War & Conflict with Preston Stewart

Two weeks ago we learned about Ukraine’s Operation Vivaldi, their counteroffensive in the east. And today, we’re joined by one of their battalion commanders that took part in those clearance operations.
Darwin is the commander of the 2nd Mechanized Battalion, 125th Mechanized Brigade of the 3rd Army Corps. We get into how his unit identified Russian positions to clear out, the feeling among his men as they liberated new territory and how infantry tactics have changed during the war.

Follow 125th and 3rd Corps at the links below:
https://t.me/ovmbr125
https://www.instagram.com/125ovmbr?stkn=YzhlN2cycml2YnNn
https://t.me/ab3army

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Yemen has declared war on the Houthis and it looks like they may have already pushed the group back from some of the Red Sea coastline, rolling back recent gains. Meanwhile, the war just expanded with Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia invoking the new Mecca Joint Defense Agreement.

Sources:
https://yemen.liveuamap.com/

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/05/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-yemen-houthis-bab-al-mandab-strait.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/04/world/middleeast/houthis-oil-attack-saudi-arabia-yemen.html

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/10/5/yemeni-govt-forces-aim-for-sanaa-but-houthi-defeat-will-be-a-challenge

https://x.com/ForeignOfficePk/status/2107169513464811869?s=20

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Pick up some of the last remaining Artwine made in Bakhmut with 100% of profits going to support the 93rd Brigade fighting in the east!
https://artwine.com/
For our companion campaign with Ukraine Aid Operations: https://ukraineaidops.org/blogs/fundraising-campaigns/preston-x-uao
Russia is at war with NATO, we just won’t accept it yet.
Everyone’s waiting for tanks to roll across a border or missiles to strike NATO airfields but in the meantime Russia is striking Turkish ships off the coast of Romania, setting fire to drone factories in Estonia and threatening nuclear war because they don’t like ongoing exercises.
I mean just today Germany said the risk of violent conflict with Russia is increasing.
Sources:
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/russia-estonia-milrem-sabotage-vladimir-putin-nato-a1bdc8a2?mod=hp_opin_pos_4
https://www.reuters.com/world/two-dead-11-rescued-serious-maritime-incident-black-sea-romania-says-2026-10-05/
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/germany-risk-violent-conflict-with-russia-intel-chief-says-2026-10-05/
https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/russia-issues-nuclear-warning-nato-tensions-rise-baltic-2026-09-30/
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/11/baltic-defense-russia/688692/?gift=hVZeG3M9DnxL4CekrWGK33yeaQ5oTEpWyC7eKqrOPA0&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share
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Today we’re joined by Dr. Lesley Warner and Andrew Leber to discuss the Houthis and the regional dynamics at play across the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Lesley is a visiting scholar with the Africa Program and Andrew is a nonresident scholar in the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Where the just authored a Q&A titled, “The Impacts of the Houthis’ Advance Could Extend Well Beyond Saudi Arabia.”
Follow Lesley, Andrew and see their work below:
https://carnegieendowment.org/people/lesley-anne-warner
https://carnegieendowment.org/people/andrew-leber
https://carnegieendowment.org/emissary/2026/09/houthis-bab-al-mandeb-impacts-saudi-arabia-somaliland
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/21/opinion/houthis-iran-hormuz.html
https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/china-taiwan-africa-pressure-campaign/
https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1598&context=nwc-review
https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/israels-recognition-of-somaliland-will-reverberate-beyond-the-horn-of-africa/
https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/africa-gen-z-protests-democracy/
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Excited to kick off this project with Brave Selections! Check out the first link for the ArtWine selections and the Ukraine Aid Ops link for the associated campaign:
https://artwine.com/
https://ukraineaidops.org/blogs/fundraising-campaigns/preston-x-uao
The situation at the front is not going well for Russia. Despite the constant claims of a steady advance, when we step back and look at the data, Russian forces lost 190 square kilometers in September. That’s the largest monthly loss of territorial control for the Russian military in three and a half years and really puts into perspective the constant refrain that Russia can’t be stopped.
I mean they are, right now, which is also why Russia is ramping up strikes on civilian infrastructure across the country.
Sources:
https://t.me/rybar_in_english/34785
https://deepstatemap.live/en#11/48.5277466/37.5567627
https://www.creamy-caprice.net/
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/world/europe/russia-ukraine-bridges-kyiv.html
