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Ukraine slows Russia’s army but struggles to down ballistic missiles

From Al Jazeera · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Ukraine is increasingly impeding Russian supply lines and personnel movements, forcing the Russian army to a standstill in several areas.
  • Ukrainian forces are also targeting Russian refineries and munitions factories deep within Russia, weakening its war effort.
  • Despite Ukrainian successes, Russia maintains an advantage in ballistic missile production and deployment, posing a significant challenge.

Ukraine's military is demonstrating a growing capacity to disrupt Russian operations, effectively slowing Moscow's advance along various fronts. Battlefield analysis indicates that Ukrainian forces have successfully hampered the flow of Russian supplies and personnel from the southern regions of Zaporizhia and Kherson to the eastern front, bringing the Russian army to a near standstill.

Your resources are significantly dwindling. You won’t have enough money and political power to continue buying the loyalty of Russians, as you’ve been doing for 26 years.

— Volodymyr ZelenskyyIn an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Simultaneously, Ukraine has intensified its strikes on targets deep inside Russia, including oil refineries and munitions factories. These actions aim to degrade Russia's logistical capabilities and weaken its overall war effort. The effectiveness of these strikes is a key component of Ukraine's strategy to counter the invasion.

You hope that ballistics will do for you what everything else has failed to do.

— Volodymyr ZelenskyyWritten to Putin, acknowledging Russia's advantage in ballistic missiles.

However, a significant challenge remains in the realm of ballistic missiles. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged Russia's advantage in this area, noting that Russia produces a substantial number of ballistic missiles monthly. While Ukraine has high interception rates for drones and cruise missiles, its success rate against ballistic missiles is considerably lower. Zelenskyy has called for increased support, including the licensing of Patriot interceptor production, to counter this threat.

Compared to the current challenges, this is nothing.

— Volodymyr ZelenskyyReferring to the production of Patriot interceptors compared to Russia's ballistic missile output.

Zelenskyy has also extended an invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin for face-to-face talks, suggesting a potential de-escalation. In an open letter, Zelenskyy stated that Putin's resources are dwindling and that he cannot sustain the war indefinitely. The letter also highlighted the strategic importance of ballistic missiles as Russia's "last argument" in the conflict. Russia has not directly responded to the invitation or acknowledged its battlefield difficulties.

Ballistics is the last Russian argument in the war.

— Volodymyr ZelenskyyDescribing the strategic importance of ballistic missiles for Russia.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Al Jazeera. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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