JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As of Monday, more than half a million people had fled Ukraine amid Russia’s invasion of the country.
Meantime, Russian military forces are still trying to capture the capital city, Kyiv. They’ve also failed to take control of Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv.
“If you pull into the urban area, it makes it very hard for the fighting to happen. It’s the nightmare scenario,” explained retired U.S. Army Major John Spencer.
He’s one of the nation’s top experts on urban warfare.
“This is all about Russia trying to get somewhere and those tanks are all trying to take the capital,” Spencer explained. “If the capital falls, it’s over.”
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Spencer, who did two tours in Iraq, said the Russian military may be one of the largest and most powerful in the world, but when it comes to invading Ukraine, those same forces are finding it difficult to take over as Ukrainians are showing no signs of backing down.
“First and foremost, they’re fighting. And they’re all fighting the military, the reserves and now the whole population, which could be a nightmare for any military in the world,” Spencer said.
Amid this urban warfare, Spencer says, there is no safe area for Russian troops in urban areas where the locals know every nook and cranny of the city.
“Urban areas give them power against the Russian army,” Spencer said. “Any window can be a bullet coming your way and there are thousands if not millions of windows and alleys.”
This is different than waging a war in the mountains, desert or any area without places to hide where a military force can use satellites or drones to help ground forces zero in on the enemy.
“We call the urban areas the great equalizer because, today, no matter where you live, if you stand in the open, you’re dead,” Spencer explained.
Spencer says, from a tactical point, civilians defending their cities have to be more careful when planning a surprise attack as to not give up their hiding spots. This is also why Spencer believes Russian forces have increased the number of missile and rocket attacks on buildings. He also says Russian military leaders are likely rethinking their ground strategy.
“They’ve gone in, honestly, very light with small forces,” Spencer said. “They’ve only pushed in half of what they have, so this will turn into a lot more bombing, more tanks and armor.”
Spencer says it appears that the Russian military is using thermobaric rockets, which are typically used on enemy troops hiding in foxholes, tunnels and bunkers by depleting the enemy of oxygen before exploding.
This is a tactic that Spencer says the Russian military is likely switching to after finding it more difficult to use ground troops to take over the country. But spencer says the Ukrainian military is fighting back with javelin missiles, which are considered to be tank killers.
“It’s a very powerful missile that can lock onto a tank and tank operators fear it in their hearts,” Spencer said.
Spencer says something else that’s helping the Ukrainians is their president, who chose to stay and is posting encouraging video messages to social media every day. He says those messages are giving people the hope they need to take on a powerful military.