Ukrainian military planning counter-offensive actions against Russia, says top commander

A senior Ukrainian military commander, on Wednesday, said that the Ukrainian military is working to stabilise the battlefield situation and intends to form units for counter-offensive actions against Russia later this year.

Stabilisation

“We will stabilise the situation shortly,” said Oleksandr Pavliuk, Ukraine’s newly appointed ground force commander, in televised remarks.

They will “do everything possible to prepare the troops for more active actions, and to seize the initiative,” he said.

As per a Reuters report, Pavliuk explained that the current focus is on withdrawing military units that have lost their potential and rebuilding them to create a force for counter-offensive actions later this year.

Ukraine’s setbacks

Just last month, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia would try to launch a new offensive in the spring or summer. However, he emphasised that Ukraine has its own battlefield plan.

According to Ukrainian military spokesperson Dmytro Lykhoviy, Russian forces were unable to make further advances near Avdiivka. During remarks on national television on Wednesday, he noted that Russian troops are concentrating their efforts on an area to the south, near the village of Novomykhailivka.