Western aid to Ukraine equipment that is not adapted to local conditions?, Star weapons drop off chain after chain, NATO | Ukrainian army | equipment
On the battlefield between Russia and Ukraine, the Ukrainian army's counterattack has been severely obstructed. According to American media analysis, the reason may be due to the serious mismatch between the equipment and tactics provided by NATO to Ukraine.
American media: Many of the weapons used to aid Ukraine are outdated products or even retired equipment
The New York Times pointed out that the Ukrainian military, which has received comprehensive NATO military training and is heavily equipped with Western main combat equipment, has been struggling in the recent counterattack, with these equipment and tactics being difficult to adapt to. American media believe that the unsatisfactory performance of these Western weapons on the battlefield is primarily due to their mismatched performance.
A considerable portion of the weapons received by Ukraine are outdated products, such as the M-55S tank provided by Slovenia, which is actually an improved version of the old T-55 medium tank; The large number of Leopard 1 tanks approved by Germany are also products from the 1960s; Most of the US made M109A3/A4 series self-propelled howitzers provided by multiple countries were retrieved from retired inventory.
Many aid equipment to Ukraine are suitable for anti-terrorism scenarios and cannot withstand the intensity of war
Secondly, in recent years, Western countries have placed too much emphasis on dealing with low intensity security warfare when developing new equipment, and have equipped a large number of special equipment suitable for anti-terrorism battlefields such as anti mine and anti ambush vehicles. However, in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, such armored vehicles with obvious targets, relatively weak armor and firepower, and limited cross-country mobility suffered heavy losses in front of the Russian artillery and anti tank firepower.
Western aid weapons are not systematic and difficult to coordinate with each other
In addition, due to the fragmentation of various weapons provided by Western aid, it is difficult for the Ukrainian military to coordinate and command these equipment with each other. However, NATO emphasizes systematic warfare, which requires close contact between various forces and the coordination of different equipment to achieve rapid breakthroughs, which is completely opposite to the reality of the Ukrainian military.
US aid armored vehicle exposed defects and hit by Russian drone pursuit
For example, the "Stryker" armored vehicle was originally tailored for the "Stryker" brigade level combat team proposed by the US Army in the early 21st century. It emphasizes global rapid deployment and claims to achieve "zero contact combat" with strong air support, ground firepower, and information technology from the US military, replacing traditional heavy armored units such as M1A2 main battle tanks and M2A3 infantry tanks. However, it has been proven that even the "Stryker" armored vehicles, which are supported and supported by the entire US military system, are considered unable to cope with large-scale frontal conflicts, and the US military is gradually phasing them out.
In a 28 second video released by the Russian side, a Ukrainian armored vehicle called the "Stryk" was captured from the perspective of a Russian military drone speeding on the road, but was caught up by a Russian suicide drone called the "Lancet" and launched an attack.
At a secret Ukrainian military repair shop in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukrainian military mechanics admitted that they were shocked by the extent of damage to Western aid armored vehicles on the battlefield.
Wu Jun Mechanist:
We are shocked every time armored vehicles are transported here, some without wheels, some without fuel tanks, and no engines. They are particularly severely damaged by shells and missiles.
US side: Short training time, Ukrainian army at a loss on the battlefield
In addition to the issue of equipment itself, there is also controversy over the coordination of tactics on the battlefield. The New York Times reported that just two weeks into the Ukrainian counterattack, the Ukrainian army lost 20% of its weapons, including a large number of Western tanks and armored vehicles. The US believes that this is because the Ukrainian military only received 4 to 6 weeks of joint combat training, and after truly stepping onto the battlefield, they appeared at a loss and made constant mistakes.
Ukraine: NATO training content is simply not suitable for the Russian Ukrainian battlefield
The Ukrainian side countered that most of NATO's training content is aimed at irregular forces such as guerrillas and mercenaries, mainly focusing on light vehicles and how to attack. These so-called cooperation cannot be reflected in direct confrontation with the Russian military. Newsweek in the United States also acknowledges that NATO's tactics are based on using large-scale airstrikes to gain air superiority, but this is simply impossible for Ukraine to achieve. The Ukrainian Air Force revealed on the 16th that it is unable to use American made F-16 fighter jets in this autumn and winter.
Ukrainian President Zelensky signs a decree to extend wartime status
However, on the 17th local time, Ukrainian President Zelensky signed a decree extending the state of war, which will extend the Ukrainian state's wartime status and full mobilization order for 90 days until November 15, 2023.
On February 24, 2022, Ukrainian President Zelensky announced that Ukraine had entered a state of war throughout the country. Ukrainian media reported that this is the eighth time the country has extended its wartime status and mobilization order since the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis.
