Russian military contingent in Ukraine numbers more than 721,000 troops - Syrskyi

The russian army’s offensive force in Ukraine currently numbers 721,300 troops. The enemy has not abandoned its plans to seize Ukrainian territory and continues to employ tactics of massive infantry assaults. Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi has stated this in an interview with The Times.

According to the Commander-in-Chief, the russian command continues to exert constant pressure on the defense forces, exploiting its significant advantage in manpower. The enemy is attempting to wear down Ukrainian units across the entire front line by deploying small but persistent assault groups.

“Just like last year, they are using the ‘thousand cuts’ tactic, trying to penetrate as deeply as possible into our defenses,” Oleksandr Syrskyi noted.

In addition to their numerical superiority in manpower, the rapid militarization of the russian economy and the scaling up of unmanned system production are becoming serious challenges for Ukraine. The occupiers are actively adopting Ukrainian experience in drone warfare and putting it into industrial production.

The Commander-in-Chief reported that russian troops are currently deploying approximately 6,000–7,000 FPV drones on the battlefield every day. At the same time, intelligence indicates the threat of a significant escalation: by the end of this year, the occupying forces plan to increase this figure to 33,000 drones per day.

Such a rapid increase in the number of drones deployed by russia will require a symmetrical and swift response from Ukraine and its Western partners, including the development of electronic warfare systems and the expansion of its own unmanned aerial vehicle fleets.