As Ukraine’s Counteroffensive Gains Momentum, Russia Is Deploying Some Of Its Last Good Reserves

Forbes ^ | 27th August 2023 | David Axe

[Cronos]

The Kremlin is rushing reinforcements to southern Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Oblast. It’s a desperate bid to prevent a major Ukrainian breakthrough along a critical axis.

The reinforcements are from the 76th Guards Air Assault Division, which is “arguably Russia’s best division and is relatively fresh,” according to Rob Lee, an analyst with the Foreign Policy Research Institute in Philadelphia. The division most recently went on the attack early this year around Kreminna, where the Russians still are sustaining a limited offensive.

That the Russians are redeploying the 76th GAAD speaks to the growing momentum of the Ukrainians’ 2023 counteroffensive, which kicked off with simultaneous armored assaults along several axes in southern and eastern Ukraine.

In just the last couple of weeks, the Ukrainian army and independent air-assault force have liberated Robotyne in Zaporizhzhia, while the Ukrainian marine corps has ejected Russian troops from Urozhaine, 60 miles east of Robotyne in the Mokri Yaly River Valley.

The twin Ukrainian victories bring Kyiv’s forces a few miles closer to their two main objectives in southern Ukraine.

...“According to Russian military doctrine, at least on paper, 76th Division is a part of their strategic reserves, underscoring the seriousness of the move,”

...The implication is obvious. If the Ukrainians can maintain their momentum in the south, they might force the Russians to make a hard choice: to hold in the south or hold in the east. They probably wouldn’t be able to do both.

[blitz128]

You win that bet, however I will state again “propaganda” is a term used as poorly as racist, or Nazi. Any information by one side or the other is called propaganda to delegitimize it.

I am not in Russia and I don’t know anyone in Russia, are the attacks last night and destroyed equipment and infrastructure “propaganda”

Did your sources have direct knowledge and observation of events they reported or was it second or third hand or better yet the “official government report “

To say that the 76th has only suffered 10% losses stresses credibility

But you have “sources” so it must be true

[NorseViking]

I don’t say that 76th lost 10%. I say that the first assault team lost less than 10%.

[blitz128]

You said this
I can tell with certainty that the group that participated in the initial assault on Hostomel airport has suffered less than 10% casualties. And I am not talking about the original assault, I mean by this day

So what group or part of the 76th are you talking about, and if I understand this group still only has less than 10%. Casualties?

Perhaps but I doubt it, not after recent events, we will see

[NorseViking]

VDV is not limited to 76th. It was 45th separate guard’s brigade in Gostomel.
What recent events are you talking about?

[blitz128]

76th sent to reinforce Robotyne

[NorseViking]

Rabotino is largely a turkey shot. That’s NATO doctrines on full display or correctly speaking the stuff plagiarized from what the Germans made up about themselves post WWII. It didn’t work for the Germans, and didn’t work for NATO, unless in Desert Storm.
Ukrainians essentially lost 16 brigades over a cowtown they still failed to take.
They are now resorting to bypassing in on foot over lowland to make illusion of the advance.

[blitz128]

If the Ukrainians lost 16 brigades and are still advancing, then not sure what that says about Russian defenses, but we will see.

An army winning shouldn’t need another 500k soldiers

Certainly not the second largest military….

We will see

[central_va]

Ukraine has announced that they’re accepting foreign volunteers to help fight off a massive Russian invasion force closing with their capital city of Kyiv. Foreign volunteer fighters will have to meet a few basic requirements and will need to travel to Ukraine in an organized manner.

What Foreign Volunteers Need To Know To Fight For Ukraine

[bert]

It was reported yesterday that disgusted with Russian actions in contested territory, Japan has begun sending lots of money to Ukraine. It was also noted that there are Japanese mercenaries currently engaged in battles with the Russians in Ukraine

[blitz128]

Additionally the losses in equipment don’t quite mesh with your assertion

Western support historically can be finicky, but as it stands the US along can supply the Ukrainians with plenty of hardware. Throwing VDV into the fight as basic light infantry is not a good use of those troops and I think smacks of a level of desperation you don’t see.

Let’s say the war ends more or less with existing lines, what has Russia gained for all the blood and treasure.

We know what Ukraine has, but the reasons a vastly different.

Putin was trying to reinsert Russian power and its “rightful “ place as a power broker. Has he achieved that? My opinion is no not by a long shot

[NorseViking]

What is wrong with the losses of the equipment? Ukraine lost countless number of armor on “counter-offensive”. As for VDV how do you know what numbers and in what capacity are involved?
Regarding more troops, how many the US mobilized to lose in Afghanistan which was not even a war to speak of?
If you had any military experience, you wouldn’t repeat these stupid narratives after the media.

[blitz128]

First I have almost 40 years military service including gulf 1-2 iraq and Afghanistan so take your assumptions spoken as fact and …..

