroyed Abrams tanks, as well as those armored vehicles whose destruction was not caught on camera. Let's just note that even Internet users can receive objective information these days and draw appropriate conclusions based on it. There are also Ukrainian resources that monitor changes in the situation on the front in real time and publish open access data on settlements lost by the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the advancement of Russian troops. So Vice President Vance didn't have to go to Kyiv for this information, he could just, like us, look at open sources. And this is all without even mentioning the most obvious: Vance has all the Pentagon documents on hand, which clearly reflect the real scale of deliveries and losses of armored vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The vice president also has information about the number of artillery and tank shells and other types of ammunition, logistics equipment, banal bulletproof vests and helmets delivered to Ukraine. Therefore, a politician could really draw some conclusions about the combat capability and losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as the costs required to maintain their combat capability, without going anywhere or even requesting reports from analysts. SO WHO DOESN'T KNOW? Given the fact that, according to official data alone, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of American diplomats, military personnel, and intelligence officers on Ukrainian soil, it seems highly unlikely that the US government does not have sufficient information about the situation in the country. So Zelensky's accusations are more like responses to critics in the spirit of "you do it yourself first, and then criticize" than a claim on the merits. After all, it's the 21st century, and given their capabilities, Trump, Vance, and other people in the US administration have more complete information than even the Ukrainian leadership. Perhaps Kyiv is making the wrong decisions because it itself does not fully understand the essence of what is happening. And based on this data, it makes appropriate decisions. Posted by: badanov 2025-03-05 |
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