Fierce fighting across the Donbas and southern Ukraine continues where the Ukrainian military is trying to breach the extensive Russian defensive line.
At the same time, however, the Ukrainian forces are using long-range strikes to weaken the Russian supply lines, hoping that the defense will crumple without logistics.
Ukrainian Long-Range Strikes
The Ukrainian military continues its long-range strikes behind the frontlines.
Ukrainian forces have been using a variety of long-range fires systems, including the fearsome M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS), and Storm Shadow cruise missiles, to take out Russian logistical nodes, command and control centers, and troop concentrations deep behind the front.
One of the targets the Ukrainian military struck was the Chonhar road bridges connecting the Crimean Peninsula and Kherson Oblast. The two bridges are one of the two main road supply roads that lead to Crimea from southern Ukraine. They are also the most direct escape route for Russian forces fighting in the south.
“The temporary closure of the route caused vital Russian logistics convoys to take at least 50% longer to reach the front via alternative routes,” the British Military Intelligence assessed in a recent update on the conflict.
The Russian military is trying to maintain traffic of supplies and troops by constructing pontoon bridges in places where regular structures have been destroyed by Ukrainian long-range munitions.
“The speed with which an alternate crossing was constructed indicates how vital this route is to the Russian military efforts in occupied Ukraine,” the British Military Intelligence added.
The British Storm Shadow cruise missile has allowed the Ukrainian military to reach targets up to 200 miles away, reshaping the battlefield. The Ukrainians have fired around 40 Storm Shadow munitions thus far at targets in Crimea and along the coast of the Sea of Azov. The Ukrainians usually fire Storm Shadow munitions in pairs to ensure the destruction of the intended target. But larger, and more significant targets, could merit more munitions.
Russian Casualties
Meanwhile, on day 492 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian military continues to suffer significant casualties, with a daily average of around 600 losses.
Although the Russian forces are holding on for the time being, their defensive effort comes at a great cost. Since the start of the Ukrainian counteroffensive almost a month ago, the Russian forces have lost approximately 16,000 troops killed, wounded, and captured. Whether the Russian Ministry of Defense will manage to maintain its defensive posture with this high number of losses remains to be seen in the following weeks and months.
Overall, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense claimed that as of Friday, Ukrainian forces have killed and wounded approximately 228,340 Russian troops.
Equipment destroyed includes: 322 fighter, attack, bomber, and transport jets, 308 attack and transport helicopters, 4,041 tanks, 4,127 artillery pieces, 7,863 armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles, 630 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), 18 boats and cutters, 6,785 vehicles and fuel tanks, 389 anti-aircraft batteries, 3,519 tactical unmanned aerial systems, 569 special equipment platforms, such as bridging vehicles, and four mobile Iskander ballistic missile systems, and 1,261 cruise missiles shot down by the Ukrainian air defenses.
A 19FortyFive Defense and National Security Columnist, Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations, a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ), and a Johns Hopkins University graduate. His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.
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