It is unclear whether Russia’s front-line forces have “sufficient reserves or sufficient morale” to withstand another coordinated offensive in eastern parts of Ukraine, according to defense experts. British defense intelligence analysts believe Moscow has set up a defensive line between the Oskil River and the town of Svatove after a successful counter-offensive by the Ukrainians, forcing the Kremlin to concede ground. The zone is considered important in part because it lies along the border of the Luhansk region, part of the Donbass, which Russia has sought to “liberate” as one of its key war targets. Any significant loss of ground here would “undoubtedly undermine” Vladimir Putin’s strategy for the conflict, experts say.
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In its latest update on the situation in Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) said it was unclear whether Russia’s frontline forces had sufficient reserves or morale to withstand another concerted Ukrainian attack on the eastern parts of the country. It comes as bodies have been discovered in a mass grave near the town of Izium, in the Kharkiv region, which was recently retaken from Moscow. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the dead included children and adults, civilians and military personnel. “They were tortured, shot, killed by shelling,” Zelensky said. “Even whole families are buried there: mother, father and daughter.” Ukrainian lawmaker Lesia Vasylenko said the recapture of Iziou was a “huge strategic gain,” militarily. “Ukraine is making definite advances in the north-east and south-east of the country as well,” he told Sky News. “We are progressing for our own sake, but also for the sake of restoring long-term peace to the continent.” Asked what she thought Putin might do next, she said: “No one can be in the mind of this crazy leader.” He added: “Whatever it is, we have to be prepared for it – we have to be prepared for it as Ukrainians, you have to be prepared for it in the UK. “And actually, people all over the world have to be prepared that something absolutely horrible, another crazy move, could happen at any moment. “For this, Ukrainians must have the weapons to protect themselves, the ammunition in the necessary quantity to protect themselves. “And the West must be ready to apply every sanction in the book against Russia.”
