Zaluzhnyi’s essay not about stalemate but how to restore maneuver to positional war – ISW
The relevant statement was made by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
According to the analysts, Zaluzhnyi wrote that the war “is gradually moving to a positional form” and noted that Ukraine needs to gain air superiority; breach mine barriers in depth; increase the effectiveness of counter-battery; create and train the necessary reserves; and build up electronic warfare capabilities to overcome positional warfare.
The ISW mentioned that positional warfare refers to military operations that do not result in rapid or dramatic changes to the frontline despite both sides’ continuing efforts to improve their positions.
The analysts believe that Zaluzhnyi notably did not say that the war was stalemated in his essay or suggest that Ukraine could not succeed. His essay focused, rather, on explaining that the current positional character of the war was a result of technological-tactical parity on the battlefield and the widespread use of mine barriers by Russian and Ukrainian troops.
In the meantime, Zaluzhnyi considered the opportunities presented to Ukraine by Russia’s challenges, including the significant losses suffered by Russian aviation; Ukrainian use of Western missile and artillery weapons; and Russia’s failure to take advantage of its human mobilization resources due to political, organizational, and motivational issues.
Zaluzhnyi concluded that positional warfare benefits Russia as it prolongs the war and could allow Russia to achieve superiority in certain areas. He argued that Ukraine or Russia could return to rapid maneuver warfare under the right circumstances, which for Ukraine must include Western-provided military resources.
“Zaluzhnyi’s essay was all about how to restore maneuver to a positional war, not an argument that the war has reached a stalemate,” the ISW summarized.
A reminder that, on November 4, 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that the war in Ukraine is not a stalemate, and the country has no right even think about giving up.
Photo: The Washington Post
