Russian forces are making anti-tank structures known as “dragon’s teeth” as they attempt to bolster preparations to defend their positions in Ukraine’s Mariupol, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said.
The key southern port city forms part of the “land bridge” from Russia to Crimea, a key logistics line of communication, it said in a daily intelligence update.
It comes after Washington accused Russia of escalating the war in Ukraine and delaying peace talks, even as bodies of Russian soldiers keep “piling up” at the conflict’s frontlines.
“If Russia is ready for that negotiation, it should stop its bombs. It should stop its missiles. It should stop attacking and killing Ukrainian civilians – pursuing infrastructure, including civilian infrastructure,” US state department spokesperson Ned Price said last night.
He said: “But of course, the Kremlin is doing the opposite. It is continuing to escalate this war rather than to offer any sort of real signal that it is ready for or open to negotiations.”
