As Russian troops approach the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, some are digging in for a fight. As you’d expect, some are fleeing the city. Within days, the city could fall to Russian forces who are facing stiffer resistance from the Ukrainian military than what was originally expected. The viciousness of the Russian military was captured in a viral video showing a Russian tank going out of its way to run over a civilian vehicle. It’s horrifying to watch, but it ends on a good note. The driver, an elderly man, miraculously survived being run over (via NY Post):
Harrowing footage shows a Russian tank flattening a passenger car on the outskirts of Ukraine’s capital — with a civilian inside who appeared to miraculously survive.
Video of the shocking moment posted online early Friday showed the tank swerving to drive over the car in Kyiv’s Obolon district before reversing back over it.
Several people are heard in the clip shrieking in horror while the tank sits atop the car before rolling backward. Sporadic gunfire is also heard in the background.
Another video showed an elderly man being rescued from the flattened car moments later. He appeared to be alert, but the extent of his injuries was not immediately clear. Several people went to the scene to free him from the obliterated vehicle in the aftermath of the apparently intentional attack.
Za sve one koji ne žele da vide šta Putin radi u Ukrajini.
— Balša Božovic (@Balshone) February 25, 2022
Ruski narod ne stoji iza ovoga. Ovo je Putinov licni rat.
Na obraz medjunarodnoj zajednici koja ovo nemo posmatra.#Ukraine pic.twitter.com/aqfhpMuX9A
#Russian Tank Crushes #Ukrainian Car With Civilian Inside in Shocking Video pic.twitter.com/7luuY1E9HE
— Gabriel Tsulaia (@gtsulaia) February 25, 2022
VIDEO: people are trying to get an elderly man out of a car that was crushed by #Russian Tanks.
— Natiq Malikzada (@natiqmalikzada) February 25, 2022
Surprisingly, the #Ukrainian man is alive. #RussiaUkraineConflict #UkraineRussiaCrisis #RussiaInvadesUkraine #Ukrania #UkraineRussiaCrisis #RussiaUkraine pic.twitter.com/gYEIfO3a94
More sanctions are going to be slapped against Russia, but they claim they’re built to withstand such economic pressure. Did Russia’s billionaire class take a beating since this war began? Yes, but the hyper-nationalism of possibly retaking Ukraine might trump the feelings of lost wealth. We’re also a total mess on the communications about the sanctions. Were they a deterrent or not? Half of the Biden administration thinks they were set as a deterrent, the other half do not. And we might not know the effect of the new tranche of sanctions for at least a month. That’s our response? They’re also not meant to disrupt the flow of energy. So, they’re pretty much useless. Clipping Russia from the SWIFT system of international finance is also not being proposed.
The Ukrainians are pretty much on their own. As for when this devolves into an insurgency, that’s the next question.