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Ukraine has blamed a lack of equipment and tough defenses while some in the West have put the blame on Kyiv's forces. "Everyone is now an expert on how we should fight," Ukraine's defense ministry said on social media Thursday. He wrote that the general is "extremely talented," but "he has never before" coordinated the kind of operations Ukraine is executing now. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe US has reiterated that it will continue to support Ukraine's war effort, even as the counteroffensive is expected to potentially last for at least a couple more months and the conflict possibly for years. In a recent conversation with Insider about Ukrainian operations, Hodges said that the Ukrainians "have recognized that they have to adapt, which is what they're doing."
Persons: Dmytro Kuleba, it's, , Jose Colon, Jack Keane, Keane, Metz, Michael O'Hanlon, George S, O'Hanlon, Hertling, Valery Zaluzhny, Diego Herrera Carcedo, Mick Ryan, Michael Kofman, Franz, Stefan Gady, Ben Hodges, David Petraeus, Mark Milley, Milley, Petraeus, Frederick Kagan, Hodges, Kyiv's, Ryan Organizations: Service, , PKP, Ukrainian Army, Anadolu Agency, Getty, US Army, Institute for, Street, Patton's Third Army, NATO, intel, Army, Foreign Affairs, US Central Command, CNN, Joint Chiefs, Staff, The Washington Post, American Enterprise Institute, Russia, Nazis Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Kyiv, Europe, Chasiv Yar, Russia, Donetsk Oblast, America, Ukrainian, France, Metz, Vietnam, Korea, US Army Europe, Australian, American, Singapore, Japan, United States, Philippines
Drone attacks on airfields in Russia are likely forcing it to reshape its air defense, UK intel said. Airfields and other locations deep within Russian territory have been pummeled in multiple strikes by exploding drone attacks in recent weeks — with one flurry, on the night of August 29, striking five separate locations. In August alone 25 places in Russia came under drone attack, the UK MOD said, even penetrating the defenses around Moscow. "Russia will have to consider the addition of further air defence systems to airfields that it considers to be at risk from UAV attacks," the UK MoD said. Russia has blamed the attacks on Ukraine, which generally doesn't claim responsibility for attacks on Russian soil.
Persons: Insider's Sinéad Baker, recrimination, Baker, Bob Hamilton, Ben Hodges, Insider's Erin Snodgrass Organizations: intel, Service, UK's Ministry of Defence, Center for Strategic, MOD, MoD, US Army, Foreign, Research, Eurasia Program, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Tupolev, Russia Locations: Russia, Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Ukraine, Ukrainian, US Army Europe
Western officials think Ukraine misallocated its counteroffensive resources, The New York Times reported. Defense strategists want Ukraine to focus its efforts on pushing toward the south. But a southern push could result in troop and equipment losses, the outlet reported. Get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in business, from Wall Street to Silicon Valley — delivered daily. But Ben Hodges, a retired lieutenant general and former commander of US Army Europe, cautioned against counting Ukraine out too soon.
Persons: Ben Hodges, Hodges, Mark, Ukraine's Organizations: New York Times, Defense, Service, US Army, Ukrainian, Times, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Crimea materializes Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Russia, Crimea, Bakhmut, Zaporizhzhia, US Army Europe
A drone attack destroyed a Russian bomber at an airbase in the country over the weekend. A Ukrainian news outlet said agents working with Ukrainian intelligence were responsible. The supersonic bomber was likely destroyed in an attack over the weekend, the UK Ministry of Defense said in a Tuesday intelligence update. #BREAKING A flagship Russian long-range bomber has been destroyed in a Ukrainian drone strike. Ukrainian news outlet New Voice of Ukraine reported that agents operating with Ukrainian intelligence were responsible for the attack, claiming two additional aircraft were also destroyed in the strike.
