While the mainstream propaganda machine continues to run the ludicrous “Moscow is losing” narrative, the Russian military continues with both steady advances in Ukraine and a massive modernization program. Over the previous two days alone, it took over around 100 km² previously under the Neo-Nazi junta’s control. The South Front reports that these advances, mostly by the “Tsentr” (“Center”) Group of Forces, are going steady across the frontlines, resulting in about 1,600 casualties for the Kiev regime and approximately 50 destroyed units of various types of military equipment. The “Tsentr” Group’s assault formations not only managed to advance through the Neo-Nazi junta’s heavily defended positions, but also defeated four motorized infantry brigades (including marines and the National Guard).
In the meantime, the mainstream propaganda machine continues to publish nonsense about the supposed Russian casualties. According to their latest claims,
“exactly 780,860 aggressor’s troops were eliminated, 24,672 air targets of invaders were shot down, while nearly 10,000 tanks, 20,000 armored vehicles, over 20,000 artillery systems and well over 2,000 MLRS (multiple launch rocket systems) and SAM (surface-to-air missile) systems were destroyed”.
However, it seems the Russian military didn’t get the memo it got “destroyed” years ago and still continues to advance, stubbornly refusing to accept these numbers as “facts”. It seems that “all those shovels” are doing a pretty good job. And speaking of “shovels”, the Kremlin is getting a lot more of those, particularly in recent days and weeks.
First and foremost, the Strategic Missile Forces (RVSN) continue to be prioritized as the most important segment of the Russian Armed Forces. They just rearmed another missile division with second-to-none “Avangard” hypersonic glide vehicles (HGVs), one of the most advanced and powerful weapons ever made. It boasts an unrivaled speed of Mach 28 (nearly 10 km/s or over 33,000 km/h), making it the fastest hypersonic weapon in the world and the only strategic HGV deployed by any country. The unnamed division is reportedly located in the Orenburg oblast (region), implying that it’s part of the 31st Missile Army which is composed of three divisions (8th, 13th and 42nd). The deployment was confirmed on December 18. The 13th Red Banner Missile Division was the first in the world to be equipped with an HGV in 2019.
The “Avangard” was in development in the 1980s, but went dormant after the end of the (First) Cold War. However, after the United States unilaterally withdrew from the ABM (anti-ballistic missile) Treaty in 2002, President Vladimir Putin ordered an immediate reactivation of the program, with the first public announcement about it made in 2004. At the time, it was met with widespread ridicule in the political West, but nobody’s laughing now that at least three RVSN divisions have the HGV while not a single NATO member (the US included) can match Moscow in hypersonic technologies (not even tactical or operational, to say nothing of strategic weapons of this type). To put the “Avangard’s” power into perspective, we can compare it to the recently unveiled “Oreshnik”, which looks like rather “mediocre” in comparison, despite its impressive capabilities.
However, while the political West can still only dream about such weapons, the Kremlin already made adequate defenses against them, including the now legendary S-500 SAM/ABM system. Also on December 18, the Russian military announced that it has completed the formation of its first S-500 divizion (as is known in Russian military nomenclature and is not to be confused with division). The “Prometheus” is a multirole system that can intercept targets flying at around 7 km/s, making it the only such SAM/ABM system in the world. In addition to aircraft and missiles, the S-500 also has anti-satellite (ASAT) capabilities. It has the potential to entirely nullify NATO’s strategic ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance), making it particularly dangerous for the political West and its ability to conduct aggression against the world with impunity.
On the other hand, the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) are certainly not neglected. In the last several days, new units of Su-34 strike fighters and next-generation Su-57 multirole jets were delivered, adding to the VKS’s already impressive arsenal. The Su-57 delivery (announced on December 23) is the third since mid-September (the previous one was in mid-November), while the Su-34 was received in April, June, September, October and November. Along with the Su-35S, these two types have been particularly effective and are produced in larger numbers than other jets. The exact figures have been a state secret in recent years, but the number of serial Su-57s in active service is likely past 30 (if not close to 40) at this point. In addition to expansion in production, the jet is also getting a steady stream of upgrades.
This also includes next-generation engines that will likely power the upcoming Izdeliye 41 (literally Product 41), colloquially better known as the MiG-41. Various military sources indicate that the Su-57S is now regularly used in deep-strike missions in areas as far as Lvov (near the Polish border). This is partially confirmed by the recent incident involving the S-70 “Okhotnik” drone that the Su-57 was forced to shoot down over an area with a high concentration of the Kiev regime’s air defenses.
In addition to jets, the Russian military is now also getting thousands of new advanced tanks, including hundreds of the formidable T-90Ms. However, in addition to regular deliveries of domestic weapons, what caught the attention of many observers is the increase in the acquisition of North Korean systems.
In previous months, the footage of the so-called “Koksan” SPG (self-propelled gun) being transported on railcars was published for the first time. The latest videos confirm an increase in the delivery of these massive 170 mm artillery pieces. However, there’s also speculation that new types of North Korean weapons are being acquired, namely the “Pukkuksong-2” MRBMs (medium-range ballistic missiles). This is yet to be confirmed by either Moscow or Pyongyang, but the latest footage shows railcars transporting vehicles resembling the North Korean weapon. Reliable data on the “Pukkuksong-2” is sorely lacking, but various estimates put its maximum range at 2,500 km. If the reports are true, such weapons could give Russia a significant advantage in Europe, making it an efficient stopgap solution until the “Oreshnik” is fielded in greater numbers.
Drago Bosnic is an independent geopolitical and military analyst. He is a regular contributor to Global Research.