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| Photo: Anatolii Stepanov/AFP/Getty Images |
Moscow could rush in ill-prepared troops now, or wait to send better-trained ones next year and risk further Ukrainian gains meanwhile
Russia’s defense minister said 200,000 men had entered the army as part of a mobilization drive that began last month as the rapid advance of Ukrainian forces into Russian-occupied territories outpaces Moscow’s ability to pour in reinforcements.
The suggestion that Russia is already two-thirds of the way toward the target the minister, Sergei Shoigu, announced last month follows criticism of the call-up process—including from Russian President Vladimir Putin. But it raises questions as to whether the depleted Russian military will be able to cope with the sheer numbers of new recruits and use them effectively.
Western military analysts say Moscow faces a dilemma. It could rush ill-prepared troops to the front line to try to stem the losses—with likely little effect on the war’s momentum. Or it could wait until next year and send in better trained and equipped troops that could potentially make a difference on the battlefield. But by that time, Ukrainian forces could have secured significant further gains.
“It’s not going to help the Russians, at least not this winter, and they may well lose ground before that,” said Lawrence Freedman, professor emeritus of war studies at Kings College London.
Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said in an interview that Russia had mobilized 200,000 people so far. “Some of them are already on the front, some have already been captured and some have already been destroyed,” he said.
“Mobilized people are already being sent to the front before being outfitted,” he said.
Henry Boyd, a research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, said rushing poorly motivated, trained and equipped forces into combat “is about the worst of all possible worlds.” --->READ MORE HERE
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| VASILIY ZHLOBSKY/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock |
Ukrainian forces continued to pressure Russia with counterattacks on two fronts Tuesday, in defiance of Russia’s claimed annexation of a fifth of the country.
Kyiv reported more gains in the southern province of Kherson, liberating more villages in the northern part of the province in what appeared to be a concerted move southward.
The villages of Mala Oleksandrivka and Davydiv Brid were retaken Tuesday, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, along with several unidentified villages recaptured by Ukrainian special forces detachments, the outlet Ukrinform reported.
The victories came a day after Ukrainian forces liberated several villages on the west bank of the Dnieper River, in what appeared to be a coordinated move southward by Kyiv’s forces.
“The Ukrainian marines are confidently advancing towards the Black Sea,” the ministry of defense said in a post on the Telegram messaging app. --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:
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