Valery Zaluzhny, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, wrote an article for The Economist, in which he outlined the prospects for the development of the Russian-Ukrainian war and identified directions for modernizing the Armed Forces of Ukraine, thanks to which Ukraine will be able to win.
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According to Zaluzhny, the war is now moving to a new stage – it is becoming a “positional” war of static and exhausting combat, as in the First World War, as opposed to a “maneuver” war of movement and speed.
This will be beneficial to Russia, allowing it to restore its military power, which will ultimately threaten the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the state itself,” Zaluzhny notes.
According to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, to get out of the positional form at the current stage, first of all, it is necessary:
- gaining air superiority;
- overcoming a deep-echelon system of mine-explosive barriers;
- increasing the effectiveness of counter-battery and electronic warfare;
- creation and preparation of necessary reserves
Also important is the widespread use of information technology in military affairs and the rational organization of logistics support.
The most important of these is air power. Control over the sky is necessary for large-scale ground operations, emphasizes Zaluzhny.
According to him, at the beginning of the war, Ukraine had 120 combat aircraft, of which only a third were usable. And although the Russian Air Force suffered huge losses during this time, including the Ukrainian Armed Forces destroying more than 550 Russian air defense systems, and Ukraine received significant assistance from its partners in aviation and air defense systems, Russia still maintains a significant advantage and continues to build new attack squadrons.
This advantage makes it difficult for us to move forward. Russian air defense systems are increasingly preventing our aircraft from flying. Our defense is doing the same to Russia. Thus, Russian drones have taken over a significant part of the role of manned aircraft in reconnaissance and air strikes, Zaluzhny notes.
Drones should also be part of our answer, says Zaluzhny:
- Ukraine should launch massive strikes using air target simulators and attack drones to overload Russian air defense systems;
- The Armed Forces of Ukraine should hunt for Russian drones using their hunting drones equipped with nets;
- the Ukrainian military should use signal simulators to reduce the effectiveness of Russian guided bombs;
- The Ukrainian military needs to blind the thermal imaging cameras of Russian drones at night using strobe lights.
Zaluzhny notes that the Russian invasion of Ukraine provoked a global security crisis.
The inability of international bodies such as the UN and OSCE to maintain order means that Ukraine can restore its territorial integrity only by military force, Zaluzhny notes.
Zaluzhny also notes that Russia should not be underestimated.
She suffered heavy losses and spent a lot of ammunition. But it will have an advantage in weapons, equipment, missiles and ammunition for a long time. Its defense industry is ramping up production despite unprecedented sanctions. Our NATO partners are also dramatically increasing their production capacity. But this requires at least a year, and in some cases, such as aircraft and control systems, two years,” notes the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Source: The Economist
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.