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☆ Russia is making the use of its glide bombs a priority, and it's causing devastation on the front lines
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-11 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is intensifying glide bomb attacks on Ukrainian defenses. Oleh Synyehubov, governor of the Kharkiv region, said last week that Russia was using glide bombs in attacks on that part of the front line. They said, according to the ISW, that Russia is seeking to mass produce the FAB-1500-M54 guided glide bomb and increase its use on the front line. Konrad Muzyka, director of the Poland-based Rochan defense consultancy, told The Washington Post that Russia was launching up to 100 glide bomb attacks a day. AdvertisementUkraine also has a glide bomb in its arsenal, the US-made JDAM, but reports say that Russian electronic warfare units have been able to intercept the bombs.

Persons: —, Oleh Synyehubov, Synyehubov, Dmytro Lykhovyi, Konrad Muzyka, Muzyka Organizations: Service, FAB, Group of Forces, CNN, Washington Post, New York Times Locations: Russia, Soviet, Russian, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Ukraine, Krasnohorivka, Poland

☆ Is Ukraine's counteroffensive failing? Defense experts say the risks facing Kyiv are growing
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Global Images Ukraine | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesFor Michael Clarke, a defense analyst and former director-general of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think tank, there's a risk that the first phase of the counteroffensive, designed to probe Russia's defenses, takes too long. Global Images Ukraine | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesKonrad Muzyka, a military intelligence specialist and president of Rochan Consulting, said "the weather has always been the factor" for Kyiv. But Kyiv says its forces are conducting counteroffensive actions in at least three areas and are operating against a backdrop of increased Russian offensive operations. Ukraine's defense ministry claims that its forces have liberated around 210 square kilometers (81 square miles) of occupied territory since June. Anatolii Stepanov | Afp | Getty Images

Persons: —, Michael Clarke, Clarke, Konrad Muzyka, Muzyka, Yuriy Sak, Sak, Anatolii Stepanov Organizations: 110th Brigade, Territorial Defense, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Military, Royal United Services Institute, CNBC, Rochan Consulting, Kyiv, Afp Locations: Novodarivka, Luhansk, Ukraine, Kharkiv, Kherson, Ukrainian, Bakhmut, Donetsk, Russian, Russia, Vuhledar, Yuriy, Siversk

☆ How is Ukraine’s counter-offensive going so far?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said Western equipment like battle tanks and armoured vehicles should help protect the lives of Ukrainian soldiers. "Ukraine's got choices," said Ben Barry, senior fellow for land warfare at International Institute for Strategic Studies. Those thrusts may indicate Ukraine's generals have their eye on Tokmak, an occupied town in Zaporizhzia region some 25 km from the front line. Military analysts saw it as unlikely this would become the focus of the main Ukrainian offensive. Images shared by Russian military bloggers showed destroyed or damaged U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and Leopard 2 tanks, headline items of military aid sent by the West for the counteroffensive.

Persons: Rob Lee, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine's, Ben Barry, Lee, Konrad Muzyka, Hanna Maliar, Muzyka, Maliar, Russia's Vladimir Putin, Jack Watling, Tom Balmforth, Mark Trevelyan, Mike Collett, White, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: Western, Foreign Policy Research Institute, Reuters, International Institute for Strategic Studies, Russian, West, Interior Ministry, Deputy, Troops, Military, Bradley, Leopards, Thomson Locations: Kyiv, KYIV, Ukraine, Russia, Crimea, Moscow, Kherson, Kharkiv, Poland, Orikhiv, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Zaporizhzia, Melitopol, Velyka Novosilka, Bakhmut

☆ Analysis: Ukraine counteroffensive takes shape but main test still to come
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Moscow's strategy in the south likely aims to maximise Ukrainian casualties before Kyiv can reach the main Russian line of defences about 10-15 km (6-9 miles) away, according to Lee. The main thrusts have come near the Kyiv-controlled town of Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhia region and Velyka Novosilka in Donetsk region, about 80 km to the east. "My main concern five or six days into this main phase is that the progress appears to have stopped. Military analysts saw it as unlikely this would become the focus of the main Ukrainian offensive. Images shared by Russian military bloggers showed destroyed or damaged U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and Leopard 2 tanks, headline items of military aid sent by the West for the counteroffensive.

☆ Explainer: How important is Wagner's claimed capture of Bakhmut?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-20 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/4] A general view shows a building damaged by a Russian military strike, amid their attack on Ukraine, in the front line city of Bakhmut, in Donetsk region, Ukraine February 27, 2023. REUTERS/Alex... Read moreLONDON, May 20 (Reuters) - Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said on Saturday that his Wagner fighters had completed the capture of the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut after months of intense fighting, a claim denied by Ukraine. Zelenskiy portrayed "Fortress Bakhmut" as a symbol of defiance which he said was bleeding the Russian military dry. If confirmed, Bakhmut would be Russia's first major capture since July last year and a morale-boosting battlefield win after a string of defeats. The city's capture would be a boost for Russia's most high-profile mercenaries - Wagner - and their publicity-hungry founder Prigozhin.

