russian army prepares to launch another offensive against Ukraine in the coming weeks - US

The russian army will soon launch another offensive in Ukraine, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.

Source. This was reported by CNN.

According to Kirby, the coming weeks will be "critical" in the war.

"The United States expects that russian President vladimir putin will try to launch another offensive and possibly from many different directions," Kirby warned.

He emphasized that the United States will continue to provide Ukraine with everything it needs to defend itself against any russian offensive.

Washington also wants the Ukrainian Armed Forces to be able to "conduct their own offensive operations anytime, anywhere, on a scale of their choosing."

"We are going to focus on making sure that President Volodymyr Zelensky has what he needs wherever he decides to defend himself. This means intelligence. This means support. That means weapons," Kirby explained.

In addition, the United States has increased the intensity of training for the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and Ukrainian servicemen continue to master the Patriot air defense system.

"We're doing everything we can to make sure they're as ready as they can be for the critical weeks and months ahead," Kirby added.

Asked whether Kyiv is spending too much time fighting for Bakhmut, the US Security Council representative said that Ukrainians are still fighting bravely for their city. "It is now March 21, and Bakhmut is still not captured," Kirby said.

Background. As reported, russia's offensive near Bakhmut is nearing its culmination. Among other things, this is evidenced by the recent appeal of the founder of the Wagner PMC, yevgeny prigozhin, who asked for help from the russian Defense Ministry, fearing encirclement near Bakhmut.

Meanwhile, British intelligence believes that the russian assault on Bakhmut is weakening.