As to losses I am speculating, you on the other hand seem to know both Ukrainian and Russian losses, that is quite an accomplishment

As to knowledge 0 Americans were “mobilized “ we are a voluntary service, and “war” whoa that kind of talk will get you sent to a gulag or the front line don’t you know it is a SMO

Then there is losses, America lost under 2500 service members in 20 years in our “SMO”, well there’s that

[NorseViking]

If you have experience then you are intellectually dishonest or trolling.

I don’t know exact figures for Russian and Ukrainian losses but it is not hard to guess that Ukrainian is ten to twenty times higher.

And the Americans were mobilized for Afghanistan, don’t tell me that the reserved weren’t called.

Regarding losses in Afghanistan, imagine if they had a million strong regular army combined with the Air Force and advanced air defenses. You comparison is way off.

[Kazan]

Ukraine's Western Sponsors Running Out of Ammo & Out of Time

Aug 31, 2023<

Update on the conflict in Ukraine for August 31, 2023:

- The Western media is trying to spin Ukrainian gains within the security or “gray zone” ahead of Russia’s first of several defense lines as a “turning point” in the offensive;

- Ukraine’s offensive potential has been exhausted with the West struggling to find arms and ammunition to replace Ukrainian losses;

- The West is even struggling to pull together large numbers of antiquated and inappropriate equipment like the post-WW2 Leopard 1 tank;

- Meanwhile Ukraine continues conducting drone strikes in Russia, achieving questionable PR value and little else;

- A recent Ukrainian drone strike on an airport hosting Il-76 strategic airlift aircraft damaged 2. To put that in context, Russia operates over 100 of these aircraft and has production capacity to build up to 12 annually;

- Ukraine’s sponsors are unable to sustain the conflict “for as long as it takes,” and only for as long as they have arms and ammunition to supply Ukraine in sufficient quantities;

[blitz128]

Your comments are disingenuous

You do t know the figures either, but “it is not hard to guess that they are ten to twenty times higher”??? really

If that wer the case they would have none and Russia would be rolling over Ukraine like they originally planned

Activated to active duty is not mobilizing, as in taking civilian fill off the street and sending to Afghanistan or o. This case Ukraine

Did Afghanistan have airpower and million men when Russia er ah Soviet Union lost 15k+ in ten years

That is an apples to apple comparison 2500 in 20 tears and 15,000 in ten

As to comparing to Ukraine, on paper Russia should have air superiority and Ukraine Air Force gone and they don’t and it is not

And lose the “if” my service is fact as well as my deployments and duty

Yours?????

[NorseViking]

I am sorry for being blunt, but this comment betrays your utter ignorance. Which is not a surprise given that we heard the similar ignorant statements of the top brass like Hodges or Petraeus who know nothing about war as well.

Regarding rolling Ukraine over, what was the loss ration between sides in Vietnam, and how do you know what Russian objectives are? From Russian POV, it is a liberation war, hence the effort to have it territorially limited and minimize collateral damage as much as possible.

Regarding activated to active duty, what do you think was taking place in Russia? “Mobilization” was exactly calling reserves to active duty.

Regarding Soviet-Afghan war you are once again showing utter ignorance. The insurgency was specifically incited by the US at the time and supported to enormous degree. Not only it was particularly massive, so was the level of the Soviet control and the country was mostly safe not counting areas bordering Pakistan. If anything Russia was on your side during your time, the insurgency was minimal and had no reasonable external support, and you still had zero control hiding behind the wire most of the time surrounded by hordes contractors whose lives didn’t count. Not to mention the epic exit from A-stan, it was truly amusing.

And regarding air superiority, you are once again showing your utter ignorance. Take some book and learn what the term is and then tell me who has it over Ukraine if not Russia.

And I had plenty of deployments to judge and speak all of the above, and I certainly didn’t shake behind the wire while at it.

[lodi90]

Regarding activated to active duty, what do you think was taking place in Russia? “Mobilization” was exactly calling reserves to active duty.

---

The US has 5000 Abrams tanks. How many have been given to Ukraine? Potemkin Russia has no hope of every matching the firepower of Ukraine’s friends and allies. Russians need to understand this point clearly. They’ve lost.

The cream of Russia’s military has been smashed to little pieces in Ukraine. Its remnants dig like scared rabbits into stolen Ukrainian land while leaving vast areas of newly annexed “Russia” still under Ukrainian control. How much more weak and pathetic can Russia be? Actually, Prigozhin and his “coup” showed us that. LOL.

[NorseViking]

You can reply this propaganda all day long. Give all 5,000 to Ukraine and there will be none, they already lost a couple thousand. And as you can see it makes no difference what type of tank is on the ground. Western tanks are as susceptible to mines, heavy artillery and air power.

[blitz128]

Respectfully disagree , what Russia is doing is taking civilians and basically drafting, and what they call mobilization is taking citizens who have served mainly for their mandatory time and bringing them back on active duty

Reservists in the US are already serving, and activated to full time status

There is a huge difference

The rest I completely agree with

[blitz128]

Couple of thousand like the 400 aircraft lost which is over twice what they ever had, and as best as I can (storm shadow time) they still have aircraft flying. I notice Russia is down a few transports, must be smoking accidents. At least that is what RT says wearing their cccp jump suits

Got to get a new line boys