Layered Defense in Ukraine, with Some Thoughts on the Battle

Via Perun's new video on the battlefield situation in Ukraine, an example of Ukraine's new approach to defense. Many of the barriers are intended to slow or stop light troops on motorcycles and SUVs; hung up the wire, they become easy marks for drones.

The traditional way to breach such a line would involve heavy use of armored vehicles, but Russia is running low on those and is reluctant is expose them to drone attack. Russian artillery fires are also way down, partly due to the drone threat, partly due to ammunition shortages. So Russia relies on glide bombs to blast gaps in these defenses. That is going very slowly, which is why Russian progress is so slow this year.

Perun accepts the evidence that Russian progress has slowed to near zero, and he gives credence to the argument that Russia is now losing more troops than it is recruiting. He notes that this doesn't necessarily project into the future, but says there should be "cautious optimism" that things have shifted Ukraine's way.