Russia is “misusing” its troops on the frontline as it attempts to remove Ukrainian soldiers from the Kursk region, according to British intelligence.
Ukraine stunned Moscow when it successfully breached Russia’s borders for the first time since World War 2.
Despite calling it a “major provocation” and vowing to hit back, the Kremlin has been unable to drive the Ukrainians out.
The latest update from the UK’s ministry of defence (MoD) claims that Russia is trying to cope with the incursion by moving troops from previously high priority jobs – such as early-warning radar operators and long range aviation heavy bombers – to Kursk, to fight the Ukrainians.
And this will not work to their advantage, the MoD suggested.
It claimed: “Diverting personnel from these previously high priority areas likely demonstrates continuing personnel shortages.
“By employing them in an infantry role, they are also being misused, which could reduce Russian capability to re-take territory in Kursk oblast.”
The MoD also suggested this was symptomatic of a wider issue within Russian ranks.
It said: “Russia continues to develop new units and recruit more personnel to sustain its mass attritional warfare approach against Ukraine.
“The high casualty rates that results [in] mean that Russia needs to continuously replenish front line infantry personnel, which will almost certainly continue to limit Russia’s ability to generate higher capability units.”
Similarly, the Telegraph reported on Tuesday that only young draftees are being called to defend the region, suggesting the Kremlin are resisting calls to send larger groups in.
Before August 6 – when Ukraine’s incursion began – conscripts were only supposed to serve in support roles in Russia and not fight, so calling them up has triggered scattered protests from the families of the draftees.
And, according to the BBC’s Francis Scarr, propagandists have “been instructed to convince Russians that the presence of Ukrainian troops inside their borders is the ‘new normal’.”