It is difficult to advance, but every day we gain 0.5-1 km − Ground Forces Commander

Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of the Ground Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, has said that although the counteroffensive is taking place more slowly than he would like, the Defence Forces are gaining 500m to 1km in combat daily.

Source: Syrskyi in an interview with the Ukrainian BBC

Quote from Syrskyi: "Every day, we move forward 0.5 to 1 km."

Details: He explained that it is very difficult to advance because the main forces of the Russian army are concentrated on the Lyman front and around Bakhmut.

"This area is full of engineering barriers; many units fought defensive battles there the whole last year. In fact, the entire large territory is fortified in terms of engineering; there are many strong points. Therefore, all advances are really not going as fast as we would like," Syrskyi said.

Details: He also added that the occupiers have an advantage in numbers and especially in artillery.

According to the commander, currently, Ukrainian soldiers can "respond with one shot to seven or eight shots fired by the Russians".

At the same time, he emphasised that despite the harsh reality, Ukrainians are successful because they plan all their operations very carefully.

"We don't do it carelessly; every operation is well thought out. Each day of such offensive actions is planned in detail, so we have much fewer losses in personnel. And we achieve success mainly due to the use of manoeuvres, flanking attacks, bypassing, coverage and exit to the rear," Syrskyi explained.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!