HAVE MANAGED TO FEND OFF
RUSSIAN FORCES SO FAR IN THE
NORTH AND IN THE CAPITAL CITY
OF KYIV.
ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WAR,
RUSSIAN FORCES TOOK CONTROL OF
A NEARBY AIRPORT, A MILITARY
AIRPORT, LEADING MANY PEOPLE TO
BELIEVE THAT KYIV WOULD FALL
SHORT AFTER.
BUT THE FRONT LINES NEAR THAT
AIRPORT OUTSIDE OF KYIV, WHILE
FLUID, HAVE NOT MOVED
CONSIDERABLY IN TWO WEEKS.
THE WASHINGTON POST REPORTS
THAT UKRAINIAN FORCES HAVE
TAKEN A SHREWD APPROACH OF
RETREATING TO THE CITIES,
CONSERVING THE WEAPONRY, AND
FOCUSING ON DEFENDING THEIR
POSITIONS IN THOSE CITIES,
INSTEAD OF ATTACKING.
THEY BLOWN UP BRIDGES.
THEY HAVE LINED THE ROADS INTO
THE CITY WITH OBSTACLES WHILE
STILL MANAGING TO KEEP QUARTERS
OPEN FOR FLEEING CIVILIANS, AND
THEY SAY, THEY ARE READY FOR
ANY RUSSIAN AND VENTS THAT
COMES THEIR WAY.
JOINING US NOW FROM KYIV, SUED
OUR SUDDEN RACK OF, AN
CORRESPONDENT AT LARGE FOR THE
WASHINGTON POST WHO I AM HAPPY
TO ANNOUNCE, AS OF TONIGHT, IS
AN MSNBC CONTRIBUTOR.
THANK YOU, WELCOME TO THE TEAM.
AND I WAS JUST SPEAKING TO
PEOPLE, INCLUDING RICHARD ENGEL,
WHO HAS EXPLAINING THAT THIS
TACTIC THE UKRAINIAN ARMY, THAT
NONE OF US WOULD'VE KNOWN OR
THOUGHT, WOULD BE THAT
STRATEGIC OR PREPARED, GIVEN
THEIR HISTORY IN THAT COUNTRY,
HAS BEEN REMARKABLY EFFECTIVE
AGAINST A MUCH BORGER, MUCH
MORE MIGHTY ARMY.
>> GREAT TO BE WITH YOU, ALI.
IT'S GREAT TO BE AN MSNBC
CONTRIBUTOR.
YEAH, LOOK, EVERYONE EXPECTED
THE RUSSIANS TO ENTER KEEFE BY
NOW BUT WE ARE SEEING IS AN
UNBELIEVABLY STIFF RESISTANCE
BY UKRAINIAN FORCES.
AND IT'S A VERY SMART MOVE.
THEY UNDERSTAND THAT THEY DON'T
HAVE THE MASSIVE WEAPONRY THAT
THE RUSSIANS HAVE.
SO INSTEAD WHAT THEY ARE DOING
IS, THEY HAVE RETREATED BACK TO
THE CITIES, THEY ARE USING
GUERRILLA STYLE TACTICS.
THEY DUG TRENCHES IN PLACES
LIKE TURKEY, WHICH IS A CITY
JUST NORTH OF THE NORTHERN
EDGES OF HEAVE.
AND A KEY GATEWAY INTO THE CITY
THE RUSSIANS ARE TRYING TO PUSH
THROUGH.
THEY ARE INSIDE PEOPLE'S HOUSES,
THEY ARE --
THEY ARE BEHIND TREES,
POSITIONED, CAMOUFLAGED AND
READY FOR THE UKRAINIANS TO
COME DOWN STREETS.
BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WHAT THEY
TOLD ME THEY ARE BEING HELD BY
IS THE RUSSIAN --
RUSSIA'S OWN UNPREPAREDNESS.
THE RUSSIAN SOLDIERS LACK OF
UNDERSTANDING OF THE GEOGRAPHY
OF THE UKRAINIAN TERRAIN.
THERE HAVE BEEN EXAMPLES OF
RUSSIANS RUNNING OUT OF FOOD
AND OTHER SUPPLIES, ON GAS AS
WELL.
