The senior official told reporters, on condition of anonymity, that Russia had fired so many missiles at Ukraine that “it has run out of precision-guided weapons and is having difficulty replacing them.”
“We believe that sanctions and export restrictions, especially on electronic components, have an impact on the Russian defense industry,” he added during a press conference.
He explained that for this reason, major cities such as Mariupol or Kharkiv are bombarded with unguided bombs that do not distinguish between a military target and a residential building.
In addition, Russian forces still face supply and discipline problems, including among officers who “refuse to obey orders and advance,” he said.
The senior US defense official noted that the Russian operation in the south of the country had “barely made progress in recent days” due to fierce Ukrainian resistance.
He said that the Russians in Donbass “were unable to make any tangible progress”, justifying this failure due to the inability of the Russian forces to coordinate their air raids and maneuvers on the ground, or because of the weather that makes the ground muddy and forces the tanks to stay on the paved roads.
He also said, “They have not solved their logistical and maintenance problems.” “We still see that they will find it difficult to resupply their forces with weapons,” he added.
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