Humvees Emerging As Key Ukraine Offensive, Defensive Weapons Platform

Ukraine's fleet of ageing, former American Humvees are emerging as a key Ukrainian weapons platform both for offensive and defensive purposes.

It's versatility, toughness and mobility are perfectly suited for the Ukrainian terrain and its strength means that a variety of weapons can use it as a platform. From missile launching to anti-drone defense to conversion to remote controlled robots, it is proving its usefulness even as the US has moved on from it. JL

Vikram Mittal reports in Forbes:

Ukraine is increasing its use of HMMWVs, which it received in large numbers through American military aid packages. Ukraine’s growing use of this decades-old vehicle reflects its continued relevance on the modern battlefield due to its mobility, versatility, and ability to be modified for emerging operational requirements. Its four-wheel-drive system, high ground clearance, and powerful diesel engine allow it to traverse steep slopes, muddy fields, and wooded areas. At the same time, it can travel at high speeds on conventional roads. It plays a key role in supporting Ukraine’s forward-deployed drone teams which often operate in small groups of two to four soldiers. They require vehicles capable of transporting personnel, drones, batteries, control stations, antennas, and other supplies between operating positions. The Humvee's drone protections are now advanced and it can be modified to operate remotely as a drone itself.

The Tiny Donetsk Village Where Ukraine Inflicted 1,600 Russian Deaths

Zelena Dolyna was a scattering of houses holding 200 residents on the road to Lyman. But in a year of advancing and then retreating, the Kremlin lost 1,600 dead there due to Ukrainian drone, robot and mechanized infantry attacks.

As such, it has become a microcosm of the Russian invasion: massive losses for no strategic advantage. JL

David Axe reports in Trench Art:

The village of Zelena Dolyna sits on a road toward Lyman. It's a blood-soaked graveyard for 1,600 Russian troops. In March, the Ukrainian 3rd Army Corps launched Operation Vivaldi, exploiting gaps in Russian defenses in northern Donetsk and, deploying robots and then mechanized infantry, defeating overextended Russian field armies. Retreating east amid heavy losses, the Russians gave up Zelena Dolyna—and kept falling back, all the way across the Zherebets River. Operation Vivaldi erased 18 months of Russian advances and inflicted shocking casualties on the Kremlin's forces. For the Russians, advancing is costly. But retreating is costly, too—and nowhere was that more evident than during Operation Vivaldi. The Russians suffered 8,000 casualties while retreating across the Zherebets. In more than a year of fighting, 1,600 of them died in tiny Zelena Dolyna. In death per square meter, it might be the deadliest ground in Ukraine for Russian invaders.

Why Nvidia and AI May Be Better Off Without Jensen Huang

Jensen Huang was the face of the AI boom. He was everywhere: speaking, politicking, reassuring, investing in customers and suppliers, all while promising a glorious future. 

But in reality, the boom was starting to lose its glow - and trajectory - as customers struggled to justify their increasingly otherworldly investments and financial projections appeared to have been generated by hallucinating AI on steroids. It was already winding down when stories about his dalliances with the beguiling Chinese spy/customer and at least one (possibly two) female Nvidia execs came to light. While his departure is scary to many who own the company's stock, the subtle but unmistakable change in AI's prospects means a different kind of leader was already needed: less cheerleader, more prudent manager. The era of unrestrained growth is likely to be followed by one requiring fewer circular deals to support the trajectory story and more attention to the boring details of cash flow and balance sheet protection. So, the timing is actually good. Huang had a great run, but Nvidia, AI and the global economy now need less relentlessly Panglossian positivity and more green eyeshades. JL

Asa Fitch reports in the Wall Street Journal:

Jensen Huang sent Nvidia’s stock down 22% since a report about his relationship with a woman Chinese spy. It was already underperforming as investors fretted about its central position in the AI trade. Nvidia is the supplier to companies and AI labs spending hundreds of billions of dollars on AI. Its software is dominant and ubiquitous. Future AI chips and computing system sales mean Huang’s absence won’t have much near-term impact. Revenue is to grow 70% at gross profit margins above 70% so Nvidia is going to be profit- and cash-generating for the foreseeable future. (But) Huang  invested billions in customers, entering into circular financing deals and guarantees which put its balance sheet at risk. A wind-down of support to partners and customers is prudent for a company transitioning out of skyrocketing growth. The all-out scramble for compute is starting to fade, ushering in a period where Huang’s salesmanship will be less important, and prudently managing becomes paramount.

