The Thousand Cuts – Russia’s New Weapon to Wear Down Ukraine as Winter Approaches
Battlefronts keep expanding, and strategies continue to shift as though the war has become a race to exhaust the enemy. This is precisely what is happening in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s top military commander, General Oleksandr Syrsky, stated that the front line now stretches nearly 1,250 kilometers, forcing Kyiv to thin out its defenses.
He explained that Russian forces are employing a new tactic: deploying swarms of small assault units to infiltrate Ukrainian positions.
In remarks cited by CNN, Syrsky noted that the contact line expanded by roughly 200 kilometers (120 miles) over the past year, with Ukrainian forces now engaged in between 160 and 190 clashes per day against a much larger Russian army.
The “Thousand Cuts” tactic
Since the beginning of summer, Russia has shifted from costly, large-scale offensives to deploying small, mobile units. Syrsky has dubbed this approach the “Thousand Cuts” tactic.
According to him, Russia sends numerous small assault groups, usually made up of four to six soldiers, who use the terrain as cover to breach the frontline and strike Ukraine’s rear positions. Their aim: to disrupt supply lines and troop rotations.
Yet around Kyiv, these groups often find themselves isolated and encircled by Ukrainian forces.
Ukrainian counterattacks
Syrsky added that Russian artillery fire is nearly double that of Ukrainian units.
Nevertheless, Ukraine’s most recent offensive regained 168 square kilometers of territory from Russian control.
He also stressed that Ukraine’s long-range strike program has dealt significant blows to Russia’s military and industrial infrastructure in recent weeks.
According to Syrsky, Ukraine’s newly established drone forces — increasingly using advanced unmanned systems — carried out 85 strikes inside Russia in less than two months: 33 against military targets and 52 against factories producing weapons, ammunition, engines, rocket fuel, and drones.
He attributed the effectiveness of these strikes in part to fuel shortages in Russia, which hamper its logistics and supply chains.
Moscow has yet to issue an official response to Syrsky’s statements.
Winter preparations
With winter approaching, Kyiv anticipates that Russia will escalate attacks on Ukraine’s power grid. In preparation, the country is bolstering its air defense systems, integrating interceptor drones, helicopters, light aircraft, and electronic warfare systems.
Syrsky explained that the improved interception systems are shooting down at least 70% of Russian attack drones. Additionally, Ukraine is currently testing light fixed-wing aircraft equipped with machine guns as an extra anti-drone measure.
