Currently, approximately 17.5 percent of Ukrainian territory is under Russian control. Western experts believe that the Ukrainian counteroffensive, which was launched by Ukrainian forces four months ago, has not achieved significant territorial gains overall.
Russian President Vladimir Putin considers Ukraine’s efforts to be futile. He stated, “As for the counteroffensive that allegedly stalled, it has completely failed.” Although Ukraine is reportedly preparing new offensives, he emphasized, according to the German news platform n-tv.de. “We see it, and we know it.”
These claims have not been independently verified and/or confirmed, and therefore, they should be regarded with caution.
Ukrainian forces are making slow progress, particularly in the east in the region around the heavily damaged city of Bakhmut and in the south, where they aim to create a wedge between Russian units and reach the coast of the Azov Sea. Their advance is hindered by the fact that Russian forces have heavily mined large portions of the area and have reinforced it with thousands of additional soldiers.
Image: president.gov.ua, Зустріч Президента України з Федеральним канцлером Австрії 44 (cropped), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (image size modified)
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