More than 500 thousand Russian troops are deployed in the occupied territories of Ukraine, including units of the Russian Guard, which carry out filtration measures in Ukrainian cities.
In addition, today Russia on its own cannot produce the level of missiles and other weapons it needs, which would satisfy the pace of military operations that is in the war with Ukraine.
A representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Andrey Yusov spoke about this in a commentary to Facts ICTV.
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Power steering achievements
Yusov called the main achievement of the two years of war that Ukraine survived the confrontation with the Russian Federation.
— Despite these challenges, Ukraine stood, endured and showed the whole world that it is capable of resisting an aggressor state that is much larger in size and potential, — he said.
According to him, the GUR were involved in the liberation of the north of Ukraine and the Kharkov region, as well as the liberation of Zmeiny Island and raids into occupied Crimea.
— This is only a partial list of operations. Of course, many operations remain behind the scenes, especially those that take place on the territory of the aggressor state. But what is burning, exploding and roaring there helps us a lot. And this is something that happens often and lately — happens even more often, — he said.
In addition, Ukrainian intelligence officers are involved in work in the occupied territories, information about which can only be disseminated after the war.
Yusov says that the operation with the Crimean Bridge has not yet been completed, but it, as a legitimate military infrastructure object for the enemy, will be destroyed.
In parallel with this, the destruction of a significant number of Russian warships in the Black Sea allowed Ukrainians to feel more free in their waters.
Iranian ballistic missiles
Also, the representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate commented on the supply of ballistic missiles to Russia by Iran.
— Russia continues to build up and increase the capacity of its own military-industrial complex, but they do not keep up with the plans and the existing capacity does not allow them to provide all the needs for conducting combat operations and continuing the war against Ukraine. So yes, they are looking for international support, and some nomenclature from the DPRK and Iran is also provided, — he says.
According to him, this indicates that “the second army of the world cannot pull out”.
Yusov adds that today Russia is not able to restore its missile reserves to the level before February 24, 2022, and reserves for many items have been exhausted, so everything that is produced — immediately used by the enemy against Ukraine.
— Those pauses with missile strikes that we see from time to time, they occur, in particular, due to the fact that the enemy is trying to accumulate (missiles, — Ed.). Yes, the threat remains, it is serious, it cannot be neglected. But they cannot maintain a certain pace that the enemy took last year, much less maintain it on their own, — says the intelligence official.
How many Russian troops are in Ukraine
According to Andrei Yusov, the total group of Russian troops in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine totals more than 500 thousand.
— This is together with the forces of the Russian Guard, which must ensure filtration measures against the local population, — he says.
Murder of Kuzminov
The representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate also commented on the probable murder of the Russian Mi-8 helicopter pilot Maxim Kuzminov, who, according to media reports, was killed in Spain.
— We will not comment further. Yes, death is confirmed, — he said.
At the same time, Yusov added that Ukraine has fulfilled all its obligations and security measures regarding Kuzminov, but, says the representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate, “there are decisions that people make on their own” .
