Ukraine will defend the eastern front from the Lisichank region after retreating from Sheverodonetsk, while Kyiv will try to stabilize the situation, the head of Ukraine’s military secret service, Kirill Budanov, said on Saturday.
He told Reuters in a rare interview shortly before the Kremlin announced the full occupation of Severodonetsk that Russia was replenishing its front-line reserves as part of a covert mobilization, adding that hopes that Moscow may run out of troops.
As he explained, Russia used “the same tactics as in Mariupol: destroying the city from the face of the earth. Given the circumstances, it is no longer possible to defend the ruins and in the open field. Thus, Ukrainian forces resort to other places where they will continue to defend themselves ”.
The only way for Ukraine to win, he added, is through military force to retake all of its territory.
“The strategy is very simple. We are stabilizing the situation. They are receiving the required amount of equipment and preparing the required number of forces and means to launch a counterattack and retake all our territory,” Budanov said.
Budanov estimated that 330,000 troops were involved in Russia’s operations in Ukraine, a third of its armed forces, a number that included non-combat personnel, such as support personnel.
“Most of them are militant and account for more than 50% of what Russia has at the moment,” he said.
He said he was calm about the possibility of Russia finally announcing an open mobilization, as this would mean that Vladimir Putin would be asked to answer difficult questions from an internal audience. “They are really afraid of this – it is the main reason why the mobilization is done in secret, especially with the use of” reserves “.
According to Reuters, Moscow has so far refrained from conducting a general mobilization
Moscow has so far stopped calling for a general mobilization for what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Budanov declined to give details of any plans for a counterattack in the occupied Kherson region occupied by Russia in the first days after its February 24 invasion.
However, he added: “From August we should expect visible results from Ukraine’s military activity. Just wait a while and we will see what comes next.”
Finally, he expressed his gratitude to the West for its support to the country, but stressed that Ukraine needs more help as it has been at war for four months, including weapons systems for carrying out attacks and armored vehicles.
Kirill Budanov’s interview with Reuters took place in a well-fortified office.
Source: Capital
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