and i am joined now by retired us general ben hodges, he's the former commander of u. s. army troops in europe, and he's just joined the human rights organization. human rights, 1st, as a senior advisor. welcome to d. w. can i ask you, how was it possible for ukrainian troops to recapture so much territory in the northeast in just a few days? i think it's a combination of 3 things. first of all, the russian forces are exhausted under logistics are exhausted. leaders have been killed and we've watched for the last couple of months, the deterioration of morale and fighting spirit of russian forces throughout so they don't have the will to fight. that's number one. number 2 of the impact of weapons provided by the west, particularly long range rockets of these kinds of capabilities have been very helpful and disrupting or destroying russian logistics. russian artillery russian command post. really creating a lot of problems for the russians in their area, which makes it difficult for them to figure out what's going on and to react. but the, the 3rd thing is all credit to

. >> retired general ben hodges told ben martin that ukraine could push russia back to the borders pre-invasion. that could happen before the end of the year. do you agree with that timeline? >> again, this operation was possible because of the resolve of the armed forces, because our commanders from the every commander in the battlefield, so devoted to the victory, but also because 14 million ukrainians are supporting this effort and f fighting for our country. more importantly, because our partners have increased all the support and we're getting more and more of the weapons and equipment so needed for that. of course, we would like to liberate all ukraine as soon as possible to stop the suffering of the people and restore our sovereignty. will it be possible before the end of the year? we are ready to do it before the end of the year. hopefully we will have everything we need to do so. >> the biden administration made some announcements of further support. 2$2.2 billion for ukraine and is neighbors. $665 million package of heavy weapons. your foreign minister tweeted this morning now it's ab

joining us now is retired lieutenant general ben hodges.ently a senior adviser at the nonprofit organization human rights first. great to see you, my friend. thank you for joining us tonight. >> thank you, rachel. >> do you think this could be a sustained change in the war or is it possible that these advances by ukraine are fleeting? >> well, it's too early to be planning a victory parade, but the significance of what's happening psychologically as well as physically, i mean, we're all watching the video of abandoned equipment, of ukrainian forces moving these villages being liberated. it's impressive. and then just earlier, we saw that ukrainian forces hit a major russian air field which is northeast of mariupol. if they are already in position to strike targets like that, it's just a matter of time before they start hitting daily targets inside crimea, and then it's just a matter of time. >> in terms of the capabilities of the ukrainian forces, we saw some remarkable reporting today that in some places where the ukrainians mounted this c

joining us now is retired into lieutenant general ben hodges, he's a former commanding general for then europe is currently a senior adviser -- it's great to see you my friend, thanks for joining us tonight. >> thank you rachel. >> do you think this could be a sustained change in the war where is it possible that these advances by ukraine are fleeting? >> it's too early to be planning a victory parade but the significance of what is happening psychologically as well as physically we're all watching video of abandoned equipment, of ukrainian forces moving these villages been liberated it's impressive and then just earlier we saw that ukrainian forces hit a major russian airfields which is north east of mariupol but they are already in position to strike targets like that it's just a matter of time before they start hitting daily targets inside crimea. and then it's just a matter of time. >> in terms of the capabilities of the ukrainian forces we saw some remarkable reporting today that in some places where the ukrainians man to this counteroffensive over the weekend, they outnumbered th

lieutenant general ben hodges, we greatly appreciate your insight this morning. we hope to speak to you again soon. thank you. still ahead here on "way too early," we're taking a look at president biden's trip to boston where he touted his accomplishments and raising money ahead of the mid terms. and the latest for the united kingdom where thousands of people are lined up to pay final respects to queen elizabeth this as king charles makes his first visit to northern eye landlord as monarch. we're looking at live images now in scotland, mourners playing tribute to the queen for her reign for seven decades. these stories and more when we come right back. (driver) conventional thinking would say verizon has the largest and fastest 5g network. but, they don't. they only cover select cities with 5g. so, for me and the hundreds of drivers in my fleet, staying connected, cutting downtime, and delivering on time depends on t-mobile 5g. and with coverage of over 96% of interstate highway miles, they've got us covered. (vo) unconventional thinking delivers four times the 5

