Three months and thousands of lives for one district: Forbes assessed the "successes" of the Russian Federation in Chasovoy Yar
Date: 2024-07-05 Author: Кирило Загоруйко Categories: WAR
On April 4, Russian troops launched an attack on Chasiv Yar in eastern Ukraine. Three months later, they finally captured the Kanal neighborhood. At the same time, as Forbes writes, the seizure of this tiny part of the city cost the Russians thousands of victims.
"According to the available data, since the beginning of the campaign in Chasovoy Yar, the Russian military has lost 99,000 people. And although not all of them died in Chasovoy Yar and around it, a significant part certainly died," the publication writes.
As retired Australian Army General Mick Ryan points out, although Russia has achieved some success, it has come at a huge cost.
"Having wasted so many lives for such a small gain, Russia "appears to have lost its last chance to deliver a decisive blow to Ukraine in this war," Ryan added.
As Forbes writes, the trend of the last few months is most likely to continue on the front. The Russian forces will advance with huge losses in men and equipment, while the Ukrainian forces will suffer much smaller losses. For each captured city or even district, the Russians hide tens of thousands of their soldiers.
Despite the capture of part of Chasovoy Yar by Russian forces, the Ukrainian garrison in the city does not stop fighting and has retreated several blocks to the west. As the publication's analyst notes, defensive positions on the western side of the canal are easier to defend, because before a direct attack on Ukrainian positions, the Russians must first cross the canal - an inconvenient, though not impossible, maneuver.
As Forbes writes, some may be surprised by the fact that the Ukrainian garrison stayed in the isolated and vulnerable area of the canal for so long. Back in late May, the Ukrainian analytical group Frontelligence Insight predicted that Chasiv Yar "will eventually be lost to Russian forces." But the garrison fought for another six weeks.
The Armed Forces were helped by the fact that in mid-April, the administration of US President Joe Biden again began supplying ammunition to Ukraine.
"Ukrainian defense has also been helped by the fact that Russian regiments and brigades are weakening as a result of heavy losses. This is because the rate of losses forces Moscow to hastily send new troops to the front without proper leadership, training and equipment," Forbes writes.
As Ryan explains, Russia is unable to create a higher-quality and larger force that could conduct larger-scale offensive operations.
"This is of little consolation to the Ukrainian soldiers defending Chasiv Yar. They are fighting quarter-by-quarter, regardless of the broader strategic context. And in Chasiv Yar, fiercer battles for territory are likely as the Russians seek to extend their gains in one of the few places where they are generally moving forward," Forbes writes.
