Since the start of Ukraine's counteroffensive against Russia, there has been limited good news for Kyiv, Sean Bell writes - but President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be banking on its success.
How could cluster bombs impact Ukraine war?In the battle for Bakhmut, Russian forces on offence were suffering up to 10 times the casualties of the Ukrainian defenders. But even with Western support, in this initial phase of the counteroffensive Ukraine will expect to suffer three times the casualties of the Russian forces. This will present a huge challenge to Ukrainian morale.
And, Ukraine must avoid an enduring war of attrition that will - eventually - favour the larger Russian force. Meanwhile, the enemy also"has a vote", as former US defence secretary James Mattis likes to say, and Russia will not sit back and let Ukraine seize the initiative. Vladimir Putin's"special military operation" remains focused on the Donbas, and there are reports suggesting thousands of Russian forces are massing ready for an attack in the Kreminna area.
This would be a vital steppingstone for Russia to seizing the Donbas, and would create a conundrum for Ukraine: divert forces to protect the Donbas, or capitalise on Russia's dilution of its defensive capability in the south., which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies. You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enablecookies or to allow those cookies just once.
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