i want you to listen to what ben hodges, former commanding general of the u.s. in washington. and then we will get back to you. >> i believe the ukrainians have air irreversible momentum. it is too early to plan a victory parade, but they clearly have an irreversible momentum, and in my view, ukrainian victory, which means total restoration of all of its seven territory, including crimea, is in. nicole: a lot of optimizing. -- a lot of optimism. is that the specific sentiment on the ground? it is definitely music to ukrainian ears something, the ukrainian government would sign up to. if you remember back to the early weeks of this war comt most people thought ukraine surviving as an independent country would be an achievement in itself, so the fact that they are talking about pushing russian troops not only back to where they were on february 24, but potentially out of crimea which has been in russian hansons 2014, is a testimony to the achievement of the ukrainian army. . the government here wants to push back at least to the borders, to where the russian troop

this is how general ben hodges, the former commander of the ground forces in the united states on the european continent, also clearly hinted at what will happen to the black sea fleet of the russian federation, which will follow the course of the cruiser moscow to the bottom and the general wants an experienced, authoritative person, and he does not mince words, but the issue of tactical nuclear weapons remains on the table. well, i will bring you a more authoritative american expert than "i'm looking after the president in that sense, for example, for a week," he told putin. well, in general, we've been discussing this topic for almost an hour. putin has successfully used nuclear blackmail for 15 years. this is why ukraine and georgia were not accepted into nato in 2008, and there was never any reaction to the war. in georgia, on the annexation of the cream, and so on, well, the west, in the end, survived, fear of this blackmail created mm. well, except for the former personally. well, it’s a fight for biden. well, biden is a special person . according to putin well, you forgive a l

to go to the borders on february 23, so believes the former commander of the us army in europe, ben hodgeshe predicts that from the pressure of the invaders due to the fact they are currently unable to achieve major military successes in an interview with the internet edition of charter 97 wants noted that after six months with all the advantages and all the expected military potential of russia, its soldiers were able to capture only a thin strip of the territory of ukraine, they are not able to advance further due to terrible logistics the russians are exhausted, they cannot provide any offensive operation, i do not think that they will be able to decisively stop the ukrainian offensive if the west supports ukraine, i believe that by the end of this year we will see how russian forces will be completely pushed back to the line on february 23, and i believe that we will see the return of crimea to ukrainian sovereignty, probably at some point in the next year through a combination of military and diplomatic efforts, meanwhile, the russians are adjusting their plans and regrouping their tr

russian language and russian culture, well the former commander of the us army in europe, general ben hodgesr the collapse of russia. that's what he said in an article for the british telegraph? it becomes more and more obvious that ukraine is going to win this war, we may be witnessing the beginning of the end the russian federation is a huge empire that includes more than 120 ethnic groups is in an unstable position. its collapse may occur gradually, but in one moment it will turn into a violent and uncontrollable event. if we fail to prepare for this possibility in the same way that we failed to prepare for the collapse of the soviet union, it could introduce huge instability into our geopolitics, but while ben hodges is thinking about how to break up russia , the us president himself is falling apart during an automobile exhibition in detroit joe biden again lost and could not find a way out of the scene, but the american president was able to find a replacement by rumor in russia for the first time in history. she can become a woman her name is lintracey biden insists on this candidacy

must cease to exist in its current form. said the former commander of the us forces in europe , ben hodges according to him, moscow's imperialist wars against its neighbors began in georgia, the world must prepare to witness the beginning of the end hodges says to russia, because before the country was not ready for the collapse of the soviet union. therefore, we should not repeat the mistakes of the past. prepared means protected. this thesis is very well understood in volyn, in the region that shares borders with belarus . see further in the story locals in volyn as part of voluntary formations of territorial communities study military science, training is conducted by ukrainian and foreign instructors every week they increase the intensity, expand the list of exercises, the pace and geography of training, the turkey team , fighters study the tactics of small groups, shooting with small arms, skills in organizing ambushes , handling when capturing a prisoner, masking , detecting and disarming improvised explosive devices, stretch marks, and many other things, considerable attention is pa

strike a large object of the russian military infrastructure, and the american lieutenant general ben hodgesd that in response the pantogon can be destroyed with high-precision weapons, but of a non-nuclear nature, for example, sevastopol and the russian black sea fleet, which is based in the city of sevastopol which is temporarily occupied by the russians. do you agree that these two points are the answer and is there no other third point that europe is there, nato and the world community will simply swallow, personally express concern and call the parties to the conflict there to peace and to the settlement of the issue not by military means, please, well, i personally do not think so, personally, i do not think so because you already know that this is the so-called conditional war using that is, weapons that, as it were, have already freed everyone. i would say that the growing, uh, firm position of the west. and if they listen to what the current western politicians are saying, they are still serious politicians. understand russia that it will be humiliated and pay increasingly higher ec

