[Tee tiong huat]

Ukrainian forces lure Russians into deadly HIMARS ambush in Kursk Oblast.

Soldiers of Ukraine’s 225th Assault Battalion ambushed Russian units in Kursk Oblast using HIMARS, a tactic that may explain significant Russian losses, Forbes analyst David Axe reported on Jan. 23. Axe writes that Ukrainian troops pretended to retreat after a defeat, drawing the Russians into a wooded area near the village of Sverdlikove. Once the Russian forces moved in, they were struck by HIMARS.

“As a result of the strike, a significant portion of enemy personnel was eliminated, and our groups returned to complete the clearance of the area,” the 225th Assault Battalion reported on Jan. 23.
Axe noted that the ambush was made possible by precise coordination between the battalion’s headquarters, forward companies, and an adjacent artillery brigade. This operation highlights the reasons for the heavy losses suffered by Russian and North Korean forces.

Russian and North Korean troops, Axe explained, continue to attack daily along the same routes toward the city of Sudzha, a key Ukrainian defensive position. Increasingly, these forces advance on foot with inadequate support, making them especially vulnerable to artillery strikes, particularly when their movements are funneled into pre-designated kill zones.

The exact number of Russian casualties in this op remains unknown. Large Russian attacks typically involve up to 50 vehicles & several hundred soldiers, though most op use smaller forces. In recent weeks, most disastrous assaults by Russian & North Korean units have resulted in hundreds of dead and wounded. Axe points out pride expressed by 225th Battalion over ambush suggests potentially massive Russian casualties.”
On Jan. 9, 2025, @Ramstein Air Base in Germany, President Zelenskyy stated that North Korean troop losses had already reached 4,000, while Russian losses had climbed to 30,000.