In a lengthy interview with The Washington Post, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny expressed disappointment that Ukraine has not yet received modern fighter jets, although it is expected to quickly recapture territory from the occupying Russians.
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The US-made F-16 fighter jets, promised only recently, are unlikely to arrive by autumn – at best.
That’s why I’m “pissed off,” Zaluzhny said, when he hears that Ukraine’s long-awaited counter-offensive in the east and south of the country has begun more slowly than expected.
According to him, his troops are advancing daily, even if it is only 500 meters.
This is not a show that the whole world is watching, betting on or anything. Every day, every meter is given by blood. Without full support, these plans are generally unrealistic. But they come true. Yes, perhaps not as fast as the participants of the show, observers would like, but these are their problems.
Other main talking points are:
- The Ukrainian army could have fired at least as many artillery shells as the enemy, but due to limited resources, the enemy sometimes fired 10 times as many;
- Several times a week, in conversations that can last for hours, Zaluzhny shares his worries with Millie (Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff), whom he is deeply infatuated with and considers his friend;
- In these conversations, Zaluzhny is frank: “We have an agreement: 24/7, we are in touch. So sometimes I can call and say, “If I don’t get 100,000 shells a week, 1,000 people will die”;
- At the command post, Zaluzhny has a screen showing him everything that is in the air at any moment, NATO aircraft on the western border of Ukraine, their own planes in the sky over Ukraine and Russian ones in the east. “Let’s say the number of planes that are on duty near our western borders is twice the number of Russian planes that are destroying our positions. Why can’t we take at least a third from there and bring it here?
- “We didn’t feel that their protection (of the Russians) had weakened somewhere” – about the consequences of Prigozhin’s rebellion;
- On a nuclear strike: “It doesn’t stop me at all. We are doing our job. For some reason, all these signals come from outside: “Be afraid of a nuclear strike.” Well, what do we think? ”;
- He stressed that in order for the Ukrainian counter-offensive to move faster, it needs more – more of each type of weapon, as well as an advantage in the air – F-16 fighters.
According to him, without full support for the troops, these plans are generally unrealistic, but for all that “they are being implemented.”
Yes, perhaps not as fast as the participants of the show, observers would like, but this is their problem, Zaluzny summed up.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.