Ukraine’s counteroffensive in the southern part of the country has shown some progress against Russian forces in its first days, according to the United Kingdom’s Defense Ministry.
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Earlier this week, Ukrainian leaders said their plan to try to liberate the southern city of Kherson, which has strategic significance, had begun. In the British ministry’s Wednesday update, it reported that Ukraine’s strategy has been to assault “several axes across the south of the country,” while in some places, the country has been able to push “back the front line back some distance in places.”
UKRAINIAN TROOPS HAVE BEGUN COUNTEROFFENSIVE IN THE SOUTH, OFFICIAL SAYS
The Ukrainian resistance has been able to capitalize on “relatively thinly held Russian defenses,” while Russia will most likely look to plug the gaps using predetermined mobile reserve units that will likely include Russian troops who had been fighting in the eastern part of the country.
Natalia Humeniuk, a spokeswoman for Ukraine’s Operational Command South, told Ukrainian media on Monday that troops “have started offensive actions in various directions,” specifically toward the city of Kherson, which is located near the Dnieper River and the Black Sea.
Most of the fighting throughout the course of the summer has been in the eastern and southern parts of Ukraine, and Russia was able to make incremental gains, though at a disproportionately heavy expense. The Ukrainian counteroffensive has been anticipated.
The international community’s attention has recently been focused on the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, as a result of the obvious safety concerns. Both sides have accused the other of shelling the facilities, while International Atomic Energy Agency investigators are expected to visit the facility soon and have already arrived in Ukraine.
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Russia’s military has acquired at least two types of drones from Iran in recent weeks with the intent to use them in Ukraine, according to administration officials. The officials did not specify how many drones Russia has already transported, but they said their expectation is that Russia’s plan is “to import hundreds of Iranian UAVs of various types.”
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Wednesday that it’s “too soon to tell” what impact the Iranian drones could make in the landscape of the war. He also demurred on questions about the Ukrainian counteroffensive, saying the country was best suited to talk about its own progress.
