"Miraculous" effort by Ukrainians pushes Russians into defensive position – Pentagon
The situation at the front line in Ukraine is far from ideal. Still, the Ukrainian troops performed a "miraculous" feat, pushing the Russian invaders back to defensive positions.
At the briefing, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder stated that heavy and brutal fighting continues in Ukraine, Rubryka reports.
The US assumed from the beginning, he said, that regardless of when the counteroffensive began, it would be an uphill battle. At the same time, Ryder stressed that the United States would continue working with the Ukrainian troops to provide them with the necessary capabilities for combat, including training.
"Let's take a step back here and recognize that this is a less-than-ideal situation. Nobody in their right mind ever would have wished that Russia would have invaded Ukraine," the spokesperson said. "And the Ukrainians, against all odds, were able to push the Russians back into a position — a defensive position, which in and of itself is — is miraculous, given the state of the Ukrainian military as Russia invaded."
In Ryder's opinion, the situation on the battlefield is far from ideal, but even in such conditions, Ukrainian fighters were able to realize their potential and achieve results.
What do we know about Ukraine's counteroffensive?
The Ukrainian military has been conducting a counteroffensive in Ukraine for about two months. During this time, it was possible to liberate several settlements in the eastern Donetsk and southeastern Zaporizhzhia regions and part of the territory that had been occupied since 2014.
On August 3, the Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko, reported that units of one of the National Guard brigades advanced almost 650 meters deep into the Russian defenses on the Melitopol front.
In turn, the ISW reported that the Russian occupiers are trying to advance on the Kupiansk – Svatove – Kreminna border and the Bakhmut area on the Avdiivka – Donetsk border.
In turn, the Joint Press Center Chief of the South Operational Command, Natalia Humeniuk, said that on the southern front, the Russian forces are losing their quantitative position due to artillery fire and are also starting to lose their territorial position.
The Ukrainian military continues to advance in the south of the country. According to Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar, the Defense Forces have already broken through the first line of defense in some places and have moved to the intermediate line.
In the Tavriia direction, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have already entered the first line of Russian defense. Ukrainian troops also advanced hundreds of meters in the direction of Melitopol.
The Institute for the Study of War reported that the strikes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on critical Russian ground communications facilities, in particular on bridges in occupied Crimea, are part of Ukraine's interception campaign to create conditions for future stages of a counteroffensive.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine are currently advancing on two front sections, namely in the Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions. The Russians, in turn, are trying to break through the defense of the Armed Forces in the east.
