Ukrainian troops running low on ammunition, abandoning their positions
Politico reports that some Ukrainian troops even "rebelled against commanders' orders, gotten drunk, or misbehaved."
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Ukrainian soldiers prepare a US-supplied M777 howitzer in Kherson region, Ukraine, Jan. 9, 2023. (AP)
Shortly after Western allies pledged more precision rockets and missile systems to Ukraine, Politico reported citing a Ukrainian army officer that Ukrainian troops are forced to evacuate their positions owing to a lack of ammunition or commanders' reluctance to relieve forces, while soldiers seek to escape "senseless death".
The officer, who recently left the frontline near the city of Bakhmut, said, "Sometimes abandonment of positions becomes the only way to save personnel from senseless death. If they [the military leadership] cannot deliver ammunition or [relieve troops], when you sit in the trenches for several days without sleep or rest, your combat value goes to zero."
The officer stated that military indiscipline among Ukrainian troops was caused by weak command and pressure placed on Ukrainian forces who are outnumbered by the Russian army.
Earlier today, the founder of the Russian military company Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, which is fighting in the war in Ukraine, said on Sunday that battles for the city of Bakhmut, also known as Artyomovsk, are being fought for each street and house.
Bakhmut, located north of Donetsk, has been a battleground for months. During the war in Ukraine, it served as a critical transportation hub for Ukrainian troops stationed in Donbass.
Earlier on Friday, Prigozhin announced that the town of Mykolaivka in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) had been taken under control.
It seems that projecting the ultimate outcome of the war is not challenging, as the Russian army gains ground. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian soldiers are reportedly "threatening commanders, consuming alcohol, questioning orders, and many other violations."
A question also raises itself: Where did all the weapons go?
More and more weapons!!
The Pentagon announced, on Friday, a new rocket-propelled precision bomb that may nearly increase Kiev's strike range against the Russians as part of a new $2.2 billion US arms deal for Ukraine.
Ground-launched small-diameter bombs (GLSDB), a weapon with a maximum range of 150 kilometers, are also part of the new package, according to Pentagon Spokesperson Pat Ryder. These bombs pose a threat to Russian troops and depots that are located far from the front lines.
However, "the delivery of the GLSDB likely won't be for several months due to contracting, production, and delivery timelines," said Pentagon spokesperson Lt Col Garron Garn, refusing to specify how many would be delivered.
Concurrently, Italy and France have agreed to purchase 700 Aster-30 anti-aircraft missiles for SAMP/T antimissile systems to be supplied to Kiev.
The weapon, which was developed and manufactured by the European consortium Eurosam, can reportedly intercept and neutralize the full spectrum of air threats, as per media reports. This includes missiles within a radius of 25 kilometers (15.5 miles), as well as aircraft within 100 kilometers.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Italy has already provided Kiev with five packages of military supplies worth about 1 billion euros, Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said earlier this month.
On Tuesday, the Italian parliament announced it passed a decree to continue supplying lethal weapons to Kiev in 2023.
A sixth package of military supplies to Ukraine is currently underway, which will include air defense system Samp/T with ammunition, drones of Israeli design, as well as heavy artillery equipment, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported on Thursday.
On his account, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov, who had pleaded for the weapons, expressed his gratitude, claiming the systems would "help us save thousands of lives" from Russian attacks.
Kiev is also asking for fighter jets.
It has already secured pledges from the West for deliveries of modern battle tanks and, after months of hesitation, Germany authorized the delivery of Leopard 1 tanks.
The answer might be corruption, which is reportedly a major source of concern in Ukraine. It is worth noting that Kiev has lately sacked top officials in connection with corruption charges, with raids this week on a political oligarch and a former interior minister.
Corruption swept Ukraine long before the beginning of the war. Today, corruption has Kiev by the throat especially as hundreds of millions of dollars in weapons and aid stream into the country and with the cost of reconstruction activities anticipated to be in the billions. Furthermore, many have been warning that foreign weapons being supplied to Ukraine are sold on the black market, most notably in Africa.
