More than ten days after Russia first invaded Ukraine, Moscow’s military has been left looking disorganised and ill-prepared. What the Kremlin believed would be a quick assault on the country now risks turning into a long, drawn-out war.
An update from defence intelligence at the Ministry of Defence late last night suggested Putin’s efforts continued to be thwarted by Ukrainian resistance.
Shared on social media, the update read: “Russian forces probably made minimal ground advances over the weekend.
“It is highlighted unlikely Russia has successfully achieved its planned objectives to date.
“Over the past 24 hours, a high level of Russian air and artillery strikes have continued to hit military and civilian sites in Ukrainian cities.
READ MORE ON OUR RUSSIA V UKRAINE WAR LIVE BLOG
“Recent strikes have targeted Khrkiv, Mykaloaiv and Chernihiv, and have been particularly heavy in Mariupol.”
The UK Government has been extraordinarily open at making its latest intelligence on the situation in Ukraine public.
Ministers are eager to tackle the rampant misinformation about the invasion online, with Moscow painting a very different picture as to how the invasion is progressing.
On state TV last Thursday the Russian President claimed to attack on Ukraine was “going to plan” and that “all objectives that were set are being resolved or achieved successfully”.
Foreign news outlets in Russia that attempt to question the Kremlin’s warped narrative are banned.
Yesterday Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, chief of the UK defence staff, said Moscow had “got itself into a mess” with the invasion.
DON’T MISS:
Russian whistleblower warns Ukraine invasion will be a ‘total failure’ [INSIGHT]
Furious Xi Jinping could feel ‘misled’ over Russian war [REACTION]
Putin plot backfires as Finnish president announces plan to join NATO [UPDATE]
He said Russia’s forces has been “decimated” by war.
It is thought as many as 11,000 troops have been killed in the fighting.
An estimated 44 aircraft, 285 tanks, 985 armoured vehicles, 109 artillery systems and 60 fuel tanks are also believed to have been taken out by Ukrainian forces.
Speaking to the BBC, Sir Tony said it was not inevitable that Russia would win the war on Ukraine.
He said: “I think we’ve seen a Russian invasion that is not going well.
“I think we’re also seeing a remarkable resistance by Ukraine, both its armed forces and its people.
“We’re also seeing the unity of the whole globe coming together with a cohesive approach, whether that’s economically, diplomatically, culturally, socially, militarily, applying pressure to Russia, and that needs to continue so that Russia stops this invasion.
“We do know that some of the lead elements of Russian forces have been decimated by the Ukrainian response.”
