Russia and Ukraine: Russian invasion is not going as Moscow planned, NATO says

The NATO Secretary General says that the Russian invasion to Ukraine is not going to go as planned and that their attempt to capture the eastern Donbas region has “stalled”.

Jens Stoltenberg also said that Ukraine could win the conflict.

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The British Ministry of Defense (MoD) estimates that Russia has lost about a third of his strength of ground combat since the war began in February.

The Russian invasion has been hampered by stiff Ukrainian resistance and logistical problems.

His initial goal seemed to be to sweep the entire country and overthrow the Ukrainian government. Instead, Russia has withdrawn from the areas around the capital, kyiv, after failing to capture it. In addition, since mid-April it has focused its efforts on two eastern provinces.

In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, authorities say Russian forces have withdrawn from the border and residents are returning.

“Russia’s war in Ukraine is not going as Moscow planned,” Stoltenberg said.

“They failed to take kyiv, they are withdrawing from the outskirts of Kharkiv, their main offensive in Donbas has stalled. Russia is not achieving its strategic goals.”

Stoltenberg was speaking at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers.

In addition to military setbacks, another consequence of the invasion is that Russia will likely face an enlarged NATO that will join Sweden and Finland.

Russian President Vladimir Putin sees NATO as a threat to Russia’s security and invaded Ukraine in part to prevent it from joining NATO.

The Prime Ministers of Sweden and Finland, Magdalena Andersson and Sanna Marin. (GETTY IMAGES)

In its assessment, the British Ministry of Defense’s estimate of Russian losses includes men killed or wounded and equipment destroyed or captured.

The Ministry said Russia’s offensive in Donbas had “lost momentum and was significantly delayed”.

He said that Russia was limited by “continued low morale and reduced combat effectiveness”.

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss stated that Ukraine’s allies they must maintain their military support to help her “push Russia out.”

On the battlefield, Ukrainian forces are fighting back in the city of Izium, said regional governor Oleh Sinegubov, something that could complicate Russian plans to capture Donbas.

However, Ukraine’s military also acknowledged setbacks in its latest updates, saying Russia was making progress in several areas in the region.

There has been no respite for the remaining Ukrainian forces in Mariupol, and Russia continues its bombardment of the steel mills where they are hiding. A video purportedly from inside showed men checking their phones and playing chess.

And in western Ukraine, the governor of the Lviv region said the missiles were targeting military infrastructure.

Source: Elcomercio