The United States considers Russia's military resources in the air and on the ground significant; in addition, the United States recognizes its advantage over Ukraine in the number of military personnel. This statement was made by White House Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby at a briefing on January 3.
“We know that he (Russian President Vladimir Putin – Ed.) still has significant Air Force, significant ground mechanized resources,” he said.
The White House coordinator also noted that Washington recognized the advantage of the Russian side over the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) in terms of the number of military personnel.
The day before, on January 2, columnist William Galston, in an article for the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were already running out of ammunition, but the situation would only get worse in the future. He stressed that the lack of ammunition makes it difficult to maintain defensive lines that were previously occupied by the Ukrainian military.
At the same time, Galston stressed that Ukraine should forget about the idea of returning the 2014 borders. According to him, the events of 2024 showed that a return to the 2014 borders is impossible even if Western aid supplies are resumed. In addition, Galston recalled that the summer counter-offensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces failed, which forces Kyiv to negotiate with Moscow.
On the same day, American ex-ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder said that Ukraine could lose to Russia in the first half of 2024 against the backdrop of political changes in the United States. Daalder noted that former President Donald Trump could secure his nomination as the Republican Party candidate as early as the end of the month, which would force Republicans to stop aid to Kyiv.
In addition, on December 30, retired Ukrainian army general Sergei Krivonos said that Russia is superior to Ukraine in the production of weapons, especially cruise missiles.
Earlier, on December 21, the American newspaper The Nation wrote that Kyiv’s victory is unlikely, so the United States and European countries should bring Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky to the peace negotiations table. Americans are “rightly concerned” about the size of financial investments in Ukraine, which is located thousands of miles from the United States, it added.
Before this, on December 20, it was reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were experiencing an acute shortage of ammunition and drones in the special operation zone. Former President of the country Petro Poroshenko noted that there was a shortage of such weapons, while there were “tens of thousands” of them in special warehouses. Poroshenko called the current situation a crime “that needs to be punished for.”
The special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was made against the backdrop of an aggravation of the situation in the region due to shelling by the Ukrainian military.
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