Ukraine’s most senior ground forces commander sent a strong signal Thursday that the country’s armed forces will launch a much-anticipated counteroffensive “very soon” to take back lost territory.
Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrskyi said that the Wagner Group of mercenaries fighting in Donetsk were losing manpower, equipment and “considerable strength” and that “very soon” his forces would take advantage of the “opportunity” that presented.
The comments come just as Russian forces are seen to be losing momentum in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.
Separately, the head of the Wagner Group of mercenary forces in Ukraine, Yevgeny Prigoin, denied a Bloomberg report suggesting that he is preparing to reduce Wagner’s involvement in the conflict after a major dispute with Russia’s Ministry of Defense.
Zelenskyy calls on EU to continue supporting Ukraine, imposing pressure on Russia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that if Europe hesitates in supporting Ukraine, “evil may have time to regroup and prepare itself for years of war.”
“It is in your power not to allow this to happen,” Zelenskyy said in a sweeping speech before members of the European Council.
The Ukrainian president also reiterated calls for more military aid from European leaders.
“The more often Ukrainian cannons hit the occupier – the less chance Russia has to implement its genocidal policy against Ukrainians and other Europeans,” Zelenskyy said.
“God forbid anyone should see it happen in his or her own country,” he added.
Zelenskyy also thanked members of the European Union that support the work of the International Criminal Court in holding Russian President Vladimir Putin to account for the ongoing war in Ukraine.
— Amanda Macias
A look at the uranium-based ammo the UK will send to Ukraine
Russia threatened to escalate attacks in Ukraine after the British government announced it would provide to Ukraine a type of munition that Moscow falsely claims has nuclear components.
The British defense ministry on Monday confirmed it would provide Ukraine with armor-piercing rounds containing depleted uranium.
Such rounds were developed by the U.S. during the Cold War to destroy Soviet tanks, including the same T-72 tanks that Ukraine now faces in its push to break through a stalemate in the east.
Depleted uranium is a byproduct of the uranium enrichment process needed to create nuclear weapons. The rounds retain some radioactive properties, but they can’t generate a nuclear reaction like a nuclear weapon would, RAND nuclear expert and policy researcher Edward Geist said.
That didn’t stop the Russians from offering a full-throated warning that the rounds were opening the door to further escalation. In the past, they have suggested the war could escalate to nuclear weapons use.
Both the the British ministry and the White House dismissed the Russian accusations. But the ammunition does carry risks even if it’s not a nuclear weapon.
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