At stake in Europe security: the expert told about problems in the preparation of the Armed Forces - the media

This opinion was expressed in his column for The Guardian, a senior researcher at the Royal Joint Institute for Defense Research Jack Wtling, who specializes in terrestrial military campaigns. According to him, it is important to understand the difficulties that the Ukrainian army faced, which has to overcome a well -fortified so -called. Surovikin's Line.

"Fighting clashes are becoming more and more fierce - with heavy losses of personnel and equipment on both sides of the barricades," - the author of the article notes. Russian troops are placed on several concrete lines, each of these lines precedes 120-500 meters of minefield. At the same time, they are provided with strong support for artillery and combat helicopters, they are also protected by a system of electronic warfare and air defense.

In the melee, Ukrainian defenders in most cases are stronger, but usually to get into the Russians, without having suffered irreparable losses. The Russians also face difficulties. About 50,000 servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation were stationed on the Southern Front. About a quarter of them are constantly engaged in maintaining positions without the necessary reserve, and the troops holding the flanks will be difficult for them.

But the scarcity of personnel is felt only after a few weeks of fighting. More sophisticated, more accurate howitzers of the Armed Forces restrict the Russians in terms of counter -battery struggle. The supply of cassette ammunition will give Ukraine even more advantage in this respect. The author of the publication notes that he observed that the US troops had problems with the performance of combat missions during exercises. But the forces of Ukraine's defense have to study in real conditions.

Western partners found out what Ukraine needs for a successful counter -offensive from July to September. Among the priorities were: artillery, engineering opportunities, tactical air defense, mobility, as well as collective training. Ukrainian troops are provided with mobility and artillery, but to a lesser extent engineering capabilities and tactical air defense.

However, a particular disadvantage in collective training is especially noticeable: allies are betting on the individual training of the Armed Forces. The fact that Ukraine needs changes in the training of fighters is known since September last year, but the decision was not made until January 2023. The Ukrainians received only a few months for the development of Western equipment. Another problem is that much of the preparation is not thought out. Soldiers can be prepared individually in Ukraine.

But it is difficult to carry out training at the units level in Ukraine, as landfills are often exposed to rocket firing. The author of the publication especially emphasizes bureaucratic difficulties. According to him, the Fighters of the Armed Forces were unable to properly prepare at the Western landfills. Regulatory restrictions are imposed on the use of UAVs, it is not possible to use your own software for fire control because it is not NATO certified.

These bureaucratic restrictions indicate a serious problem for Ukraine's partners. The future of European security depends on the result of the Ukrainian battle, and Western countries are still using approaches suitable for peacetime. This is especially noticeable in the case of ammunition. We will remind that Alexey Arestovich declared a shortage of cars, machine guns and machines in the Armed Forces. According to him, such difficulties are close to what the Russians face.