Why are Russian forces using motorcycles on frontline? Military expert explains

He stated this on Espreso TV.

"Right now, the Russians are trying to act in a standard way at the front. They attack in small assault groups of up to 10 people. Situations where the Russians launch large mechanized columns in assaults are now very rare. The Russians continue to admit that the main problem in losing their armored vehicles is detonations on Ukrainian anti-tank mines, and of course, their personnel being blown up by anti-personnel mines. When our drones hit Russian equipment, it is classified as damaged and can still be evacuated in some cases," Kyrychevskyi said.

The expert noted that with the help of motorcycles, the Russian forces are trying to cross minefields, which are sown with both anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, as quickly as possible. He pointed out that, in addition to FPV drones, cluster munitions are an effective way to counter such assaults.

"For the Russians, motorcycles are a way to dash through Ukrainian minefields, which are sown with anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. Then they try to get to the Ukrainian positions as quickly as possible, jump off the motorcycles, and go on the assault. In this case, motorcycles replace armored personnel carriers for them. 

If we talk about countering such motorcycle assaults, then, in addition to FPV drones, classic artillery with cluster munitions will be very effective. In this case, it is more about inflicting losses on enemy personnel. How long the Russians will have the motivation to storm our positions on motorcycles remains an open question. 

To be fair, the Russians have some inertia here, because back in 2011 they officially abandoned motorcycles for military use. Then, until 2022, they repeatedly practiced tactics for using motorcycles in their peacekeeping missions. In this situation, we urgently need to replenish our artillery shells to more quickly turn these motorcyclists into losses," he added.

• On April 17, the commander of the Heavenly Punishment UAV crew, Andrii Otchenash, said on Espreso that the Russian forces are constantly conducting assault operations on motorcycles.