As we detailed earlier, the White House is currently overseeing a 'massive surge' in arms to Ukraine with just 50 days left before President-elect Trump enters office. The US is also this week announcing $725 million in more aid, which is the latest defense package for Ukraine drawn directly from US inventories.
It will include a second shipment of antipersonnel mines, and comes the same day that Germany also unveiled another $680 million in Ukraine aid. The Western allies have asserted that they want to see Zelensky and Ukraine forces in as favorable a position as possible before negotiations to end the war inevitably proceed (something which Trump has repeatedly promised from day one of his second administration). But the prime question remains: what good will the rapid infusion of more weapons do when the real problem is Ukraine's collapsing manpower? To illustrate the reality of Russia's rapid advance of the past several months...
Below is a round-up of the progression of the Russian advance according to article headlines stretching back more than a month ago to today, illustrating the same.
Headline from four weeks ago: Ukrainian defenses in Donbas risk getting steamrolled by Russian advance
Headline from two weeks ago: Ukraine front could 'collapse' as Russia gains accelerate, experts warn
The ISW data shows Moscow’s forces have seized around 2,700 sq km of Ukrainian territory so far this year, compared with just 465 sq km in the whole of 2023, a near six-fold increase.
Dr Marina Miron, a defence researcher at Kings College London, suggested to the BBC that there was a possibility the Ukrainian eastern front “might actually collapse” if Russia continued to advance at pace.
Headline from one week ago: Ukraine War Map Reveals Russia's Rapid Front Line Advances
Russian forces have been advancing far more quickly in Donetsk region in recent weeks than they did for the whole of last year, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), whose map shows the state of play on the front line.
The Washington, D.C., think tank said on Sunday that recent Russian gains near Vuhledar and Velyka Novosilka showed that the war "is not stalemated" and the Donetsk region is "becoming increasingly fluid" with the latest Russian advances. Newsweek has emailed the Russian and Ukrainian defense ministries for comment.
Headline from two days ago: Russia Forges Ahead in Eastern Ukraine, Capturing More Villages in Recent Days
As Many As 200,000 Ukrainian Soldiers Have Deserted
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