MILLION UKRAINIAN REFUGEES HAVE
COME OVER THAT BORDER, FLEEING
THE RUSSIAN INVASION OF THEIR
OWN COUNTRY.
IT IS ONLY A FEW DECADES AGO
THAT RUSSIAN FORCES WERE RIGHT
HERE, IN BUDAPEST.
IN 1956, WHEN HUNGARY WAS UNDER
THE CONTROL OF THE SOVIET UNION
THEY TANKS ROLLED INTO BUDAPEST
TO PUT DOWN A DEMOCRATIC
REVOLUTION IN THE CITY.
THE CRACKDOWN WAS SUCCESSFUL,
AND BRUTAL.
SOME 2500 HUNGARIANS, AND 700
SOVIET SOLDIERS WERE KILLED.
NEARLY A QUARTER MILLION
HUNGARIANS, FLEEING THE
COUNTRY.
THAT WHOLE THING WAS OVER IN
ONE WEEK.
HUNGARY'S DEMOCRATIC
ASPIRATIONS IS WAITING UNTIL
THE FALL OF THE SOVIET UNION,
MORE THAN 30 YEARS LATER.
BUT, NOT ALL SOVIET MILITARY
INTERVENTIONS WERE THAT SHORT,
OR THAT SUCCESSFUL.
MOST FAMOUSLY, SOVIET TANKS
ROLLED INTO AFGHANISTAN IN 1979,
AND ENDED UP BOGGED DOWN FOR A
DECADE.
THE WAR WAS A DISASTER FOR
AFGHANISTAN, WHERE SOMETHING
LIKE 2 MILLION AFGHAN CIVILIANS
WERE KILLED, BUT IT WAS A
DEBACLE FOR THE SOVIET
MILITARY.
THEY LOST NEARLY 15,000 SOVIET
TROOPS OVER TEN YEARS.
ULTIMATELY, HAVING TO GIVE UP,
AND RETREAT.
THE SOVIET UNION, COLLAPSING
TWO YEARS LATER, IN PART,
BECAUSE OF THE UNPOPULARITY,
AND COST, OF THAT WAR.
SO, HERE IS SOMETHING WORTH
CONSIDERING.
IF THAT, AFGHANISTAN, WAS A
MILITARY CATASTROPHE, A
MILITARY DEFEAT CONTRIBUTING TO
THE FALL OF A GLOBAL SUPERPOWER,
15,000 SOLDIERS KILLED OVER A
DECADE, WHAT WOULD WE CALL AN
INVASION IN WHICH RUSSIA HAS
LOST HALF OF THAT NUMBER, IN
JUST THREE WEEKS?
THAT IS WHAT AMERICAN
INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS SAY HAVE
HAPPENED, ACCORDING TO NEW
REPORTING BY THE NEW YORK
TIMES.
MORE THAN 7000 RUSSIAN TROOPS,
KILLED IN UKRAINE, SINCE THE
INVASION BEGAN.
THAT, THEY SAY, AS A
CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATE.
NOW, IF THOSE AMERICAN
INTELLIGENCE ESTIMATES ARE
ACCURATE.
THEN, OF COURSE, WE HAVE NO WAY
TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THEM.
THAT WOULD BE A STAGGERING
NUMBER OF CASUALTIES FOR
RUSSIANS FORCES TO HAVE
SUSTAINED IN THREE WEEKS.
7000 IS THE NUMBER OF MARINES
KILLED IN 36 DAYS OF FIGHTING,
ON EVIL JIMA.
ONE OF THE FIERCEST BATTLES OF
WORLD WAR II.
7000, GREATER THAN THE NUMBER
OF AMERICAN TROOPS, IN 20 YEARS
IN IRAQ, AND AFGHANISTAN,
COMBINED.
IT IS NOT JUST A CASUALTY
NUMBERS OF POINT TO A RUSSIAN
ARMY IN DISARRAY.
TODAY, IT IS ECHOING WHAT
AMERICAN DEFENSE OFFICIALS HAVE
BEEN SAYING.
THE RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE,
LARGELY STALLED ON ALL FRONTS,
AS THEY FEND OFF CONSTANT,
UKRAINIAN COUNTERATTACKS.
FOR RUSSIAN GENERALS,
REPORTEDLY, KILLED IN THE
FIGHTING.
THE GENERAL SAY, TO MAYBE
PUSHING CLOSER TO THE FRONT
LINES, TO TRY TO BOOST FLAGGING
MORALE AMONG THE RUSSIAN TROOPS,
MAKING THE MORE VULNERABLE TO
ATTACK THEMSELVES.
THE NEW YORK TIMES REPORTS,
QUOTE, TO AMERICAN MILITARY
OFFICIALS SAY, MANY RUSSIAN
GENERAL OFFICIALS ARE TALK ON
UNSECURED PHONES, AND RADIOS.
IN AT LEAST ONE INSTANCE, THEY
SAID, UKRAINIANS INTERCEPTED
AND GENERALS CALL, GEO LOCATED
IT, AND ATTACKED HIS LOCATION,
KILLING HIM, AND HIS STAFF.
THEN, THERE IS RUSSIA'S LOSS OF
COSTLY MILITARY HARDWARE.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL WITH
THIS REPORT.
UKRAINE HAS BECOME A GRAVEYARD
FOR RUSSIAN TANKS, WITH
ANALYSTS SAYING, THIS IS LIKELY
THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF TANKS
DESTROYED IN SUCH A SHORT
PERIOD SINCE WORLD WAR II.
NOW, ALL OF THIS BAD NEWS
HAVING REPERCUSSIONS IN MOSCOW.
RUSSIAN NEWS RESOURCES OF VOTED
THAT VLADIMIR PUTIN HAD TWO OF
HIS TOP INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS
UNDER HOUSE ARREST.
A RUSSIAN SECURITY EXPERT TELLS
THE TIMES, THE TWO MEN WERE
INTERROGATED FOR PROVIDING POOR
INTELLIGENCE, AHEAD OF THE
INVASION OF UKRAINE.
MEANWHILE, THE RUSSIAN MILITARY
IS REPORTING IT SO DESPERATE
FOR NEW SOLDIERS, RECRUITERS
ARE TARGETING, AND PRESSURING,
CENTRAL ASIAN IMMIGRANTS,
WORKING IN RUSSIA.
BASICALLY, SAYING, IF THEY WANT
RUSSIAN CITIZENSHIP, THEY MUST
SIGN UP TO FIGHT IN UKRAINE.
THAT REPORTING IS FROM THE
MOSCOW TIMES.
AN INDEPENDENT RUSSIAN
NEWSPAPER, AS OF LAST WEEK, IS
NOW OPERATING OUT OF AMSTERDAM,
BECAUSE OF THE KREMLIN'S MEDIA
CRACKDOWN.
RUSSIA'S MILITARY TROUBLES WITH
A THEME OF A NEW VIDEO MESSAGE
TONIGHT, FROM UKRAINIAN
PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY.
HE CRANED, UKRAINIAN FORCES
HAVE KILLED 13,000 RUSSIAN
SOLDIERS, AND TAKEN THOUSANDS
OF PRISONERS.
SPEAKING IN RUSSIAN, HE
ADDRESSED THE MOTHERS OF THE
RUSSIAN SOLDIERS, TELLING THEM,
UKRAINE NEVER WANTED ALL OF
THESE DEAD BODIES, AND
PRISONERS.
QUOTE, WE DID NOT WANT THIS