Reference News Network reported on October 24The approach of winter will bring tougher conditions to Ukraine, including thick mud, heavy snow and freezing cold. This will make military operations on both sides of the conflict more difficult.
“Winter always presents a challenge to combat,” U.S. Defense Secretary Austin told reporters in Brussels last week about the situation in Russia and Ukraine.
Even having winter gear doesn’t mean winter combat is any easier: Troops will struggle to stay warm, vehicles and weapons will be harder to maintain and operate, and snowfall will make mine detection more difficult.
The report also said that Ukraine has a certain advantage because it will receive supplies, including winter equipment, from NATO and other countries, while Russia has always had serious logistical problems during the operation.
Canada will provide 500,000 winter coats, including coats, trousers, boots, gloves and winter clothing, and Lithuania has said it will provide cold-weather gear for about 25,000 Ukrainian soldiers.
Germany has shipped large quantities of winter hats, jackets and trousers to Ukraine, and the United States and Britain have also included winter coats in Kyiv’s recent aid package.
On the issue of the impact of winter on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the website of Russia’s “Viewpoint” recently published an article entitled “How Winter Will Change the Nature of Military Operations in Ukraine” by Viktor Sokirko. The article is excerpted as follows:
European countries began to accelerate the supply of winter equipment to the Ukrainian army. From Europe’s point of view, the “General Frigid”, who once made Napoleon and Hitler’s armies defeated, will still benefit Russia. So, how did the Ukrainian and Russian armies cope with the winter?
Not long ago, Borrell, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, expressed concerns that the severe cold might help the Ukrainian and Russian troops. Citing history, he said that cold weather helped the Russians, alluding to the German rout in Moscow in the winter of 1941-1942. Today, it is not easy for the Ukrainian army to deal with the “General Frigid”.
Shortage of military uniforms
Ukrainian Defense Minister Reznikov asked the NATO leadership to supply Ukrainian air defense missiles with winter uniforms as early as early September. The number he requested was 200,000 sets.
After the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, Kyiv inherited a large number of Soviet ammunition and military material warehouses. There are millions of military overcoats, padded jackets, felt boots, thick ear-protected hats and even patrol sheepskin jackets, but these are warm but inconvenient to move around.
The Russian army has also encountered similar problems. For a while, the old Soviet winter uniforms were still issued, but fortunately, they did not last long. After the war in Afghanistan, the logistics department began to improve the design of military uniforms, launching new summer and winter clothes, as well as combat boots that are more convenient and warm.
In contrast, the update of Ukrainian uniforms was much slower. In 2014, the Ukrainian military uniform began to transform to the Western model, and a camouflage suit called “Little Oak” appeared, but after field tests, it was found to be extremely impractical and very expensive. The next attempt will be more successful. There are 6 layers of military uniforms, including gloves, scarves, and winter military caps. However, during high-intensity physical training, its weakness is exposed.
The reason why the Ukrainian army is looking forward to Western aid is because it does not have it at home. When Russia started its military operations against Ukraine, the number of Ukrainian troops was far less than that, and now it is too late to work overtime.
The West apparently does not have so many winter uniforms to meet the needs of the Ukrainian army.
The United States, Canada, Sweden, and Finland have all pledged to provide the Ukrainian army with warm winter clothing. Germany also expressed its support, but according to the German “Der Spiegel” weekly, it is not easy to find enough thermal insulation fabrics, not to mention the intensified energy crisis and the lower and lower heating temperature.
Western weapons “squeamish”
There are many nuances to the Winter War beyond warm clothing. One of the subtleties is the use of the weapon in winter. Fortunately, Soviet-made and later Russian-made shell systems do not require special lubricants even in extremely cold weather, and Kalashnikov automatic rifles can also use conventional weapon lubricants. Colonel Popov, an army logistics expert, said it was important to keep the weapons clean and free from dust.
The M777 ultra-light grenade Popov gun provided by the United States to Ukraine has excellent performance, but it is also very squeamish. Cold weather is its enemy. In addition, bumpy roads and mud are also huge challenges. Wipe down its delicate optics with a rag?
Ukrainian soldiers fight in armored vehicles (Associated Press)
The Ukrainian army has accumulated 8 years of experience in positional warfare in the Donbas region, but has never used such advanced weapons. In winter, they mostly defend their positions after firing guns.
Popov concluded: “The individual combat system of the Russian army called ‘Warrior’ has been successfully tested many times in the arctic cold, which is the highest level of evaluation. The Russian army currently has nearly 400,000 sets of such equipment. , including military uniforms, each set weighs about 22 kilograms. It is not ruled out that some mobilized enlistees may be assigned old winter clothes, but they also incorporate advanced elements of new military uniforms. This winter, the Russian soldiers on the Ukrainian steppe will definitely not Frozen.”Return to Sohu, see more
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