All news

Western analysts have doubts about Ukrainian counteroffensive — Russian intelligence chief

"Without going into detail, I will say that the goals set by the Kiev regime are seen as unattainable," Sergey Naryshkin said

MOSCOW, June 19. /TASS/. Many Western analysts are saying in private that they have serious doubts that Ukraine’s counteroffensive can achieve any kind of success, Director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Sergey Naryshkin said in an interview published on Monday in the Rossiyskaya Gazeta daily.

"Behind the scenes, many Western military analysts express serious doubt about the success of Ukraine’s reckless undertaking," he said. "Without going into detail, I will say that the goals set by the Kiev regime are seen as unattainable."

"The loss of a great number of NATO-trained soldiers and weapons will undermine the Ukrainian army’s combat capabilities," he stressed. "And this will have an adverse impact on the stability of [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky’s regime. According to some Western forecasts, Ukraine’s very statehood may be in jeopardy."

"Authoritative representatives of US and European special services and defense ministries do not rule out that the counteroffensive may turn out much differently than they expect," he added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier that Ukraine’s counteroffensive attempts were futile, despite the deployment of strategic reserves.