☆ Kyiv denies Wagner Bakhmut claim, Russia says forces advancing
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The claim by Russian entrepreneur Yevgeny Prigozhin that his Wagner mercenary group had seized more than 80% of Bakhmut was untrue, it said. And Russian forces, it said, had struck Ukrainian army reserves trying to break through. Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesperson for Ukraine's eastern military command, dismissed Prigozhin's latest 80% claim in a comment to Reuters. Analyst Konrad Muzyka, director of the Rochan military consultancy in Poland, said his calculations bore out the Russian claim of 80%. Russian forces, it said, had tried unsuccessfully to move on two villages to the northwest.

☆ Explainer: Bakhmut: Why Russia and Ukraine are battling so hard for one small city
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Yet Russia and Ukraine are still battling for the small city of Bakhmut. After nearly eight months of trench warfare Ukrainian forces are surrounded on three sides, Kyiv's supply lines are fraying, and Moscow is in control of just under half of Bakhmut. Volodymr Zelenskiy, Ukraine's president, has portrayed "Fortress Bakhmut" as a symbol of defiance which is bleeding the Russian military dry. It also claims to be decimating Ukrainian forces. A regional transport and logistics hub, Bakhmut would be useful for Russian forces although that depends on how much of its infrastructure is intact.

☆ German green-light for Leopard tanks is 'secondary' issue, Poland says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Poland is pushing for countries who have Leopards to send them to Ukraine, even if Germany does not want to join them. Even if we did not get this approval ... we would still transfer our tanks together with others to Ukraine", Morawiecki told reporters. Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki arrives for a European Union leaders' summit in Brussels, Belgium December 15, 2022. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Sunday that Berlin would not stand in the way if Poland sent its Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. However, a German government spokesperson said on Monday that Berlin had still not received any requests to authorise the re-export of the tanks.

☆ Explainer: How to correctly re-export German tanks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The following explains defence export rules in Germany and other countries and the way such deals have been handled previously:HOW DO GOVERNMENTS CORRECTLY RE-EXPORT GERMAN TANKS? The same goes for cases where the weapons may be used to wage a war of aggression or the re-export approval might violate Germany's obligations under international law. As defence exports are a touchy issue in Germany, foreign countries usually do not directly submit a formal request for re-export to the German authorities. If not, the foreign country abstains from submitting a formal re-export request, and no diplomatic harm is done. GERMANY'S HIGH HURDLES FOR DEFENCE EXPORTSGermany has one of the toughest defence export regimes in the world – largely due to its bloody pre-1945 past.

☆ Analysis: Western military aid girds Kyiv for counterattacks despite tank deadlock
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Tom Balmforth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The latest U.S. aid includes 90 Stryker armoured personnel carriers (APC) and 59 Bradley fighting vehicles with powerful canons - adding to 50 Bradleys pledged earlier this month along with French and German infantry fighting vehicles. A group of nine European states, including Britain and the Baltics promised on Thursday to deliver heavy artillery, air defence, ammunition and infantry fighting vehicles and battle tanks sought by Kyiv. Zagorodnyuk said he believed infantry fighting vehicles were a clear endorsement of Kyiv's counterattack plans, also noting the importance of large donations of ammunition. Berlin said earlier this month that it would send 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles before the end of March; Paris said it would send AMX 10-RC armoured combat vehicles, which are seen as tank destroyers. In an interview with the Economist in December, Ukraine's top general, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said he needed 300 tanks, 600-700 infantry fighting vehicles and 500 howitzers to help his forces push back the invaders.

☆ Ukraine credits local beavers for unwittingly bolstering its defenses — their dams make the ground marshy and impassable
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

This is in part because of beavers building dams, with nobody stopping them due to the war. The animals are unwittingly helping Kyiv by building dams that keep the ground marshy and impassable, a military spokesman told the agency. This helps Ukraine by making it less likely that an attack could come via Belarus, which borders Ukraine not far north of the capital Kyiv. Ukrainian officials had warned that Russia may wage an offensive through its ally Belarus into a region of Ukraine called Volyn. Its spokesman, Serhiy Khominskyi, praised the beavers, which he told Reuters were more working unimpeded, unlike in other years.

