Iain
Jedi
Pretty obvious assessment to anyone paying attention, but it looks like the mainstream media could be shifting their narrative after weeks of stories about how 'successful' the Ukrainian counteroffensive has been.
Ukraine counteroffensive will fail as spooks say Kyiv won't hit key objective
Minefields will repel Ukrainian forces as they attempt to push south towards the city of Melitopol, a tactical transit hub for Russia, according to a bleak US intelligence assessment.
www.express.co.uk
I wonder if this is another part of a slowly shifting narrative, attempting to soften the blow of what appears to be inevitable defeat and/or frame it as some sort of victory. After Stoltenberg's recent comments that he had to walk back about Ukraine giving up some territory to Russia I'm starting to get the impression that this may be the case.Ukraine's counteroffensive will ultimately fail, according to a bleak assessment by the US intelligence community.
Ukrainian forces have made recapturing the southeastern city of Melitopol the key objective in their counteroffensive as they attempt to pierce through the 1,000-kilometer front line.
The seizure of Melitopol near the Sea of Azov would be a major success for Ukraine, which hopes to punch through the land corridor between Russia and the Crimean Peninsula, illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014.
That could split Russian forces into two and cut supply lines to units farther west. Russia currently controls the whole Sea of Azov coast.
However, this objective will fail as the Russian army has set up vast minefields and heavily dug-in trenches to stymie Ukrainian advances.
That's the dire assessment made by those familiar with the classified intel.
The insiders told The Washington Post that Ukraine’s forces, which are pushing toward Melitopol from the town of Robotyne more than 50 miles away, will fail to get within touching distance of the occupied city.
The Western and Ukrainian government officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations.