Since President Russia Vladimir Putin decided to attack Ukraine, Thursday (24/2), Moscow troops still cannot occupy Kyiv. Today, Russian troops are still trapped outside the cities of Kharkiv and Kyiv, although they have taken control of several other Ukrainian cities, such as Kherson.
According to the Atlantic Council, there are several reasons Russian troops still cannot occupy the Ukrainian capital. One of them, Russia failed to create sky superiority in Ukraine and made its stronghold lose a lot of warplanes and helicopters.
In addition, the troops deployed to attack Kyiv, Kharkiv and cities in the north of Crimea are still insufficient. Russia also had to deal with tough Ukrainian public resistance, poor coordination between firing squads and maneuvers, and experienced significant logistical problems.
On the other hand, the urban wars that took place in several parts of Ukraine left the Kyiv stronghold still at an advantage, considering that they controlled the battlefield.
Ukrainian troops know exactly where the safe haven is if Russian air strikes bombard their city.
Meanwhile, one observer said that the Russian invasion plan was not going well, forcing the country to change their war strategy.
“Russia started this with what I call Plan B which is to do it the way Western forces would do,” said former director general of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and a security analyst, Michael Clarke, quoted by Sky News.
“With relatively light troops moving fast enough from the border to encircle key areas and moving fast in Kyiv, get rid of the government, declare themselves the new government and it should all be done within 72 hours,” he added.
However, this plan was unsuccessful due to the persistent resistance of the Ukrainian troops.
“Now they (the Russians) are using Plan A, which they know how to do, which is to move slower with a heavier fleet: a siege fleet, as they say, down the Dnieper valley, to surround the big cities,” Clarke explained.
According to Clarke, the strategy will make it difficult for Ukraine as it will have to try to defend its cities.
Russia is said to be besieging a number of major cities in Ukraine, one way is by targeting energy sources, such as the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (PLTN). Without electricity and heating, it is difficult for Ukrainian fighters to survive.
Not only that, Ukrainian troops must survive in the midst of the threat of depleting logistics stocks.
(pwn / sfr)
–
