Russian forces make gains in four areas. Ukraine’s shell shortage undermines its ability to conduct sufficient counterbattery warfare, ISW says. A Ukrainian Special Forces operation limits Russia’s capabilities in the Black Sea.
Russian forces make gains in four areas. Ukraine’s shell shortage undermines its ability to conduct sufficient counterbattery warfare, ISW says
Ukraine’s growing shortage of ammunition undermines its ability to use Western-provided systems that have aided it in the counter-battery fight. Russian forces have made some gains along the front line, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said in a report on February 5.
Delays in Western security assistance continue to exacerbate Ukraine’s shell shortage and undermine Ukraine’s ability to use high-value Western counterbattery systems, ISW said. Ukrainian Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko stated on February 5 that Russian forces intensified their rate of artillery strikes by nearly 25 percent over the last week and shelled Ukraine over 1,500 times, targeting over 570 settlements. The New York Times reported on February 4 that, by contrast, Ukrainian forces in critical areas of the front, such as Avdiivka, are increasingly rationing shells and can therefore only target masses of advancing Russian soldiers, noting that Russian forces have apparently adapted and are now advancing in smaller groups that are harder for Ukrainian artillery to strike.
Russian forces made confirmed gains near Kupyansk, Kreminna, Avdiivka, and northeast of Bakhmut amid continued positional fighting along the entire frontline, the report reads.
Ukrainian Special Forces operation limits Russia’s capabilities in Black Sea
A group of the 73rd naval center of the Special Operations Forces has mined and blown up a Russian-controlled gas drilling platform off the Crimea coast in the Black Sea, Ukraine’s Special Operation Forces said in a statement on February 6.
The operation dubbed “Citadel” was conducted at night in an area that was permanently patrolled by Russian aircraft and surface vessels, the special forces said without specifying when this took place.
Russia used one of the gas drilling platforms to expand the capabilities of the Iranian-made Mohajer-6 drone. It had installed equipment there to increase the drone’s flight distance and range.
Russia used the Mohajer drones for reconnaissance purposes, mapping targets for strikes at Ukraine’s critical infrastructure facilities in the south. It carried out the strikes with Shahed drones.
Russia had also installed a modern Neva-B surface search radar on the platform. It boasts a long range for larger targets, like tankers, and shorter rangers for patrol boats. Russian forces tracked targets in the north-western part of the Black Sea, Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces said.
The group “cleared” and mined the platform. It moved away from it to a safe distance and blew it up.
The Special Operations Forces have “captured the enemy’s critical equipment and blown up a radar mast. A successful operation ensured safer movement of ships and limited the enemy’s capabilities in the north-western part of the Black Sea,” the message reads.
