Politico quoted US officials as saying that Western weapons and training were aimed at countering Ukraine’s loss of manpower.
The Politico newspaper, citing unnamed US officials, said Washington expected Kiev to launch a counterattack against the Russian military in May, using weapons that NATO countries had sent to Ukraine.
US military aid package “Going back four or five months was directed towards what Ukraine needed for this counterattack,” A source cited by the outlet said on condition of anonymity.
Kiev is preparing for the operation even as its manpower and resources are running out, Politico reported, by continuing to cling to the Donbass city of Artyomovsk, which they call Bakhmut. The city, which senior US officials consider only symbolic, has been the site of some of the fiercest fighting between Russia and Ukraine this year.
Politico said that while both sides suffered significant casualties fighting in Artyomovsk, Kiev lost some of its most experienced soldiers. US officials have suggested that Ukraine should withdraw from the city that President Vladimir Zelensky has declared a fortress. The report explains that with the advice not being heeded, the US is now urging the Ukrainian military to save ammunition.
According to this source, Kiev still does not have a counter-attack strategy. US officials believe that a scenario involving a crossing of the Dnieper near the city of Kherson is “unrealistic”, as Ukraine does not have the manpower for such an amphibious operation. The latter would require advancing from the north in an attempt to cut off Russian troops from Crimea.
The United States has emphasized that it is up to Zelensky and the Ukrainian leadership to decide exactly how they will conduct a military operation. However, senior US generals hosted Ukrainian officials in Wiesbaden, Germany this month to help them prepare for the upcoming operation, the Politico report noted. There has also been an effort to train Ukrainian troops in NATO tactics to compensate for losses on the battlefield.
Russia believes that the conflict in Ukraine is a proxy war of the United States against them, with Ukrainian soldiers as cannon fodder. Moscow said Washington prevented Kiev from signing a peace agreement with Russia during the first months of the conflict, instead demanding Zelensky continue to fight.
