President Vladimir Putin’s invasion into Ukraine has lasted for several weeks now but his forces have hit a wall, with the Pentagon keeping a close eye on his depleting combat power. The sudden weakness is reflective of the 150,000 soldiers he placed on Ukraine’s border in the weeks leading up to the invasion.
“We’ve assessed, for the first time, that the Russians may be slightly below a 90% level of assessed available combat power,” said a senior defense official. “It is not an assessment of all Russian military power.”
As Russian ground forces remain stranded across the country, security experts keep warning Putin that he may want to move additional forces into Ukraine to strengthen his battle.
Despite rumors that Putin has offered incentives to fighters from Syria and other countries, there is little proof that any foreign fighters have arrived in Ukraine.
There is evidence of continuous “discussions” by Moscow to aid its war “both in terms of resupply and also reinforcement,” but no such plan has been set in place.
Ukrainian military has fought back against Russian aggression. Despite weeks of destruction, Putin’s troops are no closer to taking Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital.
“We’re definitely seeing anecdotal evidence that the Ukrainians are not only defending well, where they choose to defend, but they are making efforts to take back territory,” the senior defense official added.
Reports also surfaced showing that Ukrainian forces were able to take back a suburb outside of Kyiv, however, the senior defense official could not verify the reports.
The official said not only does this show a lack of planning for logistics and sustainment on Russia’s part but also the “Ukrainians have done a good job frustrating their efforts.”
