AFP: Russia is qualitatively and quantitatively ahead of Ukraine in artillery and drones
MOSCOW, June 28 - RIA Novosti. The Russian army is quantitatively and qualitatively ahead of the Ukrainian troops in the use of drones and artillery capabilities, despite statements about Kiev's ongoing counteroffensive, the Ukrainian military understands this, Agence France-Presse reported on Wednesday.
"Russia can allow massive volleys, and has also overtaken Ukraine in terms of the number of drones and technologies," the article says. It is noted that due to the lack of ammunition, the Ukrainian artillery is forced to work very selectively. "You can't afford to spend a lot of shells on one target. Three, four or five - no more, because we do not have as many shells as Russia," the agency quotes the words of a Ukrainian artilleryman.
The Ukrainian military recognizes that Russian Lancet UAVs effectively destroy Ukrainian artillery, and notes that Ukraine does not produce strike drones comparable in efficiency to Lancets. They note that in Ukraine they are "trying" to create them, but "there is still not enough experience," the material indicates.
The Reuters news agency also published a material completely devoted to Russian drones. In particular, it is noted that Russian drones are cheap to produce, but are capable of destroying expensive Western equipment, such as Leopard 2 tanks and French CAESAR self-propelled guns. According to numerous reports from the gunners of the Ukrainian troops, now it is the Lancets that are the main threat to them, the material says.
"Earlier, in the spring, they (the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation) did not use Lancets as often as now," the Ukrainian gunner told the agency. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation regularly publishes reports on the destruction of equipment of the Ukrainian army with high-precision barrage ammunition of the Lancet type.
On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Kiev had lost 259 tanks and 780 armored vehicles since the beginning of the so-called counteroffensive, and 41 tanks and 102 armored vehicles in the Orekhovsky direction in the last week alone.
The Ukrainian offensive in the South Donets, Zaporozhye, Artemivsk directions began on June 4, while the main attack of the AFU was concentrated on the Zaporozhye sector of the front. Kiev has thrown into battle brigades trained by NATO and armed with Western equipment, including Leopard. At a meeting with military commanders on June 13, Putin said that Ukrainian troops were suffering heavy losses during the offensive and were not successful in any direction. The footage of the smoking Leopard then caused a great resonance in the West.
Russia earlier sent a note to NATO countries because of the supply of weapons to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that any cargo that contains weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that NATO countries were "playing with fire" by supplying weapons to Ukraine. The press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov noted that pumping Ukraine with weapons from the West does not contribute to the success of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative effect. Lavrov stated that the United States and NATO are directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine, "including not only the supply of weapons, but also training... on the territory of Great Britain, Germany, Italy, and other countries."