but uh hmm let's move across the ocean, the former commander of the us army in europe, general ben hodgesat the article for the british publication stated, telegraph key positions are here, and krasny liman is an important e element e for before for the approach to the lugansk people's republic here. well, if he says so welcome, we will meet there. as already met a lot of sabotage different groups. such officials. we need. we will also show it, then on tv it’s as straight as the challenge sounds. yes and what not, let him come. fantastic since 23 on pervoi, our guys are working there. it's hot there now with the call sign political officer. hello to you word what is going on in your direction. hello e at the moment oh in our direction, the battles are predominantly oppositional in nature, however, now there is information, which in principle is no longer a secret, that the enemy in this direction is building up a rather serious grouping from 10,000 to a preliminary 13-15,000 people. this information. at the moment, it is not any secret, because, firstly , the enemy himself absolutely does

launching missiles in the cities until they either run out or they are stopped. tied us general ben hodges, thank you so much for speaking with us here on the definitely thanks for the privilege. the trial has opened in belgium of 10 people suspected of involvement in islamist bombing attacks in brussels in 2016 now. 32 people were killed at a time when you're it was already on edge following a series of terrorist attacks. he w. marina strauss has been to meet one woman who witnessed events in the brussels, metro, and who hopes that this trial will help bring some closure. ah, the mile, like metro station and brussels. it has become a symbol of how an ordinary trip to work can turn into a nightmare. cold level like with when the bomb exploded, i immediately knew it was an attack because he thought he stared job and that he was on this metro. when at $911.00 a. m. a suicide bomber blew himself up a bit over an hour earlier. 2 other suicide bombings had occurred, only a few kilometers away at brussels airport. all 3 attacks were carried out by the so called islamic state in mile that chris d

taras, maybe ben hodges - this is really the first time the voice said it, but probably not so many peoplehat moment when he was in the center of lviv, and it was not a year, not two , or three years ago, and then in the center of lviv, perhaps not publicly, but privately, because then he very clearly identified himself as the commander of nato forces in europe what should the civilized world strive for, and believe me, i remember these words very clearly for more than five years, but there is no doubt that russia must fall apart, this gas station on their feet has no right to exist, this is clear but just as clear that there will be a great threat that this territory will be covered not just by turmoil , it will create another empire in a different form, and today we need to do what is actually real, what depends on ukraine in the first place and where we have a chance, that is to become nato members, that is the task which ukraine must put before itself not virtually but very specifically with concrete steps because one way or another the world will stand in certain tensions and confront

here, by the way, i will quote the former commander of the us forces in europe, general ben hodges, ourtal ally in vienna with russia , and he goes to the composition. by the way, those 20 signatories who signed a letter addressed to biden and hodges stated that by the end of the year, ukraine could repel the russian invaders at the position of february 23, but for a decisive effect, the west must supply weapons in sufficient quantities, according to hodges, provided weapons are still not enough for a decisive aspect -effect, but when we talk about weapons, that is, it is actually only one aspect, when we talk about the systematic preparation of ukraine for defense, there are many other factors that we will now talk about with our expert, this is viktor kivylyuk, a reserve colonel and an expert of the center for defense strategies, mr. viktor, i congratulate you. good evening. first of all, i will start with the question about the south, because this demonstrative week is spent under the slogan of the operation carried out by the armed forces in the kherson region. limited informational

monitor whether its own state does not disintegrate, in particular, the former general of the us army ben hodgesrged his column to start preparing for the collapse of the great and mighty, according to him, the distrust of russian society towards their leader will only grow as a result , confrontations between nations will begin, some militant chechens will decide and unleash a new i want a war for independence where putin will find military resources to wage it now that he has devoted so much to ukraine. i also believe that western countries need to carefully prepare for the collapse of russia, at least know exactly what measures, including preventive ones, will be necessary to resort to so that there are no surprises and misunderstandings as during the collapse of the ussr the fact is that there are nuclear weapons on the territory of the russian federation. who will control them and who will be responsible for their non -use? i think this is one of the fundamental things that hold back and getting confident to the extent that it is a factor, that is what concerns the collapse of the russian f

