Ukraine’s much-anticipated counteroffensive has reportedly been advancing more slowly than originally thought, potentially jeopardizing its goal of recovering 20% of Russian-occupied territory.
Since it launched six weeks ago, the charge led by Ukrainian Capt. Anatoliy Kharchenko and his reconnaissance team has apparently been forced to move at a painstaking pace due to the heavy presence of enemy minefields, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Moving so slowly by foot from one treeline to the next makes the unit vulnerable to airborne missile strikes. Due to the delayed delivery of Western weapon shipments, Kyiv has had to launch this counteroffensive with weak air support.
As one Ukrainian commander currently near Bakhmut named Yuriy “Grek” Ulshyn explained to the WSJ, “It’s like giving a bike without pedals. Thanks a lot for the bike, but…”
“Our problem everywhere is the sky,” continued Grek, per the WSJ. “When the enemy can see the whole battlefield, what can you do? You need so much of everything. When he can’t see it, he’s in the dark, and you don’t need as much.”
The impact of having command over the sky was evident in the Russian defensive force’s early destruction of several tanks and armored infantry vehicles in the southern Donetsk region of Ukraine, as previously covered in The Dallas Express.
Despite these challenges, the Ukrainian counteroffensive has pressed on.
“We’ve got nothing to lose,” Kharchenko told the WSJ. “Victory isn’t just important, but it’s the only option, otherwise we’ll all be dead.”
The approach reportedly remains to move forward on three fronts, one in the south and the other toward the eastern city of Bakhmut, which has seen the war’s bloodiest battles, as covered in The Dallas Express.
Bakhmut was ultimately seized by Russian forces in late May, with thousands of casualties reported on both sides. Ukrainian forces continue to push around the war-torn city.
In the south, where Kharchenko and his men are stationed, the plan is reportedly to continue this slow, careful advance to the Sea of Azov, ultimately isolating Crimea and expelling Russian forces from the southern Kherson region.
Behind the reconnaissance unit working on foot to clear mines and booby traps with the help of U.S.-made Bangalore torpedoes, other Ukrainian brigades armed and trained by the West hang back and lie in wait.
The skies present a problem to the south as well, where Russian Ka-52 helicopters hover out of reach of Stinger missiles and launch laser-guided missiles at Ukrainian targets.
Yet the recent flooding of the Dnipro River has reportedly swept away some Russian defenses in the south. Ukrainian special forces are capitalizing on this opportunity and expanding their hold across the river opposite Kherson, the southern capital.
As the Ukrainian forces inch their counteroffensive forward, Kharchenko is optimistic that troops will wage on no matter the obstacle since they are fighting for their homes.
“It’s our land. We have to do it,” Kharchenko told the WSJ.