Shortage of Artillery Ammo Saps Ukrainian Frontline Morale
Nearly four months after Russia invaded, the Ukrainian military is running low on ammunition for its Soviet-era artillery and has not received enough supplies from its allies to keep the Russians at bay, Ukrainian officials and artillery officers in the field say.
The shortage has put Ukrainian troops at a growing disadvantage in the artillery-driven war of attrition in the country’s east, with Russia’s batteries now firing several times as many rounds as Ukraine’s. While the West is sending in weapons, they are not arriving fast enough or in sufficient numbers to make up for Ukraine’s dwindling arsenal.
The Western weapons, heavy, long-range artillery pieces and multiple-launch rocket systems, are more accurate and highly mobile, but it takes time to deploy them and train soldiers to use them. In the meantime, Ukraine is running out of ammunition for the older weapons. Read more
@nytimes
Nearly four months after Russia invaded, the Ukrainian military is running low on ammunition for its Soviet-era artillery and has not received enough supplies from its allies to keep the Russians at bay, Ukrainian officials and artillery officers in the field say.
The shortage has put Ukrainian troops at a growing disadvantage in the artillery-driven war of attrition in the country’s east, with Russia’s batteries now firing several times as many rounds as Ukraine’s. While the West is sending in weapons, they are not arriving fast enough or in sufficient numbers to make up for Ukraine’s dwindling arsenal.
The Western weapons, heavy, long-range artillery pieces and multiple-launch rocket systems, are more accurate and highly mobile, but it takes time to deploy them and train soldiers to use them. In the meantime, Ukraine is running out of ammunition for the older weapons. Read more
@nytimes
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McDonald’s Is Back, Moscow Style, as Russian Economy Stumbles On
Yevgeny Shumilkin is going back to work on Sunday. To prepare, he pulled the familiar “M” off what had been his McDonald’s shirt and covered the “M” on his McDonald’s jacket with a Russian flag patch.
“It will be the same buns,” promised Mr. Shumilkin, who maintains the equipment at a restaurant in Moscow. “Just under a different name.”
McDonald’s restaurants are reopening in Russia this weekend, but without the Golden Arches. After the American fast-food giant pulled out this spring to protest President Vladimir V. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, a Siberian oil mogul bought its 840 Russian stores. Because almost all the ingredients came from inside the country, he said, the restaurants could keep on serving much of the same food.
The gambit might just work — underscoring the Russian economy’s surprising resilience in the face of the one of the most intense barrages of sanctions ever meted out by the West. Read more
@nytimes
Yevgeny Shumilkin is going back to work on Sunday. To prepare, he pulled the familiar “M” off what had been his McDonald’s shirt and covered the “M” on his McDonald’s jacket with a Russian flag patch.
“It will be the same buns,” promised Mr. Shumilkin, who maintains the equipment at a restaurant in Moscow. “Just under a different name.”
McDonald’s restaurants are reopening in Russia this weekend, but without the Golden Arches. After the American fast-food giant pulled out this spring to protest President Vladimir V. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, a Siberian oil mogul bought its 840 Russian stores. Because almost all the ingredients came from inside the country, he said, the restaurants could keep on serving much of the same food.
The gambit might just work — underscoring the Russian economy’s surprising resilience in the face of the one of the most intense barrages of sanctions ever meted out by the West. Read more
@nytimes
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Russia is resorting to less-precise weapons that cause major damage, intelligence agencies say.
While Ukraine is badly outgunned and has been making desperate pleas for the West to speed up the delivery of heavy weapons, Russia also appears to be running low on precision missiles — but unlike the Ukrainians, the Russians can turn to other powerful weapons systems.
Britain’s Defense Ministry said on Saturday that a shortage of precision weapons had led the Russians to resort to inefficient weapons systems that are less precise but can still cause major damage, including significant civilian casualties. Since April, Russian bombers appear to have hit land-based targets with dozens of 1960s-era six-ton missiles designed to destroy aircraft carriers, the ministry said.
The assessment came amid reports by Ukrainian military intelligence in recent days that some Russian units in the Donbas region are composed of “forcibly mobilized personnel” and are refusing to participate in combat there. Read more
@nytimes
While Ukraine is badly outgunned and has been making desperate pleas for the West to speed up the delivery of heavy weapons, Russia also appears to be running low on precision missiles — but unlike the Ukrainians, the Russians can turn to other powerful weapons systems.
Britain’s Defense Ministry said on Saturday that a shortage of precision weapons had led the Russians to resort to inefficient weapons systems that are less precise but can still cause major damage, including significant civilian casualties. Since April, Russian bombers appear to have hit land-based targets with dozens of 1960s-era six-ton missiles designed to destroy aircraft carriers, the ministry said.