A Ukraine Ground Robot Confused Russian Troops, Who Fired At Each Other

The Russians are still trying to figure out this whole ground robot thing - and it is not going well for them. JL

Edward Mostly reports in Medium:

A single single ground robot created so much confusion between two Russian positions that the soldiers occupying them spent half a day shooting at each other. The world's most disastrous team-building exercise apparently took place between two Russian tree lines, and the organizer was a Ukrainian robot carrying a machine gun. The Ukrainian machine fired at one Russian position, turned toward another, and fired again. Then the Russians took over. Most workplace misunderstandings are resolved after an awkward conversation with a manager. This one  required half a day and an alarming amount of ammunition. Imagine what the Russian after-action report looked like.

In the Fifth Year Since Its Ukraine Invasion, Russia Is Failing On the Battlefield

There are many specific operational reasons why Ukraine is causing Russia to fail on the battlefield: technology - especially drones and robots; mid range logistics strikes, better intelligence, coordination and leadership, etc. 

But the biggest reason may be that rather than waiting for the Russians to reveal their plan, Ukraine seized the initiative and attacked, disrupting the Kremlin's strategic plan and switching the momentum to the Ukrainians. JL

Ian Lovett and colleagues report in the Wall Street Journal:

2026 hasn’t gone according to plan for Moscow. Through the end of October, its forces have gained just 46 square miles of territory in Ukraine, compared with 1,874 square miles in 2025. And for the past two months, Russian forces have lost more land than they gained. The Russians also suffered more casualties in October than in any previous month of the war. This spring Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attempts to advance beyond Pokrovsk. And over the summer, the Ukrainians prepared a major counterattack, Operation Vivaldi. First, Ukraine’s midrange drones degraded Russian supply lines. Then Ukrainian infantry and armor, working closely with drone units, launched their counterpunch in September. Russia will “ keep grinding forward at Dobropillia. But the operational plan behind this offensive…has failed."

3 Russian Helicopters, Crews Destroyed Repelling Ukraine Drone Attack

Added bonus for Ukraine: three attack helicopters and crews destroyed while trying to fend off a Ukrainian drone attack on an oil terminal near St Petersburg Russia. JL

Vladyslav Khomenko reports in Militarnyi:

On the night of November 11, Russian army aviation lost three helicopter crews while repelling a Ukrainian drone attack. Seven crew members were killed. The losses involved three aircraft: two Ka-52 attack helicopters and one Mi-8. During the same attack, Ukrainian drones struck an oil terminal at the port of Ust-Luga in Russia’s Leningrad region. The strike caused a fire at the facility, with fire hotspots detected by NASA’s FIRMS satellite monitoring system.

Russia's Orikhiv Assault Implodes As It Can't Replace Ukraine-Inflicted Losses

Ukrainian forces on the Zaporizhzhia front, particularly around Orikhiv are being eliminated faster than the Kremlin can replace them.

This is an essential element of Ukraine's latest strategy adaptation, which identifies Russian reinforcement units faster so that they can be decimated before they even get to the front. JL

RFU News reports:

Ukraine's increasingly effective strategy of systematically exhausting Russian manpower rather than merely defending territory, with Ukraine’s expanding reconnaissance and strike capabilities make Russian offensives not only more expensive, but almost impossible. Ukrainian strikes depleted Russian reserves. The infiltrators that managed to slip through became isolated and their supply routes were disrupted. At the approaches to Orikhiv, Ukrainian forces cleared contested positions, and began pushing back along Russian infiltration corridors. The decisive factor remains Ukraine’s ability to detect and eliminate assault formations faster than Russia can replace them. The decisive factor remains Ukraine’s ability to detect and eliminate assault formations faster than Russia can replace them which creates a destructive cycle: higher casualties reduce Russian offensive effectiveness