"My call for a Ukraine national militia of quick-trained volunteers to attack stopped Russian columns opportunistically (the Finnish model) is misrepresented as a call for an endless guerilla war After losing a few soldiers the Russians will withdraw (as in Chechnya). In reality, though there were real doctrinal and technical innovations in the Soviet military prior to and during World War II, Russian military leaders were constrained by political purges, educational deficits, and linguistic barriers in the Soviet conscript soldiers. [57]Russia reportedly loses 150 tanks a month in Ukraine while Russias sole tank production factory, UralVagonZavod, produces 20 tanks a month. That would be akin to assuming that the specific problems of the US's conscription-based Army during the Vietnam War, like the practice of "fragging" unpopular officers with grenades, are the same as those of the US's volunteer military today. Russian armor losses have been so severe that military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles. What we consider before using anonymous sources. Hence the stories of captured Russian troops who had no idea why they were in Ukraine. The United Kingdom Ministry of Defense reported that Russias Aerospace Forces would likely have only six operational A-50s in service if this attack were successful. Can we corroborate the information? Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin is currently in a war of words with the Russian military, accusing it of not supplying his organization with ammunition. In the 21st century, Moscow must make do with a smaller, more professional military, and one that's better at keeping highly trained personnel alive. This is what the Russian military has done elsewhere, notably in Chechnya, when its officers feel frustrated. The town itself has been shattered by the fighting, with buildings bombed out and streets abandoned. So I think we - you know, and the laws of war will once again prove rather feckless in changing his decision to do that. The Kremlin is likely attempting to reintroduce a Russian information operation aimed at falsely portraying Russia as being open to negotiations while the collective West refuses to negotiate. Are they third-country nationals? Geolocated footage published on February 28 allegedly shows the aftermath of a Ukrainian HIMARS strike on a Russian ammunition warehouse in Kadiivka. While procuring new aircraft, the VKS retired over a thousand The A-50 AWACS was created by the Beriev Design Bureau on the basis of the IL-76 military transport aircraft in 1978-1985. But any economists can tell you a dollar spent in China or Russia can buy more than a dollar in, say, Switzerland or the United States, meaning Russian military systems cost much less than Western ones, and salaries paid even to contract soldiers are much lower than in the US or Europe. Groups are working to de-mine those areas to make them safe for civilians. | Economic collapse and corruption resulted in dysfunctions ranging from This is deliberate; its part of the top-down command system dating back to Soviet times, if not earlier. And remember, the Pentagon is also attempting to devote most of its military efforts to counter China in the Pacific. I'm talking about sort of turning different parties against each other. [39], Russian forces did not conduct any confirmed ground attacks in western Donetsk Oblast on February 28. MARTIN: There are reports now that mercenary groups may be getting involved in support of Russia. Russian independent media outlets also reported on February 27 that Russian courts extended the sentence of a Moscow resident previously sentenced for an [17]The Kremlin and Lukashenko are likely seizing on Chinas release of a 12-point peace plan to reintroduce an existing Russian information operation that the Kremlin used in December 2022. Mines have played a key role in the fighting in Ukraine over the past year. [40]A Russian milblogger claimed that Russian naval infantry elements are fighting towards Vuhledar from the Mykliske dacha area and within Vuhledar itself, although ISW has not observed visual confirmation of Russian troops within Vuhledar. Ukrainian officials reported that Russian forces may be preparing for offensive operations in Zaporizhia and Kherson oblasts. It isnt a good army executing outdated or out-of-context tactics. Over the past decade, the Russian armed forces have greatly improved, especially in the numbers of troops and quality of weapons. Vladimir Putin dismissed the weapon as old and said Russias missile systems would be able to shoot it down. Russia opened its invasion with a page from the superpower playbook as written by the United States and its allies in the 1991 Gulf War. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. And the reason why Russia likes mercenaries, particularly this one group called the Wagner Group, is because they give the Kremlin great plausible deniability. [37]https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid0dDf2w34VWwwcuYqnxSQ [38]https://t.me/wargonzo/11149;https://t.me/readovkanews/53706, [39]https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=133231762743931. The result is that Ukraine, using Javelin anti-tank missiles, has stalled the convoy headed for Kyiv by blowing up tank after tank. Russia is believed to have lost almost 1,000 tanks in its war with Ukraine, a senior US defense official said Thursday. DONETSK OBLAST, UKRAINE - FEBRUARY 14: Ukrainian soldiers load ammunition to tanks on the frontline near the towns of Vuhledar and Marinka as Russian-Ukrainian war continues in Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on February 14, 2023. Faced with bad weather in northern Ukraine, the Russian officers grounded some Russian attack planes and helicopters, and forced others to fly at lower altitudes, making them more vulnerable to Ukrainian ground fire, a senior Pentagon official said. [20]https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-ass [21]https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/ukraine-conflict-updates-2022. