As gaps widen along the front, Ukraine is reportedly struggling to hold back Russia’s advance
Ukrainian troops are struggling to contain Russia’s advance as manpower shortages deepen and gaps widen between front-line positions, according to soldiers interviewed by Ukrainska Pravda. Short on infantry, Ukraine is struggling to hold its defenses as Russian forces exploit weak spots along the front, advancing in small tactical groups through undermanned positions. Soldiers describe a front line where drone operators and mortar crews are increasingly forced to shore up thinly held defenses. Meduza summarizes key points from Ukrainska Pravda’s reporting.
Ukrainian troops are facing several major challenges on the front lines that make it difficult to contain Russia’s offensive, according to a report by Ukrainska Pravda, whose journalists spoke with military personnel behind the front and soldiers on the ground. One of the biggest problems is the persistent shortage of manpower — and the resulting lack of infantry. As Ukrainska Pravda noted, “At this stage of the war, when the use of heavy equipment is extremely limited, the role of soldiers in the trenches increases dramatically. When there aren’t enough of them, it becomes difficult to organize a proper defense.” Russian forces have taken advantage of this, advancing in small tactical groups through undermanned Ukrainian positions.
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The shortage of personnel, soldiers told the publication, has also created “gaps” between infantry positions. The distances between them can stretch 200–300 or even 500–700 meters (between 218 and 765 yards) — and in some cases, up to a kilometer (over half a mile). “Some positions exist only for show — they’re held by soldiers with concussions and wounded soldiers. They’re there so that higher-ups can say we have positions in that area,” one serviceman told Ukrainska Pravda. As a result, Russian troops are able to slip between Ukrainian positions. Drone operators and mortar crews — stationed three to five kilometers (two to three miles) behind the front line — are forced to fill in for infantry, the outlet wrote.
Ukrainska Pravda also pointed to additional problems stemming from the military’s incomplete transition to a corps-based structure (a reform plan approved by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last winter) and what it describes as the “micromanagement” style of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi. According to the outlet’s sources, Syrskyi often resorts to “hands-on control” at the front. In late September 2025, he disbanded the Dnipro Operational Strategic Group (formerly known as Khortytsia), which had been led by Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi. Newly formed corps-level units are expected to absorb the group’s functions, though one source suggested that Syrskyi’s decision was also an attempt to “remove a rival.”
