How the defenders of Kiev have prevented Russian forces from capturing the Ukrainian capital

The bodies of Russian soldiers were scattered among the wreckage of the charred military vehicles and the bombed buildings. Six metres away, behind the tankers, Ukrainian volunteers were watching with their eyes on a concrete mixer located about 500 metres away. Behind her were Russian troops on the edge of Bucha, the next city.

This front line in Irpin, on the northwestern periphery of Kiev, had not moved in two weeks despite Russian military superiority. That was a victory for Commander Casper and his fighters.

“The Russians were trying to move forward,” said the short, burly leader of the unit, who did not give his full name for security reasons, but used a name of war. “But they didn't expect the Ukrainians to be waiting for them.”

When Russian forces took control of a military airport in Hostomel, a few kilometers north of Irpin, on the first day of the war, many military observers expected a quick seizure of Kiev. But more than two weeks later, Russian troops have had difficulty moving forward.

A visit to two active front lines - Irpin and near Brovary, northeast of the center of the capital - allowed us to learn about the strategies, tactics and capabilities of the Ukrainian forces defending Kiev, as well as the apparent Russian tactical and miscalculations of Ukraine's resistance.

On Tuesday, Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced a citywide curfew until the early hours of Thursday, calling it a “difficult and dangerous time” as Russian forces intensify their attacks.

The United States and 20 other countries, mostly members of NATO and the European Union, have committed themselves to sending important shipments of weapons, such as Javelin anti-tank missiles, Stinger surface-to-air missiles, machine guns and sniper rifles, to Ukrainian forces. It is not clear how many of these additional weapons have reached Ukrainian forces in Kiev, forcing them to rely on the arsenal at hand and to adapt their tactics on the ground.

“The Russians were not prepared for an unconventional war,” said Rob Lee, a member of the Foreign Policy Research Institute and expert on Russian defense policy. “They weren't prepared for unconventional tactics. They are not sure how to deal with this situation of insurgency, of guerrilla warfare.”

Undoubtedly, most Western military analysts and officials continue to predict that Russian forces will eventually encircle Kiev and push towards the capital, possibly with the help of air strikes. Although this might be true, it is not at all clear that Russia will prevail.

For Ukrainian forces, this war is one of attrition. It seems that they are trying to slow down and wear out the Russian military, creating conditions for a stalemate in the outer limits of Kiev. This would allow Ukrainians to gain time to put further pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Off the battlefield, these include the tightening of international sanctions against Russia and diplomatic efforts to obtain Russian concessions. On the fronts, Putin's forces face more Western heavy weaponry delivered to Ukraine and growing global outrage over the massacre of civilians and the shelling of residential areas and hospitals, acts that could be war crimes.

In the interviews, Ukrainian soldiers also said that they take advantage of the Russians' own shortcomings, such as the use of predictable strategies, lack of knowledge of the local terrain and even a surprising lack of preparation for a bloody conflict. Reports have appeared on social media and on the battlefields of Russian soldiers who have run out of food, water and fuel for their vehicles. Some have surrendered after losing their morale or losing their morale. Russian military convoys have slowed down or stopped due to mechanical failures.

“Ukraine's main game is a game for time,” said Michael Kofman, director of Russian studies at the Center for Naval Analysis (CNA) in Arlington, Va. “Trying to do something else is going to waste a lot of the military potential available to them. Are they in a position to expel Russian forces from Ukraine? No. Are they in a position to win the war? Yes.”

Across the country, Ukrainian forces have retreated to cities, refusing to engage Russian forces in rural areas, in the open field. While Moscow has taken control of cities in the south, such as Kherson and Melitopol, it is struggling to take over nearby Mariupol and other areas of Ukraine, such as Kharkiv, Chernihiv and Sumy.

The same is true in the southern city of Mykolaiv, where, for more than a week, Ukrainian forces have prevented a major Russian advance westward towards the strategic port of Odessa.

In Kiev, the seat of government, what is at stake cannot be greater.

So far, the defenders of Ukraine have blocked Russia's main effort: to surround and seize the capital, using the Hostomel airfield as an airlift for more tanks, armored vehicles and other weaponry. Ukrainian forces have shot down several Russian helicopters and have so far prevented a large column of Russian armored vehicles from entering the capital. Meanwhile, a strong air defense system has been mobilized against air and missile attacks.

“The biggest problem is that [Russia] did not organize a proper military operation,” Kofman said. “They thought they were just going to go in and that they weren't going to have to fight. That caused a lot of disasters because they didn't plan.”

In the areas of Hostomel, Bucha and Irpin, battles have been waged relentlessly, a possible harbinger of street-by-street urban warfare that could envelop the capital if Russian forces break through.

On Saturday, large columns of black smoke rose over the city of Bucha amid the incessant noise of falling shells. “We have placed anti-tank mines everywhere,” Casper said with a laugh.

- - -

About 65 kilometers away, on the other side of the capital, Russian forces were trying to enter Kiev from the north-east. A column of tanks advanced along a main road towards the city of Brovary. Passing through a group of houses, Ukrainian forces saw an opportunity.

