The former Russian military chief Igor Girkin has said that Vladimir Putin will have “no one and nothing” left to fight come the spring.
Girkin who is Putin’s former commander said that the Russian army is running out “cannon fodder” to fight his war in Ukraine.
Girkin was responsible for capturing Crimea in 2014 and he said that he does not believe the Kremlin will allow the “broad offensive” this year due to the lack of soldiers.
He wrote on his Telegram channel, “There will be no mobilisation yet—until the ‘elections’ for sure.
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“They will try to patch up ‘holes in the ranks’ and new units at the expense of prisoners and contract soldiers.”
Girkin added, “In turn, means that in the spring we will have no one and nothing with which to attack (and if mobilisation is not carried out in the spring, then there will be no one in the summer).”
The former Russian commander has been very critical of Putin’s war and his strategy and was dismissed from the army over his role in the shooting down of the Malaysian Airlines Flight 17.
He was tried in absentia at The Hague and Girkin was found guilty of murdering all 298 passenger and crew on 17 July 2014.
Girkin is currently under arrest and in a Russian jail on charges of extremism.
Ukraine has said that they need more military aircraft for combat operations against Russian forces and have asked for the deadly US A-10s to help support their military units.
The US A-10s are also capable of launching long-range cruise missiles which the British Prime Minister has pledged to Kyiv on his recent visit.
Commander of the Ukrainian Ground Forces Oleksandr Syrsky said in an interview with Reuters, “I would talk about A-10s as an option if they’ll be given to us … this is not a new machine, but a reliable one that has proven itself in many wars, and which has a wide array of weapons for destroying land targets to help the infantry.”
He added, “It is for destroying land-based targets: tanks, artillery … everything that counters the infantry.”
Commander Syrsky said that attack helicopters such as the AH-64 Apache and AH-1 Super Cobra, as well as the UH-60 Black Hawk would play essential roles in Ukraine.
He added, “As well as calls for more aircraft, Ukraine has asked allies to speed up the supply of artillery ammunition, which some units have complained is running short.
“While drones are increasingly influential on the battlefield, artillery is a mainstay for both armies, and Ukraine has to balance its use of various caliber shells based on the available supply.
“We have developed an expertise with this and adjust to our daily realities.
“I think there are always chances. You just need to find them and use them.”
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