The marine forces of Ukraine have launched a second surge on the southeastern frontlines within a span of two weeks, pushing towards the vital port city of Mariupol. As part of this advance, they have recaptured the village of Urozhaine, an accomplishment seemingly bolstered partly by the Ukrainian employment of disputed cluster munitions.
Hanna Maliar, Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister, announced the liberation of the village on Wednesday morning. Our crew, alongside the 35th Marines, were kept from entering the village due to a barrage of heavy artillery fire, as Russian forces targeted Ukrainian troops holding the area.
Drone footage of the fierce battle for the village reveals multiple Russian soldiers fleeing to the village’s southern region, often under shell fire, seemingly from cluster munitions, according to two arms experts who analyzed videos of the incidents.
“Very many died, especially when they started to run,” commented an assault company commander with the callsign Dykyi regarding the Russian retreat. The videos show Russian soldiers running along an open road, forced to use the asphalt as adjacent fields and treelines had been mined.
The captured footage also showed, a Ukrainian tank advancing toward Russian positions, firing as it went, and dragging along a cable with attached mine-clearing explosives. When the tank retreats from the conflicts, these charges detonate, clearing the path for the subsequent units.
Despite the perceived effectiveness of cluster munitions against infantry on open ground, the weapons have generated ethical controversy due to the residual explosives they scatter which can pose a lasting threat to civilians.
While over 100 nations have forbidden the use of cluster weapons through a treaty, the Ukraine, Russia and the U.S. are not signatories. Sceptics have doubted the U.S. military's claims that the models they are supplying Ukraine have an improved “dud” rate in which fail to detonate only 2.5% of the time upon dispersal. These sceptics juxtapose this with the Russian counterparts, claimed to have a dud rate of 30% according to Western officials.
The Ukrainian military has acknowledged the presence of U.S. weapons on the frontlines, without providing specific details.
Despite the ethical debate surrounding these weapons, assault commanders such as Dykyi, are left bewildered. “I don’t understand it”, he exclaimed. “That side is using whatever they want. Our people are dying from all of this and it is OK. But when the other side die, it is not?”
The recovery of the village of Urozhaine signals progress in an exhausting counteroffensive where victories have been measured in meters instead of miles. Ukraine's forces have encountered a tougher-than-anticipated resistance, being stifled by heavily fortified Russian defensive lines.
Kyiv has dismissed criticisms that their forces are not advancing quickly enough, emphasizing that their focus is on dismantling Russia’s capabilities and disrupting their logistics.
In a stern response to critics of the slow progress of the counteroffensive, Dykyi extended an invitation, suggesting they "come to me as a guest and fight with me." He advised those unfamiliar with real combat to stay seated in their "armchair and eat [their] popcorn."
