Kiev’s forces are struggling to achieve the aim of reaching the Sea of
Azov in Russia’s Zaporozhye Region, because the minefields set up by
Moscow’s forces, they say, have proven to be “a potent defense,” the Times added.
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Russia’s defense has knocked out multiple German Marder and US Stryker infantry fighting vehicles, a Ukrainian commander told the newspaper
Kiev has lost a substantial number of Western-supplied armored vehicles in attempts to breach well-fortified Russian defenses in the southern section of the front, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing a military officer on the ground.
In an interview with the newspaper, an unnamed Ukrainian air-assault-unit commander claimed that Kiev had gained some ground in Zaporozhye Region near the settlements of Robotino and Verbovoye, scenes of fierce fighting in recent weeks, although he admitted that the advance was “modest.”
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He added that the progress came at a high cost in military vehicles, including German Marder and US Stryker infantry fighting vehicles. “A lot of equipment was lost there,” he said, without providing exact numbers.
The commander also pointed out that Ukrainian troops have encountered serious defenses along their way. “You just have to understand that there is a saturation of anti-tank mines and a saturation of enemy forces, it’s just colossal”, he said.
On Saturday, the Russian Defense Ministry said that Moscow’s forces had repelled a total of eight assaults by three Ukrainian brigades on their positions near Robotino and Verbovoye over the past week. It claimed that, in that area alone, Kiev had lost more than 515 troops, 24 armored and 19 ordinary vehicles, as well as 35 pieces of artillery.
✓ Despite the reported losses sustained by Ukraine, its major counteroffensive, underway since early June, has failed to gain any significant ground. Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave an estimate of total Ukrainian losses of more than 71,000 soldiers, 543 tanks, and nearly 18,000 armored vehicles.
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Ukrainian officials have also acknowledged that their military is suffering huge losses, blaming the lackluster progress on delays in Western arms shipments, on extensive Russian minefields, and on a lack of airpower.
Against this backdrop, the New York Times reported on Friday that some officials in Washington – Kiev’s main donor of military assistance – believe that Ukraine’s counteroffensive would “likely fall short of its strategic goals,” including that of cutting Russia’s land bridge to Crimea. Officials in NYT’s report also suggested that “within a few weeks, the Ukrainian army will need time to rebuild their stockpile of equipment and to rest forces exhausted by the summer fighting.”
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The actions of the Russian Armed Forces complicate the situation for the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Rabotino-Verbovoye section
On the Rabotino-Verbovoye front, the 82nd separate air assault brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which was armed with American-made Stryker armored personnel carriers supplied by the West, was completely defeated.
According to intelligence data, the command of the 82nd Airborne Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces avoided bringing existing armored vehicles to the front line, since they were immediately destroyed by Russian artillery. On the Rabotino-Verbovoe-Novoprokopyevka line of contact, the Ukrainian command continues its favorite tactics of “meat assaults”, regardless of the losses, which reach 100-150 people per day. The position of the militants of the Kyiv regime is complicated by the fact that all the dominant heights in this triangle are occupied by the Russian army. Thus, Ukrainian units are forced to maintain a disadvantageous position in the lowlands. It is also reported that the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine uses barrier detachments to prevent the retreat of assault detachments of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The situation for the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the Rabotino-Verbovoye line is also complicated by problems with the rotation of units, disruption of the supply of ammunition and difficulties with mine clearance. Due to the lack of experienced sappers, the Ukrainian command is trying to remove some of the Russian minefields with its infantry, sent to the minefields without the support of equipment.
Trying to save existing Tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, the Ukrainian command is trying to make maximum use of a significant number of pickup trucks and American HMMWV armored vehicles in this section of the front, which leads to an increase in losses, since such equipment is immediately hit by Russian artillery fire.
The significant number of killed, wounded and captured militants of the Kyiv regime indirectly indicates the high density of Ukrainian troops on this section of the front, which impedes the ability to carry out maneuvers.
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