The Russian army opened a new front in the Kharkiv region . And although the offensive was expected, it still proved successful. The publication Der Spiegel analyzes the reasons why Ukraine failed to prevent the advance of the Russian Federation.
The element of surprise can immediately be excluded from the list of reasons, since there were warnings about the attack for a long time. Including President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that the Russian army will launch an offensive in the Kharkiv region. The publication notes that three mistakes were decisive in this situation.
The first reason was the lack of weapons. For months, the US Congress has blocked the release of arms to Kiev. At the same time, the publication notes that one of the reasons why Ukraine has not been able to prevent the deployment of Russian armed forces is the US ban on using weapons supplied by them on Russian territory. With the American HIMARS missile launchers, the Ukrainians could stop the enemy before he launched an attack. But since the Russians were located outside Ukrainian territory, they were safe.
The second mistake, writes Der Spiegel, is the problem with the defensive lines. It is noted that three lines of defense had to be built along the entire 2,000-kilometer front. However, Ukraine failed to build them, and besides, it does not mine this area enough. In some cases, the border lacks even the simplest defensive fortifications.
And the third factor in Ukraine's failure was the lack of troops. Ukraine refuses to introduce large-scale mobilization because it is a politically sensitive issue. Even Kiev's Western allies have indicated that if the country wants to win the war, it must take unpopular decisions. According to analysts, the Russian army does not have the strength to capture the city of Kharkiv, but wants to divert Ukrainian troops from other points on the front.
Against this background, a senior NATO military official said that Russia does not have sufficient forces for a major breakthrough in Ukraine.
Russia does not have sufficient forces for a major breakthrough in Ukraine. This was stated by American General Christopher Cavoli, who is the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe. Ukraine has said it is slowing the advance of Russian forces in the country's northeast, where the situation remains, as Volodymyr Zelensky said, extremely difficult. Moscow is leading an offensive there, which has made it possible to achieve territorial gains, which are its largest since the end of 2022.