Russian troops march to the frontline
It is reported that both sides have suffered huge losses up to the current stage of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, but reports on the specific number of losses and equipment vary greatly. Eastern European countries estimated the number of casualties to the Russian army last month at "around 100,000," including the missing; Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley believed that Ukraine's losses were "close to those of the Russian army." The European Union believed in a previously deleted video that Ukrainian dead soldiers had reached 100,000. At present, both the West and Russia regard the withdrawal of Russian troops from Kiev at the end of March as the dividing line between the first and second phases of the conflict. More than 80% of the casualties in the two countries occurred after the second phase.
The 200th Mech Brigade is one of the "absolutely elite" forces of the Russian army.
Late last week, the US media " The Washington Post " exclusively published a report documenting the entire process of the "annihilation" of an elite Russian army unit. The news follows the 200th Independent Motorized Rifle Brigade of the Russian Army. From the information introduction, it can be seen that it is a "glorious unit" that has made considerable achievements during World War II. Soldiers can wear Soviet painted tactical helmets and clothes from 1941 to show their different identities. The US media claims that it has more advanced equipment than most other Russian troops and has received better training, so its combat effectiveness is very strong. Before the Russian-Ukrainian conflict began, the 200th Motorized Infantry Brigade performed defense tasks on the Russian-Finnish border. They had already headed to Ukraine in the first stage.
The tank that was destroyed in March this year was already extremely rusty.
The report mentioned that this unit suffered two "serious blows". The first time was that they were attacked and ambushed by the Ukrainian army shortly after entering Ukraine. The soldiers were seriously injured and killed. In addition to the soldiers who died in subsequent battles, the US media said that this mechanized infantry brigade had lost hundreds of soldiers before June. The unit was then dispatched to positions in the Kharkov area to resist the Ukrainian attack. However, they did not expect that the "key area" of the second phase of Ukraine's counteroffensive would be in Kharkov. Therefore, the 200th Motorized Infantry Brigade, which had not yet recovered its vitality, suffered a defeat in the Ukrainian army's counterattack in July, and was almost completely wiped out in the northeastern part of Kharkov.
The Ukrainian army received armor supplies before the conflict
The US media obtained two pieces of key intelligence. The first was the testimony of a recruit who was added to the 200th Infantry Brigade during the mobilization operation in September (possibly an interrogation statement after being captured). The soldier said that the 200th Infantry Brigade had no combat effectiveness when he joined, and the casualties reached an exaggerated level and could not play any role. Another intelligence came from senior intelligence officials in Europe. They also learned that the 200th Infantry Brigade was reorganized due to "too few" soldiers and officers, but because the organization had been completely destroyed, the reconstruction work may take many years to complete. The Ukrainian military officer Colonel Fedoshenko who was interviewed only summed it up in one sentence when he mentioned the 200th Motorized Brigade: They have nothing.
Destroyed armored vehicles and tanks
It is also worth mentioning that this is the first time that a Western country has released news about the "annihilation" of the Russian army after the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. This report has been released for three days, and the Russian government has not yet come forward to admit or deny it. However, the Russian army also pointed out in previous reports that many brigade-level troops in Ukraine were annihilated by the Russian army and were later "resurrected" in a reorganized manner to hide their deception. For example, the 24th Mechanized Brigade was completely wiped out by the Russian army on the eve of the Battle of Mariupol (the regiment commander Barrejas and other officers had been killed). The Ukrainian side later claimed that the losses were "minor" and miraculously pulled out a 24th Mechanized Brigade in a short period of time. There are many similar things.
