The Russian army is using a new military strategy based on carrying out numerous attacks with small groups of soldiers to more easily penetrate Ukrainian defenses, said the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrsky, quoted by Agence France-Presse, BTA reports.
"Since the beginning of this summer, the enemy's tactics have changed", Syrsky told journalists.
"The small units used in the attacks in eastern Ukraine consist of four or six soldiers, whose task is to penetrate as deep as possible into Ukrainian territory without being noticed. "Their ultimate goal is to paralyze Ukrainian logistical links and seize new territory without using much manpower," the commander explained. Through this strategy, Russian soldiers "announce their presence" by planting the Russian flag, claiming to have advanced, even though they constitute a small part of the main Russian force.
The general compared the tactic to that of the "thousand cuts" - a form of torture in which multiple cuts are inflicted.
According to Sirsky, the Russian army has operated in this way near the city of Dobropilia in the Donetsk region, as well as in the Dnipropetrovsk region, where they invaded this summer for the first time since the beginning of the invasion in 2022.
He acknowledged that the situation on the front is difficult and that the Russian army continues to advance in important directions, for example near the cities of Pokrovsk and Dobropilia.
Russia has captured about 1% of Ukraine's territory in a year, according to an analysis by Agence France-Presse based on data from the US Institute for the Study of War, which is in cooperation with the Critical Threats Project.
The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced today that the country's armed forces have captured Yunakovka, a village in Sumy region, northeastern Ukraine. Ukraine.
According to Oleksandr Syrsky, the front has also expanded by 200 kilometers in a year to reach 1,250 kilometers now.
The Ukrainian commander-in-chief also said that the country's air defenses have been strengthened in recent months. To repel Russian attacks, Ukraine intends to use more helicopters and light aircraft, given their proven effectiveness.