Armed Forces counter -offensive: Ukraine conducts "forming operations" to deceive the Russians - FT

Further there was an operation "RDC" in the Belgorod region, the consequences of which could encourage the Russian Federation to transfer their troops from the front in Ukraine to the border regions. After that, Ukraine has attacked marine drones on a Russian reconnaissance ship in the Black Sea. This morning, dozens of drones attacked Moscow and the area.

It is noted that on the eve of the long -awaited counter -offensive of the Armed Forces, such attacks are only four of the bold "formative operations". From symbolic strikes to strategic attacks, these operations are part of standard military practice. According to defense experts and analytics, their goal is to deceive the enemy and otherwise "form" the battlefield before a big offensive.

"These are operations of the Ukrainian gray zone that requires resources from Russia - whether it is troops or information operations. They are similar to the agility of the hands of the magician: they deceive the viewer and attract his attention elsewhere," says John Spencer, former Major of the US Army which heads the study of the city war at the Institute of Modern War in the West Point.

A high -ranking Ukrainian official, whose name is not called, said that a successful offensive begins with a successful psychological offensive. Yes, the moral spirit of the Russians is not at the highest level. In the context of a breakthrough in the Belgorod region, a former British army officer Mike Martin said that "the idea is to create many problems for the Russian team structure. " "Problems - for example, the breakthrough of the front line - attract attention.

The dilemma, on the contrary, paralyzes the action," he said. A representative of the Ukrainian military intelligence noted that the raid and other operations that may occur in the future were intended to "strike in the moral spirit (Russian - ed. ) And to force them to relocate the troops" along the border. However, this is not visible yet. According to the Western military, Ukraine uses the Russian approach against Russia.

After all, Moscow persistently ignites the likelihood that it can start an attack from the territory of Belarus. "No matter how unlikely this attack is, its possibility forced Ukraine to place troops nearby, just in case. The Ukrainians are also diverting the attention of Russia now," he said. A high -ranking Western official noted that Ukrainians are exploring and finding out what methods are working and what are not.

By the way, the military analyst Colonel Petro Chernik said on May 30 that unknown drones over Moscow had inflicted a tremendous image blow to the Russian air defense system. Earlier, drones in Moscow were reacted in the Presidential Office of Ukraine. The adviser to the head of the VP Mikhail Podolyak called it "a karmic payment for Ukraine" and added that those who want a great war will now live in a state of danger.