Half of Russian artillery is no longer fit for combat – Ukrainian MP Nalyvaichenko

He expressed this opinion in the Verdict with Serhii Rudenko program on Espreso TV. 

“The Russian invaders no longer have enough forces or means. In fact, the enemy lacks artillery shells. Wave after wave, the Russians are throwing the Wagner PMC mercenaries at the Ukrainian Armed Forces' positions near Bakhmut and Vuhledar. The Russians have been carefully hiding it, but finally they are having problems with their artillery. The wear and tear of Russian artillery barrels reaches almost half,” noted Nalyvaichenko.

According to the Ukrainian MP, half of Russia's artillery is no longer suitable for combat operations.

“The Russians destroyed them with their endless shelling. That is, half of the Russian artillery is unfit to fire on Ukrainian land and Ukrainian defenders. And the Russians have nothing to replace it with. Putin has mobilized a labor force that is capable of doing something, working somewhere. Thus, by destroying the Russian mobilized soldiers, Russian artillery equipment is being worn out,” Nalyvaichenko emphasized.

• Earlier, Western media reported that Russia lost 20,000 to 30,000 troops trying to take Bakhmut.

• On March 1, the spokesman for the Eastern Group of Forces, Serhii Cherevatyi, said that the Ukrainian command had not decided to withdraw troops from Bakhmut, Donetsk region, but could do so to save the lives of its personnel.

• CNN's high-ranking Western sources have claimed that the number of the Wagner soldiers in the Bakhmut area is currently decreasing compared to the involvement of regular Russian troops.

• On March 8, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the possibility of the fall of Bakhmut in the coming days.

• The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports that Russia likely does not have sufficient resources to continue the offensive if Bakhmut is captured.

• On March 9, Ukrainian military emphasized that Bakhmut is currently under the control of Ukraine’s Armed Forces.

• Serhiy Cherevatyi, the AFU Eastern Group spokesman, claimed that NATO does not fully understand the logic of this war, and Jens Stoltenberg's statements about the "possible fall of Bakhmut" indicate this.

• Commander Oleksandr Syrskyi emphasized the importance of defending Bakhmut in the Donetsk region: it allows the Ukrainian Armed Forces to gain time.