Russia planned to advance to Odesa and end war with defeat of Ukraine, - Syrskyi
Russia planned to end the war against Ukraine with a crushing defeat and an advance on Odesa, but the Defence Forces thwarted these plans and prevented the enemy from making any strategic breakthroughs.
This was reported on Facebook by Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi, according to Censor.NET.
Russia's intentions
The past year has been a great challenge for us. The Russian aggressor sought to end the war against Ukraine, but planned to end it with a crushing defeat, imposing its terms on us from a position of strength. It tried to capture the rest of the territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia regions, as well as the right bank of Kherson region, and intended to reach Odesa in order to cut off our access to the sea altogether," he noted.
According to Syrskyi, the Defence Forces prevented critical breakthroughs by the enemy, thwarted its plans, and repeatedly forced it to postpone its planned operations.
"We held out. Because our soldiers worked to the limit, with complete dedication, inflicting maximum losses on the occupiers and reducing the enemy army by more than 418,000 killed and wounded during the year.
Thanks to the effective combat work of the Defence Forces, the enemy has been unable to build up its forces for a long time now – after all, every month we destroy more Russian military personnel than the aggressor country is able to recruit," he added.
Ukraine's losses
At the same time, as the commander-in-chief noted, during 2025 we managed to reduce our own personnel losses by 13%.
"This year has proven that we are capable of systematically exhausting the enemy and significantly reducing its potential. The defence forces prevented the aggressor from implementing its plans, preserved strategic positions and prepared the ground for further action," he concludes.
