MOSCOW, Russia
Russia is executing soldiers who try to retreat from a bloody offensive in eastern Ukraine, the White House has said.
According to the United States, some of
the casualties suffered by Russia near Avdiivka were "on the orders of
their own leaders".
Russian and Ukrainian troops
have been locked into a fierce battle for the frontline town since mid-October.
Russia is thought to have
suffered "significant" losses in this time.
Ukrainian estimates put the
number of Russian casualties in Avdiivka at 5,000, while the US says that
Russia lost "at least" 125 armoured vehicles and more than a
battalion's worth of equipment.
A Ukrainian army spokesperson
said that Russian troops were refusing to attack Ukrainian positions near
Avdiivka because of heavy losses and that there had been mutinies in some
units.
"Russia's mobilised
forces remain under-trained, under-equipped and unprepared for combat, as was
the case during their failed winter offensive last year," National
Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in a briefing on Thursday.
He said that the Russian
military "appears to be using what we would call 'human wave' tactics,
just throwing masses of these poorly trained soldiers right into the
fight."
"No proper equipment, no
leadership, no resourcing, no support. It is unsurprising that Russian forces
are suffering from poor morale," Mr Kirby added.
Taking Avdiivka - which lies
near the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk - would allow Russian troops to push
the front line back, making it harder for the Ukrainian forces to make further
advances into Donetsk region.
Avdiivka has been all but abandoned by
its 30,000 residents as Russian forces continue to pummel it.
Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described the
situation as "particularly tough".
On Thursday, the US announced
a new $150m (£123.7m) military assistance package for Ukraine that includes
artillery and small-arms ammunition, as well as anti-tank weapons.
However, future aid to Ukraine
is in doubt following the election of Republican Mike Johnson as speaker of the
US House of Representatives earlier this week.
Mr Johnson - who is on the
right wing of the Republican Party - is against further US aid to Ukraine and
has previously supported amendments to block it.
The US is the largest military
donor to Ukraine, having spent more than $46bn (£37bn) so far, plus tens of
billions more in financial and humanitarian aid.
Russian President Vladimir
Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
No comments:
Post a Comment