The prevailing wisdom is that in war the advantage lies with the defense. That is all the more true in the style of warfare in the Russian-Ukrainian War and it certainly seems to be case now. Illia Novikov reports at the Associated Press:
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia is throwing more units into its effort to take a key eastern Ukraine city, Western analysts say, after apparent setbacks that have slowed its dayslong onslaught.
The attempt to storm Avdiivka, a heavily defended city that stands in the way of Moscow’s ambition of securing control of the entire Donetsk region, is Moscow’s most significant offensive operation in Ukraine since the start of the year, the U.K. defense ministry said Tuesday.
The Kremlin’s push to claim Avdiivka comes after months of fending off Ukraine’s counteroffensive, which Kyiv launched some 16 months after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Also in the prevailing wisdom: a war of attrition is in Russia’s favor. The one area in which that is most likely to be correct is in human resources. While it may be the case that NATO can provide additional supplies, can NATO provide additional human resources without greatly widening the conflict?
