Overview:
- Russian defence minister inspects factory for advanced missiles
- Ukraine advances in western Zaporizhia Oblast
- Russian forces ‘conduct regimental rotation’
- Ukraine expresses solidarity with Israel after Hamas attacks
- How Sweden's 'best tank in the world' is helping liberate Ukraine
- How Ukraine has fended off Russian cyberattacks
Russian defence minister inspects factory for advanced missiles
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Russia's defence minister Sergei Shoigu inspected a military factory producing the Sarmat intercontinental missile, saying it would soon be ready for use, his ministry posted on Telegram Saturday.
The Sarmat is capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads and is among Russia's next-generation missiles which Putin has described as “invincible.”
It should be noted this is also how he described the Kinzhal missile but these have proven to be anything but.
The Sarmat missile will be "put on combat duty in the near future," the ministry said in a statement, as reported by AFP.
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said Russia had almost completed work on the Sarmat, after Moscow earlier this year announced it had successfully tested the missiles. Putin said the “truly unique weapon will strengthen the combat potential of our armed forces, reliably ensure the security of Russia from external threats.”
The Kremlin – hit by an unprecedented Western sanctions regime – has pivoted to a wartime economy. It has increased defence spending by 68 percent for 2024.
WATCH | #Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu inspects progress on Sarmat missile system production at Krasnoyarsk Plant, emphasizes strategic importance. pic.twitter.com/NrtV1qSS0R
— Newsline World (@NewslineWorldph) October 7, 2023
Russian forces ‘conduct regimental rotation’
In a sign that Russian forces may have overcome some of the manpower and operational difficulties that have plagued them whilst defending against Ukraine’s counteroffensive, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports they “appear to have recently conducted a regimental rotation in the Orikhiv area.”
British Defence Intelligence Update Ukraine 23 December 2024
The ISW notes that substantial elements of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division and two VDV divisions have been rotated in and out of the frontline south of Orikhiv, something Russian forces have been struggling to do in recent months.
While it remains one of the most basic functions an army needs to perform in combat, the fact Moscow has managed to do it suggests an “ability to sustain their defenses in this critical sector of the frontline.”
OPERATIONS:
The ISW also notes that Ukrainian forces continued counteroffensive operations near Bakhmut and advanced in western Zaporizhia Oblast.
Ukrainian forces advanced towards a tree line between Robotyne and Verbove, about 6km southeast of Robotyne.
ANALYSIS: The Stridsvagn 122 – How Sweden's 'best tank in the world' is helping liberate Ukraine
Ukraine recently received ten Stridsvagn 122s, the upgraded Swedish-modified models of the Leopard 2 tank with enhanced capabilities for all-weather employment, which are currently being used in combat on the front lines.
Sweden’s head of the Operational Department, Mats Ludvig, announced the delivery of the vehicles on the official website of the Swedish Armed Forces last month.
“We have given them everything we could in good material and good knowledge. Now we wish them all the best in liberating their country,” said Ludvig.
Read the full analysis of the Stridsvagn 122 here.
Ukraine expresses solidarity with Israel after Hamas attacks
Ukraine on Saturday expressed solidarity with Israel after a barrage of rockets was fired from Gaza.
"Ukraine strongly condemns the ongoing terrorist attacks against Israel, including rocket attacks against the civilian population in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. We express our support for Israel in its right to defend itself and its people," the Ukrainian foreign ministry said on social media.
Palestinian militants had begun a "war" against Israel which they infiltrated by air, sea and land from the blockaded Gaza Strip on Saturday, Israeli officials said, a major escalation in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israeli medics reported 22 people killed though the death toll is likely far higher.
How Ukraine has fended off Russian cyber-attacks
Military analyst –, many of whom expected Ukraine to fall within days of Russia’s full-scale invasion – have been shocked by how well Ukraine’s managed to defend and even go on the attack on land and sea, there’s another area where Ukrainians have held their own – cyber warfare.
While Russia continues to use its cyber capabilities to support its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, they haven’t had big wins, Viktor Zhora, the deputy head of the State Service of Special Communications and Information Protection of Ukraine (SSSCIP) said.
“They (the Ukrainians) have mounted an impressive defense against Russian aggression in cyberspace, just as they have done on the physical battlefield,” Lindy Cameron, Chief Executive Officer of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), in the UK said.
But, Cameron warned, “the threat remains real.”
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