Persons: UH9lym21Bu, Michael Bociurkiw, there's, Simon Miles, Vladimir Putin, Miles, Ben Hodges, Hodges Organizations: Ukraine, Service, UK Ministry of Defense, Tupolev, BBC, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union, Russian, New, US Army, Russia Locations: Russian, Ukrainian, Wall, Silicon, Russia, Ukraine, Soltsky, Novgorod, Tupolev, Soltsy, St Petersburg, The, Soviet, Kyiv, Mariupol
Ukrainian forces destroyed three Russian Ka-52 attack helicopters this week alone. One video circulating around social media shows the moment a helicopter gets shot down. Russian forces have benefitted from its Ka-52s for much of the ongoing Ukrainian counteroffensive, using them to inflict damage on enemy ground forces lacking adequate protection. Ukrainian forces have found success this week in downing the formidable Ka-52, which is Russia calls the "Alligator" and NATO calls the "Hokum-B." A Ukrainian soldier looks at fragments of the Russian Ka-52 helicopter destroyed by the Ukrainian army.
Persons: couldn't, , Ben Hodges, It's, Hodges, Maxym, Russia's, Andriy Yermak, Russia shouldn't Organizations: Service, US Army, NATO, Air Defense Systems, Army, Stingers, RBS, Getty, BBC Russian Service Locations: Wall, Silicon, Russian, Ukraine, Russia, Donetsk, Army Europe, Soviet, Ukrainian, Moscow, Asia
The US is considering providing ATACMS to Ukraine, according to a WSJ report. Kyiv has long sought ballistic missiles, which could strike targets far beyond the front lines. Kyiv has long been asking the US for the Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, which has a range of about 190 miles and could be used to strike Russian targets far beyond the front lines, including Crimea. "ATACMS is a long-range guided missile that gives operational commanders the immediate firepower to win the deep battle," says its manufacturer, Lockheed Martin. The House Foreign Affairs Committee passed a resolution last week calling for ATACMS to be sent to Ukraine immediately.
Persons: Biden, Ben Hodges, Sergei Shoigu, Hodges, Lockheed Martin, Putin, ATACMS, Volodymyr Zelensky, Joe Biden, Brendan Smialowski, Abrams, James Risch Organizations: Kyiv, Washington DC, Service, Wall Street, Army Tactical Missile, Army, Russian, The Telegraph, British Storm Shadow, US High Mobility Artillery, Lockheed, Black, White, Getty, Politico, US, Pentagon, Foreign Affairs, GOP, Reuters Locations: Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, Crimea, Army Europe, Kherson, Kerch, Russia, Ukrainian, Odesa, Sevastopol, Washington , DC, Washington
The US announced a new weapons package that includes cluster munitions for Ukraine on Friday. Cluster munitions are deadly and controversial, but they could boost Ukraine's counteroffensive. The White House and Pentagon announced a new $800 million security assistance package for Ukraine on Friday that, for the first time, includes cluster munitions. Cluster munitions can be dropped from the air or fired as artillery and deal damage over a larger area. Photo by Pierre Crom/Getty ImagesDue to their range and movement, cluster munitions can be unpredictable and hit outside their intended target.
Persons: , Kurt Volker, Federico Borsari, it's, Wojciech Grzedzinski, Ben Hodges, Borsari, hasn't, Pierre Crom, Biden, Jake Sullivan, Sullivan, willy nilly, Colin Kahl, I'm, Kahl Organizations: US, — Kyiv, Service, Pentagon, Ukraine, NATO, Army Tactical Missile Systems, Center for, The Washington, Getty, Army, Kyiv, Munitions, Amnesty, Rights Watch, National Locations: Ukraine, Hai, Lebanon, Russia, Toretsk, Izium
ATACMS and new drones would allow Kyiv hit all Russian positions in Ukraine, a retired US general said. The Biden administration has been reluctant to send longer-range missiles and drones to Ukraine. Retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges told Insider that Washington is likely concerned about Russian escalation. ATACMS in particular could make it easier for Ukraine to target the occupied Crimean peninsula and Russia's Black Sea Fleet. "Because we, the US, have continued to refuse to provide ATACMS, we have, in effect, created a safe haven for the Russians inside Ukraine.
