The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valerii Zaluzhnyi stated that every meter of liberated Ukrainian territory is paid for with the blood of Ukrainian soldiers, and he is infuriated by comments suggesting that the counteroffensive is progressing slower than expected. He made these remarks in an interview with The Washington Post, published on June 30.
"This is not a show", - Zaluzhnyi said. "It's not a show the whole world is watching and betting on or anything. Every day, every meter is given by blood. Without being fully supplied, these plans are not feasible at all. But they are being carried out. Yes, maybe not as fast as the participants in the show, the observers, would like, but that is their problem".
Zaluzhnyi said it "pisses him off" when he hears that Ukraine’s long-awaited counteroffensive in the country’s east and south has started slower than expected — an opinion publicly expressed by Western officials and military analysts and also by President Volodymyr Zelensky. His troops have gained some ground — even if it’s just 500 meters — every day, he said.
Zaluzhnyi expressed frustration that while his biggest Western backers would never launch an offensive without air superiority, Ukraine still has not received modern fighter jets but is expected to rapidly take back territory from the occupying russians.
American-made F-16s, promised only recently, are not likely to arrive until the fall — in a best-case scenario.
His troops also should be firing at least as many artillery shells as their enemy, Zaluzhnyi said, but have been outshot tenfold at times because of limited resources.
It was previously reported that Zaluzhnyi said we are monitoring the enemy in the north, ready to give a worthy response.