DW: Criticism of fortifications on the Pokrovsk direction within the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The Ukrainian military criticizes the fortifications on the Pokrovsk direction, where Russian troops are advancing.
"It seems like the defence lines are being built not for us, but for the enemy," a serviceman from one of the brigades involved in the combat in the Pokrovsk direction told DW.
According to him, at the end of the summer, an entire company of Russian soldiers penetrated a ditch that was supposed to hold back a tank attack, moved from one settlement to another, and occupied it. Observation posts on the second line of defence were built "two meters high, right in the middle of a field - not behind the tree line, but in front of it, on the enemy’s side," the soldier complains.
Ukrainian deputies confirm the problem with the fortifications.
"You come, you look - excellent fortification. Half a kilometer to the side - another decent fortification. Another 800 meters - again a decent fortification. And then 5 kilometers - and there’s nothing. The enemy will not launch a frontal attack on the fortifications, they will bypass them, make a breach, and start encircling these points, and our military will have to get out of them," explained Deputy Razumkov.
The Rada commission, of which he is a member, found that the construction of the fortifications is not centrally coordinated: the allocated funds are distributed among different agencies. In May, it was discovered that some fortifications in the Kharkiv region were not completed, and the wood for them was likely purchased at inflated prices. Razumkov personally observed locals dumping "piles of garbage" into the trenches and stealing materials that could be sold.
Nonetheless, even some well-constructed fortifications by the Armed Forces of Ukraine were eventually quickly captured by Russia, shared the Ukrainian military. Among the main reasons, they note the lack of trained soldiers and artillery support.
28 December 2024 г., 23:22
