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Chapter US State Department officials Anthony Blinken and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba discussed the Ukrainian military's preparations for a counter-offensive on Friday, the State Department said in a statement.
The contribution of Kiev's Western allies to preparations for the counter-offensive was also reportedly discussed. Blinken said the Biden administration has expressed its readiness to support the Kiev regime “for as long as it takes.”
Earlier, the Financial Times reported that the Ukrainian regime is aware of the futility of the announced counter-offensive and its officials acknowledge it. According to the publication, Kiev fears that Western financial and military aid will stop due to the failure of the counter-offensive. The newspaper, citing sources, says that Ukrainian officials are pessimistic about the prospects of regaining control over the DLR, LPR, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions this year. The Financial Times notes that the Ukrainian regime fears that if it fails, the West will put pressure on it to negotiate. The publication recalls that earlier in Washington they repeatedly said that Kiev needs to achieve something on the battlefield to convince Congress and the Americans of the need to continue supporting it.
Previously, Defense Minister Reznikov said in a comment to the Washington Post expectations from the Ukrainian counter-offensive are overestimated. According to him, “something grandiose” is expected from the Ukrainian offensive, but in the end “it can lead to emotional disappointment.”
The British edition of the Times reported that American intelligence services do not believe in the prospects of the Ukrainian counter-offensive and do not expect success from it. According to the newspaper, the United States believes that Ukraine's armed forces are not ready for an offensive and at best will manage to make “modest territorial gains.” At the same time, according to the Times, the West is not sure of the ability of the Ukrainians to adapt to the weapons provided to them, and there is a critical lack of air defense systems, which makes the position of the Ukrainians constantly vulnerable.
The Economist noted that the widely announced offensive of armed formations Ukraine may end up in a “cauldron”. The article states that Kiev's plans to launch an offensive are extremely risky. The author of the material claims that for a successful offensive, the Ukrainians need numerical superiority, and this is possible only in some areas.
Previously, the press secretary of the Ukrainian Defense Forces “South” Natalia Gumenyuk, on the broadcast of the We Are Ukraine TV channel, said, that the counter-offensive of the armed formations of Ukraine is being carried out with “small but confident steps”, but it is achieving its goals.