commander of the ground forces of the united states of america in europe, lieutenant general retired, ben hodges the military goals of the united states of america should include the imperialization of russia wrote on his twitter that the military of the united states of america in this conflict has exactly the goals of predicting the implementation of russia. it seems to me that we are seeing the beginning of the end the russian federation in its current form must be prepared for this, we were not prepared for the collapse of the ussr. well, i must say that earlier i talked about the fact that if vladimir putin does not come to terms with the defeat of his war army, then he will have a worse negotiating position in ukraine will be able to demand the liberation of crimea and donbas. well, i see what you want . he doesn’t talk about uh anymore. he doesn’t voice this thesis and doesn’t repeat this thesis. and now he is talking about the fact that the imperial ambitions of putin and russia must be put to an end. how can the world have to prepare for this, taking into account the fact that yesterday

regards the transfer of the gravity point center of gravity to the territory of the enemy, general ben hodgemer commanders of the us armed forces in europe noted probably a month and a half ago that it is worth striking the areas of the opposition areas of the missile brigades and airfields airfields of the russian aviation , unfortunately, we have nothing to do today with the positional areas of the russian missile brigades, it is worth doing this. i think that a whole special of operations are quite capable of doing this. well, without securing certain safety zones, at least a gray zone, we will be subjected to endless shelling of border settlements, which, er, do not represent any military value, but are used by the federation to incite passions , worsen the operational situation, provoke humanitarian crises of local local importance , so i think that the issue of creating a security belt around the state border of ukraine at the expense of the depth of sovereign russian territory to be on the agenda, well, that is, we actually still logically come to the conclusion that providing the ukr

everyone who is and meanwhile the former commander of the army of the states in europe, general ben-hodgesinary information is possible. and an important message from the extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of germany ankefaldguzyn, she said that the european union, of course, privately calls on kyiv to withdraw from the format of a single marathon on television and giving the audience a choice, eh, ms. feldguzyn asked what berlin's position is regarding those steps that are criticized as anti-democratic in ukraine, in particular, it is about the fact that the tv channels direct fifth and espresso were thrown out of the terrestrial broadcasting network. well, accordingly , she gave such a message is verbatim once again, we may not be public, but we talk about these things with the ukrainian government all the time. we have a common goal that ukraine remains democratic during the war, well, independent and different sources of information, that is the basic sign is one of the main democracy . it seems that you are simply singing in unison with an extraordinary yes from ms. feldguz.

on the other hand , our mutual acquaintance, general ben hodges, said that in response to putin’s escalationf aggression, it is possible to simply destroy the russian black sea fleet in the kremlin, because of this, it was carried out in hysterics. we understand that putin understands very clear and specific instruments of deterrence. could be applied if putin went on an unprecedented unconventional escalation general hodges is the best military analyst i have ever met with incredible experience and due to his excellent connections, i did not have the opportunity to discuss such comments with him, but it is obvious that there is a certain meaning in this, a moment may probably come when, if not all of them, individual members of the alliance will offer ukraine military aid even more powerful than the american gamer, in particular, it is about aircraft, because poland, for example several months ago, it expressed its readiness to hand over some of its fighter jets to ukraine, the deputy commander of the ukrainian navy also stated that ukraine's plans include the destruction of the black sea f

ben hodges there, former commanding general of the u.s. army.e general will agree with the sentiment, forecasting politics is difficult, forecasting anything right now. i think the other thing is oil price, or gas prices, for that matter. gas is down today, the euro stronger. there are plenty of reasons for that, but when you think about a move like this one, if you've got a conclusion to this war, i keep going back to the sanctions and the policy response to it, that is not going to get unwound immediately. lisa: that is the reason why i asked ben hodges, former lieutenant commander, whether we would see a return of russia back onto the international stage. because, if you don't, does anything change with the energy backdrop, even if the war ends? jonathan: future just about positive. we are fading, though. equity futures are positive .33% after being a fair bit higher than that a little bit earlier in the session. the euro-dollar 1.0148. joining us shortly, stephanie aaronson from brookings. from london, this is bloomberg. ♪ jonathan: good aft

