PDB Situation Report | May 31st, 2025: 50,000 Russian Troops Amass On Ukraine’s Border & No End in Sight for Gaza
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What warning did President Zelensky issue about Russian troops?
Welcome to the PDB Situation Report. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. We begin tonight with a warning from President Zelensky. Ukraine says 50,000 Russian troops are now masked near the border, sparking fears, of course, of a new offensive. Former commanding general of U.S. Army Europe, retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, joins us with insight. Later in the show, this week marks 600 days since the war between Israel and Hamas began when Hamas kicked off this conflict with those brutal 7 October 2023 attacks. For the families of the hostages still held in Gaza, each one of these days has been a living nightmare. We'll bring you an update on the latest with Bill Roggio of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. But first, our Situation Report Spotlight. Tonight, Ukraine's President Zelensky is sounding the alarm. According to the latest intelligence from Kyiv, more than 50,000 Russian troops are now massed near Ukraine's northeastern border. Now, this isn't just a show of force.
It may be the prelude, of course, to a new Russian offensive, likely targeting the Sumy region. At the same time, Western allies have reportedly lifted range restrictions on Ukraine's use of long-range missiles, meaning that Kyiv can now strike deeper into Russian territory. Joining us to break it all down is retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, former commanding general of U.S. Army Europe. Sir, thank you very much for joining us here on the Situation Report.
What insights does General Hodges provide about Russia's military capabilities?
Well, thanks for the privilege, Mike.
The reports that Putin is massing troops on the border of Ukraine and the Sumy region in particular, what do you make of that?
Well, I have to say I'm skeptical. There may be a lot of troops there, and certainly the Russians would like to try and get momentum somehow. But as General Cavoli said a month ago in his testimony to the House and Senate Arts Services Committee, Russia is losing momentum. On the battlefield, they have demonstrated they do not have the ability to knock Ukraine out of the war. They can only kill innocent people with their attacks at nighttime on cities, but they don't have the land power. And certainly they're not integrated with air power supporting land operations the way we would. So while they may have a bunch of troops, I don't think they have a lot of equipment. So I'm skeptical that this is going to be some breakthrough kind of point in the war.
Is it a complete stalemate at this point, or is it your impression, and based on what you've seen, that there is slow but some progress by the Russian military in terms of taking territory, as small as the gains may be?
Well, I mean, you could imagine that there are villages or places where the Russians may gain a thousand meters or two kilometers or something like that. But when you go back to where they were, I mean, frankly, today, the situation on the ground is not one bit better for the Russians than it was before 22 February or about the time that they launched their large-scale invasion. And yet since that time, they've lost close to 900,000 casualties. They are using museum pieces for armored vehicles. They've got soldiers attacking in golf carts and scooters. So I think that they can still put lots of troops on the ground, but these are not going to be well trained and they're not going to be part of a mobile armored formation that can penetrate Ukrainian defenses.
Now, I don't want to overstate this. For the Ukrainians, obviously, on the receiving end of these attacks, they're getting pounded with drones and artillery and rockets. And it's still a very, very difficult close fight. But I try to think... more broadly about what's going on. And here we are after 11 years with Russia having every advantage. They still cannot knock Ukraine out of the war. Their air force has still not gotten their superiority. The Black Sea Fleet, nobody even talks about it anymore.
Is there a stalemate in the Ukraine conflict?
The question that I'm trying to get to is, and part of this is a speculation, obviously, but do you think that in Putin's mind, what little progress they may be making. Again, assuming it's just not a stalemate at this point where nobody's moving in either direction. Do you think that he views that as sufficient reason to continue the effort?
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What warning did President Zelensky issue about Russian troops?
0:12–1:43
2
What insights does General Hodges provide about Russia's military capabilities?
1:43–4:33
3
Is there a stalemate in the Ukraine conflict?
4:33–8:50
4
What factors influence Putin's decision-making in the Ukraine conflict?
8:50–15:59
5
What are the implications of the U.S. and EU's support for Ukraine?
15:59–50:14
6
How is the situation in Gaza evolving with Israel's new offensive?
50:14–52:05
Speakers
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