They attacked the convoy with artillery shells and anti-tank missiles, destroying or disabling several tanks and armored personnel carriers. Russian soldiers fled their vehicles and rushed into the forest, according to videos posted on social media by the Ukrainian military. A tank slowly stopped, engulfed in flames. (The videos could not be independently verified, but they match the descriptions of the battle provided by Ukrainian fighters and doctors caring for the wounded.)

The ambush revealed the ineffectiveness of the Russians and, at times, their inexplicable tactics, according to military analysts.

Tanks and other military vehicles were slowly crawling along the open road, making them an easy target. In addition, they were grouped together next to each other, allowing a single artillery shell to shoot down several vehicles. Nor were there disassembled infantry troops moving in parallel in the forest or next to the column to detect possible ambushes.

What was also surprising, according to analysts, is that some of the tanks were several generations old and not well equipped, including the T-72, a Soviet-era tank that first entered production more than 50 years ago.

“It's a little strange to see this,” said Lee of the Foreign Policy Research Institute. “Kiev is the decisive mission, the decisive goal, and yet they are sending some very old units to take it.”

The ambush also resulted in civilian casualties. Russian soldiers who fled the convoy hid in nearby villages and shot anyone they considered suspicious. In the next two days, 23 civilians and soldiers arrived at the Central District Hospital in Brovary, many of them with gunshot wounds, said Valentin Baganyuk, director of the hospital.

Among them were members of a family who were shot after leaving their home. While his father was driving, bullets hit his hand, flying three fingers, and he was also wounded in the head. Her 14-year-old daughter was also hit. The father managed to get safe.

“The Russians attacked them when they were trying to escape their village,” Baganyuk said.

- - -

Inside the forests of the northwestern borders of Kiev, Ukrainian artillery batteries have struck Russian positions inside Irpin and Bucha in an attempt to curb a possible breakthrough. The bridge connecting the capital with Irpin was demolished by Ukrainian forces to prevent the passage of Russian armored vehicles.

As an additional precaution, the road from the destroyed bridge to the center of Kiev has been barricaded every 100 meters with large concrete blocks, tankers, tires and sandbags.

On the other side of the bridge, at the entrance to downtown Irpin, volunteer armed groups have dug trenches on a hill in a privileged position to attack Russian forces or attempt to ambush them.

Facing the hill, Ukrainian fighters dressed in camouflage stood behind the trees. Other fighters were inside the buildings. They looked out onto the streets that the Russians would have to use to advance to Kiev.

“They have their own line to defend, and we have to maintain our position,” said Igor Zadorozhny, 30, a former army officer who now defends the city in an armed unit created by the mayor of Irpin. “Right now, there is a stalemate.”

The conflict is a mixture of small clashes, often at Ukrainian checkpoints, artillery shelling and moments of heavy street battles.

“They attack our posts,” said Artiem, 34, a realtor turned soldier. “Then we attack them, and they fall back.” Like all Ukrainian fighters interviewed by The Washington Post along the front, he refused to give his full name for security reasons.

He said that Russian forces do not know the geography of Irpin. Sometimes, they get the wrong way or end up stuck in small streets with their tanks and armored vehicles. This has allowed Ukrainian fighters inside the buildings to attack them.

The Russians “are disoriented in the city,” Artiem said.

Wielding a rifle, Zadorozhny, a former army officer, said Ukrainian forces were waiting for civilians to evacuate Irpin before “starting to clean up the city” of Russians.

“They don't have enough supplies, food, water,” he said, recounting residents' reports of Russian soldiers looting homes and shops. “They don't have much gas. They'll get tired. And then we'll go and drive them out.”

Local knowledge of urban terrain was a big plus for the defenders of Kiev, Zadorozhny said. “Everything, every stone, every tree is for us,” he said.

Another fighter, Roman, 32, said residents have been providing information to help target Russians in areas where there is still mobile phone reception.

“They are trying to take Kiev, but they won't,” Roman said. “Everything is helping us.”

- - -

With Russian ground forces slowed down, another question arises: Will Moscow increase the bombing of Kiev to pressure the government to surrender or flee? So far, the capital has largely been spared the intense barrage of air strikes and bombardments that have hit cities such as Kharkiv and Chernihiv.

At the Casper checkpoint, Russian forces have intensified their attacks. The tanks fired between 20 and 25 shells, knocking down a large blue house next to the Ukrainians' base on Friday. The Ukrainians did not return fire.

“Our goal is to defend our positions, not to attack the Russians,” Casper said.

This tactic is smart, according to military analysts.

The Ukrainian army cannot compete with the power of Russian armament and needs to retain a much smaller arsenal instead of wasting resources on counteroffensives. Casper said they also wanted to keep the Bucha highway open to allow more civilians to flee. Returning fire could turn the road into a combat zone, he said.

The Russians, he added, have sent teams to blow up Ukrainian mines. But what if one day Russian tanks head down the road to their checkpoint?

Casper smiled and went to a warehouse. He came out with a UK-supplied NLAW anti-tank missile and a rocket-propelled grenade.

“We know how to receive them,” he said, holding the weapons in his hands. “We have everything here.”

(c) 2022, The Washington Post

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