File on the Ukraine-Russia warUkraine’s Deputy Defense Minister on Monday, July 24, hailed advances in the south and east of the country, where the Ukrainian army has been trying to break through Russian defenses for two months.
Vladimir Putin’s statements that the Ukrainian counter-offensive “failed” seem to be refuted from the side again. Kiev on Monday, July 24, claimed last week that it took over 16 km² in the east and south of the country from Russian forces. In mid-July, Ukraine reported that within a week 14 km² had been recaptured in the same areas, bringing territorial gains to 193 km² two months after the start of a counter-offensive to withdraw Moscow troops from Ukraine.
“During the week […]”In the Bakhmout sector, 4 km² have been liberated” and “12.6 km² in the south,” Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on Ukrainian television on Monday. The official hailed this “success” in the two areas where the Ukrainian army has been trying to breach Russian defenses for several weeks.
Since the start of the counter-offensive in early June, the Kiev armed forces have “liberated” 35 km² in the Bachmout region (east) and 192.1 km² in the south, the deputy minister added. She also said that last week the Russian army “carried out attacks aimed at pushing our units back across the Oskil River and looking for weak points in our defenses” towards Kupyansk (northeast).
In recent days, the Russian army claimed to have advanced slightly in this area and in particular claimed to have taken control of a railway station.
“A very difficult fight”
On Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin received his Belarusian counterpart and ally Alexander Lukashenko in St. Petersburg and judged that the Ukrainian counter-offensive had “failed”.
However, on the same day, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed his Ukrainian allies. “Ukraine has already recaptured around 50% of what was originally confiscated,” argued Antony Blinken in an interview with CNN as part of his offensive by Russia launched on February 24, 2022. However, he did not forget to remind that “a very difficult battle” was ahead of the armed forces. “It’s not going to happen in the next two weeks. We still anticipate that it will take several months,” he added.