The counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is far from a failure, and the real situation is different from what is described on paper.
This conviction was expressed by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley.
Source. This was reported by the Voice of America.
"The counteroffensive is far from a failure. It is too early to say so. I think there's still a lot of fighting to be done," Milley said during a joint briefing with Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin on Tuesday.
He believes that the counteroffensive may be slower than analysts had assumed when considering possible scenarios, pointing out that reality differs from theory.
"There is a difference between a war on paper and a real war. It's real people in real vehicles clearing real minefields and really dying. So when this happens, units usually slow down. And it's the right thing to do to survive and get through these minefields. That's why the Ukrainians are making their way," Millie said.
He added that the Ukrainian Armed Forces can deploy additional combat capabilities.
"What the Ukrainians have is a significant amount of combat power that has not yet been deployed. I will not say what will happen in the future, because Ukraine will decide where and when they will send their reserves. For now, they are maintaining their combat capability, and slowly and steadily making their way through all these minefields. And it's a hard fight, it's a very hard fight," the general said.
"I think there are many more battles to come, and I stand by what we have said before: it will be long. It will be hard. It's going to be bloody."
For his part, Austin emphasized the unity and determination of the allies to help Ukraine.
"We are going to continue to build up our combat power. We will continue to send additional Bradley fighting vehicles, Striker, and artillery. Our work is ongoing, and we will do everything we can to ensure that the Ukrainians succeed," he said.
Background. The day before, the Ukrainian Armed Forces spokesman said that Russia had deployed more than 100,000 soldiers in the Liman-Kuybas area.