February 26, 2022

Most of Russia’s forces have entered Ukraine but they face stiff resistance, Pentagon says.

 Volunteers in Kyiv receiving weapons to help repel Russian troops on Saturday.

Credit...Lynsey Addario for The New York Times
NY TIMES

WASHINGTON — A majority of the more than 150,000 Russian forces massed against Ukraine are now fighting in the country, but those troops are “increasingly frustrated by their lack of momentum” as they face stiff Ukrainian resistance, especially in the country’s north, a senior Pentagon official said on Saturday.

The Defense Department said on Friday that one-third of Russia’s combat power was in the fight, but Moscow has since poured thousands of more troops into the country along three main columns in the north and south, expending more fuel and logistics than it anticipated this early in the all-out assault, according to the Pentagon official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the operational developments.

Despite now having more than half of its combat power inside Ukraine, Russian troops still do not control any cities, although they are closing in on the capital Kyiv and other urban centers, the official said. Nor do Russian warplanes fully control the skies over Ukraine, as Ukrainian fighter jets and air defenses continue to engage Russian forces.

The Russian attack from the air, land and sea is fast-moving and extremely fluid, however, and despite the Ukrainian resistance, particularly around Kyiv and Kharkiv, a city in the northeast, most American and Western analysts expect the outgunned Ukrainian military to succumb to the larger and more technologically advanced Russian military in the coming days.

Indeed, special operation commandos and other Russian reconnaissance forces have moved into Kyiv, some carrying what American officials say are lists of prominent Ukrainian politicians, academics, journalists to capture or kill, U.S. officials have said.

Since the invasion began early on Thursday, Russia has also launched more than 250 missiles, mostly short-range ballistic types, some of which have hit residential areas, the Pentagon official said.

American officials say they are joining European allies in continuing to send arms and equipment shipments into Ukraine. The Pentagon said in a statement on Saturday that an additional $350 million in military assistance to Ukraine that the White House announced late Friday would include Javelin anti-tank missiles as well as small arms and munitions, body armor and other equipment.

American officials said the arms would be drawn from existing Pentagon stockpiles, most likely in Germany, and shipped to Ukraine as soon as possible, probably over land from Poland, given the contested air space over Ukraine. The senior Pentagon official said that arms and supplies from a previous tranche approved in December had arrived in recent days.

Feb. 26, 2022

Megan Specia

Reporting from London

The speed of Russia’s advance in Ukraine had slowed by Saturday afternoon, “likely as a result of acute logistical difficulties and strong Ukrainian resistance,” Britain’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement based on intelligence updates. Russian forces were bypassing major cities and “leaving forces to encircle and isolate them,” though the ministry said the capture of the capital, Kyiv, remained Russia’s primary objective. most American and Western analysts expect the outgunned Ukrainian military to succumb to the larger and more technologically advanced Russian military in the coming days.

  • The Biden administration and key European allies announced on Saturday that they would remove certain Russian banks from the SWIFT financial messaging system, essentially barring them from international transactions.

  • More than 150,000 refugees have fled Ukraine this week, according to the United Nations, with many heading toward Polish border crossings.

    Ukrainians have tried to escape by train, by car and by foot as Russian forces close in on major cities, including Kyiv, the capital, and Kharkiv, in the northeast. Some have wound up in mileslong traffic jams or long lines at customs, and others have fled by train to cities like Przemysl, Poland, near the border.