terms of the Russian offensive, although Ukraine was able to get their own shots in as well this past week.
President Zelenskyy’s recent announcement regarding Russia’s plan to launch several drone attacks on Ukraine within the next year paints a very grim picture for 2023. The drone attacks were to be carried out by Iranian–made Shahed drones. Zelenskyy urged the public to maintain their focus on the war and keep fighting, and Ukraine has done so by shooting down Russian drones and carrying out their own strikes.
Recently, a Ukrainian attack on a school in Makiivka was recognized by the Russian military, which only happens when the attack results in a considerable amount of casualties. In this case, several Russian troops were killed and ammunition was destroyed, along with the majority of
the building, making the attack one of the deadliest on the Russian side since the beginning of the war. Showing that Ukrainian troops are still defending their honor, it is the highest number of deaths acknowledged by Moscow in a single incident since the very beginning of the war.
Russia’s defense ministry acknowledged that six rockets using the US–made Himars rocket system were fired at a building housing Russian troops, and two of them were shot down. Russian nationalist commentator, Igor Girkin, said hundreds of Russians were killed or wounded in the attack, although the exact number was unknown because of the many soldiers still
unaccounted for.
“Almost all of the military equipment was also destroyed, which stood right next to the building without any disguise whatsoever,” he wrote.
This attack caused many Russian lawmakers and officials to resent the Russian military commanders for continuously neglecting to properly camouflage their ammunition and choose strategic places for the military to station themselves. This fact highlights speculation that 2023
will see an increase in Russia’s in–fighting, and unfortunately a continuation of the arduous war with many casualties on both sides.
According to Adnan Zai, Advisor to Berkeley Capital, “As the war and the winter drag on, Putin needs to cut his losses and get back to his own country, rather than antagonizing other countries. The war continues to affect the economy around the world and needs to end.”
With Zelenskyy’s recent trip to the United States to seek more aid, he certainly is in it for the long haul. And with the Russian war machine starting to turn on itself, time will tell how long the war will rage on before a resolution