The Ukraine War Is a Massive Artillery Battle – The Ukrainian military is attacking several parts of the contact line in an attempt to breach the Russian fortifications and push the Russian forces back.
After weeks of intense fighting, the Ukrainian military has had little success but continues nevertheless to attack in the hopes of achieving an operational breakthrough that would shorten the war.
Meanwhile, on the ground, artillery remains the single most important weapon that the two militaries have.
An Artillery Duel Like No Other in Ukraine
The intense artillery battle between the two sides continues with no respite. The Ukrainian military is prioritizing the destruction of Russian artillery guns, multiple-launch rocket systems, and counter-battery radars. By doing so, the Ukrainians seek to gain a fires superiority over the battlefield that they can then slowly turn into an advantage and facilitate an operational breakthrough.
The Ukrainian military is currently firing around 8,000 artillery rounds every day, according to U.S. officials. Although these munitions are conventional 155mm shells, the Ukrainians are also firing cluster munitions that the United States delivered recently. These special munitions disperse dozens of small bomblets in an area and are designed to take out infantry and heavy weapons formations.
The artillery duel has been going on for weeks now. After suffering serious setbacks in the initial days of the counteroffensive, the Ukrainians changed their tactics, and instead of sending masses of troops against the extensive Russian defensive lines, they started taking out the Russian artillery pieces that protected them. Since the Ukrainian military launched its counteroffensive in early June, Kyiv claims to have destroyed more than 1,000 artillery pieces and multiple launch rocket systems.
Besides the operational interest, there is a strategic dimension in the use of artillery. The U.S. military, NATO, and China are paying close attention to how both sides use artillery in the fighting and its impact on the modern battlefield.
In many ways, the war in Ukraine is a testbed for new weapon systems and tactics. It is, after all, the first major modern conventional conflict and the largest war on European soil since the end of World War Two in 1945.
Russian Casualties in Ukraine
Meanwhile, on day 526 of the Russian invasion, the Russian military continues to take a steady number of losses. Over the past 24 hours, the Russian forces lost approximately 500 men killed, wounded, and captured, as well as dozens of heavy weapon systems.
Overall, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense claimed that as of Wednesday, Ukrainian forces have killed and wounded approximately 247,230 Russian troops, destroyed 322 fighter, attack, bomber, and transport jets, 311 attack and transport helicopters, 4,217 tanks, 4,866 artillery pieces, 8,213 armored personnel carriers, and infantry fighting vehicles, 700 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), 18 boats and cutters, 7,349 vehicles, and fuel tanks, 463 anti-aircraft batteries, 4,042 tactical unmanned aerial systems, 718 special equipment platforms, such as bridging vehicles, and four mobile Iskander ballistic missile systems, and 1,347 cruise missiles shot down by the Ukrainian air defenses.
The Ukrainian forces are losing men too, but not at the same rate as the Russians.
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.
From 19FortyFive
