The Russian President said Kiev has almost no war material of its own and is heavily dependent on supplies from abroad.
Wladimir Putin. Photo: Sergei Karpukhin/TASS
rt — Ukraine has already lost more than 600 armored vehicles, including 186 tanks, in its counteroffensive against Russian forces, President Vladimir Putin said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on Friday.
“Their losses are very high, more than one in ten compared to the Russian army. That’s a fact. As for the equipment, the loss of this material is increasing every day. To date, 186 tanks have been lost to the Ukrainian army and 418 armored vehicles,” Putin said, referring to the ongoing deployment of the Ukrainian armed forces.
According to the Russian President, Kiev used its strategic reserves for the counteroffensive, but so far has not been able to achieve any of its goals. Rapid depletion of Ukraine’s own war stocks means it must rely solely on foreign supplies, Putin suggested.
“It won’t be possible to wage war like this for long. However, our defense industry is growing day by day,” he added.
Ukraine launched a fullscale counteroffensive on June 4 after months of campaigning by Kiev and its Western backers. Moscow claims the operation resulted in heavy casualties for Ukrainian troops and provided minimal tactical advantages. Kiev remained silent, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy only admitted that the Russian troops put up “very strong resistance”.
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