CAL, STAY SAFE, AS ALWAYS,
THANK YOU, IN LVIV UKRAINE.
AS I MENTIONED AT THE TOP OF
THE SHOW, AMERICAN AND BRITISH
OFFICIALS ARE NOW SAYING,
RUSSIAN FORCES HAVE SUFFERED
SIGNIFICANT CASUALTIES, AND
SETBACK, SINCE THE WAR BEGAN.
AS WE WERE TUBS PUTIN TODAY,
THE SENATE IN FOUR SAID
CASUALTY RATE, INCLUDING DEAD
AND WOUNDED, FOR A SINGLE UNIT,
RENDERS IT UNABLE TO CARRY OUT
COMBAT RELATED TASKS.
WITH MORE THAN 150,000 RUSSIAN
TROOPS NOW INVOLVED IN THE WAR
IN UKRAINE, RUSSIAN CASUALTIES
WHEN INCLUDING THE ESTIMATED
14,000 TO 21,000 INJURED, ARE
NEAR THAT LEVEL.
JOINING US NOW, ONE OF THE
PEOPLE BY LINED ON THAT REPORT.
ERIC SCHMIDT, A SENIOR WRITER,
COVERING TERRORISM, AND
NATIONAL SECURITY, SO THANK YOU
FOR BEING WITH US.
HELP ME UNDERSTAND THE
DIFFERENT CLAIMS, AND WHAT THEY
HAVE DIED.
WE HAVE CLAIMS FROM UKRAINIANS
THAT WERE HIGHER THAN WHAT THIS
ESTIMATE, THAT YOU ARE
REPORTING ON IS.
HOW DO WE DETERMINE THE
ACCURACY OF THE U.S.
INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY IS
SAYING?
THAT IS SOMEWHERE AROUND 7000
TROOPS IN THE FIRST THREE WEEKS
OF FIGHTING?
>> THESE ARE DIFFICULT NUMBERS
TO COME BY.
YOU HAVE TO BE SURE.
YOU HAVE THEUSSIANS COMING
WITH VERY LOW NUMBERS, IN THE
HIGH HUNDREDS FIGURES, THEN YOU
HAVE THE UKRAINIAN SOMEWHERE
AROUND 13, OR 14 LEFT, AND ARE
WELL INFLATED.
THE PENTAGON ARE LOOKING AT
THOSE, NUMBERS OF AGAIN OTHER
SOCIAL MEDIA CLAIMS, AND THEY
ARE LOOKING AT BATTLE DAMAGE
ASSESSMENT AND THAT'S FOR THE
DAMAGE DONE TO TANKS, TO
ARMORED VEHICLES, AND OTHER
THINGS THAT TROOPS ARE
ESTIMATING, BY THE NUMBER OF
TROOPS THAT THEY KNOW, AND IN
THESE NUMBER OF DIFFERENT
VEHICLES THAT ARE EXTRAPOLATING
FROM HELPING THAT ESTIMATE AS
WELL.
EVEN PENTAGON OFFICIALS SAY,
THE 7000 DOLLAR FIGURE, WHILE
CONSERVATIVE, ISN'T IMPRECISE
ONE.
THEY ARE SEARCHING FOR BETTER
WAYS TO GET A HANDLE ON IT.
BUT THAT IS THE NUMBER THAT
THEY ARE GOING WITH RIGHT NOW.
AS YOU SAID IN THE OPEN AIR
REPORT, QUITE STAGGERING.
>> IT IS STAGGERING.
WE ALSO HEARD BETWEEN THREE,
AND FOUR GENERALS HAVE BEEN
KILLED.
AN INVESTIGATION INTO ONE, IS
WHETHER OR NOT THEY WERE USING
AN UNSECURED CELL PHONE, OR
RADIO, THAT ALLOWED THEM TO BE
GEO TARGETED.
THESE KINDS OF LOSSES AND WAS
OTHERWISE KIND OF LOST BEFORE
THIS INVASION.
THE ONE THING THEY WERE OFF ON,
IS A SPEED IN WHICH RUSSIA HAS
BEEN OVERTAKEN WITH UKRAINE.
IT IS JUST UNFOLDING UNLIKE
ANYTHING ANYONE EXPECTED.
>> THE RUSSIANS, BY ALL
ACCOUNTS, COULD INDICATE TO THE
CAPITAL, WITHIN ONE OR TWO
DAYS.
BASICALLY, TAKE OVER THE
LEADERSHIP, AND THEN TAKE OVER
MOST OF THE COUNTRY IN THE NEXT
WEEK OR TWO.
OBVIOUSLY, THAT HAS NOT
HAPPENED FOR A COUPLE OF BIG
REASONS.
ONE, IS THE FIERCE RESISTANCE
THEY MET FROM THE UKRAINIANS,
AS YOUR REPORT HAS DOCUMENTED
RIGHT NOW.
THE OTHER IS THAT THEY
OVERESTIMATED THEIR OWN
CAPABILITIES GOING INTO
UKRAINE.
A SERIOUS LOGISTIC PROBLEM.
A SHORTAGE OF FUEL.
