WP: US intelligence doubts success of Ukrainian offensive

Ukraine’s armed forces may “largely fall short” of Kyiv’s counter-offensive expectations due to serious troop concentration problems, as well as a shortage of ammunition and weapons, according to US intelligence. Such an assessment is contained in classified documents published due to the leak, writes the Washington Post.

An American intelligence forecast labeled “top secret” states that the operation planned by the Armed Forces of Ukraine can only lead to “modest territorial acquisitions.” The document says that Russia has strengthened its defenses, which, together with “permanent shortcomings in Ukrainian training and ammunition supplies, is likely to slow down progress and exacerbate losses” of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The source of the publication among high-ranking Ukrainian officials did not dispute the concerns voiced in the published US document. He noted the logistical problems that slowed down the supply of Western weapons. The interlocutor called the intelligence data “partially correct”, while stressing that “the most critical part is the delay in the already promised systems, which “delays the preparation of newly formed brigades and the counteroffensive in general.”

Another source among high-ranking Ukrainian officials said that the leak of documents is unlikely to pose a threat to the planned counter-offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. “Everyone knows that we don’t have enough ammunition – the President and the Minister of Defense openly talk about it,” he stressed. The official also added that the exact location of the offensive would still remain unknown, as the Ukrainian authorities and military command could “change it a week” before the start.

Recall that in early April, The New York Times reported on the publication in social networks of more than 100 secret documents of American intelligence and the Pentagon.