Ukrainian Defenders Hold On In Bakhmut, Putin’s Mobilization Fails; Russia Lacks Troops, Firepower to Take Much Ground in Ukraine This Year; UKR’s Military Repels 100+ RU Attacks Over Past 24 hrs; Russia May Switch to Defense Due to Lack of Resources, LIVE UPDATES and MORE

By admin On Mar 10, 2023

Ukrainian defenders hold on in Bakhmut, Putin’s mobilization fails:

Ukraine’s struggle to hold Bakhmut has become strategically important because of the composition of Russian forces stationed in the area, the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War or ISW said on March 6.

This battle could completely deplete the best forces of Russia’s Wagner mercenary company and inflict losses on other elite units, depriving Russia of some of its most effective strike forces, ISW analysts said.

Statements by a number of Ukrainian officials about their intention to continue defending Bakhmut are likely at least partly in response to ongoing concerns expressed by some U.S. officials about the cost to Ukraine of continuing to defend Bakhmut, ISW analysts said, commenting on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s latest statements.

The Ukrainian leader on March 6 said he had ordered reinforcements to be sent to Bakhmut and there was unanimity of opinion with Ukrainian Generals Valerii Zaluzhnyi and Oleksandr Syrskyi on the need to continue the defense of the Donbas town.

Advisor to the President’s Office Mykhailo Podolyak also said on March 6 that the Ukrainian defense of Bakhmut had “achieved its goals” and was a significant strategic success.

ISW experts note that the town is not inherently significant from an operational or strategic point of view, but the capture of Bakhmut is a necessary (though not sufficient) condition for Russia’s further advance in Donetsk Oblast.

However, Russian forces have already suffered such heavy losses in the battle for the settlement that their offensive is likely to culminate after they capture it — if not before, ISW said.

Thus, even the loss of Bakhmut should not pose a serious operational or strategic problem for Ukraine, as previously confirmed by U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

Still, the fight for Bakhmut has become strategically important for Ukraine because of the current composition of Russian forces stationed in the area. Some Western reports have recently suggested that the Ukrainian army is expending manpower and ammunition mainly on Wagner PMC recruits — former prisoners who are common cannon fodder — making such losses unprofitable for Ukraine even if the ratio of Russian to Ukrainian casualties is high.—>READ MORE HERE

NY POST: Russia lacks troops, firepower to take much ground in Ukraine this year: US intelligence chief

Russia’s military lacks the ammunition and manpower to take any significant territory from Ukrainian forces this year — turning the year-old war into a “grinding, attritional” slog, White House Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a Senate panel Wednesday.

“Even as the Russian offensive continues, they are experiencing high casualty rates,” Haines told the Senate Intelligence Committee. “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin is likely better understanding the limits of what his military is capable of achieving and appears to be focused on more limited military objectives for now.”

Haines added that Moscow’s forces are also beset by dysfunctional leadership and low morale — even as they appear on the verge of taking the city of Bakhmut in the eastern Donbas region.

Hours after NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters in Stockholm that Bakhmut may fall “in the coming days,” Haines told lawmakers that Russian forces were making “incremental progress” in the city, which she added was not a “particularly strategic objective.” —>READ MORE HERE

Follow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:

+++++Russia-Ukraine News LATEST UPDATES: (REUTERS) (AP) (NY POST) and (WSJ)+++++

+++++General Staff: Ukraine’s military repels over 100 Russian attacks over past 24 hours+++++

++++++US intelligence chief: Russia may switch to defense due to lack of resources++++

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