https://t.me/rybar_in_english/34776
https://x.com/Black_BirdGroup/status/2106482419201093855
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Check out our fundraiser through Car4Ukraine here! https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/preston-stewart-fall-offensive
Ukraine is setting the conditions for phase four of their counteroffensive in the east, operation Vivaldi. Put simply, there’s more good news to come. Russia’s challenges in that direction aren’t improving and there’s a fair argument they’re getting worse. It’s becoming clear that they cannot keep front line elements supplied and the chain of commanded needed to fixt that is just broken.
That’s really positive for Ukraine but we can’t lose sight of the larger picture which isn’t great.
Russian deep strikes have intensified and become more complex as it looks like Russia hopes to shut off power, heat and water to Ukraine’s largest cities this winter. That’s a humanitarian disaster looming in the very near future.
Sources:
https://t.me/ab3brigade/15547
https://t.me/romanov_92/56218
https://t.me/severnnyirezerv/2643
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/analytics/russia-s-new-strategy-for-attacking-kyiv-1790832542.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/02/world/europe/russia-ukraine-winter.html
https://x.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/2105961825154277727?s=20
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Check out our fall fundraiser with Car4Ukraine here: https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/preston-stewart-fall-offensive
There’s a lot of speculation that Putin will order a mobilization in the coming months to backfill troop losses in Ukraine. But here’s the thing, it’s already happening and has been for some time.
The challenge Putin faces right now is that they’re running out of people they would prefer to send to war, the undesirables, and they’re stuck having to explain why they need so many more soldiers while telling the population that they’re winning the war and advancing on all fronts.
Sources:
https://kyivindependent.com/russia-beginning-additional-mobilization-of-troops-north-korean-recruitment-zelensky-warns/
https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/russia-has-not-avoided-mobilisation-it-has-normalised-it
https://t.me/regnum_na/89585
https://t.me/dshrg2/5661
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A few weeks ago we talked with NATO who was looking for a new solution to shut down enemy airfields. Today, we’re talking with the winner of that challenge, LPP Holdings out of the Czech Republic.
We get into what their solution entails, how they’ve tied in with Ukrainian units to ensure their products are battle tested and more.
This is part of NATO ACT Innovation Challenge where companies from across the Alliance and Ukraine submit their solutions to real problems arising on the modern battlefield.
More about LPP Holding and our technologies:
🌐 www.lpp-holding.com
NATO ACT Website: https://www.act.nato.int/
NATO Innovation Network: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/natoinnovationnetwork/?viewAsMember=true
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Our fall campaign is going strong! Check it out at the link here to learn more: https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/preston-stewart-fall-offensive
Phase three of Operation Vivaldi is complete as Ukraine continues to advance during their counteroffensive in the east. The Third Army Corps has released footage saying they captured 250 Russian soldiers, the largest number in a single operation since the Kursk incursion two years ago.
Meanwhile, Russian sources are getting fed up with the false reports on their side and the problems that’s causing at the front. With some complaining that “there's no communication, no logistics, no drones to deliver even basic supplies like food and water to the positions.”
Sources:
https://t.me/ab3brigade/15518
https://t.me/rybar_in_english/34650
https://t.me/dva_majors/99685
https://t.me/milinfolive/180452
https://t.me/dshrg2/5692
https://t.me/shturmmotherfucker/2136
https://x.com/clement_molin/status/2103867886842544612?s=20
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Eight US Marines were wounded in an Iranian missile attack two weeks ago. The news comes after President Trump rejected an Iranian proposal to open the Strait saying “we’re going to win this war very soon.”
Sources:
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/us-marines-injured-recent-iranian-attack-rcna600097
https://x.com/glcarlstrom/status/2104470288087830614?s=20
https://x.com/BarakRavid/status/2104212144719839505?s=20
https://x.com/BurggrabenH/status/2104361288000221497?s=20
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/jp-morgan-says-it-has-no-clear-oil-market-endgame-iran-conflict-drags-2026-09-17/
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/24/world/middleeast/iran-proposal.html
https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/trump-rejects-iran-ceasefire-expects-renewed-bombing-after-midterms-5982ee50?mod=hp_lead_pos1
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