IT SEEMS RUSSIA’S MUCH ANTICIPATED SPRING OFFENSIVE IN UKRAINE IS UNDERWAY. THE KREMLIN HAS YET TO FULLY ACKNOWLEDGE ITS START, BUT CONDITIONS ON THE BATTLEFIELD INDICATE RUSSIA IS TRYING, IN EARNEST, TO GAIN GROUND.
AS EXPECTED, MOST OF THE FIGHTING IS IN THE INDUSTRIALIZED EASTERN PART OF UKRAINE, AN AREA KNOWN AS THE DONBAS. INTELLIGENCE REPORTS SHOW A SIGNIFICANT NUMBER OF THE RUSSIANS TAKING PART IN THE OFFENSIVE ARE LIKELY MOBILIZED TROOPS, MEN WHO WERE CONSCRIPTED INTO SERVICE AND NOT PROFESSIONAL SOLDIERS.
VIDEOS POSTED ONLINE BY UKRAINE’S MINISTRY OF DEFENSE AND OTHERS SHOW COLUMNS OF RUSSIAN ARMOR GETTING DECIMATED BY UKRAINIAN ARTILLERY, DRONES AND MINEFIELDS. ACCORDING TO THE INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF WAR, THE VIDEO SHOWS RUSSIAN TROOPS, WHO ARE UNDISCIPLINED AND ILL-EQUIPPED FOR WAR, MAKING COSTLY MISTAKE AFTER COSTLY MISTAKE.
BRITISH INTELLIGENCE SAID THE RUSSIANS ABANDONED AROUND 30 MOSTLY INTACT ARMORED VEHICLES AFTER ONE FAILED ASSAULT. REPORTS FROM THE FRONTLINES SAY RUSSIA IS LOSING MORE TROOPS NOW THAN IT DID WHEN IT FIRST INVADED UKRAINE ALMOST A YEAR AGO.
UKRAINE SAID ITS MILITARY KILLED 900 RUSSIANS IN ONE DAY ON FEBRUARY 11TH. ANOTHER 5,000 RUSSIANS WERE EITHER KILLED, WOUNDED OR CAPTURED IN LATE JANUARY IN THE FIGHT FOR VUHLEDAR. THE RUSSIAN LOSSES THERE INCLUDED MEMBERS OF AN ELITE RUSSIAN BRIGADE AND ITS COMMAND STAFF.
UKRAINE’S ARMED FORCES SAY IN HORLIVKA, AROUND 30% OF INJURED RUSSIAN TROOPS HAVE FROSTBITE BECAUSE THEY WERE SENT TO THE FRONTLINES WITHOUT PROPER COLD WEATHER CLOTHING.
THE LACK OF BATTLEFIELD SUCCESS IS NOT SITTING WELL INSIDE MOTHER RUSSIA. MILITARY BLOGGERS, WHO’VE BEEN CRITICAL OF PREVIOUS BATTLE BLUNDERS, ARE NOW OUTRIGHT FURIOUS WITH THE COUNTRY’S MILITARY LEADERS. THE ISW SAID SOME RUSSIAN BLOGGERS ARE CALLING FOR MILITARY TRIBUNALS.
VLADIMIR PUTIN IS DOWNPLAYING THE SITUATION, SAYING RUSSIA’S TROOPS IN THE REGION ARE WORKING AS THEY SHOULD AND HEROICALLY FIGHTING.
UKRAINE SAYS FROM THE START OF THE WAR THROUGH FEBRUARY 14TH, MORE THAN 139 THOUSAND RUSSIANS HAVE BEEN CAPTURED, KILLED, OR WOUNDED. MORE THAN 3200 TANKS WERE DESTROYED ALONG WITH THOUSANDS OF ARTILLERY UNITS, ROCKET LAUNCHERS, DRONES, VEHICLES AND OTHER EQUIPMENT.
THE ISW SAYS WHILE THERE MAY BE A PUSH TO BLAME INDIVIDUALS FOR RUSSIA’S MILITARY MISTAKES, FOOTAGE FROM THE BATTLEFIELD SHOWS RUSSIAN FORCES ENGAGING IN HIGHLY DYSFUNCTIONAL TACTICS, WHICH ARE MORE LIKELY AN INDICTMENT OF POOR TRAINING RATHER THAN POOR COMMAND. THE ISW SAYS THAT SYSTEMIC POOR TRAINING WILL LIKELY RESULT IN FUTURE SIMILAR TACTICAL FAILURES.
FOR MORE OF THE UNBIASED, STRAIGHT FACTS ABOUT WHAT’S HAPPENING IN UKRAINE, GO TO STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS DOT COM.
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