Ukraine wants to show Russia that it can expect surprise defeats in the war. That’s why she’s attacking the Kremlin’s military on the annexed peninsula of Crimea — and admitting responsibility for it for the first time. In the future, Kyiv wants to step up its attacks.
After less than a month, Kyiv has claimed responsibility for attacks on several air force bases on the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed by Russia. “It’s about a series of successful rocket attacks on the air bases in Crimea, primarily around the Saki airfield,” wrote Ukrainian commander-in-chief Valery Zalushny in an article published by the state news agency Ukrinform. Up to ten Russian warplanes were destroyed.
Zalushny did not say which missiles were used. The aim of the attacks is to make it clear to the Russians, even in remote areas, that there is a real war with losses and defeats. Zalushny does not expect the war to end in the current year. According to him, the Ukrainian armed forces want to expand these attacks in 2023, but this would require new weapon systems from Western partners.
Zalushnyj mentioned rockets with a range of up to 300 kilometers for the US HIMARS rocket launchers. A new meeting of Western supporters on further arms deliveries for Kyiv is planned for Ramstein on Thursday. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. Since then, large parts of eastern and southern Ukraine have been under Russian control. Most recently, Ukrainian counterattacks in the Cherson, Mykolaiv and Kharkiv regions have put Russian troops under pressure.
Now the Ukrainian army has apparently gained ground in its advances in southern Ukraine, which it began at the end of August. The general staff report recorded Russian air and artillery attacks on several towns in the Kherson region that were previously considered Russian controlled. However, Kyiv did not provide any specific information on progress. At the same time, videos and photos of recaptured villages around the town of Balakliya in the Kharkiv region of eastern Ukraine were published on social networks.
According to reports by Russian correspondents, the Ukrainian army launched an offensive there on Tuesday at a width of around 20 to 30 kilometers. The event has not yet been officially commented on due to an applicable information ban. According to Russian sources, the Russian units came under considerable pressure on this section, and some units were threatened with encirclement.
