Russian rocket attacks against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles are not connected to any Russian ground offensive. So says defense analyst Patrick Bolder of The Hague Center for Strategic Studies. “You should actually be using those hypersonic missiles to support your ground offensive. We haven’t seen it.’ Russia could test Ukrainian air defenses, analyst says.
Not coordinated
According to Bolder, the Russian airstrikes are isolated and uncoordinated with any other military action by the Russian Army or Air Force. “Everything you do, every domain, every military domain you deploy, you must deploy orchestrated. And then you have a so-called joint battle over the whole domain. The Russians seem to be bad at this.”
«We have already seen that manned aviation and the army hardly cooperate anyway. And this unmanned air force, you should really use it to support your ground offensive. We haven’t seen it.’ The main effect of these airstrikes is that Ukrainians are even more determined, Bolder thinks. “And in the West it evokes a reaction of: we need to deliver more.”
“Manned aviation and the military hardly work together”
So why those attacks? According to Bolder it could be a revenge for the operation two weeks ago in Bryansk where some Ukrainian freedom fighters occupied some Russian villages. Another option is to test the weak points of the Ukrainian air defense. ‘Where are the weaknesses? You can do this by shooting a really big burst and see what happens.’
Lukashenko’s lobby
Meanwhile, Belarusian President Alexandr Lukashenko is visiting Iran. Officially to discuss ‘trade and economic cooperation’, but more likely he was sent by the Kremlin to request more weapons. «He looks a bit like Putin’s delivery boy. He has to try to get weapons everywhere.’ According to Bolder, Russia appears to have run out of Iranian weapons, as few of them have been used in recent airstrikes. But Bolder also thinks that Lukashenko is trying to launch artillery shells at Iran. “That appears to be the strategy.”
Lukashenko is a bit of Putin’s messenger
Fierce Ukraine against Germany
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba lashed out at Germany in an interview with German Bild. He thinks the Germans are too slow to deliver things. Kuleba says he has spoken to industry and that while it is ready to supply arms, German politics is reluctant. “Obviously it’s also about putting pressure on things and getting the message across: we need more, we need more quickly.”
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Source: BNR
Sharon Rock is an author and journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. She has a passion for learning about different cultures and understanding the complexities of the world. With a talent for explaining complex global issues in an accessible and engaging way, Sharon has become a respected voice in the field of world news journalism.
