Russian occupiers learn to fight from Ukrainian defenders – military expert

The Ukrainian army should make more use of the old Soviet experience in order to defeat the Russian occupiers, because they are fighting according to the textbooks of the Soviet era.

Military expert Andriy Savchenko said this during a briefing at the Ukraine-Odesa Media Center.

“The counteroffensive was planned last winter by two teams – our operational command and our Western partners. The Ukrainian General Staff preferred to create an offensive group with brigades fighting in it. This is good for Iraq or Syria. In our conditions, this practice does not work. We had to create armies and seize the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station, but this did not happen because of the dam explosion,” the expert noted.

Savchenko believes that the attempt to recapture Bakhmut was also a mistake and that the city should be returned, but later.

“The main fighting is taking place near the town of Rabotyno, an area heavily fortified by Russian troops. This is the most prepared enemy defense line, which is wrong from the point of view of strategy. We need to realize that the Russian occupiers are learning to fight among Ukrainians, just as our defenders are fighting,” the military expert emphasized.

Andriy Savchenko believes that the supply of the Ukrainian Defense Forces is too centralized, and this is also the reason for the defeats of the counteroffensive.

“If armies and corps were created, each of them would have to be supplied separately. This would simplify logistics and supplies a lot more than the current situation,” the expert believes.

He noted that the modern Armed Forces of Ukraine need reforms, but with a view to the former Soviet experience – it should not be thrown away altogether, because the Russian occupiers learn quickly – including from Ukrainians.

“The team that gives suggestions to Zaluzhnyi is at the level of brigades or operational commands, so there is no holistic picture of how to attack. The counteroffensive should be carried out by armies, and the General Staff should pay attention to experienced officers who are now retired but know how the Russians fight and how to fight them. We have the knowledge, we have the experience, and we are ready to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Andriy Savchenko summarized.

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