Ukrainian tank FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images
Ukrainian forces appear to be launching counter-offensives against the invading Russian military, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters Tuesday, according to CNN.
According to Kirby, the USA had “seen signs that the Ukrainians are now going a bit more on the offensive”.
“They have defended very cleverly, very nimbly, very creatively in places that they think are the right places to defend and we’ve seen them now, particularly in places in the south near Kherson, they’ve tried , to reclaim territory.” he added.
Ukrainian counterattacks are not limited to the area around Russian-controlled Kherson. On Tuesday, Ukrainian troops retook the Kiev suburb of Makariv, although Russian troops made some gains in other areas near the capital, The Hill reported.
On Sunday, a Russian tabloid close to the Kremlin quoted a casualty report from the Russian Defense Ministry that put the number of Russian soldiers dead at over 9,800 since the invasion began on Feb. 24. The casualty figures were later edited out of the article.
An assessment published by the Institute for the Study of War in Washington, DC concluded that “Ukrainian forces defeated the initial Russian campaign.”
Eliot A. Cohen of the Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote in The Atlantic that the “probable truth” on the ground is not that “the war has stalled” but “that the Ukrainians are winning.”
“Ukrainians not only defend their strengths in urban areas, but maneuver from and between them, following the Clausewitzian dictum that the best defense is a shield of well-placed blows,” Cohen wrote.
“If the Ukrainians keep winning, we could see more visible collapses of Russian units and maybe mass surrenders and desertions,” he added.
You may also like
Putin quotes Jesus to justify invasion of Ukraine
General David Petraeus explains how Ukraine keeps eliminating Russian generals
Putin’s invasion is accelerating Russia’s decline. Let’s heed the warning.