The Pentagon has been offering each day updates on the U.S. evaluation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Ukraine’s efforts to withstand.
Listed below are highlights of what a senior U.S. protection official informed reporters Friday on Day 44:
U.S. sending Patriot system to backfill Slovakia
After repeated pleas from Ukraine for assist defending itself towards Russian air strikes, Slovakia is sending its sole S-300 surface-to-air missile system to Ukraine, it introduced Friday, and on the similar time, the U.S. introduced it’s shifting certainly one of its Patriot missile batteries to Slovakia to switch it.
“At my route, and on the invitation of Slovakia, U.S. European Command will reposition one Patriot missile system, manned by U.S. service members, to Slovakia,” Protection Secretary Lloyd Austin mentioned in an announcement Friday. “Their deployment size has not but been mounted, as we proceed to seek the advice of with the Slovakian authorities about extra everlasting air protection options.”
There was discuss of such an association since final month when Slovakian protection minister Jaroslav Nad’ mentioned his nation was able to ship its Soviet-era S-300 to Ukraine on situation Slovakia’s air-defense functionality be instantly backfilled.
“Ought to there be state of affairs that we’ve a correct substitute or that we’ve a functionality assured for a sure time period, then we will likely be prepared to debate the way forward for S-300 system,” Slovakia’s Prime Minister Eduard Heger mentioned in a joint press convention with Austin on March 17.
A U.S. army Patriot battery based mostly in Germany was pre-positioned in Poland for this objective, and that system will quickly be shifting to from Poland to Slovakia to switch its S-300, in accordance with a senior U.S. protection official.
The Slovak army has beforehand mentioned it had about 45 missiles for its S-300 system.
US ‘not shopping for’ Russia’s denial of hitting railway station
The Pentagon is “not shopping for” Russia’s denial of accountability, a senior U.S. protection official mentioned.
“They initially claimed a profitable strike after which solely retracted it when there have been stories of civilian casualties,” the official mentioned. “It is our full expectation that this was a Russian strike — we consider they used a brief vary ballistic missile, an SS-21.”
Why may the Russians have focused it?
The official mentioned the station is a serious rail hub in a “very strategic location,” simply south of the important thing metropolis of Izyum.
“And we have been speaking now for days and days about how Izyum was so vital to them as a result of it lies nearly in the midst of the Donbas,” the official mentioned.
Russian items ‘eradicated’
A number of the Russian battalion tactical teams (BTGs) which have withdrawn again throughout the Belarusian and Russian borders have been primarily gutted from laborious preventing in Ukraine, in accordance with the senior protection official.
“We have seen indications of some items which might be actually, for all intents and functions, eradicated. There’s simply nothing left of the BTG besides a handful of troops and possibly a small variety of autos,” the official mentioned.
When it comes to complete losses — counting troops, tanks, plane and missile stock – Russia has misplaced between 15-20% of the fight energy it initially had arrayed towards Ukraine for the reason that starting of the invasion, in accordance with the official.
Russia hoping to recruit 60,000 new troops
A number of the Russian forces withdrawn from round Kyiv and elsewhere are actually heading to the Russian cities of Belgorod and Valuyki, to the northwest of Donbas. However there are “no indications” that recent troops are ready there to affix them.
For now, degraded Russian BTGs, normally made up of roughly 800-1,000 troops, are “exploring the choice of” consolidating, banding collectively remaining forces and provides to type new items.
“It is actually going to depend upon the unit and the way prepared they’re to get again into the combat, however we do not consider that on the whole that is going to be a speedy course of for them given the sorts of casualties they’ve taken and the form of injury that they’ve sustained to their to their items’ readiness,” the official mentioned.
Russia can be aiming to recruit upwards of 60,000 new troops, in accordance with the official.
“They hope to get strengthened by new conscripts — there’s a complete new conscription schedule arising right here in Might,” the official mentioned, including that Russian conscripts serve for one yr.
“It stays to be seen how profitable they will be on this, and the place these reinforcements would go, how a lot coaching they’d get,” the official mentioned.
Moreover, the U.S. sees indications Russia has begun mobilizing reservists.
After Russian BTGs rebuild, “the almost definitely plan of action could be for them to maneuver instantly south proper into the Donbas,” the official mentioned.
The Pentagon estimates greater than 40 Russian BTGs are already positioned in or close to the Donbas area. The estimate was “greater than 30” on Wednesday, which means as much as 10,000 extra troops have arrived in latest days.
ABC News’ Luis Martinez contributed to this report.
