In a statement to CNN today, Sunday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Ukraine has retaken 50% of its territory that was occupied by Russia, and that its counteroffensive is progressing with difficulty and will continue for several months.
On Saturday, Blinken stated that it is premature to draw conclusions about the Ukrainian forces’ counteroffensive, anticipating changes on the frontline, during his speech at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado.
He further added that he believes the dynamics of the counteroffensive will change with the equipment provided to Kyiv and the deployment of all Ukrainian forces trained in the past months.
Blinken mentioned that many people said the Russians had prepared serious and fortified defense lines, but the Ukrainians are now breaching them.
It is worth mentioning that Russian President Vladimir Putin had emphasized on Friday that Ukraine’s counteroffensive to repel Russian forces in the south and east of the country had not achieved “any results,” despite Western financial and military support.
During a meeting of the Russian Security Council, the proceedings of which were broadcast on television, Putin highlighted that it is clear that the Western patrons of the Kyiv regime are disappointed by the results of the alleged counteroffensive that the Kyiv authorities had been making noise about in the past months.
