According to a notorious Kremlin mouthpiece, Russia is putting together new battalions with dangerous Chechen soldiers to try and launch a new offensive against Ukraine.
German Sadulaev, a well-known propagandist and Russian-Chechen novelist, made the audacious assertion on his Telegram channel, claiming that four new heavily equipped battalions will be established to start offensives against Ukraine.
However, recent reports that Vladimir Putin’s forces are being “hollowed out” by the magnitude of the losses they are incurring in the Donbas and generally make such boasts of fearsome new military divisions in the Russian army ring hollow.
According to British military leaders, the Russian army’s massive expenditure of people and equipment in capturing Severodonetsk last week only resulted in “tactical achievements.”
The Ministry of Defence released its most recent intelligence report on Tuesday, stating that “The Russian armed forces are progressively hollowed out.”
They now tolerate a level of diminished fighting effectiveness, which is likely not long-term viable.
According to generous estimates by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, 1,573 Russian tanks, 3,726 armored personnel carriers, roughly a thousand artillery pieces, MLRS (multiple launch rocket systems), and 35,600 servicemen have been killed thus far.
The “tactical success” of conquering Severodonetsk required the combined efforts of the core components of six distinct armies, a cost the MoD claims was not worthwhile.
However, despite such realistic appraisals of Russian military prowess, Kremlin propagandists continue to conceive up new formations in an attempt to change the tide against their obstinate Ukrainian adversaries.
The new Chechen battalions are reportedly equipped with tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers, artillery, and mortars, according to the staff of the [Russian] Ministry of Defence.
“In the first line, you’ll find everything you need for an energetic offensive.”
According to Sadulaev, Chechnya is forming this new “Akhamt” regiment, which will be under the command of the Russian Ministry of Defense rather than the less heavily armed Russian Guard, as personally announced by Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov.
Previous Chechen regiments were charged with reclaiming seized areas because they only had access to light weapons on the battlefield.
They couldn’t attack first since their job was to clean up the Ukraine’s already-liberated areas, the Russian propagandist wrote. If they were employed in the attack, it was “not very good.”
According to Sadulaev, “it is apparent that these battalions will become a potent assault weapon on the Ukrainian fronts given the high degree of desire and psychological preparation of the Chechens for war.”
Russian forces are focusing their Joint Army Southern Group of Forces around the towns of Severodonetsk and Lysychansk after narrowing their battlefront from thousands of kilometres across the whole eastern frontier with Ukraine.
The struggle for Severodonetsk, a 100,000-person town in the Luhansk region that is strategically positioned, raged for three to four weeks before Ukrainian troops eventually surrendered to the Russians after nonstop massive artillery bombardments reduced it to ruins.
Lysychansk, the twin city of Severodonetsk located just across the Donets River, is currently the focus of Moscow’s attention.
According to the regional governor of Lugansk, Wednesday’s bombardment on Lysychansk was “enormous” in frequency.
Large calibre shells are continuously being fired at Lysychansk.
The battle is still going on outside the city. Sergiy Gaiday told Ukrainian television that the Russian army was constantly attempting to attack. He later posted the video to his Telegram channel.
“The conflict is at its height right now. There are still roughly 15,000 civilians in the city, he continued, noting that the frequency of shelling was extreme.
He added that it “may be risky right now” for them to evacuate.
The Russians “brought in huge numbers of people and trucks.” Attacks and shelling never stop, according to Gaiday.
Moscow has already seized control of the neighboring city of Severodonetsk following many weeks of battle, during which scores of people were killed, and is now focusing on Lysychansk.
The Luhansk region, one of two provinces in the vast Donbas region that Moscow wants to entirely rule, is the last important city the Russians need to seize.
The battle is concentrated near the Lysychansk oil refinery, which is 10 km southwest of the city center, and Ukrainian forces are still holding their positions in the area, according to a statement from the MoD today.
They claimed that as Russian soldiers try to encircle the Ukrainian positions from the north via Izium, they are only making “limited progress.”
“It is quite likely that the outcome of the campaign will continue to be heavily influenced by Ukrainian forces’ ability to continue conducting delaying battles and then evacuate soldiers in good order before they are encircled.”