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US Department of Defense officials assess that Russia is “several days” behind in achieving its goals in Donbas, who have been hampered by logistical problems and Ukrainian resistance, the Pentagon said on Friday.
Russian ground forces are making “slow and uneven progress” in the southeastern region, a senior Defense Department official said on Friday.
Moscow aims to attack Ukrainian forces in Donbas from the north , east and south of Mariupol, the official said, adding that Russian forces are falling behind on all fronts.
“They wanted to be much more advanced in the total encirclement,” said the official who requested anonymity to speak frankly about the operations. Now “they are not even close to uniting the north with the south”.
The official said that Russian progress is “slow and uneven”, with Ukrainian troops making gains in some areas, while Russian forces make gains in others.
The Russian army has not overcome the logistics and maintenance problems that afflicted them in their attack on the Ukrainian capital kyiv in February and March, the official said. Furthermore, due to the effective resistance of the Ukrainian forces, the Russians fear leaving their supply lines behind.
While Russia has an advantage in Donbas because it is a smaller and more open area, ground forces will be hampered by rain, mud and other weather conditions as spring progresses, the official said.
In addition to Russia’s problems, the Pentagon also assesses that Moscow is having trouble replenishing its inventory of precision-guided munitions, the official said. Most of his attacks are carried out with “dumb bombs” instead of precision weapons.
While the outcome cannot be predicted of the conflict, for now the Ukrainians “continue to resist effectively in Donbas”, said the official.
The Pentagon assessment comes a day after the White House unveiled a massive new $33, million dollars to strengthen the Ukrainian army in its fight.
The proposal, which Congress must still approve, includes more than $20 billion in new military and security assistance, and sends a signal to Russia that the United States intends to continue supporting Ukraine.
The funds will provide Ukrainians with an additional and uninterrupted flow of e artillery, armored vehicles, and other defensive capabilities.
The pack will also forge a NATO’s stronger security posture through support for US troop deployments to NATO territory, the officials said.
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