Cameron Henderson
Feb 9, 2024
US military chiefs “blamed” General Valery Zaluzhny’s refusal to follow its advice for Ukraine’s failed counter-offensive, it has been reported.
Gen Zaluzhny was sacked by Volodymyr Zelensky as the nation’s commander-in-chief on Thursday, a move analysts said was motivated by lack of progress on the battlefield.
US and British generals held table-top exercises with Kyiv’s former military chief, advising that he utilised all of the newly-acquired Western tanks and armoured vehicles in a single push towards the Sea of Azov.
Instead, the Ukrainians opted to conduct their much-vaunted counter-offensive on three separate axes, becoming bogged down in vast minefields and ultimately failing to reach their objectives.
“It became pretty clear over the course of the offensive that Ukrainians just weren’t interested in US advice, and they generally concluded that we have nothing to offer them advise wise,” a White House adviser told the Politico news website.
The blame, the adviser added, for this fell squarely on Gen Zaluzhny’s shoulders.
The four-star general was replaced on Thursday by Gen Oleksandr Syrsky, the former commander of Ukraine’s ground forces and a close ally of President Zelensky.
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Ukraine facing critical ammunition shortage as Western aid falls short
Ukraine is facing a critical ammunition shortage after efforts to secure a fresh US funding package failed and Europe missed its targets for arms production, a senior US military official said.
Senate Republicans on Wednesday voted against a bill to provide a crucial $60 billion of aid to Ukraine, leaving American shipments effectively on hold.
The congressional delay risked creating an “air bubble” or “gap in the hose” of supplies to Kyiv, a senior US military official told the Financial Times.
“This is really as grave as we have been portraying it… this is a very grim scenario,” a defence official said.
“It is a desperate situation on the front lines for the Ukrainians, far worse than they are letting on,” added a senior Nato diplomat.
Hopes remain that there could be a final breakthrough to secure US aid after the Senate yesterday voted to advance a debate over a separate bill to send $60bn in additional funds to Ukraine.
Josep Borrell, The EU chief diplomat yesterday gave a speech in Warsaw calling on European countries to support Ukraine “not ‘for as long as it takes’ but for ‘whatever it takes.’”
Kyiv mayor urges Zelensky to address Ukraine public over decision to sack top general
Voldomyr Zelensky must explain his decision to replace Ukraine’s top general to the public, Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, has urged.
President Zelensky yesterday dismissed Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine’s top general, and replaced him with Oleksandr Syrskyi, bringing to an end weeks of speculation over a government and military reshuffle.
Responding to the change, Mr Klitschko wrote a cryptic message on Telegram in which he called on the government to explain the move to the public in order to ensure Ukraine remains united at this critical stage in the war.
Mr Klitschko previously warned that the dismissal of Zaluzhnyi could have damaging consequences for Ukrainian society, stating that the general was the reason citizens “truly trust the armed forces”. He has also criticised Zelensky over what he described as the president’s authoritarian tendencies, as well as his “mistakes” at the start of Russia’s invasion in 2022.
Sorry to keep bringing gnarly news.
Waiting for a turnaround.
That’s ugly propaganda, designed to create a scapegoat for Zelensky’s and Nato’s failure. The Ukrainian government would never have accepted territorial losses in the east for making this plan work. Zelensky’s public statements prove this, he never prepared the public for such a setback. And Nato training had been totally inadequate for the actual situation at the Zaporizhia front, that’s evident. Not to speak of the late and insufficient deliveries. This whole smear is just utter nonsense.
I’m waiting for Zaluzhny’s memoirs, they will be telling. Certainly a fascinating read for everybody interested in military strategy and tactics and the pitfalls of political interference.
You seem to be commenting on a different article. It’s not an OpEd, it’s just news reporting; no mention of giving up land.
The Telegraph doesn’t do propaganda, neither does the other news source it references; Politico.
I’m referring to the opinions cited in this news report, Scradgel. Like “The blame, the adviser added, for this fell squarely on Gen Zaluzhny’s shoulders.”
That’s not propaganda though, it’s just someone expressing an opinion.
Your comment implies that the article itself was propaganda, which it of course isn’t.
I occasionally (very) post kremlin propaganda; albeit with a health warning, but mostly I post pro-Ukraine news stories and OpEds.
You don’t think Pentagon generals would voice self-serving propaganda, Scradgel? Well, I guess I’m more cynical than you.
“It became pretty clear over the course of the offensive that Ukrainians just weren’t interested in US advice, and they generally concluded that we have nothing to offer them advise wise,”
Would the US conducted a counteroffensive by taking the same advice with the same weapons? I think we all know the answer to that question. It appears that the US had a hand in firing Zaluzhny, not Zelensky.
Right, Foccusser. If roles had been reversed, the Pentagon would have had to feign interest in anyone teaching them how to attack without air superiority, with inadequate strength and supplies, against a solidly entrenched major enemy, too. Not their doctrine at all.
How start a counteroffensive against the world’s 2nd army without planes, battleships, choppers and long-range missiles?! How send everything into the fight while the military supplies from Ukraine’s most important ally already stopped months ago?
Is this Zaluzhny’s fault? That his successor is ‘a close friend of president Zelensky’ speaks for itself. Zelensky seems to be allergic on critics. A virtue of dictators, not democrats.
Can I like your comment twice? Have the tanks never made a mistake?
This 👆
^bert