The assessment came amid reports by Ukrainian military intelligence in recent days that some Russian units in the Donbas region are composed of “forcibly mobilized personnel” and are refusing to participate in combat there. Read more
@nytimes
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Moscow issues passports in parts of occupied Ukraine, pressing on with ‘Russification.’
The Kremlin began formally issuing Russian passports to Ukrainians living under occupation on Saturday, even as Moscow’s forces confront a growing insurgency in areas they control in southern Ukraine and struggle to provide essential services like medical care.
The move to hand out Russian identification papers is just one facet of Russia’s attempts to solidify Moscow’s control in the south, including making the ruble the legal currency and cutting off Ukrainian cellphone networks. The Ukrainian authorities have warned about such a move for weeks, with Ukraine’s foreign ministry saying it would be “a flagrant violation” of the nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Ukraine’s military has also claimed to have found evidence of earlier plans by Moscow to issue Russian passports around Kyiv, the capital. Read more
@nytimes
The Kremlin began formally issuing Russian passports to Ukrainians living under occupation on Saturday, even as Moscow’s forces confront a growing insurgency in areas they control in southern Ukraine and struggle to provide essential services like medical care.
The move to hand out Russian identification papers is just one facet of Russia’s attempts to solidify Moscow’s control in the south, including making the ruble the legal currency and cutting off Ukrainian cellphone networks. The Ukrainian authorities have warned about such a move for weeks, with Ukraine’s foreign ministry saying it would be “a flagrant violation” of the nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Ukraine’s military has also claimed to have found evidence of earlier plans by Moscow to issue Russian passports around Kyiv, the capital. Read more
@nytimes
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As the Russians close in, civilians in Lysychansk must decide whether to stay or go.
Between the loud thuds of artillery shells landing a few blocks away, dozens of people emerged from a communal shelter in this eastern Ukrainian city Saturday to receive packets of food from a red armored van crewed by a group of volunteers.
It was the first aid they had seen in months.
Lysychansk, an industrial city with a prewar population of around 100,000, is quickly becoming the focal point of Russia’s slow and methodical advance in Ukraine’s east. Russian forces have seized most of the neighboring city of Sievierodonetsk after weeks of vicious street fighting and artillery duels. Lysychansk lies just across the Seversky Donets River and will likely be the next city the Russian army will try to capture.
Though much of Lysychansk has been evacuated, many residents remain. Read more
@nytimes
Between the loud thuds of artillery shells landing a few blocks away, dozens of people emerged from a communal shelter in this eastern Ukrainian city Saturday to receive packets of food from a red armored van crewed by a group of volunteers.
It was the first aid they had seen in months.
Lysychansk, an industrial city with a prewar population of around 100,000, is quickly becoming the focal point of Russia’s slow and methodical advance in Ukraine’s east. Russian forces have seized most of the neighboring city of Sievierodonetsk after weeks of vicious street fighting and artillery duels. Lysychansk lies just across the Seversky Donets River and will likely be the next city the Russian army will try to capture.
Though much of Lysychansk has been evacuated, many residents remain. Read more
@nytimes
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Momentum in Ukraine Is Shifting in Russia’s Favor
A war in Ukraine that began with a Russian debacle as its forces tried and failed to take Kyiv has seemingly begun to turn. Russia is picking off regional targets, Ukraine lacks the weaponry it needs and Western support for the war effort is fraying.
On the 108th day of President Vladimir V. Putin’s unprovoked war, driven by his conviction that Ukraine is territory unjustly taken from the Russian Empire, Russia appeared no closer to victory. But its forces did appear to be making slow, bloody progress toward control of eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, said on Saturday, “We are definitely going to prevail in this war that Russia has started.”
Yet, the heady early days of the war — when the Ukrainian underdog held off a deluded and inept aggressor and Mr. Putin’s indiscriminate bombardment united the West in outrage — have begun to fade. The war is becoming what analysts say will be a long slog. Read more
@nytimes
A war in Ukraine that began with a Russian debacle as its forces tried and failed to take Kyiv has seemingly begun to turn. Russia is picking off regional targets, Ukraine lacks the weaponry it needs and Western support for the war effort is fraying.
On the 108th day of President Vladimir V. Putin’s unprovoked war, driven by his conviction that Ukraine is territory unjustly taken from the Russian Empire, Russia appeared no closer to victory. But its forces did appear to be making slow, bloody progress toward control of eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, said on Saturday, “We are definitely going to prevail in this war that Russia has started.”
