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Russia has seized initiative on much of battlefield in Ukraine — NYT

The newspaper said Russia is making progress "at a critical moment" for the government in Kiev as political infighting in the US and in the European Union has blocked the delivery of military and financial aid packages to Ukraine

MOSCOW, December 22. /TASS/. Russia has seized the initiative on much of the battlefield in Ukraine, the New York Times reported.

Russia’s recent advances near Avdeyevka, around Kupyansk, Bakhmut and Maryinka "are further evidence that Russia has firmly seized the initiative on much of the battlefield" in Ukraine, the report said.

The newspaper said Russia is making progress "at a critical moment" for the government in Kiev as political infighting in the US and in the European Union has blocked the delivery of military and financial aid packages to Ukraine.

"Currently, the situation on the front line is difficult and is gradually deteriorating," Yegor Chernev, a deputy chairman at the Ukrainian legislature’s committee on national security, defense and intelligence, told the newspaper. "Without American ammunition, we are beginning to lose territory that was hard won this summer."

Ukrainian forces went on an offensive at the start of June. According to Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, Kiev has lost 159,000 troops, 121 aircraft, 766 tanks and 2,348 armored vehicles since then. Russia has repeatedly said that the offensive failed to bring significant results to Ukraine. In recent weeks, there have been multiple statements in the West and in Kiev that the counteroffensive was not successful enough and that Ukraine is facing a stalemate on the battlefield.

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