The United States is Urging Ukraine to Take More Aggressive Military Measures Against Russia
Jose Nino
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According to a report published by the Washington Post on July 18, 2023, United States officials are dialing up the pressure on Ukraine to make considerable military progress against Russian military units. This comes after weeks of news coverage highlighting a dismal Ukrainian counteroffensive.
“Ukraine is making limited advances in its counteroffensive against Russian forces but has yet to employ the kind of larger-scale operations that American officials believe could enable a breakthrough, officials and analysts say, deepening questions among some of Ukraine’s chief backers about whether Kyiv can move fast enough to match a finite supply of munitions and arms,” the Washington Post report noted.
An American official, who desired anonymity, additionally stressed that it’s “paramount” that Ukrainian forces move quickly to generate momentum and make breakthroughs against the Russians.
“Applying all those capabilities in a way that enables them to breach those obstacles, but do it quickly, is paramount,” the official stated.
There also appears to disagreement over divergent approaches when it comes to military strategy, between NATO leadership and Kiev. The report added:
“Western officials and analysts say Ukraine’s military has so far embraced an attrition-based approach aimed largely at creating vulnerabilities in Russian lines by firing artillery and missiles at command, transport and logistics sites at the rear of the Russian position, instead of conducting what Western military officials call “combined arms” operations that involve coordinated maneuvers by large groups of tanks, armored vehicles, infantry, engineers, artillery and, sometimes, air power.”
However, Zelensky and high-ranking have largely questioned US recommendations, arguing that they are akin to the
the Russian “meatgrinder” approach to throwing large units into frontline fighting. Such maneuvers would produce mass casualties for the Ukrainians, who have already incurred massive losses on their end.
“We cannot use meat-grinder tactics as the Russians do,” Ukrainian defense minister Oleksii Reznikov declared. “For us, the most precious thing is the lives and health of our soldiers. That is why our task is to achieve success at the front while protecting lives.”
The Washington Post report similarly cited a D.C.-based think tank to reveal that the Ukrainian counteroffensive has been a dud so far, with only 96 square miles captured by Ukrainian forces since the counteroffensive’s launch in June.
Military realities are beginning to dawn on several factions of the US military establishment. Such a counteroffensive is an exercise in futility, as Russia has considerable ground and overall military superiority over Ukraine. No amount of military and economic aid being sent to Ukraine will change this reality.
For the sake of saving lives and preserving the modern Ukrainian state, the Collective West must abandon this quixotic military campaign against Russia and start finding ways to facilitate a negotiated peace settlement between Russia and Ukraine.
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