☆ Ukrainian swamps make attack from Belarus unlikely - for now
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Max Hunder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Ukrainian officials have warned of a new looming Russian assault, with Belarus to the north named as one possible launchpad, as Moscow seeks to revive its faltering invasion. Russia and its close ally Belarus have beefed up their joint military grouping in Belarus and plan to hold joint aviation drills there from next Monday. Across the border on Thursday, the deputy commander of what Moscow calls its "special military operation" inspected Russian forces in Belarus. Analyst Konrad Muzyka, who runs defence consultancy Rochan Consulting, told Reuters that although a Russian troop build-up could be observed in Belarus, an attack into north-west Ukraine from Belarus would face enormous difficulties. "This makes it easy for Ukrainian forces to channel the movement of Russian forces into specific areas where they would be shelled by artillery."

"If Bakhmut had been captured when they started their attack in August then it would have been significant. Michael Kofman, an expert on the Russian military at the U.S.-based CNA think-tank, said Moscow appeared committed to the battle because of resources it had already spent rather than because of "sound strategy". WAR OF ATTRITIONFor Russia, Bakhmut, which it calls Artyomovsk, the city's Soviet-era name, has long held political value. Muzyka, the Polish military analyst, said Bakhmut had become a battle of attrition. It could also boost Prigozhin's political capital in Moscow if he can take some credit for such a victory.

Sergei Surovikin, nicknamed "General Armageddon" by the Russian media for his reputed ruthlessness, on Nov. 9 recommended Moscow's forces quit Kherson and the west bank of the River Dnipro where they were dangerously exposed. Simonyan urged Surovikin, a hulking shaven-headed figure who has been shown on TV speaking in clipped Russian military language, to ignore "nonsense" from critics, a reference to influential military bloggers unhappy about his retreat. Nor is taking new ground in the east against a highly motivated and Western-equipped Ukrainian military an easy task, especially in the winter. The appointment of Surovikin on Oct. 8 was the first time Russia had publicly named an overall commander for its forces in Ukraine. With the exception of the city of Lysychansk, in eastern Ukraine, he said all the territory Russia held looked defensible.

☆ Analysis: Russia's planned Kherson retreat a double-edged sword for Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

[1/2] Civilians evacuated from the Russian-controlled part of Kherson region of Ukraine arrive at a local railway station in the town of Dzhankoi, Crimea November 10, 2022. If it happens, the planned retreat could make life easier for the Russian army, in some respects, and harder for Ukraine. Both men publicly accepted that Russia's position in Kherson had become untenable. Regardless of any potential military upside, retreat would represent a humiliating defeat for Russia's political and military leadership. Kherson is the first and only regional capital Moscow's forces have captured, at great cost, since their Feb. 24 invasion.

☆ Russia evacuates civilians in Kherson as Putin's military faces Ukrainian advance
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Yuliya-Talmazan-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Yuliya Talmazan | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

The new commander of Russian forces in Ukraine said Tuesday that his troops in the country’s south were facing “a rather difficult” situation after a Ukrainian counteroffensive pushed them back and threatened their supply lines. “Our further plans and actions regarding the city of Kherson itself will depend on the emerging military tactical situation,” Gen. Sergei Surovikin said. “Difficult decisions could not be ruled out,” he added in a rare interview with Russian state television that came not long after he was installed by the Kremlin. Ukraine has been laying the ground for a counteroffensive there for months, striking key bridges and military infrastructure, while also advancing in the east. “The Russian military has been rumored to be pushing for a withdrawal for weeks, with some pushback from the Kremlin, and we may be seeing a reversal of this policy,” he said.

☆ Russia’s evacuation of civilians in southern Ukraine betrays Kremlin concern
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-15 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Yuliya-Talmazan-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Yuliya Talmazan | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

But the Kremlin still doesn’t seem confident that its military can hold back a Ukrainian counteroffensive ahead of winter. The head of the Moscow-appointed regional administration, Vladimir Saldo, without using the word “evacuation,” asked Moscow Thursday to welcome families from the Kherson region that want “to protect themselves” from what he described as constant Ukrainian shelling. The Kremlin promptly agreed to support such efforts, with officials in the southern Russian region of Rostov saying the first arrivals were expected Friday, the state news agency Tass reported. Kyiv has been striking Russian military sites and installations in the region for several months, according to its defense officials, as it prepared for its long-touted counteroffensive there. “If Kherson falls, there will be a moment in which potentially there may be further breakthroughs by Ukraine,” Mevin said.

☆ Can Ukraine Break Through Again?
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Marco Hernandez | Denise Lu | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +7 min

After mostly defending for months, Ukraine is now dictating the war, choosing where it wants to press new offensives. After mostly defending for months, Ukraine is now dictating the war, choosing where it wants to press new offensives. But even if it helps, the “partial mobilization” could take months to change the battlefield, giving Ukraine time to push forward. Now that Ukraine has recaptured Izium, Ukrainian forces are freed up to attack Russian forces to the east. Now that Ukraine has recaptured Izium, Ukrainian forces are freed up to attack Russian forces to the east.

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