If Russian tech improves, war will extend beyond eastern and southern Ukraine

The Commander of the Joint Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Serhiy Nayev, made the statement on the American news channel ABC News.

"We understand that there is currently a resource war going on. The Russian Federation gets its resources with the help of the Axis of Evil -- it is North Korea, it is Iran. And we, with the help of our partners, receiving air defense equipment from them, are opposing the Russian Federation with their resources. It must be understood that the reduction of aid will really hit our defense capabilities. But we will fight with what we have," the general said.

Nayev emphasized that providing the Ukrainian Defense Forces with the latest technologies is critical.

While old Soviet equipment needs 100 shells to hit a target, Western equipment needs far fewer, less than 10 times that number, Nayev explained.

"The technology always outweighs the number. And I will emphasize once again that this help is very, very important to us," emphasized Nayev.

According to him, if Russia continues to produce weapons and improve its technology, the war may again go beyond eastern and southern of Ukraine.

"We are getting ready for that. We're building defenses, putting mines, and training our forces," the general said.

Background

Serhiy Nayev is currently responsible for Ukraine's northern border. In particular, he is responsible for strengthening field fortifications and mining on the border with Belarus, as well as for countering Russian subversive reconnaissance groups in Chernihiv and Sumy regions. According to the general, these groups make approximately 9-10 infiltration attempts per month in the specified areas.

As of mid-autumn 2023, over 500,000 anti-tank mines had been laid there under his leadership.

Nayev estimates the number of Russian troops on the northern Ukrainian border as follows:

from Russia - 19,000 soldiers (estimate for October 20),

from Belarus - 1,800 soldiers (estimate as of October 30).