Ukraine war latest: US claims Russia suffering decline in combat power

Russian troop numbers dipped for the primary time under 90 per cent of the 150,000 it had amassed on the border of Ukraine earlier than the invasion, a senior US defence official stated on Tuesday.

Russian forces are scuffling with communication, logistics and gas, the official stated, whereas some troops have been evacuated after affected by frost chunk as a result of they lacked correct chilly climate gear.

The Russian and Ukrainian army are engaged in fierce preventing, notably close to Mariupol, a strategically situated port metropolis that Russia is now shelling from the Sea of Azov, in keeping with the official.

Nevertheless, Ukrainian forces are pushing to retake territory in some locations, notably within the south close to Kherson, the Pentagon stated on Tuesday.

“We now have seen indications that the Ukrainians are going a bit extra on the offence now,” stated John Kirby, Pentagon press secretary.

In line with a report dated March 22 from the Institute for the Examine of Struggle, Russia’s forces are most likely shifting to a “part of protracted bombardment” of Ukrainian cities owing to the failure of their preliminary marketing campaign to encompass and seize Kyiv and different main cities.

The ISW additionally stated in its report the pinnacle of Ukraine’s armed forces specified on Tuesday for the primary time that Russian forces “are struggling casualties as a consequence of a poor medical provide system and lack of medication”. Moreover, the army chief additionally claimed some unspecified Russian items “have stockpiles of meals and ammunition for not more than three days”, in keeping with ISW.

US assessments couldn’t be independently verified.