Although Ukraine is well-prepared for a counteroffensive against Russia, the senior US general on Monday said that it is still too early to predict the results.
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley, told Oren Liebermann in an exclusive interview from Normandy, France, that they are engaged in a conflict that poses an existential threat to Ukraine’s very existence and has wider implications for the rest of the world — for Europe, really for the United States, but also for the entire planet.
Ukraine Existential Struggle
As the crisis in Ukraine rages on, Milley, who is retiring this year, is in Normandy to commemorate the 79th anniversary of the 1944 D-Day invasion, a significant World War II operation he called the largest amphibious invasion in human history.
The US and its allies have been supplying Ukraine with weapons for months in preparation for the counteroffensive, which was scheduled to begin in the spring.
The United States most recently declared that it would fund an international initiative to train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets. Because of the training, munitions, advise, and intelligence that the US and its allies have given, according to Milley, Ukraine is ready for the counteroffensive.
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Alleged Ukrainian Drone Strikes and the Growing Conflict in Russia
After alleged Ukrainian drone strikes hit inside Moscow and a shelling attack was launched in Belgorod, the war has apparently started to seep into Russia. When asked on Monday if such strikes run the risk of intensifying the war, Milley responded that such a possibility exists always and that the US is keeping a close eye on it.
This Monday, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told CNN’s Fareed Zakaria that the US thinks Ukraine’s counteroffensive will allow Ukraine to gain strategically important territory back from Russia.
In order to undermine Russian operations, a network of operatives and supporters inside Russia has reportedly started receiving drones from Ukraine, according to a report.
There is no proof that the pro-Ukraine agents carried out the recent drone strikes, but officials told CNN they had seen an increase in attacks within Russian territory.
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