Today, there are many interesting updates from the Pokrovsk direction. Further developments confirmed what many only suspected: that Iranian fighters are now on the battlefield, fighting for Russia.
With Ukrainians containing Russian advances and unleashing devastating artillery barrages, the growing presence of foreign recruits reveals just how far Russia is reaching to keep its offensive alive. The goal of the Russian forces in this area is to widen their western pincer around Pokrovsk. This is because the Russian forces in the western pincer are in a fire pocket under constant Ukrainian drone strikes and artillery shelling.
The Russians hope that by widening their western pincer, they could create enough of a buffer zone to put their logistics beyond the range of Ukrainian precision fire, so that they could restart their flanking maneuver around Pokrovsk.
The main Russian advantage in this area is that the Ukrainians are short on manpower on the frontline, creating gaps in their defense lines. This means that Ukrainians often pull back from more advanced positions to defensive positions in settlements and larger strongholds, to avoid being surrounded and overrun.
However, to prevent Russian forces from taking advantage of this, Ukrainians compensate with extensive drone reconnaissance, directing artillery and FPVs to strike and take out these Russian assault groups. Because Ukrainians have been so successful in eliminating these groups, Russians are also starting to run short on manpower to launch these infiltration assaults.
Russia turns to foreign fighters as losses mount
To solve this issue, the Russian army is recruiting anyone it can to fill its manpower gaps. The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has reported many times that this even includes coercing or misleading foreign citizens in any way possible to fight for Russia on the frontline.
Notably, recent footage shared by an Iranian news outlet shows GoPro footage of a group of Russian soldiers preparing for an assault. However, while wearing Russian uniforms, several are clearly heard speaking in Persian, a language spoken almost exclusively in Iran. One Iranian soldier is complaining to a Russian about having a foot injury, saying that he cannot go on the assault and requires medical attention.
In the footage, the Iranian and Russian soldiers have problems communicating and understanding each other, as the Russian soldiers keep trying to tell the Iranians they need to move out. The deployment of Iranian and other foreign fighters does help Russia sustain the manpower requirements of its constant assaults. However, the language barriers severely hinder coordination and intelligence sharing, just like with the North Koreans, leading to disorganized attacks, higher casualties, and risks of friendly fire.
Pokrovsk is a melting pot for the Russian forces, as citizens from all over the world have been found in this sector, almost always complaining that they had been misled and are being used as cannon fodder infantry.
Ukraine springs deadly trap on Russian forces
After Ukrainian forces tactically withdrew from overextended positions in the tree lines and fields south of Udachne to stronger defensive positions within the town, Russian commanders sought to rush in and pursue the Ukrainian force.
However, undermanned and with their Iranian allies embedded in their units, hesitating to advance, the Russian pursuit was doomed to fail. Unfortunately for the Russian soldiers, their commanders pressed on regardless. As Russian soldiers made their way into the industrial zone of Udachne, they had walked straight into a Ukrainian ambush. With Ukrainians pinning them down and preventing them from moving out of the district, they became overconcentrated and prime targets for Ukrainian artillery.
In a devastating barrage, Ukrainian artillery units fired shell after shell on the Russian forces, devastating their attempted pursuit, and setting them back to ground zero.
Overall, the Ukrainian strategy around Udachne focused on a calculated withdrawal and subsequent tactics that funnel Russian forces into pre-designated kill zones. By doing so, they concentrate their forces and maximize the impact of their limited resources, using artillery and drones to destroy concentrated enemy formations.
The severity of Russian losses, compounded by coordination issues and manpower shortages, has forced Russians to increasingly rely on foreign recruits like Iranians to sustain their offensives. However, a patchwork of undertrained and poorly coordinated units is proving no match for Ukraine’s disciplined defenses and precise firepower.
In our regular frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war.