The Ukraine makes further successes in their counter-offensive. But there was no major breakthrough in the Ukraine war. This could change soon.
Kiev – Russia is struggling with domestic political turbulence – cracks in the Kremlin regime seem to have opened since last weekend’s Wagner uprising. Meanwhile, Ukraine continues undeterred with its counter-offensive Ukraine war away. And is apparently making further small progress.
The Ukrainian army has liberated another 17 square kilometers, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar announced on social media. The US Institute for the Study of War also reports that on Wednesday (June 27) Ukraine launched attacks on several front sectors: in the direction of Bakhmut, along the border of West Donetsk and East Zaporizhia regions, and west of Zaporizhia. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, there were also Ukrainian attacks south of Kreminna.
Counter-offensive in the Ukraine war: results so far only “preview”
in their counter-offensive the Ukrainian army has so far apparently liberated eight villages and around 100 square kilometers of occupied land. So there can be no question of a large-scale reconquest. Also the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy admitted last week that the counteroffensive going slower than planned.
However, the Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksey Resnikov has now turned aggressively to all those who doubt the success of the counter-offensive. The relatively modest profits are just a “preview” of what is to come in the Ukraine war, he said Financial Times.
Russia must be prepared for a much larger advance. “If it happens, you will all see it,” announced the Ukrainian politician confidently. “Once things heat up, we’ll see how resilient they are,” he said, referring to the Russian army.
Important Ukraine brigade apparently not yet part of the counter-offensive
The Ukrainian defense minister explained that Ukraine has not yet deployed important troops in the counteroffensive. For example, most of the brigades that had recently been trained in the West on ultra-modern tanks and weapons were still in reserve. A total of around 40,000 Ukrainian soldiers were trained in the countries of western supporters, including Germany.
The geographical conditions are obviously less favorable for the current counter-offensive than for the successful recapture of many occupied areas last autumn. The flat fields of south-eastern Ukraine offer Ukrainians few places to hide. The Russian soldiers, on the other hand, had time to build large-scale defenses with minefields and extensive trenches.
Counter-offensive in the Ukraine war: Small pinpricks that culminate
Nevertheless, the well-known Ukrainian military expert Ilia Ponomarenko also announced that that a major coup by Ukraine in its counter-offensive was still imminent: “All the smaller pinpricks that are currently being made will culminate at some point and then we will see the really big breakthrough very suddenly,” he says in an interview with the World in advance. Currently, Ukraine is still in the preparatory and exploration phase of the offensive.
Wagner uprising in Russia acts like a snowball that is getting bigger
Defense Minister Reznikov also said that the Wagner Group uprising would play into Ukraine’s hands in the long term. Vladimir Putin’s regime has revealed itself to be fundamentally weakened. According to Resnikov, the erosion of the self-destructive Russian regime has only just begun.
“It’s like a snowball,” he believes. “The bigger it gets, the faster it rolls.” Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) also shares this assessment: “I think that Putin is weakened,” he said on Wednesday (June 28) at “Maischberger”. He also expects the Wagner putsch to have long-term domestic political effects on Russia.
Ukraine must not rely on Putin’s weakness in the Ukraine war
However, Reznikov warns against relying on the Russian regime to erode on its own. On the front lines in the Ukraine war, the Ukrainian army must not rely on further “mutinies and unrest” within Russia. According to Resnikov, there are no signs that the morale of the Russian army will collapse anytime soon.
Instead, Ukraine must rely on its own strength and on arms supplies from the West. These factors are “more predictable” than any cracks in the power structures in Russia. (smu)
#Ukraine #counteroffensive #falters #minister #promises