At the beginning of this month, the Russian army took control of Lisichansk, the last city in the Luhansk region. Later, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced that the entire territory of Luhansk had been liberated by Russia. Since then, the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine seems to have stagnated, but everyone knows that this war will not end so soon, at least Ukraine will not give up its land easily.
According to the British " Times " report, Ukrainian Defense Minister Leznikov recently stated that Ukrainian President Zelensky has ordered the formulation of a counterattack plan. Currently, Ukraine can assemble a million-strong army at any time, including 700,000 The armed forces, as well as the National Guard, police and border guards, will retake the southern territory occupied by Russia.
At the same time, Reznikov also called on Western countries to increase arms assistance to Ukraine. It has been nearly five months since the war in Ukraine broke out. The two sides have focused on Mariupol , Kherson , Zaporozhye There was fierce competition in key areas such as , Luhansk, Donetsk, and . Outside the battlefield, all kinds of gossip are flying all over the sky, and it is difficult to tell which side is true.
But judging from military common sense, the "one million troops" mentioned by the Ukrainian Defense Minister should be impossible. Not to mention Ukraine, Russia or other military powers want to maintain a million troops under modern war conditions. Large armies are also basically impossible. With Ukraine's plain terrain, it makes no sense to maintain such a large army.
Even if it is true as Reznikov said, the Ukrainian army has the support of Western countries and will not lack weapons, but the logistical supply of the 1 million army is also a huge problem. As for what Reznikov said about retaking the occupied territories, it is basically an impossible goal.
In the early days of the war, the Russian army's goal was to surprise Kiev and force Ukraine to surrender. Such a plan was indeed unrealistic, but now Russia has occupied large areas in eastern and southern Ukraine for some time, and its local rule has gradually stabilized. A solid line of defense was also established.
It may be difficult for the Russian army to launch a large-scale offensive operation, but it is still no problem to defend the occupied areas. The national power gap between Ukraine and Russia is too big. Even with the support of Western countries, it is not possible to defeat Russia. Then why does Reznikov still promote his so-called million-strong army in such a high-profile manner?
First of all, it must be to boost morale. This is what all military commanders will do from ancient times to the present. At present, the war in Ukraine will not end in a short time and must be a long-term confrontation. About one-fifth of Ukraine's land is occupied by Russia. Maintaining this situation for a long time will seriously affect morale. On the battlefield, it is common practice to exaggerate one's own strength and results and belittle the opponent.
Secondly, Ukraine is asking for assistance from Western countries. The reason why Western countries support Ukraine is of course not because of internationalism or humanitarianism. The main reason why they support Ukraine is that Ukraine can hold on and "bleed" Russia. If Ukraine wants to get a steady stream of support from Western countries, it can only create the illusion that it is about to defeat Russia and let its "financiers" see hope.
As consumables and thugs, the performance of the Ukrainian army on the battlefield will directly determine the attitude of Western countries and the future and destiny of their own country. It is difficult for outsiders to predict when this war will end. But one thing to note is that Western countries will not always support Ukraine unconditionally. To some extent, the United States and EU have differences on this issue.
The EU hopes for a quick victory and once and for all solves Russia, an external threat that has existed for centuries. The United States does not care. Instead, it hopes to use Ukraine to hold Russia back so that it can never free up its hands to deal with China. U.S. aid may be sustainable, but the EU may not.
According to the latest economic data, major European countries such as the United Kingdom, France, and Germany collectively have huge trade deficits , and inflation is also soaring. Under such circumstances, it is still unknown how many resources European countries can devote to support Ukraine. If the war drags on for a long time, it is very likely that there will be some changes that are beyond the expectations of the outside world.
