Ukraine expects the Russian offensive to intensify in the coming weeks, with military officials and analysts eyeing the next few months as a critical phase of the war, UNIAN agency reported, citing an FT article.
Moscow has stepped up attacks in recent months, and Ukrainian officials have admitted that their defenses are “collapsing”.
Kyiv expects the offensive to gain speed. A Ukrainian army spokesman told the Financial Times that more medical personnel were being sent to the eastern front ahead of heavy fighting expected in the coming days and weeks, “especially in the south and east”.
The commander of an artillery unit near Kurakhovo (Donetsk region), where the fighting is most intense, told the FT that Russian troops were “attacking from three sides”. He stated that his unit was ready to retreat, “but we still do not have an order from above”.
According to military analysts, by December “the front line will probably shift 30-35 km west of its current position”. Ukraine's biggest problem remains the shortage of personnel, especially infantry.
Ukraine plans to mobilize another 160,000 troops between November and February. However, military experts and Ukrainian officials are skeptical that this goal can be met, saying it is more realistic to expect up to 100,000 troops to be mobilized.
Several Ukrainian commanders and soldiers said efforts to recruit more men into the army were hampered by indefinite conscription. Many boys already perceive mobilization as a death sentence.
Russia has reinforced its military contingent and stepped up bombing in preparation for an assault on the southern front, where positions have remained largely unchanged in recent months, AFP reported yesterday, citing a Ukrainian military spokesman. A Russian offensive in the southern Zaporozhye region would pose a challenge to the Ukrainian army, which is already struggling on the eastern front and is still involved in the invasion of Russia's Kursk region in the north.
The fighting intensified ahead of the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump. He is expected to bring Kiev and Moscow to the negotiating table as early as January – and because of this both sides want to have stronger positions in the negotiations.