Russia has doubled down on a campaign to capture the eastern Ukrainian town of Avdiivka during the 88th week of
its war in what appears to be a repeat of its year-long campaign to capture nearby Bakhmut, which fell in May. Ukrainian southern forces spokesman Oleksandr Shtupun estimated that 5,000 Russians had been killed or wounded two weeks into the effort to capture Avdiivka and Moscow had lost about 400
armoured vehicles there and in Mariinka, farther south along the eastern front.
That high rate of attrition continued in the past week, according to Ukraine. Its armed forces reported 660 Russians killed on Saturday across the front in 70 combat clashes, 10 of them in Avdiivka. Two days later, they said they killed 680 Russian soldiers. Shtupun said 500 of those casualties were in the Avdiivka area over 30 assaults.
Russia is apparently able to replenish its numbers. The commander of the Russian “Arbat” Separate Guards Special Purpose Battalion, which is serving in Avdiivka, told a Russian reporter that fighters from the
Wagner mercenary group are now among its ranks, an observation backed by a Ukrainian source. Russian National Security Council Deputy Chairperson Dmitry Medvedev said nearly 385,000 people entered service with the Russian armed forces this year. Shtupun said Russia was training Storm-Z assault troops to deploy in Avdiivka.
Retired Ukrainian Colonel Petro Chernyk said Russia could potentially call on up to 3 million former conscripts trained in basic combat and, despite the fact that Ukraine has “destroyed” about 25,000 Russian soldiers a month, these were always immediately replaced.
You can't kill 'em all@Al Jazz
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