Ukraine

cross-posted from: https://rss.ponder.cat/post/212745

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has met with Norway’s Defence Minister Torge O. Sandvik, who arrived in Ukraine for his first visit since taking office in February.

Source: President’s Office, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Zelenskyy thanked the Norwegian government for its substantial military aid, which has been increased to US$7 billion this year. He expressed hope that this level of support would be maintained in 2025.

Zelenskyy and Sandvik discussed investments in the production of Ukrainian-made weapons, including long-range missiles and drones, as well as scaling up joint defence manufacturing.

Other key topics included strengthening Ukraine’s air defences and improving combat aircraft capabilities. The president thanked Norway for providing F-16 fighter jets.

Zelenskyy also highlighted the importance of supplying NASAMS air defence systems and missiles to protect critical civilian infrastructure from Russian attacks.

He expressed gratitude to Norway for its energy assistance during the winter and for allocating funds for the purchase of imported gas.

The Norwegian defence minister reaffirmed continued support for Ukraine and stressed the importance of developing defence capabilities in both countries.

Background:

Norway and Ukraine are jointly training drone operators in Trøndelag as part of Operation Gungne.Since April 2025, Norway has officially joined the drone coalition for Ukraine.

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Whether or not it may have been a factor in the lack of advance notice to the public or to the sheriff about the exercise, the gray Mi-17 seen during the exercise is a dead ringer for Hips tied to a highly secretive U.S. Army element known as the Aviation Technology Office (ATO). Previously known as the Flight Concepts Division (FCD), ATO is headquartered at Felker Army Airfield, which is part of Fort Eustis in Virginia.

In addition to gray-painted examples, ATO-linked Mi-17s have also been seen painted tan and wearing a tan-and-brown camouflage scheme. These helicopters have a distinctive configuration that includes a nose-mounted weather radar, a sensor ball turret under the right side of the cockpit, supplemental armor panels around the front, a large particle separator in front of their engine intakes, and various antennas on the fuselage and tail boom.

The reason I think these might be connected to Ukraine is there has been a lot of recent imagery coming out about Ukraine's use of helicopters and extremely low flying tactics in the war in Ukraine. I am talking VERY low flying tactics that would normally be considered extremely unnecessarily dangerous by other pilots for a helicopter pilot but become a survival technique in the extremely hostile airspace occupied Ukraine. Meters or less off the ground I am talking.

One of the main helicopters Ukraine would have the most consistent and reliable access to (and that is found in a lot of these Ukranian videos accompanying Mi-28s and other helicopters) is the Mi-17 same, which on paper isn't an attack helicopter nor a particularly agile helicopter given its large medium duty size and capabilities.

This origins as a medium lift helicopter give the Mi-8 family some fundamental advantages despite its size though because the helicopter is meant to haul large amounts of weight, which means when the helicopter isn't loaded up with lots of cargo.... LOTS of torque which means the capacity to wrench the helicopter quickly out of dangerous situations.. possibly the most important capability for safety in the end for low flying manuevers if a pilot flies smoothly.

The Mi-8 family is the most numerous helicopter ever made and is popular across the world, but I suspect these flights are to give somebody information on how to fly Mi-8s in a way that is useful for modern high intensity combat.. which could unfortunately be somehow related to the Israel/US attack on Iran but I am unsure if Israel would have any need for this kind of training or data beyond what they already have.. so the next natural explanation is US defense organizations attempting to help Ukranian pilots get more data about pushing the Mi-18 to its limit.

The US military has I believe supplied a number of these to Ukraine though I don't know the details.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mil_Mi-8

Ok I will stop my barrage, but I think the point has been made.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VwlHldIL1rY

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fYbbp1QRHCg

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yDQDJnUJyl8

https://www.twz.com/24663/army-tests-low-recoil-155mm-howitzer-small-enough-to-fit-on-the-back-of-a-truck

As of now, 11 fuel tanks are on fire. Smoke can be seen 15-20 km away.

Our people on the spot confirm the main bonus - the railway track has a gap. The repair will take a couple of weeks after the replacement, which means the fuel will not reach the front for two weeks.

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