TURNING DOWN WRONG STREETS
INSIDE IRPIN, AND SUDDENLY
GETTING TARGETED BY AN ANTI
TANK MISSILE.
SO, YES, DEFINITELY THE
UKRAINIANS ARE USING THE SMART
--
AND THE OTHER THING THEY ARE
NOT DOING IS THEY ARE NOT
COUNTERATTACKING.
SO THIS IS ONE PLACE WHERE I
WAS, ONE FRONTLINE A COUPLE OF
DAYS AGO IN WHICH IT WAS
SHELLED BY THE RUSSIANS, AT
LEAST 20 OR 25 TIMES DURING THE
NIGHT, AND THE UKRAINIANS TOLD
ME --
THEY DID REPLY ONCE.
THEY DIDN'T WANT TO --
THEY WANT TO CONSERVE THEIR
WEAPONRY, BUT AT THE SAME TIME,
THEY DIDN'T WANT TO TURN THAT
FRONTLINE INTO A BATTLE ZONE
BECAUSE CIVILIANS WERE FLEEING
ALONG THAT VERY ROAD.
SO WHEN I ASKED THEM, WHAT
HAPPENS IF AT SOME POINT,
RUSSIAN TANKS TO COME THROUGH,
ONE OF THE COMMANDERS WENT AND
GRABBED AND AND LAW ANTI TANK
MISSILE WHICH WAS INSIDE OF A
WAREHOUSE AND BASICALLY SAID,
WE ARE READY.
>> WOW, A LOT OF THE PEOPLE,
I'M TALKING, TO ESPECIALLY
MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT WHO HAVE
TAKEN UP ARMS AND JOINT
CIVILIAN MILITIAS, AND MORALE
HAS KEPT THE COUNTRY ALIVE FAR
LARGER THAN U.S. INTELLIGENCE
FOUND IT WOULD SURVIVE A
RUSSIAN ONSLAUGHT.
ON THE OTHER SIDE, THERE'S AN
ARGUMENT THAT THERE'S A LACK OF
MORAL FOR THOSE RUSSIAN
SOLDIERS WHO ARE SORT OF LESS
CLEAR OF ABOUT WHY THEY'RE
FIGHTING AND COMBINED WITH THE
FACT THAT THERE UNFAMILIAR
TERRITORY AND GETTING INTO -- LOCAL TERRAIN.
LOCAL TERRAIN.
Don't take ENTRESTO with an
THAT'S RIGHT, AND YOU HAVE TO
UNDERSTAND THAT BEFORE THE WAR
STARTED, THERE'S BEEN AN
INTENSE PROPAGANDA BY THE
KREMLIN AND IS REACHING THE
RUSSIAN SOLDIERS AND THEY
THOUGHT ALONG POINT THE
UKRAINIANS ARE GOING TO WELCOME
THEM WITH FLOWERS.
THAT WAS ALL OVER SOCIAL MEDIA.
INSTEAD, --
THEY'RE EXPECTING AN EASY FIGHT
COMING IN.
INSTEAD, WHAT THEY FOUND IS A
VERY STRONG RESISTANCE THAT IS
NOW INCLUDING THE MILITARY AND
THE CIVILIANS.
THEY'VE JOINED BY THE THOUSANDS
TO PREPARE YOU WITH THE RUSSIAN
FORCES.
AND THEY'RE DOING THIS IN MANY
DIFFERENT WAYS.
MANY OF JOIN THESE TERRITORIAL
DEFENSE UNITS WHO ARE NOW
POSTED A CHECKPOINTS ALL AROUND
KYIV, AS WELL AS FIGHTING
INSIDE KHARKIV.
BUT IT'S MORE THAN THE.
SOME OF THE SOLDIERS WILL BE
GETTING INFORMATION FROM
CIVILIANS, WHOEVER THEIR CELL
PHONE NETWORK WAS SCANNED, BUT
THERE ARE SOME AREAS WHERE
PEOPLE STILL CALL OUT, AND THEY
WERE GIVING POSITIONS A RUSSIAN
TANKS SO THAT THE UKRAINIANS
CAN THEN USE THEIR OWN WEAPONRY
TO TARGET THEM.