Ukrainian command: We will not be able to repeat last year's success
Russian troops intend to retake territory they lost during their retreat last year.
This was stated by the Deputy Commander of the Eastern Group of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Colonel Serhiy Cherevaty, in an interview with Gazeta po-ukrainski, as reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent , while assessing the situation at the junction of the Luhansk and Kharkiv regions.
“The Russians in the spring were talking about a big offensive. They still want to break our defenses and occupy the Donetsk and Lugansk regions. And, as a maximum, we can reach the positions that we have already repulsed during the Kharkov operation. These plans cannot be implemented for a long time,” Cherevaty said.
However, he does not agree that the Russians transferred forces to this direction from other areas.
“They kept these forces there constantly. Everyone thinks that the troops have been transferred. But the Russians always had a powerful group there, they are strengthening it. They are preparing forces and from time to time trying to break through our defenses. But a large group was kept there constantly. But this only dawned on people after I compared the number of forces with the Soviet contingent in Afghanistan. That is, to understand what forces we are dealing with,” the colonel noted.
The publication drew attention to the fact that the Armed Forces of Ukraine control only a small percentage of the Luhansk region and asked whether the Russian Armed Forces have any prospects of occupying the region completely
“The Russians want to occupy all of Ukraine,” replied the deputy commander of the Eastern group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
At the same time, he admitted that it was impossible to repeat the offensive of last year, as a result of which the Russian army retreated from a large part of the Kharkov region.
“The Kharkov operation had its own characteristics. The enemy had disdain for us and believed more in his own strength. We achieved success through military cunning and dexterity. The enemy is digging in powerfully, preparing for defense, and equipping his positions. It is completely impossible to repeat the Kharkov operation, but some elements are quite possible,” says Cherevaty.
Ukrainian Command: We Can't Repeat Last Year's Success