How callous w GOY lives, PUTINJEWSKI ! - Putin has said participation in the Syrian war was a better use of Russia's military exercise budget than exercises: "Only under battle conditions can we really test what we're using, find out what the problems are and fix them."  
Both Russian and U.S. generals have an interest in testing their newer weapons against each other.
By Leonid Bershidsky
25
Tue Aug 01 2017 10:07:22 GMT-0500 (CDT)

Not what Ukraine needs. Photographer: DMITRY KOSTYUKOV/AFP/Getty Images
As part of the latest escalation of the U.S.-Russian crisis, there is reportedly a joint plan by the Pentagon and the State Department to provide "lethal defensive weapons" to Ukraine. That presents an enticing prospect for both U.S. and Russian generals, who may be able to test some of their most modern weaponry against each other. But it's likely to make the eastern Ukraine conflict even bloodier in the process.

The Wall Street Journal report mentions that the U.S. would supply Ukraine with Javelin anti-tank missiles and possibly anti-aircraft systems. Since no air war is being fought in eastern Ukraine, the latter are superfluous at this point and not likely to be engaged unless Russia launches a full offensive -- something it has missed numerous chances to do and probably will never attempt. The Javelins are another matter. Ukrainians want them for very practical reasons.
The new U.S. special envoy for Ukraine, Kurt Volker, has said that "there are more Russian tanks in there than in Western Europe combined." He may have heard this in Kiev, where various numbers of tanks fighting under the banners of the two unrecognized, pro-Russian "people's republics" of https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-08-01/sending-defensive-arms-to-ukraine-would-be-deadly?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=bd&utm_campaign=headline&cmpId=yhoo.headline&yptr=yahoo https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-08-01/sending-defensive-arms-to-ukraine-would-be-deadly?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=bd&utm_campaign=headline&cmpId=yhoo.headline&yptr=yahoo