i want you to listen to when ben hodges, the former commanding general of the u. s. army and europe told her team in washington and then we'll get right back to you. i believe the ukrainians have achieved her ear reversible momentum. it's too early to plan a victory parade, but they clearly have irreversible momentum in m. r. view of defeat of russia, ukrainian victory, which means total restoration of all of its sovereign territory, including crimea, is inevitable. a lot of optimism there. nick, is that a realistic assessment to someone who is on the ground? but it's definitely a music to ukraine, is something that the ukraine government would sign up to em. i think it also shows quite how far we've come. if you remember back to the early weeks of this war, most people outside ukraine thought ukraine surviving as an independent country in whatever borders would be an achievement in itself. so the fact that we're now talking about pushing russian troops not only back to where they were on the 25th of every, but potentially pushing them out, crimea that's been in r

this is the opinion expressed the former commander of the us army in europe , lieutenant general ben hodges in an interview with the lithuanian tv channel lrdlt, he noted that the mobilization announced in russia shows the kremlin's desperation, but it will not help. the ukrainian military and the desire of the ukrainians to be independent i have a lot of confidence in the general staff of the armed forces of ukraine they were very smart and well planned and prepared for the counteroffensive i waited to draw conclusions because they continue to destroy russian logistics i expect that we will see further pressure from the russian forces we are not we will see liberated cities every day, it is simply impossible, but i still hope that by the end of this year, ukrainian troops will push back the russian army to the position of february 23, and by the middle next year, ukrainian forces will be in crimea, in the last few weeks russia has been attacking odesa with iranian kamikaze drones, ukrainian air defense systems have successfully shot them down during this time, the military has already neut

on the front and can it use tactical nuclear weapons against ukraine american military analyst ben hodgesthat in the event of a russian nuclear attack on ukraine , the united states can destroy the russian fleet in the black sea. so, the hawk of american policy in the past, he was the commander of the us army in europe, and it is not known whether he has many followers in the pentagon. however, his opinion is definitely listened to there, and i agree. my colleague miroslava petaza in case russia recently spoke with you. you recently stated that if russia uses nuclear weapons against ukraine, the usa will strike at response and will hit the russian black sea fleet you were once the commander of the us army in europe but now you are retired what do you think or share your views general mine or secretary of defense austin ta won't be in the pentagon, i hope they agree and of course the context of what i said about the black sea fleet was that if russia makes a terrible mistake by using tactical nuclear weapons against ukraine it will be impossible for the united states not to respond they wi

on the other hand , our mutual acquaintance, general ben hodges, said that in response to putin's aggressionsian black sea

speaks for ben hodges, many people talk? forth and here i do not want. i try sometimes to boil inside. yeah adversary, trembling. i try myself in this business, but, but when i read about what his speech is, and this officially recognized. for some reason. it was not at all necessary for the white house to state publicly that the biden speech was urgently amended in connection with putin's statement. this is true, it can be understood in two ways, whether they believe it, that they have strengthened and tightened it, or vice versa. here's how to understand it all, explain it in the same simple and clear way. but in 2021, a so -called group is being created that is quite large within the framework. he is the so-called friends in support of the un charter americans laugh. why is this needed? we have democracy is great and wonderful, but russia is becoming one. who says guys, let's maybe go back to the rules, maybe we'll stop, and play according to each according to its own rule. you set certain conditions for the game, then yo

mr hodges. benreaction may not be nuclear, but it could very well be a devastating strike that could, for example, destroy the black sea fleet or destroy russian bases in crimea, in fairness so, uh, what did it look like in the picture to him when they asked that question? yes, and what can they do there, the united states he hesitated so much, that is, there was such a feeling that he really went to the interview without preparing. and actually the answer to this kind of questions, although it is possible. it should be. here we are all the same fucking there in the black sea fleet, there and so on. do they really assume that they can, for example, hit the black sea fleet or our bases in crimea a and they will get nothing for it. is it really that all these presidents and prime ministers, there and so on, they got involved and dragged practically the whole world, that's what they actually pulled into and they have no alternate airfield. no, of course, firstly, she, firstly, they just lie, and second

conditions and so on, but in any case, the most critical thing that i liked was the statement of ben hodges uh, russia uses tactical nuclear weapons there we are there by non-nuclear means we destroy the black sea fleet there and think that this is a good factor, but this will not be enough, in fact, nuclear weapons destroy all forms of arms control in general. we think that all countries, in particular the united states of nato, should er, well, make efforts so that no country takes such measures could pass, that is, it is about certain destructive strikes, i think that he would simply attack the infrastructure of the russian federation, military facilities, and perhaps some measures that we cannot even clearly predict yet. well, sullivan, he is such a representative of mr. sergey, such a dove of peace. i would say in the environment biden, so i don’t know which ones there. what did he transmit through which channels, not formal, non-public, to the russian leadership, er, what threats and a referendum. the 30th is approaching. i understand these territories in full russians will formally a

