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Russian forces are experiencing “command-and-control” problems and are communicating over unsecured channels as they try to gain momentum in the war in Ukraine, the Pentagon said on Monday.
“We do see them having some command-and-control difficulties,” a senior US defence official told Pentagon reporters, citing Russian forces' inability in some cases to integrate air and ground attacks and communicate effectively.
“We are seeing them use a lot more unclassified communications because their classified communications capabilities … for one reason or another are not as strong as they should be,” the official said.
The Pentagon did not confirm Ukrainian reports that five Russian generals have been killed in the war so far but argued that Moscow's logistical difficulties could make their forces more prone to attacks.
The US official said Russia has fired more than 1,100 missiles in Ukraine.
Russia's Defence Ministry on Saturday said it had used a hypersonic Kinzhal missile for the first time in action in Ukraine. The US official said the Pentagon could neither confirm nor refute the use of a hypersonic missile.
“It could be that they're running low on precision-guided munitions,” the official gave as one possible reason Russia could be using hypersonic missiles and dumb bombs.
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Firefighters put out a major blaze caused by Russian shelling at a food warehouse in Severodonetsk, a city in eastern Ukraine's Luhansk region. AFP -
Irina Zubchenko walks her dog Max amid the destruction caused by the shelling of a shopping center in Kyiv. AP -
Ukrainian refugee Masha, 6, plays at the border crossing in Budomierz, Poland. Reuters -
A charred Russian armoured personnel carrier on the front line in the Kyiv region. Reuters -
A volunteer takes position at a checkpoint in a district of Kyiv as Russian forces try to encircle the Ukrainian capital. AFP -
Residents of Kyiv retrieve belongings from their homes in a five-storey residential building that partially collapsed after shelling by Russian artillery. AFP -
Police officers in Moscow detain a woman as she protests against Russia's invasion of Ukraine. AFP -
A resident of the village of Krasylivka after Russian bombardment, part of Moscow's effort to move on Kyiv. AFP -
Tetiana Chornovol, a former Ukrainian MP, prepares to take position with an anti-tank missile on the front line in the Kyiv region. Reuters -
A rescue worker at a shopping mall in Kyiv after a Russian air strike. Reuters -
Ukrainian firefighters rescue a person buried beneath rubble after an explosion at a shopping centre in Kyiv. Reuters -
Ukrainian police officers stand near a warehouse that was hit by the debris of a downed rocket in Kyiv. AFP -
Graves are dug in a street in the besieged southern port city of Mariupol. Reuters -
Pro-Russia militia fighters travel by tank to the outskirts of Mariupol. Reuters -
Milana, 6, who is recovering from leg wounds sustained when a Russian rocket hit her house on February 28, killing her mother, watches volunteers dressed as clowns at a children's hospital in Kyiv. Getty -
Tetyana and other residents wait in Kyiv, after being relocated from Irpin town. EPA -
Rescuers carry a Ukrainian soldier saved after 30 hours trapped in the wreckage of a military school hit by Russian rockets, in Mykolaiv. AFP -
A Ukrainian refugee arrives with her dog at the reception centre about three kilometres from the Moldova-Ukraine border. EPA -
Volunteers in Kyiv prepare packages with food and other goods for Ukrainian soldiers and civilians in cities across the country. EPA -
Residents walk between damaged residential buildings in Mariupol. Reuters -
Participants illuminate the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna with the lights of their smartphones, during the charity concert We Stand with Ukraine. AFP -
Yana Hladiychuk of Ukraine with a "Stop War" message on her face after the women's pole vault, on the second day of the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade. Getty -
An Ukrainian girl in tears after crossing the border in Siret, northern Romania. AFP -
A satellite image shows the aftermath of the Russian air strike on the Mariupol Drama Theatre. EPA/Maxar Technologies -
A woman takes cover in a military trench as a Russian jet fighter flies overhead, near the military school hit by Russian rockets the day before, in Mykolaiv. AFP -
A man walks amid debris in front of a Kyiv residential apartment complex that was heavily damaged by a Russian attack on March 18. Getty -
Residents carry water from a food warehouse, which is under the control of the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic, on the outskirts of Mariupol. AP -
Rescuers work at the site of the National Academy of State Administration building damaged by shelling in Kharkiv. AP -
A satellite image shows artillery strikes and burning fields in Chernihiv. AP / Maxar Technologies -
A resident assesses her damaged flat in Mariupol. Reuters -
Kyiv's mayor Vitali Klitschko keeps people away from a five-storey residential building that partially collapsed after shelling on March 18. AFP -
Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses crowds at a concert in Moscow to mark the eighth anniversary of the annexation of Crimea. AP -
Ukrainian policemen secure a residential area in Kyiv. Sergei Supinsky -
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. AP -
A cloud of smoke rises after an explosion in Lviv, western Ukraine, on March 18. AP -
Zinaida Pivtsova, 75, who fled the war in Ukraine, takes shelter in a sports stadium in Przemysl, south-east Poland. AP -
A police officer at abandoned residential buildings in Kyiv. AP -
Inside a shell-damaged school in Kyiv. AP -
A woman cries before starting to clean the site where a bomb damaged residential buildings in Kyiv. AP Photo / Rodrigo Abd -
A woman from Ukraine sits in a car with her children as a volunteer takes them to a hostel in Budapest, Hungary. AP -
An abandoned flat in Kyiv. AP -
A man removes a curtain inside a school in Kyiv. AP -
A worker sets up a billboard with the colours of the Ukrainian flag in Novoiavorisk, near Lviv. AP -
Olga plays with her daughter Vedeneya in an empty park in Kyiv. AP
But at this point in the war and with Russia reportedly not achieving its objectives, the defence official saw Moscow looking for a “break out” moment.
“What we assess is that they are looking for a chance to break out. They are looking for a chance to gain some momentum, not even regain momentum because they never really had it.”
This could lead to intensified bombardments in Ukraine.
“With increased long-range fire and missile strikes, artillery bombardment and trying to encircle a city so that you can lob more long-range fire into those cities, [that] is a reflection of what some people believe is a desperate attempt by them to gain some momentum to try to turn the course of the war,” the official said.
Turning the course of the war could then be used “to improve their position at the negotiating table to get some kind of leverage, because right now it doesn't appear like they have a lot of leverage to negotiate with".
Russian President Vladimir Putin has maintained that the war is going according to plan and that his forces have achieved their set objectives so far.
The Pentagon said Russia has been increasing its naval activity in the northern Black Sea, though there are currently no indications of an imminent attack on the port city of Odesa.
“The Russians have a little bit more than a dozen warships of different stripes and sizes,” the official said.
That is double the number of warships the Pentagon said Russia had in the area last week.
The Pentagon said Ukraine is still putting up a stiff resistance that has kept air superiority contested as ground forces fend off Russian attacks near Kyiv.
