Why Russia's Summer Offensive Is Collapsing - Jason Jay Smart

Drones and trench defenses are crushing Putin’s stalled summer offensive. Ukraine’s drone strikes, reinforced by minefields, artillery traps, and trench belts across Kharkiv, Sumy, and Toretsk, have forced Russian troops to crawl forward at just 50–135 m/day—slower than World War I trenches. Between May 20 and June 17, Russia gained only 601 km² (~19 km²/day), and since July 2024 has captured just 5,000–6,000 km²—less than 1% of Ukraine’s territory.

Russian military losses have surpassed one million, with 236,000 in 2025 and an average of 1,080 per day in June. Ukraine’s strategic blend of drones and trenches has redefined the battlefield, with unmanned systems now accounting for the majority of combat losses. Russian troops are adapting with motorcycles and quad bikes, but command structures continue to collapse—on July 2, Ukrainian drones found Col. Ilyin and Maj. Gen. Gudkov.

Meanwhile, Russia’s economy is hemorrhaging: June oil and gas income fell nearly 14% year-on-year to $13.6 billion, Urals crude lingers well below the $60 cap, and elite purges continue. This video presents a data-driven breakdown of how Ukraine’s drone-centric defense, trench strategy, high casualties, and economic collapse are accelerating the failure of Putin’s summer offensive—and why sustained Western support remains critical.

Russia's summer offensive is a bust, with troops crawling slower than in past conflicts as the Ukraine war continues. The Russian economy is taking a hit, and Ukrainian drones can strike anywhere within Russia, as the latest news confirms explains Dr. Jason Jay Smart, also known as Jason Smart and Jason J Smart, is a political adviser who has lived and worked in Ukraine, Moldova, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Latin America. In 2010, he was banned for life by the Kremlin for supporting Russia’s democratic opposition to Vladimir Putin.