Ukrainian soldiers say they are worried fortifications are not being built quicky enough as Russian forces continue to advance along the front lines. Poorly built defensive lines, including trenches, foxholes and firing positions, are part of the reason outgunned Ukrainians forces have had to withdraw, because there is no safe retreat.
Workers install anti-tank defenses known as “dragon teeth” during construction of new defensive positions close to the Russia n border in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine , on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Workers ride by an excavator to construct new defensive positions close to the Russia n border in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine , on Wednesday, April 17, 2024.
But Ukraine was slow to follow suit; it was not until this spring, when weather conditions improved, that any real progress was made. In March, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Ukraine was building 2,000 kilometers of fortifications across three lines of defense. “We entered the war with nothing,” said a serviceman in Ukraine’s engineering force, who spoke on condition of anonymity to talk openly about the lack of preparation. When he arrived to build fortifications in Ukraine’s east in October, all his unit had were aging equipment from the 1960s and shovels, he said.Ukraine’s lack of adequate defensive lines has helped Russia make significant military gains, and constant enemy fire hinders building.
“We lost department commanders, platoon commanders, company commanders and sergeants,” he said. “That is, we lost the entire skeleton of the brigade.”
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