this, but now former military spoke a retired general, former commander of the us army in europe, ben hodgese russian federation, let's listen. i think the us military goals in this conflict should include russia periodization day. i think we are seeing the beginning of the end for the russian federation as it is today. we have to be ready for this, we weren't ready for the end of the ussr hmm turns out they were good recognition. well, the former military man is carrying a purgut, he froze his head during the exercises, but he was not the only one paul masara, senior political advisor to the commission on european security and cooperation, posted a map of russia on his site and asked himself a question. how much its territory has increased since 1.000 471 years. and then signed i wonder how it happened, then? maybe it's colonialism. why didn't he post the map from the united states around the same time? yes, great britain, and so on. well, again, they don’t argue with fools here, just think some adviser to some european commission. well, nothing serious, but the problem lies in the fact tha

but now the former military spoke up retired general, former commander of the us army in europe, ben hodges urged the states to prepare for the end of the russian federation, let's listen. i think the us military goals in this conflict should include the demolition of russia. i think we are seeing the beginning of the end of the russian federation as it is today . we have to be ready for this we weren't ready for the end of the ussr hmm but it seems they were a good recognition. well, the former military bears blizzard there. he froze his head during the exercises, but he was not the only one paul masara, senior political advisor to the commission on european security and cooperation, posted a map of russia and asked himself a question. how much its territory has increased since 1000-471. and then signed i wonder how it happened, then? maybe it's colonialism. why is he the united states and then has not posted a map since about the same time . yes, great britain. and so on. well, again, what are they talking about with fools, they don’t argue, you think some kind of adviser to some european

speaks, many people talk about ben hodges, who is already there, which means they discussed the cut.l inside like this, like, and the adversary is trembling. i try myself in this business, but, but, when i read that his speech, and it is officially recognized. for some reason. it was not at all necessary for the white house to state publicly that the biden speech was amended as a matter of urgency in connection with putin's statement. this is true, it can be understood in two ways, whether they believe it, that they have strengthened it, toughened it, or vice versa. here's how to understand it all. explain simply and clearly. in 2021, the so-called the group is quite large within the framework. he is the so -called friends in support of the un charter americans laugh. why is this needed? we have democracy, everything is great, and wonderful, and russia is becoming the country that says guys , let's go back to the rules, maybe we'll stop, and play about each according to its own rules. you set certain conditions for the game , then your collective west ran your good dogs that are well

ben hodges that he's alerting our unsolicited some of what's in store for us.rogram time will tell, we work live . today, the employees are rich, two left the zaporozhye nuclear power plant mission employees who stayed there on a permanent basis will work, and now the kiev regime, despite the visit, continues to organize provocations at the zaporozhye nuclear power plant, this was announced today in the russian ministry of defense. let's listen to the official representative of igor konashenkov. despite the presence of representatives of the iaea at the zaporozhye nuclear power plant, the kiev regime continues provocations in order to create a threat of a man-made disaster on september 4, ukrainian troops used an unmanned strike the aircraft as a result of the action of russian electronic warfare equipment, the ukrainian drone lost control and fell kilometers from the territory of the zaporozhye nuclear power plant during the night two artillery shelling of the city of energodar was recorded in total six artillery shells were fired from the areas of settlements

we already discussed ben hodges, the former commander of nato forces in europe, who said that, so topeak, enu, their goal is to de-imperialize e russia and that they say, they were not ready for the collapse of the soviet union. and now they are ready, they will understand completely. i personally believe that i said. he is not only to us, and he said this, as if everyone who has an idea, and they, of course, many who have to stand next to us. or even a little bit, as if behind us he addressed them and, uh, why i say that they are very important, and the state of affairs at the front is very important on the line of contact. because now he is addressing the europeans, and we all perfectly understand why now, when he broke through, the next time he addresses them with such words, today he broke through, like, well, we all know that the europeans have doubts there, germany squirms over the concept he says, well, just amazingly bad analysts of russian capabilities, which unfortunately reflect the majority. e. e., so to speak, the way of thinking of the majority. e of the german elite, a