Yet, the heady early days of the war — when the Ukrainian underdog held off a deluded and inept aggressor and Mr. Putin’s indiscriminate bombardment united the West in outrage — have begun to fade. The war is becoming what analysts say will be a long slog. Read more
@nytimes
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Moscow issues passports in parts of occupied Ukraine, pressing on with ‘Russification.’
The Kremlin began formally issuing Russian passports to Ukrainians living under occupation on Saturday, even as Moscow’s forces confront a growing insurgency in areas they control in southern Ukraine and struggle to provide essential services like medical care.
The move to hand out Russian identification papers is just one facet of Russia’s attempts to solidify Moscow’s control in the south, including making the ruble the legal currency and cutting off Ukrainian cellphone networks.
Such documents have not been produced in Ukraine since 1990. Ukrainian officials have urged people living in occupied regions not to apply for the passports, but also fear that Russia could use coercive measures — like requiring them for employment — to force people to exchange their documents.
Read more
@nytimes
The Kremlin began formally issuing Russian passports to Ukrainians living under occupation on Saturday, even as Moscow’s forces confront a growing insurgency in areas they control in southern Ukraine and struggle to provide essential services like medical care.
The move to hand out Russian identification papers is just one facet of Russia’s attempts to solidify Moscow’s control in the south, including making the ruble the legal currency and cutting off Ukrainian cellphone networks.
Such documents have not been produced in Ukraine since 1990. Ukrainian officials have urged people living in occupied regions not to apply for the passports, but also fear that Russia could use coercive measures — like requiring them for employment — to force people to exchange their documents.
Read more
@nytimes
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Russia’s final push to cut off Sievierodonetsk could happen in days, a Ukrainian official says.
Russian forces are fighting to complete an encirclement of Sievierodonetsk and may completely cut it off in the coming days, the governor of the region that includes the city said on Sunday, suggesting that a major goal of Moscow’s revised military campaign, fought over for weeks, could soon be achieved.
The Ukrainian government has poured troops and resources into its effort to hold on to Sievierodonetsk, a strategically important, industrial city and the last major urban center in Luhansk that has not yet fallen. Russia’s forces are trying to capture all of the wider Donbas region, which includes Luhansk, and where it has held significant territory since 2014.
“The situation in Sievierodonetsk is extremely difficult,” the regional governor, Serhiy Haidai, said on Telegram. “The Russians are making every effort to cut off Sievierodonetsk. The next two or three days will be significant.” Read more
@nytimes
Russian forces are fighting to complete an encirclement of Sievierodonetsk and may completely cut it off in the coming days, the governor of the region that includes the city said on Sunday, suggesting that a major goal of Moscow’s revised military campaign, fought over for weeks, could soon be achieved.
The Ukrainian government has poured troops and resources into its effort to hold on to Sievierodonetsk, a strategically important, industrial city and the last major urban center in Luhansk that has not yet fallen. Russia’s forces are trying to capture all of the wider Donbas region, which includes Luhansk, and where it has held significant territory since 2014.
“The situation in Sievierodonetsk is extremely difficult,” the regional governor, Serhiy Haidai, said on Telegram. “The Russians are making every effort to cut off Sievierodonetsk. The next two or three days will be significant.” Read more
@nytimes
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Europe faces pressing questions about tactics and strategy as the Ukraine war grinds on.
Ukraine’s European allies are facing questions of tactical and political importance as bloody battles in the country’s east tilt in Russia’s favor.
On the tactical front, NATO allies, and especially those in Ukraine’s vicinity, face the challenge of having tapped their own supplies to support the war effort, leaving them with depleted arsenals.
And on the political front, the question of whether the European Union will take the leap to grant Ukraine candidate status for the bloc will need to be answered before the end of the month.
The realities on the battlefield, as Ukrainian officials assess that Russia could fully encircle the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk in the next few days, will likely influence both the decision on how to replenish arsenals and send in ammunition as well as the decision to offer Ukraine hope by granting it E.U. candidate status, even if technically it’s not ready for it.
Read more
@nytimes
Ukraine’s European allies are facing questions of tactical and political importance as bloody battles in the country’s east tilt in Russia’s favor.
On the tactical front, NATO allies, and especially those in Ukraine’s vicinity, face the challenge of having tapped their own supplies to support the war effort, leaving them with depleted arsenals.
And on the political front, the question of whether the European Union will take the leap to grant Ukraine candidate status for the bloc will need to be answered before the end of the month.
The realities on the battlefield, as Ukrainian officials assess that Russia could fully encircle the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk in the next few days, will likely influence both the decision on how to replenish arsenals and send in ammunition as well as the decision to offer Ukraine hope by granting it E.U. candidate status, even if technically it’s not ready for it.
Read more
@nytimes
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Amnesty says Russia’s use of cluster munitions caused widespread civilian deaths in Kharkiv.
