With tensions between Ukraine and Russia at an all-time high, Russia is scrambling to increase its weapons production to keep up with the demand for armaments in the conflict.
Recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin adjured the government to increase the production of supplies and weapons by cutting through the bureaucracy. Putin’s foremost concern at present is to feed as much weapon supply as the country can tackle the counteroffensive approach of Ukraine.
To address the concern, on Tuesday, he formed a new committee that’s sole purpose is to accelerate the production rate of weapon delivery to the troops. This decision comes after the recent news of a steady decline in the Russian military supply in the past eight months of the war.
However, Russian media agencies are bringing up a new concern. As per the Russian reports, the 222,000 Russian soldiers on the war fronts aren’t equipped with even basic supplies. They are fighting amid the lack of medical kits and flak jackets, and most find their own supplies on the battlefield.
Many Russian reports have also suggested that many troops are forced to use old weapons and unreliable equipment that sometimes fail to work. The quick mobilization of the army is also resulting in the deployment of untrained soldiers on the front line.
While the media houses raised concerns, President Vladimir Putin tried to mask the situation by visiting a training site in Russia. He was shown their troops with the heavy armory and high-grade war equipment.
Furthermore, according to the Institute for the Study of War, Washington, “the Russian forces conducted missile, drone and air strikes in Ukraine at a relatively lower tempo than their previous attacks.”
The brief updates by InstituteInstitute further described that “the Ukrainian General Staff described that on October 23rd, there was a decline in the attacks conducted by Russian forces as only 2 missiles and 28 air strikes were registered, whereas the Ukrainian forces shot down 16 Shahed-136 drones in response.”
Therefore, the InstituteInstitute predicts that the decline in the tempo of Russian attacks, either air, missile, or drone, probably means that the Russian strategic military goals are not functioning effectively, and the missile and drone stock is possibly decreasing.
The world seems to be predicting the slowed reaction rate of the Russian military, but on the battlefield, the story seems different. Nonetheless, with the decline in supplies, the Russians have wreaked massive destruction, and high casualties have been registered.
Large-scale damage to the public infrastructure, homes, and Ukraine’s power grid occurred due to the Russian Kamikaze drone strikes. Whereas, in terms of casualties, per the United Nations, OHCHR has registered 15,246 civilian casualties in Ukraine from February 2022 to the start of October 2022.
The UN also anticipates that the numbers may be higher because the actual data is delayed to high shelling in the country.
