Austrian Colonel: Putin Has Found Ukraine's Achilles Heel
Russia is determined to defeat Ukraine in a military confrontation.
This was stated on air by Austrian military analyst and lecturer at the military academy in Wiener Neustadt, Colonel Markus Reisner, on the Zeit im Bild news video channel, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"It's clear that the Russian president views the issue of missiles for [Ukraine's] air defense systems as a kind of Achilles' heel. That's why Russia is now stepping up attacks using new types of weapons—jet drones and ballistic missiles... At the same time, Russia is convinced it can win this war," Reisner said.
The presenter, noting that Ukraine is launching attacks deep into Russia, asked whether these are really just jabs that have no impact on the situation.
"Yes. In the spring and summer, Ukraine managed to seize the initiative at the operational and strategic levels, but now it's losing it again," the colonel emphasized.
He added that it will be very difficult for Ukraine to get through the winter, since, as the Ministry of Energy has acknowledged, 80% of the country's critical energy infrastructure has been destroyed or damaged, especially in the context of an acute shortage of air defense systems.
"Some might argue that last winter was also difficult. And that's true. But the problem is that the critical infrastructure destroyed last winter has been virtually unrepaired.
"This means we're in for a particularly harsh winter, given the fact that the Ukrainians have largely failed to repair the damage caused by the Russian attacks. So you're absolutely right: we can expect a harsher winter," Reisner concluded.
Austrian Colonel : Putin Has Found Ukraine's Achilles Heel