“Although Western media reports that Ukraine is on the verge of defeating Russia, the opposite is true.” This was stated by US Army General Christopher Cavoli (Saceur Nato and Eucom USA) in a hearing of the House Armed Services Committee. According to him, the “degradation of the Russian Armed Forces” was grossly distorted in the media. “Russia’s overall military activity outside the Ukrainian conflict has been the highest in years,” he said.
The hunt for the traitor continues in Ukraine: almost 1200 criminal cases for treason have been opened since February 2022. Life imprisonment for traitors is back in Russia too.
About 23,000 people are officially reported missing in Ukraine as a result of the hostilities. Source MIA Ukraine, while according to Russian Defense Minister Sergej Shoigu the Ukrainian armed forces have lost more than 15 thousand people in the last month.
Minister Shoigu also said on a conference call with Russia’s top military officials, “The number of basic weapons purchased under the State Defense Order has increased by 2.7 times compared to 2022 and those in high demand by 7 times. ; Russian Armed Forces Destroyed 8 Ukrainian Aircraft, 277 Drones, 430 Tanks and Other Armored Vehicles, 18 MLRS Vehicles in One Month; Measures have been taken to increase the pace of production of weapons and military equipment to be delivered to groups of Russian troops in special operations; the Russian Armed Forces continues to eliminate Western-supplied weapons for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine; the system of interaction between departments for the prompt resolution of problems relating to the production and supply of weapons worked effectively; Tactical Missiles Corporation continues to create promising, modernized and existing types of weapons; the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have already received sufficient ammunition to inflict fire damage on the enemy.”
And then he went on to say: “The actions of groups of Russian troops during the special operation largely depend on the timely replenishment of stocks of weapons, military equipment and weapons. The country’s leadership has set defense enterprises the task of increasing the pace and volume of production in a short time, and the necessary operational measures have been taken. Round-the-clock control is exercised over all stages of the implementation of the state defense order – from the bargaining and allocation of funds to the delivery of finished products to the troops. In general, the military-industrial complex supplies the needs of the army and navy. However, it is necessary to promptly identify the risks of firms’ failure to fulfill their obligations and promptly take corrective measures. An equally important issue is the capacity building of repair and restoration bodies. Currently, the daily number of repaired weapons exceeds the failed ones by a ratio of three to two. Thanks to the organizational measures taken, the number of defective equipment to be repaired was reduced by one and a half times. At the same time, work in these sectors must be continued and their pace accelerated”.
Shoigu’s words come at a very delicate moment in which Russia cannot lose concentration but at the same time must show that the Special Operation is not managed by the PMCs but Moscow is in charge, which also uses the PMCs. He basically answered all the questions and doubts raised by Wagner’s number one and by military analysts. Regardless of how true the Minister’s statements are, one thing is certain: the Russian defense and offense continue to learn from his mistakes.
As Nato Saceur said: “The prospect of a successful Ukrainian counter-offensive is therefore far away”. The Russians all train in the same way, they drive the same vehicles, they have been training longer, and they have orders from a central command be it North, Central, West or South. Ukrainians are trained by many European countries to use different European weapons and different weapon systems. Furthermore, they do not have control over the PMCs which are often in the pay of the President, the Minister of Defense and in any case not under the General Staff. Furthermore, in recent weeks the Russians have begun to bomb the military and not just military structures. This was precisely to weaken the counter-offensive. Russia’s Black Sea Fleet and long-range aviation are massively involved while Ukraine can be said to have virtually no military answers in this regard.
Again Shoigu informed that “in the Russian Federation mass production of the latest types of weapons has begun, the development of which has been completed as soon as possible. The creation of promising, modernized and existing samples will also continue. A wide variety of air and naval weapons are supplied to the NMD area, many of which have no analogues. It is necessary to double the production volume of high-precision weapons in the shortest possible time.”
General Alexei Kuzmenkov has been appointed deputy minister in charge of logistics, reports the Russian Defense Ministry, thus ending the round of new assignments in the Russian military high echelons.
On the line of contact PMC Wagner continues to fight in Bachmut and the Wagner flag is hoisted every meter taken. Wagner PMC chief Evgeny Prigozhin reported that “Wagner fighters advanced 100-150 meters into Bachmut on Saturday, leaving 2.98 square kilometers of the city in enemy hands.” The Russian Airborne Forces performed the tasks of immobilizing the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the flanks of the assault detachments at Bachmut as requested by the Wagner units.
On April 30, a UAV with explosives from the United States was destroyed near Energodar, a representative of law enforcement agencies of the Zaporozhzhia region said. According to him, the contents of the drone included five 540-gram C4 plates (723 grams of TNT) equipped with a magnetic holder, five detonators and five sets of radio transmitters to produce an explosion.
On May 1, Russian planes bombed the Kiev region, the Dnieper region, as well as Pavlograd and the Sumy region.
In Soledar: Ukrainian troops are actively attacking the area of the salt mines, where the fighters of the Wagner group discovered caches of Soviet weapons
In the Golopristan sector, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are building forces near Kizomys, preparing for a landing on islands south of the village on the Dnieper. Artillery crews of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are conducting artillery preparation along the Left Bank from positional areas to Stanislav and Belozerka.
On May 1, Ukrainian formations attempted to launch airstrikes on Staraya Zburyevka with a pair of Su-25 attack aircraft. The air defense crew of the Russian Armed Forces shot down one of the planes and the wingman flew off in the opposite direction. At least two Bayraktar UAVs operate daily from the vicinity of Gulyaevka and Belgorod-Dnestrovsky. Drones operate at a safe distance from the front line, providing target designation for artillery and aviation.
A company of an unidentified unit of the Armed Forces of Ukraine arrived in the Kherson sector of the Kiselevka area, armed with two BM-21 Grad MLRS launchers. On the islands of Borshchevy and Karantinny, the presence of personnel of the Special Operations Center “South” was detected. Ukrainian gunners and UAV crews provide fire cover from the Antonovka-Sadovoye line.
On the Kryvyi Rih sector astride Berislav – Zmeevka, crews of the 2A36 “Hyacinth-B” howitzer, 82mm and 60mm mortars of the 223rd battalion of the 126th troop regiment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were deployed. Also in the same area is the Grad-P portable rocket launcher on the Mitsubishi L200 wheelbase. In addition, large-caliber mortars of 120 mm caliber are located in Otradokamenka, as well as an anti-tank complex. From there, the Armed Forces of Ukraine fire on Novaya Kakhovka and Korsunka.
Graziella Giangiulio
