The surrender of militants is a matter of time
President Putin canceled the planned assault on the militants who had settled on the territory of the Azovstal plant. The main argument is the concern “about preserving the life and health of our soldiers and officers.” “MK” asked the expert about what losses our troops could have suffered during the assault on fortified positions.
Photo: Global Look Press
Putin called the capture of Mariupol a success and thanked the troops. This means only one thing: no changes in the operational environment are expected here. The remnants of the national battalions are securely blocked. It will also be impossible to break through to them from the outside.
This, in particular, was confirmed by the President of Ukraine Zelensky. According to him, the equipment of the Russian Federation does not allow to go 120 kilometers to the besieged. “We cannot do this today,” he admitted.
As the Minister of Defense reported to the President, up to two thousand militants could be located on the territory of Azovstal.
MK asked Colonel-General Leonty Shevtsov to evaluate the decision made, who in the late 90s, being the commander-in-chief of the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, headed the operational headquarters of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the North Caucasus.
– To begin with, the cancellation of the assault – quite reasonable decision. Remember from modern military history how fortified areas were stormed. According to military science, one defender needs at least three times the numerical advantage of the attackers, and preferably six times.
Now multiply. According to Shoigu's report. there are about two thousand militants. That is, we had to throw 10-12 thousand people to storm these concrete underground structures. The percentage of expected losses in such operations is also known. That is, it would be hundreds, if not thousands of our soldiers killed and wounded. Of course, we cannot afford such losses.
We also cannot afford to use American tactics and methods of war, which the United States used in the same Middle East, when the basis of success was the fire, missile, and artillery defeat of the enemy. Because there is no 100% guarantee that the militants are not keeping the civilian population there as a cover specifically to save ardent nationalists and foreign mercenaries.
It is easy to avoid losses in your troops: a few solid bombs, and everything would end there. But this is not our tactic in this particular case. What is being done now in the course of a special operation – not a single army in the world is capable of acting like this. This is not a Syrian campaign. A new tactic is being developed. Saving lives is decisive.
– They will come out in 2-3 days, surrender. Or try to break through. But then we will already be in a winning position, and they will be substituted. We will change places. You heard the instruction to our military: not a single fly should fly. Now let them try to escape. Quite reasonable from a military point of view.
Their surrender is a matter of time. The troops have freed themselves, regrouped and will continue to carry out their tasks.
Putin ordered to cancel the assault on Azovstal: video of the meeting with Shoigu
Watch the video on the topic
