The Pentagon has said it could send weapons to Ukraine within "a few days" after the US Senate approved the military aid package on Tuesday night, among other things. But Ukrainian experts and lawmakers have said it could take weeks for aid to reach the troops, giving Russia more time to degrade Ukraine's defenses.
(AP) - Ukrainian commander Oleksiy Tarasenko has pointed to a frightening shift in Russia's efforts over the past month to advance through Kiev's defense industrial region, known as the Donbas.
Standing against Russia's unwavering advantage on the strategic front line in the town of Chasiv Yar, he observed that instead of making typical light anti-infantry attacks, Moscow's forces were taking the risky step of launching a battalion—and large attacks, sometimes with up to 10 military vehicles.
The troops he led have destroyed nearly 80 tanks in recent weeks, but that has not slowed down the enemy. The courage of the Russian military has shown that the Kremlin is aware of the lack of ammunition supplies of the Ukrainian army, while the United States of America delayed the approval of military aid.
The approval of a $61 billion aid package by the US House of Representatives on Saturday and approval by the Senate on Tuesday put Ukraine close to an "infusion" for the military, which will be rushed to the front lines to fight against recent Moscow attacks. But time is running out, with Russia using everything possible to pull off its biggest achievement since the invasion began on May 9, the day Moscow commemorates World War II Victory Day. In the meantime, Kiev has no choice but to wait for the resupply of weapons and ammunition.
Russia is using the momentum on the battlefield
also
The USA allocates another 400 million dollars for Ukraine
Finding a window of opportunity, Russia has used the momentum on the battlefield and pushed Kiev's forces to relinquish important territory, meter by meter.
Waves of mechanized units have come to attack Tarasenko's brigade. Defending themselves against drone attacks and artillery fire, they have reached Chasiv Yar, which is the main defense site of the Donetsk region.
"They have concentrated disproportionately large resources in this direction," said Tarasenko, deputy commander of the 5th assault brigade. "The most difficult thing we have to face is the permanent attack by the enemy, which does not change, even though the enemy is suffering losses in the number of soldiers and military equipment."
The Pentagon has said it could send weapons to Ukraine within days, after the Senate approved the aid package on Tuesday and President Joe Biden signed it into law on Wednesday. But Ukrainian experts and lawmakers have said it could take weeks for aid to reach the troops, giving Russia more time to degrade Ukraine's defenses.
The seven-month struggle to pass the package effectively has kept Ukraine hostage to the domestic policies of its biggest ally.
American aid is Kiev's last hope to win the war
European partners cannot match the volume and scope of American aid, which remains Kiev's last hope to win the war. But that support has come with disadvantages, including rules that prohibit the use of weapons obtained from the West for attacks inside the Russian Federation. Some Ukrainian officials argue that such restrictions hinder their ability to respond to stronger enemy attacks.
Assuming that help will arrive within the next two months, plans are being made for a possible offensive in late summer. Analysts have argued that future support should not rely on a major decisive battle, but on a sustained strategy over several years.
But first, Ukraine must block Russia's attempts to penetrate the defense line and entrenched positions.
Last month, the Associated Press news agency spoke to dozens of commanders along the active areas of the eastern front line, from Kupiansku in the northeast to Bakhmut in the south. They said soldiers rationed shells and struggled to repel enemy attacks with insufficient artillery ammunition.
They are also running short of air defense missiles, not only for the Patriot systems that defend cities, but also for tactical air systems. This has been seen as an opportunity by Russian fighter-bombers to drop thousands of deadly aerial bombs against Ukrainian positions, making the defense level with the ground, something Russian forces have failed to do before.
Since January, the Kremlin has occupied 360 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory, nearly the size of the US city of Detroit, according to the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War.
also Will the new American support for Ukraine be enough?Ammunition shortage complaint since December
Ukrainian commanders have complained of a shortage of ammunition since late December. By February, artillery unit chiefs from various regions said they had less than 10% of the supplies they needed, as Kiev rushed them to conserve shells.
Nowhere are supplies more needed than in Chasiv Yar, where, after weeks of heavy fighting, Moscow appears determined to capture the city. The commander-in-chief of Ukraine's army, Oleksandr Syrski, has said that senior Russian military leaders have ordered soldiers to occupy the city by May 9, Russia's Victory Day, a holiday marking the defeat of Nazi Germany.
In order to achieve this goal, Russia is daily carrying out attacks with drones and cluster bombs on Ukrainian forces that have no way to fight back.
Time is of the essence, said Yurii Fedorenko, commander of the "Achilles" battalion of the 92nd brigade in the Chasiv Yar region.
"They have simply destroyed our positions with massive attacks. Now these positions are constantly being hit by artillery, making it impossible to recover them", he said. "Now we have nothing to respond to the enemy".
Commanding men who have reached extreme levels of fatigue, Fedorenko is aware that the Russians are slowly advancing. At the time of the interview, Russian forces were only 500 meters away from the city.
"Dead soldiers would be alive if the US approved the aid"
"Soldiers who died defending their land could be alive now if US aid had been approved earlier," he said. "Our losses could have been minimal and we would not have lost territories that later have to be retaken."
Russia has quickly seized momentum after taking control of Avdiivka in February. Immediately, Moscow's troops tried to consolidate the tactical success and advance further through the largest and most strategically important cities - Kostiantynivka, Sloviansk and Druzkhivka - which together form the main defensive wall of the Donetsk region.
Victory in Chasiv Yar, which before the war had a population of 12, would bring Russia one step closer to breaking that barricade.
"If the Russians succeed in capturing Chasiv Yar, they are only about 5 to 7 kilometers away from the southernmost link in that chain," said George Barros, an analyst at the Institute for the Study of War. "If Russia manages to advance to Kostiantynivka and Druzhkivka, it will be able to attack the main defensive wall." "Then the troops get into the territory where the Russians can make some pretty significant operational gains and destroy Ukraine's ability to defend the rest of Donetsk," he added.
The arrival of new supplies could give Ukrainian forces protection and help push the enemy back. But Russia will continue to be ahead both in terms of soldier power and weaponry. The Russian army has the ability to recruit 20.000 to 30.000 new volunteers per month and has a nearly 6-to-1 advantage in artillery.
So far, this reality has ruled out any potential for a Ukrainian counterattack.
What might the $61 billion military package for Ukraine include?
"Russian fighters do not have the feeling that now they will lose any important units with armored vehicles or units of soldiers for which they have no other reinforcements," said Tarasenko. "They don't worry about that. This is their advantage."
Prepared by: Latra Gashi
