Russia likely continues to “struggle” to extract and repair “thousands” of military vehicles that were damaged during the war in Ukraine, according to a British intelligence report.
Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine on February 24, in what he called a “special military operation” against what he described as NATO’s eastward expansion and with the aim of “denazify” Ukrainian leaders. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is Jewish and several of his relatives were killed during the Holocaust.
In its daily intelligence update, the UK Ministry of Defense said: “Inconclusive fighting continues in the Donbass and Kherson sectors. .”
The update noted that on July 18, British intelligence identified a Russian military vehicle overhaul and refurbishment facility near Barvinok in Russia’s Belgorod Oblast, 10 kilometers (about 6 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
Christopher Furlong/Getty
“At least 300 damaged vehicles were present, including main battle tanks, armored personnel carriers and general support trucks,” the update said.
“In addition to its well-documented personnel issues, Russia likely continues to struggle to extract and repair the thousands of combat vehicles that were damaged in combat in Ukraine.”
Newsweek contacted the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment.
Thousands of servicemen have died since the start of the war, while millions of people in Ukraine have been displaced from their homes.
Moscow reportedly charged 92 members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces with crimes against humanity.
Alexander Bastrykin, head of the Russian investigative commission, told the government news site Rossiiskaya Gazeta on Sunday that more than 1,300 criminal investigations had been opened and that some 96 people were wanted, in addition to the 92 charged, including 51 members. of the Ukrainian army.
Earlier in July, Ukraine said it was investigating more than 21,000 war crimes and crimes of aggression allegedly committed by the Russian military during the war.
On Friday, Ukraine, Russia, the UN and Turkey agreed on a deal to unblock Black Sea ports to release tens of millions of tonnes of Ukrainian grain, to avert a global food crisis . Ukraine is the fifth largest grain exporter in the world, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity.
As well as being an important agreement for global food security, it was also the first significant agreement between the two sides since the start of the war.
However, only a day later, a Ukrainian ship carrying grain from Odessa, the country’s largest port, was bombed. Kyiv blamed Russia. Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that Putin was “spitting” in the face of the UN and Turkey by violating the agreement.