Persons: Biden, Ben Hodges, , it's, Hodges, Serhii Mykhalchuk, Pat Ryder, Mark Milley, ATACMS, they've, Abrams, Vladimir Putin Organizations: Service, Army Tactical Missile, US Army, Army, Getty, Street, Pentagon Press, Air Force, Joint Chiefs, Staff, Artillery, Shadow, AP, NATO, Kyiv Locations: Ukraine, US, Washington, Moscow, Russian, Army Europe, Kyiv, ATACMS, Crimean, Ukrainian, Odesa, Sevastopol, Donetsk Oblast, Zaporizhzhia region, Russia
But military experts told Insider it's much too early to draw any conclusions about the fight. Experts at the time told Insider that a Ukrainian victory was paramount to ongoing international aid and could even redirect the trajectory of the 16-month war. But military strategists told Insider that it's "way too early" for people to be drawing conclusions about the success of Ukraine's fight. The Ukrainians have taken a broad front approach, scanning the front lines to try and find a penetrable place to break through the Russians' defenses, he told Insider. Ukrainian military conducts training on Leopard 2 tanks at the test site on May 14, 2023 in Ukraine.
Persons: It's, , Ben Hodges, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine's, Hodges, Mick Ryan, Ryan, Serhii Mykhalchuk, Russia stokes, Bradley, that's, Putin Organizations: Service, US Army, Australian Army, Group, Ukraine, New York Times, stoke, Ukraine doesn't Locations: Russia, Ukraine, US Army Europe, Ukrainian, Russian, Europe
Russia's soldiers may lose motivation in Ukraine if Wagner mutiny progresses, former US general says. "No soldier wants to die in a war that he thinks might already be lost," Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges told Insider. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin appears to be leading his fighters to Moscow in a move some are describing as a coup. "If the High Command appears to waver or be vulnerable, they will question their own motivation and survival and sense of purpose for the war," Hodges said. Putin described the Wagner uprising as a "stab in the back" and said Russian forces would fight back against the mercenary group.
Persons: Wagner, Ben Hodges, Yevgeny Prigozhin, , Hodges, Prigozhin, it's, Putin, it'll Organizations: Service, Ukrainians, Command Locations: Ukraine, Moscow, American, Rostov, Southern Russia, Russian, Russia
Retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges told Newsweek that Ukraine could retake Crimea before the summer ends. Hodges believes recapturing Crimea would be essential for Ukraine to rebuild its economy. "My principal caveat still remains that if the United States were to provide what Ukraine needs, then Ukraine could actually still liberate Crimea by the end of this summer," retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges told Newsweek on Wednesday. The Biden administration has held back from sending long-range weapons to Ukraine that have the capacity to strike targets in Russia. US officials told Ukraine in February that they weren't able to send over the ATACMS due to insufficient supply, per Politico.
Persons: Ben Hodges, Hodges, , Pat Ryder, Biden, Vladimir Putin Organizations: Newsweek, Service, US Army, State Department, Pentagon, Tactical Missiles Systems, Ukraine Locations: Ukraine, Crimea, United States, Russia, Sevastopol, Saki, Russian, St . Petersburg, Belarus, Poland, Russians, Mykolaiv, Europe
So far done this without using a ton of NATO weapons. One Ukrainian General Staff member even compared it to a game of chess, where you're trying to lure out the enemy and their reinforcements. So why is Kyiv going easy on the NATO weapons and not fully flexing their military muscle? So, it looks like the Ukrainian General Staff is taking it slow, launching attacks with relatively small units and limited gear. Two of these U.S. aircraft already made a cameo in a video produced by the Ukrainian forces for their offensive.
