The ex-US Army commander in Europe, retired General Ben Hodges, noted that the battle for the Kharkiv region would not be decisive in Russia's war against Ukraine.
General Hodges commented on Russia's offensive in the Kharkiv region
The battle for Kharkiv region will not be decisive, because if it were, it would mean that it would end the war. I don't see it. I also do not believe that Russia has the opportunity to achieve a decisive knockout of Ukraine, said General Hodges.
According to him, despite the fact that Ukraine did not receive all the necessary support from its partners, the Ukrainian Armed Forces were able to slow down the advance of the Russians in the Kharkiv direction.
And this brings to the fore Russia's inability to achieve anything significant.
This points to the problems Russia still has, Hodges emphasised.
In addition, he believes the logistics situation in Ukraine should improve in the coming months.
Why the Russian army is not victorious in the war against Ukraine
Previously, Gen Hodges noted that the criminal army of the Russian Federation uses several times more ammunition than the Ukrainian military and probably mobilises up to 30,000 Russians for war every month.
The retired general noted that Western countries have recently discussed the Ukrainian military's ammunition shortage and the loss of Avdiivka. Still, almost nothing is being said about the problems in the occupying Russian army.
Avdiivka fell five weeks ago, and the Russians could not take advantage of it, because they do not have the capacity, Hodges emphasised.
He also noted that the superiority of the Russian occupiers in numbers of 5:1 or 10:1 is taken for granted.
Perhaps it is so in some places, but they do not have the ability to exploit it, because the Russians have lost a lot of experienced officers and sergeants. "War is not just about math and who has more men - we lost in Vietnam and in Afghanistan," explains Hodges.