A FOOD AND SPARE PARTS.
A FEAR OF WIDESPREAD REPORTS,
AND CAUSE SCRIPTS.
YOUNG EXPERIENCED TROOPS, WHO
WERE NOT TOLD THEY WERE GOING
INTO A WAR ZONE.
BASICALLY, WALKING AWAY FROM
SOME VEHICLES, AND THESE
CONVOYS WE'VE HEARD, THAT OF
INSTALLED INTO KYIV.
IT'S A COLLECTION OF ERRORS ON
THE LOGISTICAL SIDE, AND ALSO,
A FLAWED CAMPAIGN, AND THE
GROUND FORCES.
NOT RELEASING IT UP WITH THE
AIR FORCES.
IN THE NORMAL WAY THAT YOU'VE
HAD TO BATTLE.
SO, WHAT THEY HAVE HAD TO DO IS
RESORT TO THE TACTICS THAT
YOU'RE EARLIER REPORT
MENTIONED.
STAND BACK, AND PUMMEL THE
CITIES WITH ARTILLERY, LONG
RANGE MISSILES, AND AERIAL
BOMBING.
>> BIDEN, TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE
NOT TRAINED, AND UNDERSTANDING
MILITARY TECHNIQUES, IT IS HARD
TO UNDERSTAND.
REALLY, THIS MEANS, YOU CAN'T
BE BOMBING, OR SHELLING A CITY,
OR SHELLING LOCATIONS WHERE
YOUR TROOPS ARE LOCATED.
SO, THE GROUND TROOPS ARE NOT
ABLE TO DO WITH THEY'RE
SUPPOSED TO DO.
NOW, WHAT WE ARE SEEING, AS CAL
WAS REPORTING, RUSSIAN TROOPS
RETREATING FROM THOSE POSITIONS,
SOMETIMES, LEAVING DID RUSSIANS
HOLDERS BEHIND, WILL THEY CALL
AN AIR SUPPORT, WHICH BOMBARDS
AN AREA.
IT'S AN INEFFICIENT WAY OF
DOING THINGS, TO SAY THE LEAST.
>> THAT'S RIGHT.
IT'S A BRUTAL WAY OF DOING
THINGS.
WHAT IS HAPPENING, IS ON THE
OUTSKIRTS OF THE CITIES YOU
MENTIONED, THE UKRAINIAN FORCES,
OR BASICALLY, FIGHTING THE
NUMERICALLY SUPERIOR, AND
TECHNOLOGICALLY SUPERIOR,
RUSSIAN FORCES, ROWLEY TO A
STANDSTILL.
RATHER THAN ADVANCING FURTHER,
AND A RAIN MOST OF HIS CITIES,
THE RUSSIANS HAVE TO STAND BACK,
AND USE THE ONE WOMEN THEY HAVE
A LOT OF, WHICH IS ARTILLERY.
WEAPONS OF TERROR, AT THIS
POINT, TO FORCE THE CIVILIAN
POPULATION TO FLEE.
DAMAGING MUCH OF THE CITIES,
AND BASICALLY, TRYING TO TAKE
OVER FROM THERE.
WHAT WE HAVEN'T SEEN YET IS
URBAN COMBAT.
WHICH IS THE RUSSIANS TRYING TO
GET INSIDE OF THE STREETS OF
THE CITY'S.
THAT IS WHERE THINGS WILL GET
BLOODY, AND BAD.
EVEN WORSE THAN WE'VE SEEN
RIGHT NOW.
>> IN THE FEW INSTANCES WHERE
WE HAVE SEEN, THAT HOWEVER, IT
SEEMS, UNOFFICIALLY, THAT THE
UKRAINIANS HAD AN ADVANTAGE.
AND PLACES LIKE KYIV, WHERE
THEY HAVE RETREATED TO AREAS
THAT THEY CONTROL, INSIDE OF
THE CITY, TO DRAW ALL RUSSIANS
IN.
IT SEEMS TO RESULT IN CONFUSION,
OBVIOUSLY.
THE RUSSIAN SOLDIERS DO NOT
KNOW THE LANDSCAPE, OR THE
TERRITORY AS WELL.
IT BECOMES AN ADVANTAGE FOR THE
UKRAINIAN FORCES.
>> THE UKRAINIANS KNOW THE
TERRAIN, AND THEY'RE FIGHTING
ON THE HOME TURF, AND THEY'RE
HIGHLY MOTIVATED TO DEFEND
THEIR HOMELAND, AND WITH
RUSSIAN MORALE, IT IS
CONSTRUCTED TROOP FORCES, ALL
THE WAY TO THESE GENERAL
OFFICERS THAT YOU MENTIONED.
IT IS SOMEWHAT DISARRAY RIGHT
NOW, AND NOT REALLY FIGHTING
FOR A CAUSE THAT THEY BELIEVE
IN, WHERE IS IN, THEY WERE
RALLIED BY PRESIDENTS ELLEN SKI,
AND FIGHTING UNEXPECTEDLY HARD.
THEY ARE HANGING IN THERE,
AGAIN, AND THEY HAVE SEEMED TO