The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Oleksiy Danivol, acknowledged that the counter-offensive against Russia did not meet expectations, although this does not mean that it failed.
“In May, all citizens of our country wanted the war to end as soon as possible. There was hope, but it was not justified. The fact that we have been defending our country for two years is already a great victory,” Danilov said. said in an interview with the British public broadcaster BBC.
Danilov stated that although Ukraine’s “overly optimistic” expectations on the battlefield have not come true, the war is not yet lost.
‘People sometimes make mistakes’he said, noting: “This does not mean that victory is not on our side. I can say with certainty that we will not stop. We will continue to fight for our freedom, for our independence.”
The Secretary of the Security and Defense Council explained that the “very difficult” situation at the front showed that the “old war manuals, including those of NATO”, were outdated.
“They should be kept in the archives. There has never been a war like the one in our country, neither in the 20th century nor in the 21st century,” he added.
Danilov also expressed confidence that long-awaited US aid will eventually arrive, as Congress debates a $60 billion (about 55 billion euros) package, despite the reluctance of some in the Republican Party to continue sending more money.
“If we receive a gift for Christmas, we will be happy, but if it happens later, it should not become a tragedy,” said Danilov, who denied that he was considering the possibility that Ukraine would lose this war if the promised aid is delivered Washington would be granted. does not arrive.
With its much-hyped counter-offensive, Ukraine hoped to regain significant parts of the territories captured by Russia at the start of the invasion in February 2022, and cut off supply lines through the Crimean Peninsula, which has been under Moscow’s influence since 2014.
The counter-offensive aggravated tensions in Kiev and since then recriminations and accusations have mounted between the government and the senior commanders of the armed forces, going so far as to speculate about a bad relationship between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the commander of the armed forces. Head of the Armed Forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
Source: DN
