The purpose of this part of the counteroffensive is to chop Russian forces off on the river and pressure them to give up town of Kherson, they mentioned. At this level, crossing the river can be “very robust to do,” one of many officers mentioned.
Ukrainian officers introduced the operation to liberate Russian-occupied territories within the nation’s south on Monday, following weeks of counterattacks on cities within the Kherson area. Ukraine’s armed forces claimed that they’d breached Russia’s “first line of protection” close to Kherson.
The U.S. is supporting the counteroffensive with visible intelligence in regards to the battlefield from satellites and recommendation on how greatest to make use of weapon programs, one of many officers mentioned.
John Kirby, a spokesperson for the Nationwide Safety Council, wouldn’t affirm the counteroffensive has begun and referred inquiries to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. However he confused that Kyiv has been conducting a extra “localized” counteroffensive for weeks.
“The concept of happening the offense is just not new to the Ukrainians, and so they have been taking the battle to the Russians inside their nation,” Kirby mentioned, noting that the HIMARS, particularly, has made a major distinction within the battle.
The system, together with precision-guided rockets, has allowed Ukraine to strike behind Russian strains and pushed Moscow into defensive positions, Kirby mentioned.
The battle has provided the U.S. the uncommon alternative to evaluate the HIMARS functionality, and that of Russian defenses in motion, one of many DoD officers mentioned. U.S. officers are “slightly shocked” at how properly the HIMARS is performing — and by how poorly Russian defensive capabilities have fared in opposition to the assaults, the individual mentioned.
“The Ukrainians are doing very properly at what they’re doing with them and the way they’re using them, however we’re additionally studying that they can get by way of lots of Russian programs,” the individual mentioned.
The subsequent query, one of many DoD officers mentioned, is whether or not Russian forces determine to give up the captured territory within the south or reposition models from the battle within the east.
Kirby mentioned Moscow has already needed to pull assets from the battle within the Donbas, the place Russia has concentrated most of its forces, because of studies that Ukraine may be happening the offensive within the south.
“They’ve needed to deplete models from sure areas within the east and within the Donbas to answer what they clearly imagine was a looming risk of a counteroffensive,” Kirby mentioned. “From a strategic perspective, it has already had an impact on Russian army functionality inside Ukraine.”
Upriver from Kherson, a staff from the United Nations nuclear watchdog is predicted to examine the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which was captured by Russian forces in March and has develop into a harmful frontline within the battle.
Russia has “primarily militarized” the ability plant, which continues to be manned by Ukrainians, by stationing weapons and troopers there, Kirby mentioned.
“We proceed to imagine {that a} managed shutdown of Zaporizhzhia nuclear reactors can be the most secure and least dangerous possibility within the close to time period, “Kirby mentioned.
