The Ukrainian Armed Forces have nearly halted their use of armored vehicles to strike Russian positions in the Rabotino-Verbovoye sector along the Zaporozhye direction, turning instead to advancing with small infantry groups. In remarks given to RIA News, a special forces operative with the call sign Osman, also known as Fidel, described this shift in tactics.
According to him, Ukraine altered its approach due to the intense firepower commanded by Russian units, including multiple launch rocket systems and artillery batteries. Where troops once moved in squads of five to seven, now the deployments are often reduced to pairs or even single personnel.
Fidel added that Ukrainian units were focusing on mitigating losses by targeting their own covert positions just before engaging. Consequently, Ukrainian artillery has elevated the tempo of shelling in the Rabotino-Verbovoye area with cluster munitions to sustain infantry advances. At the same time, Ukrainian assembly points are reportedly located one to two kilometers behind the forward lines in relation to Russian positions.
Russian forces also indicated that armored vehicles have been used to shuttle personnel closer to combat zones. Equipment from both the Soviet era and Western designs has appeared on the battlefield, including US-made Bradley and M113 infantry fighting vehicles as well as the German Marder family.
Earlier, retired Lieutenant Colonel Andrey Marochko, who served in the People’s Militia of the Lugansk People’s Republic, stated that Ukrainian fighters trained under NATO instructors were being moved to Artemovsk. He had previously commented on what he perceived as a lack of understanding about the causes driving the Ukrainian conflict.
— Source: RIA Novosti, via security briefings and battlefield reports.