According to Ukrainian officials, Russian forces are using a wide range of weapons on various fronts in eastern Ukraine as they try to tear down the tenacious Ukrainian defenses, which are outnumbered and unstoppable.
Several of those officials described the situation as “very difficult” and admitted that Ukrainian units have had to fall back in some places.
In recent days, according to Ukrainian officials, Russians have combined short-range ballistic missiles, multiple missile systems, heavy artillery and tanks in a relentless bombardment of cities in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions that are still under Ukrainian control.
Ukraine’s National Police said civilians were killed in attacks on 13 settlements in Donetsk, which damaged several towns that had not been attacked before. Russian forces appear to be increasing the number of cities they are shelling as they attempt to destroy Ukraine’s defenses and supply lines.
Their main target appears to be taking Sloviansk, which has seen an increase in shelling in recent days. Mayor Vadym Liakh said half the city is now without water and there will be “no gas supply until the heating season”.
A growing number of Ukrainian officials are describing the military situation in dire terms, although Russian progress on the ground is modest.
Fedir Venislavskyi, a member of the Ukrainian parliament and member of the National Security Committee, described the situation as “difficult”.
He told Ukrainian television that “the hottest places are Severodonetsk and Lysychansk. The enemy is trying to surround our troops.”
The twin cities in Luhansk have been almost completely destroyed, but Ukrainian troops are still present. It is estimated that nearly 15,000 civilians are still in Severodonetsk.
According to the latest battlefield assessment from the Institute for the Study of War, “Russian forces may need to conduct a ground offensive on Severodonetsk in the coming days to maintain their pace after destroying a significant portion of personnel, artillery, aviation and military personnel.” logistics to the front.”
Venislavskyi said that if the Russians could break the Ukrainian resistance there, “their next targets will be Bakhmut, Soledar,” cities further west.
In particular, regional officials say the highway between Bakhmut and Lysychansk – a supply route for Ukrainian troops – is under constant attack.
“The enemy has partially controlled Lyman and is moving to the outskirts of Severodonetsk. The situation in this area of operations will be very difficult in the coming days,” he said.
He also suggested that additional Russian troops be deployed, saying that “the enemy continues to build up reserves near Izium to attack Sloviansk and Barvinkove.”
“The enemy is sending units from the Primorsky Krai, the Far East and Siberia to Ukraine. Battalion groups are formed, loaded onto the track and sent to Ukraine,” Venislavskyi said.
Serhiy Haidai, head of Luhansk’s regional military administration, said the “armed forces are now in the fourth month of defense. Our defense positions are being destroyed every day by the enemy.”
“The Luhansk region, the part that is under the control of Ukraine, is very small in terms of territory. Therefore, the Russians will do their best to conquer it. For them, this is the easiest way to get at least an interim victory … Our troops are gradually moving to more fortified positions,” he said.
Haidai is one of several Ukrainian officials who emphasize that the defenses in the east are vastly outnumbered.
“You have to understand that a huge amount of equipment and people are fighting against us,” he said.
“It takes time for” [Western] weapons to reach us. They have to go from the west to the east of Ukraine. One or two howitzers won’t change position; we will just lose them. That’s why we have to wait and regroup,” Haidai said.
He also acknowledged the likelihood that Ukrainian troops would have to fall back.
“We may have to leave two more settlements. But we must win the war, not the battle,” Haidai said.
Rostyslav Smirnov, an adviser to Ukraine’s interior minister, told Ukrainian television that “the advantage of the Russians in [terms of] personnel is eight to one”, and the advantage in equipment more than double.
