Ukraine disrupts Russia’s logistics on southern front

Defense Express reported on Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully destroying Russian warehouses and restricting supply routes, leading to a supply shortage among Russian troops.

Russian troops are facing a scarcity of shells and other supplies due to the precision long-range strikes by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, disrupting the logistics and ammunition supply in the south.

According to Natalia Humeniuk, the head of the Joint Coordination Press Center of the Southern Defense Forces of Ukraine, Russian forces are already experiencing a shell shortage despite still launching 50-60 attacks daily.

"We are continuously destroying their stockpiles and supply lines, making it challenging for them to replenish what they've lost. The ammunition depots they set up on the left bank of the Dnipro have already been neutralized, hampering their ability to bring in additional supplies" Natalia Humeniuk said on the United News telethon.

The deterioration of Russia’s logistics can be attributed to the damage to the Chonhar Bridge, forcing them to take detours for transporting military supplies. 

The damage to structures like bridges, even if quickly repaired, may not fully restore their capacity. For instance, the Crimean bridge restricts trucks weighing more than 1.5 tons from crossing. The connection between occupied Crimea and Armyansk exists but burdens the transportation network, as does the highway along the Azov Sea.

The volume of daily military cargo transport is significant, with one battalion tactical group of the Russian army requiring around 17 truck and fuel truck flights per day. Although Russia could organize a ferry crossing of the Kerch Strait using large landing ships, the difficulty lies in leaving the peninsula or delivering cargo to occupied ports, as they fall within the range of Ukrainian long-range weapons.

Railroad connections are also considered, but transporting goods by rail concentrates ammunition at hub stations and unloading points, making them vulnerable to Ukrainian Armed Forces' attacks.

“Although this does not mean that Russia will run out of shells "tomorrow," it is the same mechanism of influence on the enemy's overall combat capability that allows us to liberate Ukrainian lands. This is exactly the scenario that was implemented during the operation to liberate Kherson, but on a much larger scale.”