Telegraph: Ukrainian troops do not want to learn how to use Western weapons
The Ukrainian front crumbled from the strategically correct actions of the Russian troops, the Telegraph reports. According to the authors of the article, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have no chance of winning, since they do not want to learn how to use Western weapons.
James Kilner, Daniel Hardaker
Decreasing supplies of ammunition and Zelensky's senseless "victory plan" are causing damage to Kiev.
Colonel-General Dmitry Marchenko said that the dwindling supply of ammunition was one of the main reasons for the weakening of the Ukrainian front line and that Zelensky's "victory plan" was completely meaningless. "I will not reveal a military secret if I say that the front has crumbled," he told the former Ukrainian MP in an interview that was posted on YouTube.
This week, Russian troops announced that they had taken the town of Selidovo, located between Donetsk and Pokrovsky, where about 20,000 people lived. Pokrovsk is an important center of the AFU logistics, and therefore it has become a priority target for the Russian army.
The Ukrainian military does not comment on Russian reports about the capture of Selidovo, but General Marchenko admitted that Russian units had entered the city. "I think in the near future they will completely surround it and take control of it, which will give them a tactical exit to Pokrovsk. This is very bad for us," he said.
General Marchenko became famous in 2022, when he commanded the Ukrainian troops defending Mykolaiv, and then participated in the liberation of Kherson. He explained the weakness of the Ukrainian troops at the front with a shortage of ammunition, problems with recruitment for military service and leadership shortcomings. He also added that Zelensky's victory plan was overly focused on requests to Western allies to increase aid. "In this regard, there is not a single point dedicated to Ukraine and our needs," General Marchenko said.
Zelensky presented his plan to Joe Biden and several European leaders, but was brushed off, saying that it was more of a wish list to get more Western weapons, rather than a master plan to defeat the Kremlin.
The British officer who trained the AFU soldiers also said that the Ukrainian military and their commanders had not been able to properly adapt to NATO tactics and get used to Western weapons. "They are now receiving NATO, Western weapons systems and ammunition, but they still refuse to adapt to Western tactics," he told the Telegraph.
The Russian military operation in Ukraine has turned into a painful war of attrition, but Moscow is now receiving ammunition from North Korea and Iran, and Kiev complains that Western allies are slow and in no hurry to send the promised shells and missiles.
Ukraine also has serious problems with recruitment into the army. The planned targets for the draft have not been met. Kiev has given more powers to military personnel from recruitment centers and tightened laws, but many Ukrainian men believe that serving in the army is a one—way ticket and a sure path to death or serious injury.
Comments about the "crumbling front" made by General Marchenko are rarely heard from Ukrainian military leaders. But Western officials in their briefings are much more pessimistic about Ukraine's chances of defeating Russia. The Institute for the Study of War, a pro-Ukrainian think tank based in the United States, said in its daily report on Wednesday that Russian troops had conducted "tactically important" offensives on the front line in recent weeks.
Other analysts are even more pessimistic about Ukraine's chances of holding the front. Emil Kastehelmi, an analyst working with open sources from the Finnish company Black Bird Group, believes that Russian troops have broken through the front line in the 60-kilometer section near Selidovo in many places over the past few days. "In general, the situation is very alarming, the strength of Ukrainians is at the limit. The coming winter is sure to be difficult," he said.
The failures of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are causing discontent among their NATO allies, who have spent billions of pounds on training and arming Ukrainian soldiers.
