Attack of the Russian Legion
Kiev wanted to humiliate Putin before the election – the offensive ended in disaster
Fighters of the Freedom of Russia Legion in Donbass.
© Alex Babenko / Reuters
Anti-Putin freedom fighters should liberate villages and cities in Russia from Ukraine. A suicide mission, the Russian firepower stopped the fighters in their tracks.
No major offensive
However, the Ukrainian army cannot launch a major offensive like the one in the summer of 2023. This operation is aimed more at information space than at possible territorial gains. The year before there was a coup in which the weakly secured border was overcome and the Russian-Ukrainians were able to establish themselves in a village. After recovering from their surprise, the Russians used artillery and air power. Within a short time the group was wiped out or driven back into Ukrainian territory. A military disaster, but a success on the PR front. In the Western media, the heavy defeat in Bakhmut was immediately replaced by the good news of the Russian freedom fighters.
Belgorod in the center
And this year too, the operation is likely to be aimed primarily at the information space. After a string of defeats, Kiev wants to achieve success and embarrass Putin before the presidential election. Compared to the previous year, when only one commando with a strength of one company was deployed, the operation was designed to be much more generous. Several attack spearheads were to launch across a broad front, this time equipped with armored vehicles and under the protection of artillery and drones. And the goal was also far more demanding. Not only should an abandoned border village be occupied, no, the city of Belgorod should be liberated or at least threatened. Belgorod is almost the size of Mariupol with about five times as many inhabitants as Bakhmut. If it were contested, it would be a severe humiliation for Putin.
Didn’t cross the border
So far the offensive has been disastrous. Kiev cannot record any success, neither in PR nor on the ground. The disaster began before the actual offensive. The Ukrainian high command criminally underestimated the enemy. In fact, the northern border is nowhere near as exposed as it was last year. Russian troops are resting there in rotation, and second-estate units or troops with conscripts are stationed there. Then the Russian military learned from the last coup and prepared accordingly with mine barriers. Above all, there appears to be no shortage of heavy equipment and ammunition on the Russian side. Even though there is little fighting in the area, the Russian lines are well equipped.
So far, the Ukrainian attacks have been nipped in the bud. A Legion deployment, including Ichker fighters, was no surprise to anyone. In the weeks before, the fighters appeared increasingly in the media. The troops and heavy equipment that were brought in did not go unnoticed by the Russians and they fought the anti-Putin fighters as they were already deployed.
Huge firepower from the Russians
In fact, they were able to cross the border in a few places, but were unable to establish themselves anywhere; they were always thrown back with losses. The town of Tjotkino is surrounded by Ukraine on three sides; from Ryzhivka on the Ukrainian side there have been several attempts to penetrate the settlement. The fighting between Popivka and Mokraya Orlovka is aimed at the western flank of Belgorod. Here, the Ukrainians have not even been able to leave the mini-settlement of Spodariushino behind them.
The situation is similar towards the Russian settlement of Kozinka, where the Ukrainians are being shot at on their side in Velyka Pyssarivka. The Ukrainians were also stopped at the Nekhoteevka border crossing. Real battles are the exception; the troops are stopped by long-range weapons. The amount of artillery, mortars, glide bombs and rockets used by the Russians against the comparatively small Legion units is considerable. A good part of the heavy material is already being lost on the Ukrainian side. Without any real success, a video was supposed to show battles in locations on the Russian side, but in fact it was filmed in Ukraine.
No breakthrough possible
The Russian hinterland is being bombarded with drones and artillery, and there are videos of fires and fleeing civilians from there. The fighting will probably continue until the end of the presidential election in Russia on March 17th and the rest of the Legion will be sacrificed. Maybe the fighters will also change tactics. Instead of attacking with armored vehicles, assault units could infiltrate unnoticed and then try to establish themselves in a location for a video clip.
But given the Russian firepower, it is out of the question that the equipped troops will get through. The losses so far will have already significantly weakened the fighting strength. In the arc of the front around Belgorod, Kiev lost far more men and equipment than Moscow. Battle tanks, armored personnel carriers and valuable engineering equipment were destroyed for a failed PR stunt. This material, which the Russians were able to destroy so easily, will be missing from Ukraine as it attempts to contain Russian forces in an elastic defense.
Kiev is currently only gaining air with the successful drone offensive against the Russian oil refineries. Here Moscow has overlooked the fact that Ukraine can also build simple, cheap drones and even enjoys an advantage in doing so. It is much more difficult to protect Russia, which is much larger than Ukraine, from drone attacks.