Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine marks its second anniversary on Saturday. On this occasion, the two armed forces experts, Colonel Markus Reisner and Major General Bruno Günter Hofbauer, gave a summary at the Ministry of Defense.
The second Russian winter offensive is currently underway. At that time, on February 24, exactly two years ago, no one thought that the Ukrainians would be able to withstand the Russian war of aggression for more than three days. But the war did not start two years ago, but actually ten years ago, as army expert Colonel Markus Reisner said at the Ministry of Defense.
The Ukrainian army has now been more than weakened and the current situation makes Reisner look bad for Ukraine. This is mainly due to the inadequate supply of ammunition and Russian superiority in this area. “One Ukrainian grenade is currently followed by 10 Russian grenades at the front,” Reisner said.
Russia has “massively adapted” over the past two years, ramping up its military-industrial complex and “is currently capable of producing an estimated between 3.5 and five million artillery shells per year.” Russia also produces drones on an industrial scale. The Ukrainians must first build up a suitable industry for this, which puts them at a clear military disadvantage.
The Bundeswehr expert also saw a shortage of anti-aircraft systems on the Ukrainian side, a lack of combat aircraft and the laboriously built up equipment stocks had practically been used up in the failed summer offensive of 2023.
The Russian army is more than twice as large as at the start of the war
The army expert estimated the number of Ukrainian soldiers currently deployed at the front at 400,000. Nearly 500,000 men have been deployed on the Russian side, two and a half more than the 190,000 men with which the Russian army invaded in February 2022. Military losses in the past two years amounted to about 200,000 killed and wounded on the Ukrainian side and 300,000 on the Russian side, he explained, citing what he said was reliable information from US military officials.
A third of these 500,000 soldiers are likely to have been killed, according to the Colonel of the General Staff Service, who first commented in the media on the military confrontation between Russia and Ukraine on February 22, 2022, two days before the start of the Russian battle . invasion. Regarding the influence of the war on Europe, he said: “Our weakness is Russia’s strength.”
Danger from drones high
The Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Major General Bruno Günter Hofbauer, called the current juncture a “preparatory phase before a much larger conflict,” signaling the change in emphasis in global interaction regarding the Global South and the global east. . But Austria also faces many challenges. “We must remember that all the risks and threats that we worried about before Ukraine have not gone away.”
Based on the fact that Austria is still surrounded by EU and NATO states, he also mentioned the violation of air sovereignty and the use of special operations forces as possible threats. The major general also rated the military use of drones against Austria in the next ten to fifteen years as high. “One of the most important points for the Austrian Armed Forces is to increase their anti-aircraft capabilities accordingly,” he said.
A lot of money is currently being spent on this. 55 million euros are spent on combat helmets alone. They are trying to reform the armed forces while the engine is running. In any case, the goal is to ‘become a combat-ready federal army’ by 2032.
Source: Krone
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