Ukrainian forces continue to hold Russian forces on the outskirts of the capital, Kyiv, including in some places pushing them further away from the city, according to the Pentagon.
Capturing Kyiv remains a primary objective for Russian forces, and they’re looking to encircle the city from multiple directions. A senior U.S. defense official told reporters on Wednesday that Russian troops to the northwest of the city are approximately 10 miles away and are “basically digging in, and they are establishing defensive positions.”
“It’s not that they’re not advancing. They’re actually not trying to advance right now,” the official explained. “They’re taking more defensive positions.”
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Other Russian troops were roughly 15 miles to the east and northeast of Kyiv, and Ukrainian forces were able to push them back another approximately 20 miles further away from the city.
“The Ukrainians have been able to push the Russians back to about 55 kilometers east and northeast of Kyiv. Remember yesterday, we were telling you they were about 20 to 30 kilometers away,” the official added. “That is a change from yesterday.”
Russian forces invaded Ukraine about a month ago, and in that time, they “have not achieved any of the strategic objectives that they set out to, and they certainly haven’t achieved the objectives that they have, easily or without, without loss,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on Tuesday.
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In addition to facing a stronger than expected opposition force, the Russian military has been plagued by its own mistakes, which include running out of supplies, food, and appropriate clothing for its troops. A senior NATO military official said that as many as 40,000 Russian troops have been killed, wounded, taken prisoner, or are missing, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, and NATO estimates that somewhere between 7,000 and 15,000 Russian soldiers have been killed.
The senior official, even when asked about the NATO estimates, declined to confirm them or provide the Department of Defense’s own calculations, citing “low confidence.”