Persons: it's, , they've, George Barros, Ben Hodges, Nobody's, Stryker, Marder, They're, Stefan Korshak, Andrij Sybiha, General Hodges, Nobody Organizations: Service, NATO, Institute for, Ukrainian, Staff, Centre for, British Challenger, U.S, Stryker, Presidential Administration, Washington Locations: Ukraine, Russia, U.S, Europe, Sweden, Zaporizhzhia, Lyssychansk, Russian, Kharkiv, Ukrainian
Ukrainian counteroffensive operations are happening at various points along the front lines with mixed results. But the main attack likely hasn't started yet as each side tries to outfox the other, experts say. Both sides look to be playing a deadly "game" aimed at getting a read on the threat, as well as misleading and misdirecting the enemy, and the main attack is likely still to come, experts say. "We haven't committed our main forces," a source in Ukraine's General Staff told The Economist Sunday, adding that "the Russians haven't committed their main forces." "The offensive has clearly started," he observed, "but not I think the main attack."
Persons: , GENYA SAVILOV, George Barros, Barros, haven't, ISW, Serhii, Ben Hodges, Hodges Organizations: Service, Bradley, Getty, Institute, Ukraine's General Staff, US Army, US Army Europe, Sunday Center for, Ukrainian, Staff Locations: Ukraine, Ukrainian, Donetsk, AFP
It does not provide similar detail about fighting on the southern front where the main counteroffensive is expected. However, some prominent Russian military bloggers indicated that Ukrainian forces had taken Blahodatne and Neskuchne, although they said fighting for Makarivka was continuing. It is almost certainly far too early to draw conclusions about the fate of the counteroffensive from early skirmishes that may be more about testing Russian defences than pursuing a major advance. "When we see large, armoured formations join the assault, then I think we’ll know the main attack has really begun." But Yevgeny Prigozhin, the increasing recalcitrant and voluble leader of the Wagner militia, which captured Bakhmut from Ukrainian forces after almost a year of attritional fighting, said on Sunday he would refuse to sign.
Persons: Read, Makarivka, Ben Hodges, Vladimir Putin's, Ramzan Kadyrov, Akhmat, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Bakhmut, Sergei Shoigu, Pavel Polityuk, Tom Balmforth, Anna Pruchnicka, Lidia Kelly, Kevin Liffey, Peter Graff Organizations: Ukrainian, Reuters, Brigade, Marines, Washington -, Defence Ministry, Thomson Locations: Ukrainian, Donetsk Region, Ukraine, KYIV, Kyiv, Storozheve, Azov, Crimea, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Bilohorivka, Moscow, U.S, Europe, Washington, Russia, Chechnya, Caucasus, Maryinka, Gdansk, Melbourne
Yevgeny Prigozhin and Russia's military brass have been locked in a public feud for monthsMeanwhile, Prigozhin's Wagner Group troops have sustained significant losses in Bakhmut. For months, Wagner troops have borne the brunt of the attritional fighting in Bakhmut as the frontlines grinded to a brutal stalemate. The White House in February said Wagner troops had suffered 30,000 casualties since the war began in February 2022. A mural depicting mercenaries of Russia's Wagner Group that reads: "Wagner Group - Russian knights." "I think they probably hate [Prigozhin] because he's such a loud mouth," Hodges said of Russia's defense leaders.
But a former Army general told Insider that too much Western pressure could tank the attack. "I would reject the talk that Ukraine's only got one shot," said Ben Hodges, a retired Army general. But global expectations of a triumph could torpedo the offensive before it even begins, a former Army general told Insider. While the exact timing of Ukraine's much-anticipated counteroffensive is still unknown, military experts told Insider earlier this month that the assault could start as soon as the coming weeks. But framing this offensive as make-or-break for Ukraine sets a dangerous precedent, said Ben Hodges, a retired lieutenant general and former commander of US Army Europe.
Ukraine's anticipated counter-offensive will be like a "big bang," a military expert told The Sun. A 'concentrated' attack is needed to disrupt the stalemated war, Ben Barry said. "We're looking at a 'big bang' concentrated attack, rather than dribbling it away in penny packets," he said of Ukraine's planned counter-offensive. "Ukraine could kill every Russian soldier within 200 miles of Bakhmut, and it wouldn't change the strategic situation," Hodges told The Sun. "Ukraine knows that it will never be safe without taking back Crimea," Hodges told the news outlet.
