According to the UK Ministry of Defence, Russian reservists are most likely engaging in “hand-to-hand” fighting in Ukraine due to a lack of ammunition.
According to the ministry’s most recent intelligence report, reservists reported receiving orders to attack a Ukrainian position “equipped simply with ‘firearms and shovels'” in late February.
It made mention of the MPL-50 shovel.
According to the government, the instrument was created in 1869 and had undergone little alteration.
The typical MPL-50 entrenching tool’s lethality is widely mythologized in Russia, according to the ministry.
The shovel is still being used as a weapon because it “highlights the brutal and low-tech fighting that has come to characterize most of the war,” the statement stated.
The bulletin also stated that one of the reserve members said they were “not physically nor psychologically” ready for the operation.
According to recent information, there has been a rise in close fighting in Ukraine.
This is likely a result of the Russian command’s continued insistence on an offensive strategy that consists primarily of dismounted soldiers and receives less artillery assistance due to Russia’s munitions shortage.
It has been impossible for the BBC to independently confirm these stories. The location of these battles was not disclosed by the ministry.
Is Russia’s supply of weaponry depleting?
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that Russian forces appear to have gained a considerable tactical advantage in the besieged city of Bakhmut.
While Russia strives to regain control of the little city of Bakhmut, where about 4,000 inhabitants are still present, there have been months of warfare.
Although the city’s strategic importance has been questioned, capturing the city would be a rare victory for Russia on the battlefield in recent months.
According to the ISW, Russia’s advantageous position might permit a “turning movement” in the city.
According to the ISW, an encirclement’s goal is to trap and destroy enemy forces, whereas a turning movement’s goal is to force the opponent to leave ready defensive positions.
The Ukrainian command has indicated that it will likely evacuate rather than take a chance on being encircled, according to the ISW. “The Russians may have meant to encircle Ukrainian forces in Bakhmut,” the ISW added.
The Ukrainian military, however, declared on Sunday that it had no plans to leave Bakhmut.
While acknowledging that Russian forces were still attempting to encircle the city, the Armed Forces General Staff said that more than 100 strikes had been thwarted in the eastern Donbas region over the previous 24 hours.
Bakhmut, which had a pre-war population of about 75,000, has seen thousands of Russian soldiers die while attempting to capture it.
Related Topics to the control map