Russian forces killed hundreds of civilians in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv by bombarding residential neighborhoods with rockets and cluster munitions, Amnesty International said in a new report on Monday.
The repeated attacks were indiscriminate “and as such constitute war crimes,” Amnesty said.
The report adds to evidence of a widespread civilian deaths since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. The United Nations human rights office said last week it had documented 4,339 civilian deaths in Ukraine since the start of the war. The office said it believed the actual total was much higher, but it was unable to receive accurate counts from areas where fighting remained intense.
Ukrainian officials have said as many as 20,000 civilians may have been killed during the weekslong siege of Mariupol, which Russia took over last month.
Russia has previously denied intentionally attacking civilians. Read more
@nytimes
Russian forces killed hundreds of civilians in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv by bombarding residential neighborhoods with rockets and cluster munitions, Amnesty International said in a new report on Monday.
The repeated attacks were indiscriminate “and as such constitute war crimes,” Amnesty said.
The report adds to evidence of a widespread civilian deaths since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. The United Nations human rights office said last week it had documented 4,339 civilian deaths in Ukraine since the start of the war. The office said it believed the actual total was much higher, but it was unable to receive accurate counts from areas where fighting remained intense.
Ukrainian officials have said as many as 20,000 civilians may have been killed during the weekslong siege of Mariupol, which Russia took over last month.
Russia has previously denied intentionally attacking civilians. Read more
@nytimes
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Ukraine’s grip on a key eastern city appears to slip further.
Russian forces have pushed Ukrainian troops from the center of Sievierodonetsk, the Ukrainian military said on Monday, as Ukraine’s grip on the strategic eastern city appeared to weaken further.
The Ukrainian military said that fighting was ongoing in the city. President Volodymyr Zelensky has called the battle decisive for the fate of his country’s eastern Donbas region. Allies have warned that Sievierodonetsk could fall to Russia within weeks or days.
In an update on Monday, the regional governor, Serhiy Haidai, said that Russian forces were heavily shelling an industrial zone that includes a chemical plant where about 500 civilians, including 40 children, were sheltering. Efforts were underway to evacuate the civilians, he added.
In an evening speech on Sunday, Mr. Zelensky said Sievierodonetsk was the site of “very fierce fighting — literally for every meter.” Read more
@nytimes
Russian forces have pushed Ukrainian troops from the center of Sievierodonetsk, the Ukrainian military said on Monday, as Ukraine’s grip on the strategic eastern city appeared to weaken further.
The Ukrainian military said that fighting was ongoing in the city. President Volodymyr Zelensky has called the battle decisive for the fate of his country’s eastern Donbas region. Allies have warned that Sievierodonetsk could fall to Russia within weeks or days.
In an update on Monday, the regional governor, Serhiy Haidai, said that Russian forces were heavily shelling an industrial zone that includes a chemical plant where about 500 civilians, including 40 children, were sheltering. Efforts were underway to evacuate the civilians, he added.
In an evening speech on Sunday, Mr. Zelensky said Sievierodonetsk was the site of “very fierce fighting — literally for every meter.” Read more
@nytimes
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Control of Luhansk, and the wider Donbas region, could hinge on the battle for Sievierodonetsk.
The battle for Sievierodonetsk, which could fall to the Russians within days, is about far more than one city. Its capture would give Russia a key victory in its drive to seize the entire Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.
Donbas, which comprises the territories of Luhansk and Donetsk, is a prize for President Vladimir Putin of Russia. After failing to swiftly topple Ukraine’s government in Kyiv, Mr. Putin refocused his military campaign on the Donbas, which makes up about 9 percent of Ukraine’s land, but holds significance for its industry, location and potential as a bargaining chip for Moscow.
The Donbas borders Russia and runs from outside Mariupol in the south to the northern border near Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. Home to coal mines and steel, an estimated 6.2 million people lived in the region before Russia’s invasion, according to the most recent census data. Read more
@nytimes
The battle for Sievierodonetsk, which could fall to the Russians within days, is about far more than one city. Its capture would give Russia a key victory in its drive to seize the entire Donbas region of eastern Ukraine.
Donbas, which comprises the territories of Luhansk and Donetsk, is a prize for President Vladimir Putin of Russia. After failing to swiftly topple Ukraine’s government in Kyiv, Mr. Putin refocused his military campaign on the Donbas, which makes up about 9 percent of Ukraine’s land, but holds significance for its industry, location and potential as a bargaining chip for Moscow.
The Donbas borders Russia and runs from outside Mariupol in the south to the northern border near Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. Home to coal mines and steel, an estimated 6.2 million people lived in the region before Russia’s invasion, according to the most recent census data. Read more
@nytimes
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