by the way, by the way, ben hodges, the former commander of the forces in europe , on his twitter wroteoal of the american strategy is to de-imperialize russia, which, as it were, beautifully says that that their goal is to ruin us and in any case remove us from the board as some kind of political one. eh, world reality and here is the question. eh, what will to happen to europe as part of this western front, confronting us and when we say that it’s not like the prime minister of great britain , in the opinion of many of her compatriots, is a disaster for the uk in fact. here is a word in different european languages, and it sounds more and more often. in e headlines of european newspapers, e and about the situation with the hadron collider, which can stop from the energy crisis and enterprises that can go bankrupt and blackout shutdowns electricity that can occur and the number of trains that is reduced and so on for people used to. in general, this is enough . well, kind of relaxed and comfortable life. and this is really a disaster. eh, this is true for many of them and i don’t want

uh, ben hodges. in response to absolutely a hypothetical question of what the united states would do if suddenly russia used tactical nuclear weapons in ukraine not against nato not against the united states to the fleet, ivan alekseevich, well, first of all, uh, benjas. yes, i say it again, high-ranking. general, former commander-in-chief of the united states armed forces in europe, he generally he understands what he is talking about, yes, american missiles will not have time to reach the russian black sea fleet, how russia, in full accordance with its nuclear doctrine, will launch a nuclear strike on the united states and there will be a global nuclear war. this is the first and the second. do you agree with the risks indicated. uh, roger coin and if i may start with the second part of the question, yes, the risks are quite right and are stated and we have repeatedly said in your program that the united states. uh, lately it seemed like they found a very advantageous position for themselves. they

ben hodges sets out with all the frankness, not embarrassed to call a spade a spade.installations, they would have already destroyed russian naval facilities in sevastopol in the long run. the ukrainians will move further east beyond kherson and they will receive weapons with a different range. i won't be able to beat according to these bases in the crimea that is, so far, but the common goal is the collapse of russia, they even came up with the word decolonization of the peoples of russia. although not siberia or the far east, not any other part of russia has ever been our colony. they judge for themselves. we built our country differently, as a single union of peoples. russians simply cannot afford racism , otherwise russia would not be like this. and how not to call what is happening now in ukraine the outcome of the battle. this is a matter of life and death for russia, and what words to convey this reality? in the kremlin there is a complete understanding of the goals set by the west about this president. putin spoke friday to journalists in samarkand for decades

let's bring in former general ben hodges, senior adviser at human rights first. good to see you. a statement that has some headlines going here. people are tending to gravitate toward that. you say this war could be the end of putin. it could also be the end of the russian federation itself. can you expand on that for us, sir? >> trace, thank you. i believe that we may be looking at the beginning of the collapse of the russian federation. and my concern is are we prepared for it. we were caught by surprise by the collapse of the soviet union 30 years ago. i wanted to make sure that we're thinking about what happens if the russian federation does begin to collapse. the military has been exposed as totally corrupt and ineffective. we see several former soviet republics as well as other areas inside the russian federation where fighting is breaking out. so you can feel it. people pulling apart. you've got an economic issue there as well. people are moving away from russian gas. of course, nobody has been impressed with russian defense industry the last six months. so there's a lot o

some of them were studied by sergey kalashevsky, retired general ben hodge, from whom they call one ofof the current ukrainian authorities, not so long ago said that russia was waiting for de-imperialization and eventually falling apart. it seems to me that we are witnessing the beginning of the end of the russian federation in the form in which it is today. you see , the words perfectly illustrate what many experts have been talking about for a long time, the conflict in ukraine is just an excuse to achieve a larger goal of global weakening of russia in general, the statements of european american politicians recently about the war to a victorious end and the great mission of ukraine seem insincere when it comes to about the threat to western civilization, which in the opinion of the west, russia is now a dead model to remove the state secret. the united states unfairly ascribes the phrase that all the wealth of siberia is in one country, she herself claimed that she did not say these words, but the idea of ​​​​dividing our country is still alive for the west, russia is very, very lar

uh, ben hodges, and here's another opinion of the well-known american neo-conservative, but an expertt professor jor sound university and member of the atlantic council matthew kroenick. if russian forces in ukraine launch a nuclear attack, the united states could strike those forces directly. this will make it clear that this is not a major war, but a limited strike. if you are putin what will you do in return. i don't think you'll say right away. let's let's launch all nuclear bombs under the united states. well, that is, we otkryonik believes that why? why does he think so? yes, that's what and what, what, if the united states strikes at russian nuclear installations, but at russian nuclear storage sites, then russia will not strike back. this, by the way, fully fits into the russian nuclear doctrine, which says that if russia registers an intention to strike at russian nuclear weapons, russian nuclear infrastructure will be destroyed. all yes. here then russia will launch a nuclear strike and he is very much mistaken if he thinks that russia, in this case, will not launch a strate