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces are defending in Zaporizhia and Kherson oblasts but are trying to create conditions that will allow Russian forces to conduct offensives in some unspecified areas of this part of the front. Despite having a huge advantage in armor when the war broke out, severe losses have weakened Russias forces. bragged to foreign allies at a military forum. Theyve sent in only about two-thirds of the troops and weapons that had been poised on the Ukrainian border. It's unlikely. Most of all, Russia has exposed to its European neighbors and American rivals gaps in its military strategy that can be exploited in future battles. #Ukraine #Vuhledar #Donetsk pic.twitter.com/bIqWpLpcnZ. [58]Business InsiderandThe Economistnoted that 18 Russian factories are refurbishing old tanks and that two more repair plants will soon join the efforts. And though the Finns executed a masterful mobile defense against larger Soviet forces in 1939-1940 and 1944, Helsinki was still eventually forced to sue for peace and cede the Karelian Isthmus both times. She said there should be an investigation. But I wonder if you feel that this is a relevant concept here in this - in modern warfare. most of it. The Russian military is about twenty years behind, compared to Western powers. In everything that they do. [30]The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Ukrainian troops repelled Russian attacks on Bakhmut itself; north of Bakhmut near Dubovo-Vasylivka (6km northwest), Orikhovo-Vasylivka (10km northwest), Berkhkivka (4km north), Yahidne (1km northwest), Vasyukivka (13km northwest), and Bohdanivka (8km northwest); west of Bakhmut near Chasiv Yar (10km west); and southwest of Bakhmut near Bila Hora (15km southwest). I'm thinking about, like, the election interference that we saw here in the United States. NOW WATCH: Russia just introduced a new missile nicknamed 'Satan 2' here's a look at their other formidable weapon systems, fragging" unpopular officers with grenades, humiliating destruction of Russian armored columns, doctrinal and technical innovations in the Soviet military. [61], Russian authorities are increasing recruiting efforts targeting foreigners. https://isw.pub/UkrWar013123;https://isw.pub/UkrWar121322; https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/kremlin-russia-open-ukraine-talks-w https://isw.pub/UkrWar120222;https://www.middot, https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/ukraine-conflict-updates-2022. The Russians do not have unlimited quantities of their most modern equipment. There is no debating that. Gone are the days of the 1970s when the US [64]https://twitter.com/666_mancer/status/1630478324215455745;https://t.me [65]https://t.me/grey_zone/17471;https://t.me/concordgroup_official/528; [66]https://www.fontanka dot ru/2023/02/27/72090578/; https://t.me/astrapress/21942. Right now, Ukrainian forces at Vuhledar are outnumbered when it comes to armor the first Leopard tanks donated by Poland arrived in Ukraine on Friday but the last two weeks have shown its mines are enough to hold back Russian tanks, at least for now. There is a larger factor here: The Russian army is composed, by and large, of one-year conscripts, who are poorly trained (even within the confines of Russian military training), badly treated, and uninspired by ideology or any other motivating spirit. At some point, superior firepower will win out, at least in the short run. According to U.S. officials, the Russian military has committed 80 percent of its active-duty army, airborne, and marine units and their equipment to Ukraine, and it has already withdrawn additional equipment from long-term storage. ISW has previously reported on the correlation between Russian information operations and battlefield realities, particularly when Russian forces are failing to take significant ground in offensive operations in Ukraine. Russian armor losses have been so severe that military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles. [5]https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign https://understandingwar.org/backgrounder/russian-offensive-campaign-ass [6]https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-does-not-see-significant-near-term-r https://www.vice.com/en/article/bvmwk4/pentagon-putin-nukes-ukraine. After four days of fighting, the Russian military is bogged down in Ukraine. Clickhereto see ISWs interactive map of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Former Soviet satellite Slovakia has been a NATO member since 2004, but the reality of belonging to the worlds biggest military alliance really kicked in after Losing 10,000 before breakfast never hurt the career of a Russian general, but with no surplus boys, Russia too is post-heroic. It added: "Due to the lack of high-precision weapons, This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. 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