Danilov: Counteroffensive hopes did not come true
Ukraine's counteroffensive hopes did not come true, but that does not mean Kyiv will not eventually achieve victory, National Security and Defense Council Secretary Oleksii Danilov said in a comment for the BBC on Dec. 12.
The months-long counteroffensive launched by Ukrainian forces in the summer achieved only modest advances and largely failed to reach set strategic goals.
"In May, every citizen in our country wanted the war to end quickly. There were hopes, but they didn't come true," Danilov conceded.
The long-anticipated campaign aimed to regain large swathes of territory captured by Russia in 2022 and to reach the Sea of Azov, cutting off Crimea from the eastern occupied regions and Russia.
Facing dense Russian defensive networks, Ukrainian forces managed to liberate only 14 villages in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.
As hostilities dialed down by December, top Ukrainian officials acknowledged that the counteroffensive did not achieve the desired results.
Ukraine's commander-in-chief, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, pointed out that despite NATO training for Ukrainian soldiers, the campaign was complicated by the lack of air superiority, a key element in NATO's doctrine.
"There hasn't been a war like the one we have in our country - not in the 20th nor the 21st century," Danilov commented, adding that old war textbooks, including NATO ones, "should be returned to the archives."
He nevertheless added that Ukraine would continue in its efforts to liberate its territory from Russian occupation.
"I can say for sure that we won't stop. We will continue fighting for our freedom, for our independence."
As Ukraine braces for another year of war, further support from the U.S., Kyiv's leading military donor, is being stalled by political infighting in Congress.
While Danilov hopes that Ukraine receives the aid before Christmas, he added that if it arrives a "bit later, then it shouldn't be made into a tragedy."
The White House urged Congress to pass the funding request that includes $61 billion for Ukraine before the end of the year so as not to threaten Ukraine's ability to defend itself.
Francis Farrell
