Russian troops on the front in Ukraine are switching to attacks in small groups instead of “meat assaults.” The Telegraph newspaper reported this on May 1.
As the publication notes, for more than four years Russia tried to occupy Ukraine, sending “waves” of military personnel to the front. The Russian Federation hoped that numerical superiority would break the defense, but against the backdrop of the loss of 1.3 million military personnel wounded and killed, the Russians began to change tactics.
The Telegraph noted that now UAVs are almost instantly detected by large army formations, electronic warfare systems disrupt communications, and Ukraine has learned to anticipate offensive patterns.
The “meat grinder” approach is becoming outdated – and Russia knows it, the media writes. It was gradually replaced by “quieter” tactics: much smaller groups, which are more difficult to detect, launch assaults. They move on foot, often at night, with minimal communications, looking for gaps in Ukrainian defense lines and infiltrating positions undetected.
The group usually includes two to four people, and the rest of the military go out individually. The task of these units is to hold positions until enough troops accumulate there to effectively attack Ukrainian positions.
Analysts say such tactics could be more dangerous.
As the media explain, small groups are much more difficult to detect and destroy than large formations, so they force Ukraine to spend more drones and ammunition. Also, sabotage groups can quietly penetrate behind the front line and deliver an unexpected blow.
After small units break through Ukrainian defenses, they dig in and hold positions, often in abandoned buildings, waiting for the next group to “break through.”
The goal is to establish a position “deep” enough to threaten positions from unexpected directions, forcing the defenders to fight a war on multiple fronts.
In April, the use of this tactic was recorded in a wide area of eastern and southern Ukraine – from Liman and Chasovoy Yar in the north, through the Pokrovsk region in the center of the Donetsk region, all the way to the Zaporozhye front – as well as on Russian territory itself, in the Kursk region, writes The Telegraph.
