Fourteen weeks into the Ukraine War, the media has told the story about devastating Russian losses both in terms of equipment and personnel, especially the number of battlefield generals killed in combat. All the media heard from Kiev and the White House was how the Russia war backfired, exposing for the world to see the complete incompetence of the Russian Army. Now Ukraine’s 44-year-old President Volodymer Zelensky said his military is losing between 60 and 100 troops a day, some analysts question how long Ukraine can sustain the losses. But it you listen to Kiev or the White House, the Russian army is near collapse, with Ukraine receiving more lethal arms from the U.S. and NATO. No one it the public knows who to believe since the White House and Kiev have talked so convincingly about Russian personnel and heavy equipment losses.
Zekensky’s sudden admission about Ukraine casualties indicates that the story told from Kiev and the White House may have kept the public in the dark of just how bad thinks have gotten. When the strategic port city of Mairuopol fell to the Russian Federation May 18, there was no mention in the U.S. and global press. Not a word from Kiev or the White House about the last bastion of some 2,000 Ukrainian fighters surrendering to Russian troops. For months, Zelensky described the battle at the Azovstall Steelworks as Ukraine’s “300” where the ancient Greek Spartans battled Xerxes mighty Persian army in 480 B.C. When the dust settled May 18, it was about the Ukrainian army surrendering, a bad optic for Zelensky’s overly optimistic war, where he’s been telling the press that he’s making solid progress about defeating the mighty Russian army.
Zelensky and President Joe Biden, 79, have done everything possible to itemize Russian failures, highlighting Ukrainian success, like driving the Russian army away from Kiev. “This is one of the critical moments in the war, but it is not the peak,” said 49-year-old Gen. Viktor Muzhenko, explaining why Ukrainian casualties are so high. “This is the most significant conflict in Europe since WW II. That explains why the losses are so great. In order to reduce losses, Ukraine now needs powerful weapons that match or even surpass Russian weaponry. This would enable Ukraine to respond in kind,” said Muchencko. Muchenko can’t explain that no matter what the weapons given to Ukraine, Zelensky has lost most of Ukraine’s Black Sea coast, essentially partitioning the country, land-locking Kiev from the coast. Zelensky and Biden have done everything to hide the world from Russian gains, Ukraine losses.
Since the war began Feb. 24, Zelensky has asked for more lethal weapons to battle the Russian Federation. No one has asked Zelensky why he continues to lose ground from the Russian Federation if the Russian military is beaten down? Zelensky has been hyping the Ukraine defense for months, despite losing ground daily to the Russian Federation . Ukraine still hasn’t admitted that it’s lost the entire Black Sea coast to the Russian Federation, a devastating loss of strategic territory, now essentially land-locking Kiev from the coast. Only recently has Zelensky conceded that he’s losing sizable number of troops daily, questioning how long the fight can continue? Zelensky still says it’s waiting for that one lethal weapon that will turn the corner on the war. Zelensky won’t admit that he’s been badly outmaneuvered by the Russian army, showing that he has no experience in the military
Zelensky doesn’t need more lethal weapons he needs a better military strategy, something already too late since the Kremlin has partitioned the country. Zelensky talks about getting back Ukrainian land but he’s just given Russian far more territory than before the Feb. 24 war began. Getting back it Black Sea coast, Ukraine would have to beat the Russian Federation back from its current positions. Calling the Russian strategy a “medieval attrition approach,” Lit. Gen. Ben Hodges, former Commander of U.S. army in Europe, said Ukraine waits for more weapons. ”This battlefield is so much more lethal that what we all be came accustomed to over the 20 years of Iraq and Afghanistan, where we didn’t have numbers like this,” Hodges said. Zelensky’s been given bad advise by the Pentagon, saying the Ukraine battle would turn the corner when they had sufficient lethal weapons to challenge Moscow.
Zelensky’s battle plans haven’t stopped the Russian Federation from seizing almost the entire Black Sea coast. Giving Ukraine more lethal weapons won’t change the tide of the war, especially if Russia keeps destroying them. Russian President Vladimir Putin said U.S. weapons going to Ukraine are “cracking like nuts,” meaning they’re destroying them as fast as they’re delivered. Whether Zelensky can replace lost military personnel is anyone’s guess. What’s known after 14-weeks of fighting, Zelensky has lost massive Ukrainian territory especially around the Black Sea coast. Giving more lethal weapons to Kiev won’t assure that Ukraine gets one inch of territory back. If Zelensky sees any future for Ukraine, he must take the Istanbul format seriously, realizing that he’s no winning the battlefield. Ukraine has lost so much coastal territory, there’s little way of getting it back.
