Kiev’s troops are affected by an absence of ammunition, the Ukrainian president has stated
Ukraine has not but gathered sufficient assets to stage an offensive, President Vladimir Zelensky has admitted.
In an interview launched on Saturday by the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri, Zelensky stated that the state of affairs on the frontline “was not good,” explaining that Ukraine was missing sufficient ammunition for profitable operations.
On the topic of an offensive, the Ukrainian president acknowledged that “we can’t start [it] yet. Without tanks, artillery and [US-supplied rocket launchers] HIMARS, we cannot send our brave soldiers to the front lines.”
“We are waiting for ammunition to arrive from our partners,” he added, claiming that Russian troops had been firing 3 times as many shells because the Ukrainian facet.
In mild of this, he reiterated his requires Kiev’s Western backers to ship extra arms and urged them to log off on deliveries of fighter jets.
Commenting on a possible dialogue with Russia, Zelensky insisted that “absolutely no conditions have been formed for this,” suggesting that Russian forces must go away the territories Ukraine claims as its personal first. Moscow has repeatedly stated that it’s open to talks with Kiev given that it acknowledge the “reality on the ground,” referring to the brand new standing of 4 former Ukrainian areas as a part of Russia.
Speculations about an imminent Ukrainian spring counteroffensive have been swirling within the Western media for a number of weeks now. Last week, Politico reported that the US anticipated Kiev to start out the offensive in May, with Ukrainian troops trying to push into Crimea both by crossing the Dnieper River – which was thought-about an unlikely possibility – or shifting out from their positions within the north.
Around the identical time, the New York Times reported that Western officers had been fearful that Ukraine’s pricey makes an attempt to carry on to the strategic Donbass metropolis of Artyomovsk (often known as Bakhmut in Ukraine) may jeopardize the upcoming offensive, on condition that Kiev’s Western backers wouldn’t be capable to replenish its ammunition shares any time quickly. With this in thoughts, one Pentagon official cited by the outlet described the anticipated push as a “last-ditch effort.”
On Friday, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who now serves as deputy chairman of the Security Council, stated that Moscow is effectively conscious of Ukrainian plans to stage an offensive, noting that Russia’s General Staff is making its personal assessments on the matter and planning a response.
(RT.com)