According to British military intelligence, Ukraine has fended off numerous Russian attacks in the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine, which borders Russia.
Russian forces are now focused on making gains in eastern Ukraine in the two-month war.
“Ukraine has repelled numerous Russian attacks along the line of contact in the Donbass region,” the UK Ministry of Defense wrote Twitter On Sunday.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last week that Russia had “started the fight for Donbass, for which they have been preparing for a very long time”. He said Moscow had an entire army focused on the attack.
However, the Ukrainian president promised that Kyiv will defend its territory “no matter how many Russian soldiers are herded there”.
Britain’s Defense Ministry said on Sunday that while Russia had made some territorial gains, Ukraine’s resistance was “strong” and had “inflicted significant costs on Russian forces”.
The British intelligence update also said that Russia’s low morale and limited time to reorganize are likely to hamper Moscow’s offensive.
“Poor Russian morale and limited time to recover from poor offensives, re-equip and reorganize are likely to hamper Russian combat effectiveness,” the ministry wrote.
The intelligence update comes in the eighth week of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24th. After Moscow forces failed to take control of Kyiv, Moscow forces repositioned their offensive to attack southern and eastern Ukraine.
Head of the Women’s Tennis Association warns of “strong reaction” to ban on Russians, Belarusians from Wimbledon Zelensky: “We are living through dark times”
Zelenskyi said Sunday eight people were killed and at least 18 injured when a Russian missile attack hit Odessa in southern Ukraine. A three-month-old girl was also among the victims of the attack.
“Russia launched another missile attack on Ukraine today in Odessa. So far – 8 dead. At least 18 wounded. Ordinary peaceful people. A 3-month-old girl was among those killed. How did she threaten Russia? It seems that killing children is just a new national idea of the Russian Federation,” Zelenskyy said in a speech.