Russian forces are likely to advance on foot after losing 200 armored vehicles

• The UK said on Saturday that Russia had likely lost around 200 armored vehicles in the past three weeks.
• Heavy losses occurred in fierce fighting for control of the city of Avdiivka.
• According to the UK, Russia is now likely to force its forces to advance on foot.

The British Ministry of Defense said in an intelligence briefing on Saturday that Russian equipment losses over the past few weeks have been so staggering that it is now likely to order its soldiers to advance on foot in an attempt to seize the eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka.

Since early October, Russia has been sending troops and equipment to the city in an attempt to reverse Ukrainian gains in Donetsk, which the Kremlin formally annexed last year. The fighting was devastating for both sides, but especially for Russia, which was accused of resorting to “human wave tactics” – throwing inexperienced forces onto Ukrainian defense lines – resulting in a massive loss of human life. In just one week, Ukrainian officials claim to have killed more than 6,000 Russian soldiers.

According to the UK, Russia may have no other choice.

“Over the past three weeks, Russia has likely lost around 200 armored vehicles during its attacks on the town of Avdiivka in Donbas,” the UK said in its usual statement. Defense intelligence assessment From fighting in Ukraine. He added, “In response, Russian forces will likely shift to launching foot attacks using infantry in this sector,” and suffered heavy losses as the forces advanced “across open terrain.”

The British analysis tracks a report this week from the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, that estimates that at least 197 Russian armored vehicles have been lost or damaged. She added that just under 100 were killed in the first week of the attack, which began on October 9.

That compares to Ukraine losing about 200 vehicles during more than four months of fighting in Zaporizhia, George Barros, a military analyst at ISW, told Insider. “We can now conclude that this is the most costly Russian attack ever in three weeks on a single city since the beginning of the war,” he said.