Russia Has Deployed 97% of Army in Ukraine but Is Struggling to Advance, U.K. Says U.S., allies gather for a second day of talks on boosting supplies to Kyiv
The U.K. said Russia has deployed nearly its entire army in Ukraine, increasing pressure along the front line in the east of the country but falling short of a breakthrough.
Ukrainian officials have warned of a renewed Russian onslaught to coincide with the first anniversary of Moscow’s invasion next week. But some Western officials say the offensive is unlikely to be one single event. Russian forces have redoubled attacks along the front lines in eastern Ukraine in recent weeks, eking out gains after a series of reversals last year.
“We now estimate 97% of the whole Russian army is in Ukraine,” U.K. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told the British Broadcasting Corp.’s “Today” show on Wednesday.
Russian forces were trying to advance on all fronts, he said, adding: “We haven’t actually seen this massing of a single force to punch through in a big offensive. We’ve just seen an effort to advance, and that has come at a huge cost to the Russian army.”
Ukraine is seeking to absorb the attacks, buying time to build up its own forces for an offensive to retake territories occupied by Russia. Western officials expect Ukraine to launch a counteroffensive in the spring.
Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for Ukraine’s military intelligence, said Russian forces were rushing to gain ground before Kyiv amassed sufficient combat power for its own offensive. “The Russians understand that the continuation of the Ukrainian counteroffensive and operations to liberate our territories are inevitable,” he said. “That’s why the enemy is in a hurry.”
Fighting has been particularly fierce in the eastern city of Bakhmut, where Ukrainian forces are resisting Russian moves to encircle the city.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said grueling battles in the east were depleting Russia’s capacity to mount a broader offensive. In his nightly address, Mr. Zelensky said the situation in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk remains extremely difficult.
“We must understand the significance of these battles,” Mr. Zelensky said. “That is where the unprecedented destruction of Russian potential is taking place now.”
Mr. Wallace’s remarks came as the U.S. and other allies gathered for a second day of talks on boosting supplies to Kyiv. On Tuesday, Kyiv’s allies pledged more air-defense systems and training during talks of the Contact Group on Ukrainian Defense. Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said discussions on Wednesday would focus on the provision of tanks.
An immediate priority, however, is munitions. Ukrainian troops have fired so many rounds at Russia’s invading forces over the past year that Kyiv’s allies are struggling to meet demand and have had to increase arms production.
Ukrainian soldiers work with a drone. Kyiv is seeking to buy time to build up its forces for an offensive.Photo: Libkos/Associated Press
A family prepares to evacuate from Chasiv Yar, near Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine.Photo: Yasuyoshi Chiba/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Western countries are hoping to reduce Kyiv’s firing rate by improving Ukrainian tactics and coordination through training, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.
“Russia continues to pour large numbers of additional people into the fight,” he told reporters at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday. “And those people are ill-trained and ill-equipped and because of that, we see them incurring a lot of casualties.”
Russian military-industrial output is also struggling to keep pace with the war, the U.K.’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday. The ministry pointed to a televised meeting last month in which Russian President Vladimir Putin castigated the deputy prime minister responsible for the defense industry for “fooling around.”
“Production is almost certainly falling short of the Russian demands to resource the Ukraine campaign and restore its longer-term defense requirements,” the ministry said.
Mr. Putin urged the Emergency Situations Ministry to improve the country’s civil-defense system, in remarks broadcast on state television.
State news agencies, meanwhile, said Russia’s upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, would hold a meeting on Feb. 22, a day after Mr. Putin is set to deliver a state of the nation address ahead of the first anniversary of the invasion.
On Feb. 21 last year, Mr. Putin recognized the independence of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions, setting the stage for the invasion three days later.
A Ukrainian soldier outside Bakhmut, where Ukrainian forces are resisting Russian moves to encircle the city. Photo: Yevhenii Zavhorodnii/REUTERS
—Max Colchester and Evan Gershkovich contributed to this article.
Write to Isabel Coles at isabel.coles@wsj.com and David Luhnow at david.luhnow@wsj.com
Corrections & Amplifications
The U.K. said Russia has deployed nearly its entire army in Ukraine. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said the U.K. said Russia has deployed nearly its entire military in Ukraine. (Corrected on Feb. 15.)
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