Ukraine closer to its battlefield objectives: Pentagon

• The optimistic assessment was made by Celeste Wallander.
• Ukrainian forces made their most significant advance in the country’s south since the beginning of the conflict.
• Thousands of Russian troops were threatened by the quick advancement of Ukrainian forces along the Dnieper River.

A senior Pentagon official stated on Monday that Ukraine appears to be on track to meet several of its main combat objectives as Kyiv attempts to bolster its military position against Russia ahead of the winter.

The optimistic assessment was made by Celeste Wallander, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, on the same day that Ukrainian forces made their largest advance in the country’s south since the beginning of the conflict.

Thousands of Russian troops were threatened by the quick advancement of Ukrainian forces along the Dnieper River, which breached Russian defenses and threatened their supply lines.

Wallander mentioned the ongoing efforts in the southern region of Kherson as well as the recent accomplishments in Kharkiv and Donetsk.

Wallander told the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D.C., think tank, that “Ukraine seems to be on track to achieve in all three of those objectives right now.”

The losses for Russia have sparked strong public criticism of the generals directing Russia’s war and a partial mobilization of soldiers by Moscow.

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However, a U.S. military source briefing Pentagon reporters on the condition of anonymity stated that Washington, which is arming and training Ukraine’s military, has not yet observed a large-scale Russian reinforcement of its forces in Ukraine.

“Broadly speaking, we’ve seen relatively small numbers (of Russian reinforcements) … but nothing large-scale at this stage of the game,” the official said.

Russian authorities confirmed that a Ukrainian tank attack had recaptured a number of settlements along the river’s west bank after advancing dozens of kilometers along the river’s west bank.

Wallander added, “Ukraine’s goal is to push back the Russian bridgehead on the western bank of the Dnipro in Kherson.”

This, she argued, would be “a major defeat for Russia.”

“Because it pushes back, even more, Russia’s ambition to take Odessa, which was one of the stated objectives earlier this year,” said Wallander.

“It becomes that much harder, and it gives Ukraine a much better defensive position to ride out what probably will be a tamping down of the hot fighting over the winter.”

The assault in the south resembles the tactics that have won Kyiv significant wins since the beginning of September in eastern Ukraine, where Ukrainian forces quickly took land to acquire control of Russian supply lines, so compelling bigger Russian forces to retire.

On Friday, Ukraine recovered Lyman, the principal Russian stronghold in Donetsk province’s northern region. This has allowed it to push far into the province of Luhansk, endangering the main supply routes to land Moscow secured in some of the bloodiest battles of the war in June and July.

Wallander stated that the conquest of Lyman by Ukraine would have “significantly affected Russia’s ability to supply, resupply and move forces all along that forward line of conflict.”

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