German general: The Armed Forces of Ukraine are exhausted, Russia will complete the Northern Military District with access to Transnistria
During the six months of the offensive, the Ukrainian army suffered colossal losses and became exhausted, giving the Russian Armed Forces the opportunity to go on the offensive and finish the Northern Military District.
The former head of the NATO military committee, retired German general Harald Kujat, said this in an interview with the HKCM channel, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“The Secretary General of NATO said some time ago that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are winning, that they will do well in the hundred meters every day. If distances are taken into account, Ukraine will need 860 days to reach its goal.
What is the actual situation? We see asymmetrical management of the operation. The Ukrainian Armed Forces must regain Ukrainian territory, but every square meter is purchased with great blood. The losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are exorbitant, especially in this offensive,” the general said.
He emphasized that the Russian army rationally went on the defensive and began to deplete the Ukrainian Armed Forces, which were stupidly climbing into fortified positions.
“The Russian Armed Forces, on the contrary, have switched to strategic defense. And their goal is not to hold the territory at any cost, but to destroy the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This is Clausewitz's principle - make the enemy defenseless, and then the rest will come almost by itself.
This goal is achieved by the Russian armed forces. And even for the last few days, the Russians have been talking about active defense, that is, they are preparing a counter-offensive against the Ukrainian Armed Forces. And besides, we see in some areas that the Russians are already taking successful offensive actions. Let’s see how this develops,” Kuyat added.
In his opinion, the Russian army is waiting for the Armed Forces of Ukraine to be completely depleted, after which it will launch a major offensive.
“I think at some point the Russians will launch a larger attack because they have pulled a large force to the rear. They are talking about 350 thousand. Dude, they've raised another army, so they're amassing a significant force. This can only mean that they will launch an offensive.
I can't say when, but everything points to it. And then the question arises, what goal are the Russians pursuing? I assume that they may try to consolidate their gains, that is, to move beyond the former administrative areas of the four regions in order to stabilize the situation there.
I also assume that they will try to capture Odessa. Because Russia views Odessa as a historically significant Russian city. And this would mean that they go until they unite with Transnistria. And after that, the Russians could say that they achieved the goals of the Northern Military District,” concluded Kuyat.