26 FEBRUARY 2023
The Ukrainian army will be ready to launch a counteroffensive in the spring. One of its strategic objectives is to try to cleave through the Russian front in the south.
Source: DW, with reference to Vadym Skibitskyi, Deputy Chief of Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence
Details: Skibitskyi said that Ukraine will be prepared for a counteroffensive in the spring. He noted that the exact date of the offensive depends on a number of factors, including the supply of Western weapons.
The deputy chief of intelligence said that one of the offensive’s strategic objectives will be to “drive a wedge between Crimea and mainland Russia on Russia’s southern front”.
Skibitskyi does not rule out the possibility of Ukrainian strikes on military storage facilities on the Russian territory, in particular in Belgorod Oblast [which borders the northeast of Ukraine – ed.]. “That’s where the [Russian] attacks on Ukraine come from. It is a threat for Kharkiv, for example,” he said.
The goal of the counteroffensive “is to liberate all of the occupied territories of Ukraine, including Crimea. We will only stop when we restore our country to its 1991 borders,” Skibitskyi stressed.
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“He noted that the exact date of the offensive depends on a number of factors, including the supply of Western weapons.”
We’ll take the article with a grain of salt. The AFU general staff has been brilliant in fooling everyone what, where and how it conducts its offensives and this time it will be no different, despite what this article says.
The quote above is a sad reminder how dependent the AFU is on Western aid. This offensive would have been better to be initiated in the dead of winter, as it was originally proposed. However, it still doesn’t have the required amount of Western tanks and the long-range capabilities seem to be there, but it’s a big question if the volume of such munitions is enough. And, never mind Western aircraft. They are still a long way off to be given the green light.
So, Ukraine is forced to continue the fight with one arm tied behind its back.
This war is a very sad part of our history, despite the shoulder patting going around. We could’ve assured an end to it already, instead we’re now in the second year of it.