Ukraine deceived Russia with the same techniques Germany used in World War II

When Ukraine launched its Kursk offensive in August, it wasn't just the Russians who were surprised.

Some experts had argued that large-scale attacks were no longer possible in modern warfare.

Any attempted infiltration would be quickly detected by drones, spy planes or satellites, enabling defenses to be reinforced.

"The proliferation of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) in the Ukraine-Russia war has created a transparent battlefield marked by near-constant surveillance, making operational surprise difficult to achieve," according to a blog by the Training and Development Command. US Army Doctrine.

But despite a host of Russian drones keeping an eye on Ukrainian movements, Ukraine managed to concentrate its best brigades for an attack that shocked the Kremlin.

How did Ukraine do it?

Using the same techniques Germany used in its surprise attack at the Battle of the Bulge in December 1944.

First, there was careful preparation by identifying the weak points in the Russian defense, he writes yahoonews, the Telegraph reports.

By massing forces for offensives in eastern Ukraine, it thinned the rest of the front line, including the Kursk region.

Open-source intelligence "indicates that up to 75% of Russia's ground forces, air units and marines are located in or near eastern Ukraine," TRADOC noted.

And because Russian drones and other ISR systems – intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance – were concentrated in areas where Russia was on the offensive, this meant easier coverage of Kursk.

Before the August attack, the Ukrainian high command was also careful to keep word of the operation to as few people as possible.

"After the intelligence was gathered and analyzed, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, General Oleksandr Syrskyi, led the planning with only a few senior officers present," TRADOC said.

“The planning sessions were likely conducted face-to-face to prevent the risk of Russian cyber actors or intelligence signals from revealing the plan. "Press interviews with Ukrainian soldiers show that the invasion forces were not notified until several hours before the operation," the command added.

To hide its preparations, Ukraine also resorted to disinformation, such as spreading the word that the Ukrainian military would not be able to launch an offensive before spring 2025.

Ukrainian troops were part of the unwitting deception.

For example, "Ukraine's army announced that the 61st Mechanized Brigade would move to Vovchansk, a city in the northern fighting sector in eastern Ukraine."

"Even after the 61st was told they were going to Russia, the unit's senior officers thought it was a bluff," TRADOC said.

Ukraine reportedly prepared its offensive by blinding Russian ISR with attacks on Russian airfields, as well as using Ukrainian drones to destroy Russian UAVs.

To delay a Russian response, Ukraine used missiles, drones and artillery-delivered mines against air bases and command and control centers, and stopped Russian reinforcements.

The question for Ukraine is whether its Kursk operation will fare better than the Bulge.

However, Ukraine has shown that surprise attacks are possible even in the age of drones.

"The Ukrainian incursion into the Kursk region demonstrated that operational surprise is still possible in the Ukraine conflict by avoiding and degrading ISR – a lesson that can be broadly applied to future large-scale combat operations in other theaters as well," TRADOC concluded. . /Telegraph/