Russia may plan major offensive in summer - Financial Times
The goal of Russia’s summer offensive could be the complete seizure of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions.
As Censor. NET informs, this was written by Financial Times.
The publication with reference to the Ukrainian military does not reject another attempt to capture Kharkov or even Kyiv. After all, Putin's ultimate goal in Ukraine remains unchanged - the conquest of the country and the subordination of the people.
This, the document says, explains why Russia continues its offensive operations in eastern Ukraine in several directions, especially around Avdiivka, as well as in the direction of Lyman and Kupyansk in the northeast. At the same time, one of the Western officials said that the prospects for an operational breakthrough on both sides in 2024 are small.
"After the unsuccessful summer counteroffensive, Ukraine is changing its tactics and moving to 'active defense'. According to a Western official, this strategy involves not only holding defensive lines, but also finding weaknesses in the enemy, combined with long-range air strikes - this will allow Ukraine to build up its forces this year and prepare for 2025, when a counteroffensive will have more chances," the article says.
Financial Times journalists note that Ukraine's strongest allies support the transition to such a strategy. In December, the Estonian Ministry of Defense published a report stating that Ukraine should move to "strategic defense" to give the country and its allies time to build an industrial base, prepare reserves, and increase manpower and artillery production capacity to resume an offensive campaign in 2025.
The United States also insists on this approach: a strategy of holding territory while looking for weaknesses in Russian defense to exploit when the opportunity arises.
