Moscow has “increasingly ceded the initiative” to Kyiv amid 20 nights of drone and cruise missile attacks deep inside Ukraine in May, reacting to Ukrainian movements instead of progressing toward its war aims, British military intelligence officials said Wednesday.
Russia has had little success neutralizing Ukraine’s rapidly improving air defense network or destroying forces that will be used for expected counter-offensive operations, U.K. officials said in their latest intelligence assessment of the battlefield.
“On the ground, [Moscow] has redeployed security forces to react to partisan attacks inside western Russia,” British officials tweeted. “Operationally, Russian commanders are likely attempting to generate reserve forces and position them where they believe a Ukrainian counter-attack will occur.”
However, analysts said Russia’s initiative has likely been undermined by uncommitted forces being sent to fill gaps in the front line around Bakhmut, which has seen some of the war’s deadliest fighting.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner Group mercenary army, recently announced that his troops would withdraw from Bakhmut after Moscow claimed full control of the city. He said his mercenaries would be replaced by regular Russian troops.
However, the intense fighting in Bakhmut has left Russian forces exhausted ahead of Ukraine’s long-awaited counteroffensive.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
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