Among the daily Russian losses reported by Ukraine during the summer and autumn, one type of weapon has emerged: artillery.
Ukraine announced today that it destroyed 47 artillery systems, 40 yesterday and 48 the day after.
If Ukraine’s numbers are to be believed, it has destroyed 1460 Russian artillery units between August 15th and October 4th.
The amount is huge. Finland has around 1,500 cannons and is known as an artillery superpower. So Ukraine has said that it destroyed roughly the amount of material of the entire Finnish artillery in about a month and a half. The readings from the previous months are almost the same.
“Artillery is the God of war”, says the dictator of the Soviet Union Josef Stalin to the other side. True or false, artillery still forms the backbone of Russian warfare.
Ukraine is now trying to break this backbone, and judging by the numbers, it is succeeding amazingly well.
The balance of power is shifting to Ukraine in the artillery war
Could the numbers be real? We asked about this and the importance of artillery in the war in Ukraine.Terho from Mustos and Inspector of Artillery, Colonel From Mika Holma.
– There may be a certain overlap, but yes, it can be true. The figures reported by Ukraine are quite reliable, says Mustonen.
Blackout means that the same weapon may be reported as destroyed more than once. Ukraine’s way of declaring “artillery systems” as destroyed also creates ambiguity. The statistics do not reveal exactly what has been destroyed, nor what is meant by the artillery system.
Holma is more skeptical.
– If there are readings like that every month, it probably can’t be true, says Holma.
War propaganda probably plays a part in the numbers.
However, according to Mustonen, the trend is clear. Ukraine has succeeded in the artillery war against Russia.
– After all, the situation has radically changed from where we were a year ago. The losses inflicted on Russia deny that the balance of power in the artillery war is shifting to Ukraine’s side, says Mustonen.
Mustonen has also drawn attention to the fact that there has been no news of massive Russian artillery strikes recently.
Artillery destroys artillery
Ukraine’s success in artillery warfare cannot be explained by one factor. Important are, for example, cannons received from the West, which are more accurate and shoot farther than Russian cannons.
– Artillery affects artillery, says Mustonen.
According to him, Ukraine’s tactic is to attack the Russian artillery specifically with a wide range of weapons.
Mustonen mentions that heavy rocket launchers are effective in destroying artillery. The anti-artillery radars that Ukraine has received from the West are also important. However, they are valuable systems and Ukraine probably doesn’t have many of them in use.
Artillery inspector, colonel Mika Holma adds that Ukraine has also been successful in fire control. So the Ukrainians manage to find opponents. Drones, which have become a phenomenon in the Ukrainian war, play an important role in that.
– Ukraine uses its limited ammunition correctly, says Holma.
Mustonen believes that Ukraine’s ability to locate Russian artillery systems is constantly improving. The bigger issue is the munitions, which the West has not been able to deliver to Ukraine in sufficient quantities.
Ukraine must destroy Russian artillery to advance
Artillery has traditionally been an important, if not the most important, means of warfare in Russia and the Soviet Union. However, the way the West and Russia use artillery is radically different.
– The use of artillery in Russia is based on the fact that there is a lot of shooting. Grinds every single square – it leaves nothing intact in the area you are trying to influence.
According to Mustonen, this differs significantly from Finnish thinking.
– Here, we operate in such a way that we want to focus and shoot accurately.
Holma adds that even more than 70 percent of Russia’s losses have been caused by indirect weapons, i.e. artillery, for example.
However, Russia’s mass use of fire is risky. If Ukraine can affect Russian supply chains, and the Russians can’t get enough ammunition delivered, their tactics won’t work.
According to Mustonen, Russia has the most striking part of its artillery in Ukraine. However, there is no exact information on the quantities. However, most of the Russian artillery in use is in Ukraine.
Mustonen says that Ukraine must destroy Russia’s artillery deterrent if it wants to succeed in its counterattack. Ukraine cannot advance under artillery fire.
– An individual soldier cannot do anything without protection. The first task is precisely to eliminate the opponent’s artillery. Otherwise, you won’t be able to operate on the front.
Holma says that the destruction of Russian artillery will affect Ukraine’s military operations in two ways in particular. Firstly, the Ukrainians will suffer less losses and secondly, the Russians will not be able to prevent Ukrainian counterattacks.
– Artillery is the only way to get through. It makes a hole in the defense of the Russians together with other types of weapons, says Holma.
Above all, problems for Ukraine are caused by a chronic shortage of ammunition. Artillery grenades are fired in Ukraine in huge quantities. However, according to Mustonen, Western countries are not willing to hand over supplies from their own emergency stocks.
– The bottom is already visible. Western countries have not supplied Ukraine with supplies for the first troops. Own stocks are kept in case of a bad day.