The Russian Defence Ministry did not respond to a request for comment on Shoigu or its own performance in Ukraine. Appointed defence minister in 2012, he is part of Putin's inner circle and has enjoyed hunting and fishing holidays with him in his native Siberia. The Russian army has been learning from its mistakes and successfully adapting, the source said. There's no escaping the poor performance of the Russian military". It was "inconceivable", said Jones, that a Western defence minister could have kept his job in such circumstances.
CIA chief William Burns said the Ukraine war is entering a "critical" phase in the next six months. Burns said it will be crucial for Ukraine to puncture "Putin's hubris" on the battlefield. Burns' assessment echoed comments from NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg in mid-January, when he said the war was entering a "decisive phase." Russia invaded Ukraine and illegally annexed Crimea in 2014, prompting outcry across the world. "The next few months will see Ukraine setting the conditions for the eventual liberation of Crimea," he added.
The US' latest $2.2 billion aid package to Ukraine includes a new long-range weapon system. The Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bomb (GLSDB) has a 94-mile range that'll prove crucial for Ukraine's efforts in Crimea. The ground launch version, which is included in the Ukraine aid package, will take months to develop, according to Politico. The US aid package notably does not include US-made Army Tactical Missiles Systems (ATACMS), which Ukraine asked for in May 2022. As of November 2022, the US has sent Ukraine $19 billion in aid since the war's outbreak.
The US has pledged to send Abrams tanks to Ukraine, joining a bevy of Western-made tanks. Here comes the M1 Abrams for UkraineA M1A2 Abrams tank fires at a target during an exercise. The same day, word spread that US President Joe Biden would announce he was sending 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. But Hertling disagreed that withholding the M1 Abrams was a "political decision" and didn't find the examples of non-US Abrams operators persuasive. M1 Abrams: training and sustainmentAn M1A2 Abrams drives into the woods during an exercise in Hohenfels, Germany.
Crimea is poised to be the next big battlefield, and one that could decide the Ukraine war. "The decisive terrain for this war is Crimea," Ben Hodges, a former commander of US Army Europe, told Insider. Ukraine will "never be safe or secure" if Russia retains control of Crimea, Hodges siad. The fight to retake Crimea could be extremely bloody, in a war that's already led to massive casualties for both sides. President of UkraineUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pledged to expel Russian forces out of all occupied territory, including Crimea.
"This was not Ukraine’s fault," alliance chief Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference, adding that "Russia bears ultimate responsibility, as it continues its illegal war against Ukraine." He said that "our main priority now, or one of the top priorities now, is to provide more air defense systems for Ukraine." Moscow’s forces have increasingly assaulted civilian targets from the air while digging in behind new lines after a series of battlefield retreats. “In all this frenzy over what happened we forget that 90 missiles were launched across Ukraine yesterday,” he said, referring to the attack that prompted Ukraine to fire the defensive missile in the first place. “This just shows the recklessness of Russia engaging targets that close to the Polish border.
Poland is a NATO member, and there's rampant speculation about the implications of this incident. The reported strike could pose a major test to Biden's vow to defend "every inch" of NATO territory. Biden's vow could be facing its biggest test yet following fatal strike in Poland, a NATO ally, that the Polish foreign ministry said involved a "Russian-made missile." "When it comes to our security commitments and Article 5 we've been crystal clear that we will defend every inch of NATO territory," Pentagon spokesperson Brig. To fire missiles at NATO territory!
"Whatever (the Ukrainians) do, it will be carefully planned, kept secret and will likely be extremely well executed," Ingram added. Some residents in Kherson, meanwhile, are concerned about the risk of Russian shelling of the city once its forces regroup further east. "This Kherson fire support base becomes the anchor to support further manoeuvre by the left flank as it fights its way ... towards Mariupol, Berdyansk, and Melitopol." White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters on Friday that the United States would continue to support Ukraine militarily "to put Ukraine in the best possible position on the battlefield" and would not seek to tell it what to do. They still control large parts of Ukraine ... What we should do is strengthen Ukraine's hand," Stoltenberg added.
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