[Zhang Fei]

[Given that (IMHO) Russian military tactics really rely deeply on the leadership to make things happen, is it possible that the Uke snipers know this, believing that no one at a lower rank will take charge of a battle?]

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Any time a leader gets hit, you get jockeying for position and promotions and some confusion, which is why you target them. The fact that these general officers are getting within sniper range is not a good sign for Russian forces. My guess is there’s a fair amount of reluctance re this operation among the rank and file.

The Russians fought the Germans like men possessed because the alternative was literal extinction, given that the Germans had plans to kill every last Russian and repopulate the territory with Germans. The invasion of Ukraine is more like WWI in one respect - it seems like the Tsar’s vanity project. While casualties are a fraction of WWI, the Russian grunt has many alternatives.

[bert]

From what I have seen, the troops are deployed linearly.

That is, the Russians have literally miles of exposed flanks.