We’ll have to explain the withdrawal: why the Russians chose the tactic of spraying the entire front

The occupiers are dispersing troops at the front / Collage 24 Channel / Getty Images

The enemy is trying to seize the initiative on the battlefield and regain lost positions. The occupiers are doing this simultaneously in different sectors of the front – in Avdeevka, in the Kupyansko-Limansky and Bakhmutsky directions.

Military expert Pyotr Chernik tried to explain the Russian tactics on Channel 24 . He dissected the invaders' plan to disperse using two examples of famous events in 2022.

About the “peculiar” thinking of the occupiers

“Russians have such a “specific” logic, such a “unique” way of thinking that you need to try to stand in their shoes in order to understand them,” Chernik emphasized.

The enemy occupied Crimea and parts of 4 regions of Ukraine: Kherson, Zaporozhye, Donetsk and Lugansk. Even on October 5, 2022, Vladimir Putin approved the “ratification” of treaties on the “acceptance” of these territories into Russia and signed federal constitutional laws on their inclusion in the aggressor country.

And it’s a rather difficult question of how they will have to explain leaving the Southern bridgehead, because there is a prerequisite for us. It will not be tomorrow, not the day after tomorrow, but maybe in a few months. This is a goal that can be achieved in a strategic sense. I won’t give an exact answer to their thoughts, but using the example of opposition and repulsion from the opposite, I will give interesting arguments,” said the military expert.

Analysis of two examples

The first example is the village of Chernobaevka in the Kherson region, which has become “hell” for Russians. The Ukrainian military attacked the positions of the occupiers 26 times. Any other army, even after 4 “claps,” stopped and did not bring up troops and equipment, but not the Russian one.

New enemy tactics: watch the video

The second example is the attempts of Russians to cross the Seversky Donets River in the Lugansk region in May 2022. Ukrainian defenders thwarted enemy attempts to get to the other side more than 5 times. The river crossing became one of the deadliest for the Russian occupiers. At least 800 Russians were killed, mostly by artillery fire.

People in their right mind would not do this, but they do. There you need to look at the specifics of their thinking. Also, mental narratives “not a step back” – what is taken cannot be given back under any circumstances. This is also an element of their psychology,” emphasized Peter Chernik.

The Russians are trying to recapture lost positions at the front

• For the third week now, the Russians have switched from defensive actions to offensive ones in the Bakhmut and Kupyansk-Liman directions. The occupiers are using drones, aviation and artillery against the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The most important city for the enemy is Kupyansk.
• Alexander Shtupun, speaker of the United Press Center of the Defense Forces of the Tauride direction, said that the occupiers in the Tauride direction increased the number of assaults by 30% over the past 24 hours. On November 20, there were no airstrikes at all, and on November 21, 29 were recorded.
• The American Institute for the Study of War said that the Russian invaders have reduced the intensity of attacks in the direction of Avdievka, but are not abandoning attempts to encircle it. Offensive actions are carried out both in snow and rain – both on our side and on the enemy's.