Ukrainian forces in Donbas are taking heavy casualties and running out of ammunition

Around 200 Ukrainian soldiers are dying every day as Russia continues its campaign in the Donbas, an aide to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday.

According to The Washington Post, this number of military deaths suggests that, factoring in the number of wounded, Ukraine could be losing up to 1,000 troops a day, a far higher casualty rate than was seen in the early days of the war.

"The euphoria that accompanied Ukraine's unforeseen early victories against bumbling Russian troops is fading as Moscow adapts its tactics, recovers its stride and asserts its overwhelming firepower against heavily outgunned Ukrainian forces," the Post reports.

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Russian forces, bolstered by an overwhelming advantage in firepower, have nearly seized control of the key city of Sievierodonetsk, and with it, the entirety of Luhansk Oblast. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military's shortage of artillery rounds makes it difficult to fight back. For every artillery shell Ukraine fires, Russia is able to fire 10, a Ukrainian defense adviser said.

In response to the question "Is time on Ukraine's side?" Marvin Kalb and Henry J. Aaron of the Brookings Institution wrote Friday that it's unclear whether Ukraine can "continue to blunt relentless Russian attacks" even with "continuing Western military aid."