MOSCOW, July 18. /TASS/. The Ukrainian army does not have sufficient resources to launch an offensive, analysts of the Ukrainian newspaper Strana said, doubting that the American leader really told them to do that.
"Effective offensive operations are only possible when assault units are replenished with personnel. And at the same time logistics are also eliminated and the operators of enemy UAVs are destroyed. The Ukrainian army has fewer reserves, and this is why counterattacks end rather quickly due to the deterioration of the assault detachments. Not with major successes, but with heavy losses," the analytical column of the publication says.
Strana analysts note that recently all Ukrainian attempts to attack have ended with heavy losses and little or no result. They said there are calls in Ukraine to go into strategic defense to minimize personnel losses and postpone offensive actions until large reserves are created and at least air parity is achieved.
"This is why there are doubts about whether [US President Donald] Trump called on [Vladimir] Zelensky to launch an offensive. Or this is just a story Kiev made up to justify the attempts of the Ukrainian command to attack," the analysts admit.
Earlier, The Washington Post (WP) reported that during a July 4 telephone conversation with Zelensky Trump allegedly stated that by remaining on the defensive, Ukraine would not be able to change the course of hostilities. This is why the Ukrainian army should go on the offensive.
The White House has not yet issued any comment on this issue. However, on July 15, it claimed that Trump had not called on Zelensky to strike deep into Russia, including Moscow.