The defense minister said Kyiv needed to secure the area after the lightning offensive went “better than expected.”
It is too early for Ukraine to celebrate a victory – it is necessary to protect the vast territory regained in recent days from a possible Russian counteroffensive, Defense Minister Alexei Reznikov warned in a interview with the Financial Times.
He admitted that Kyiv’s blitzkrieg went “better than expected,” calling it “a snowball rolling down the mountain.” But the time will come for serious work.
“The counteroffensive liberates the territory, and after that you have to control it and be ready to defend it,” said Reznikov. According to him, Ukrainian troops are tired after six days of attacks, but morale is high because “the Ukrainians want to launch this counteroffensive, we need this counteroffensive, and this is a sign that can defeat Russia.”
But he warned that Russian reinforcements could launch a counterattack on his country’s crumbling supply lines. Ukrainian forces could also be surrounded by fresh Russian troops if they advanced too far.
“The opponent made a mistake. But I thought he would draw conclusions,” Reznikov summed up his reasoning.
It was previously reported that in the Kharkiv region, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have already liberated 40 settlements.
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Source: korrespondent
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.