. >> lieutenant general ben hodges, thanks for taking the time to be with us.h monarchy and what it could mean for the world's fight against climate change. for king charles iii, it is personal. plus, the special master fight over mar-a-lago document through the bend to heat up. what could plant the courts tomorrow. and later, it's been 21 years since the 9/11 attacks. we examine the changing face of threats within the united states. a new hour of american voices, after this. what's for dinner? panera! freshly prepared with clean ingredients. it's not just a night off from cooking. it's a delicious night on... for everyone at the table. panera. $0 delivery fee for a limited time. businesses have to find new ways to compete in order to thrive in an ever-changing market. the right relationship with a bank who understands your industry, as well as the local markets where you do business, can help lay a solid foundation for the future. pnc provides the resources of one of the nation's largest banks and local leaders with a focus on customized insights to help your

. >> reporter: retired lieutenant general ben hodges, former commander of the u.s.o 50 miles and hits within ten feet of its intended target, has virtually eliminated russia's numerical advantage. >> you don't have to have hundreds of artillery rounds to achieve the same effect as one rocket fired from himars. >> is ukraine still outgunned? >> in numbers, i'd say yes. but what really matters is effect. and the effect that ukrainians achieve seems to me at this point to be superior to what the russians are able to deliver. >> reporter: since june, the u.s. has shipped ukraine 16 himars launchers and thousands of rockets, which defense officials say the ukrainians have used to attack more than 350 russian command posts, ammo dumps, supply depots, and other high-value targets far back from the front lines. >> the himars and other long-range capabilities have given the ukrainians the ability to reach out and hit targets that the russians would have thought were safe. >> reporter: why can't they just move all these command posts and ammo dumps further back from the front

so, such ideas are brought to a wider audience by retired general ben hodges, in the recent past, themander of the army and the united states in europe, first on his page on social networks announced the need this time to complete the destruction of russia, and a little later he repeated this idea on the pages such an influential western publication as zatselegrov is amazing, how little there are discussions about the possible end of the russian federation due to the fact that we did not prepare for the last collapse of russia that occurred about 30 years ago and the ensuing chaos in the country as president and putin became we cannot risk a second time, especially this time it is being prepared steel in a year for the head of the military committee of the north atlantic alliance, after a meeting with the chiefs of general staffs of nato countries, the expansion of blocs towards russian borders was let slip - this is not a free choice of eastern european democracies. what are we tried to persuade before, and a pre-agreed plan for an extensive restructuring of our military structures f

broadcasts live to the front yevgeny petrovich you know, uh, listening to all these statements, ben hodgese legacy of nuclear weapons, and everything that is possible. declares that germany is at war with russia. this is a gathering in tallinn, again everyone is talking about victory, and you know, the farther, the more i get the impression that they want not just victory for them what they need from tsushima, they need such a victory over russia so that it either ceases to exist ideally and is really divided, or is so humiliated, that is, it leaves everywhere. from where it was possible to pay some gigantic reparations, she lost, uh, her part of her armed forces, not to mention nuclear weapons. well, that is, from my point of view, now the question is, either we are them or they are us, and i 'm sure that such a scenario, which, well, everyone talks a lot about this, that we are advancing we are reaching a certain frontier. after that, the west understands that it will be worse further, and gives the command to zelensky to sit down at the negotiating table and will be up to our conditions

ben hodges is also one such weak combat award, a bronze star, not even a silver bronze star.eople who in life on the battlefield have not appeared in their entire military career. here martin kheram served as the head of the school for 6 years, please, well, people are listening to you now, what people should think ukrainians are not independent prepared by americans, but americans in general, the devil knows who worked in the kharkiv direction. and i'll tell you, in particular, the italians, and the military who were demobilized on purpose, uh, and uh, so it's the italians. i understand. why then does yermak call mark melman? uh, not only not only understand, then there is a moment, which you correctly said to the udins, that yes, they dragged them into this attempt into this attempt. but this is not a breakthrough. you see, the breakthrough had to end with something. and it didn’t really end in anything. you see, from 9 to 15,000 military personnel were wrapped in this attempt, equipment, again, european, american did not really help them, after all, we see that now it didn