A destroyed Ukrainian tank<\/p>\n
After weeks of pounding Russian troops with high-precision rockets and drones, the Ukrainian forces launched a long-awaited counteroffensive Monday to take back territories in the Kherson region. However, amid reports that the operation is getting bogged down, Ukraine said its operation to take back Kherson is going as planned but cautioned that “there will be no quick wins.”<\/p>\n
Much of the Kherson region, which borders the Black Sea, was seized by Russian forces during the initial days of the invasion. Media reports said Ukraine’s forces have broken through the first line of defense with simultaneous strikes carried out in eight directions.<\/p>\n
However, a report in Al Jazeera<\/a>, quoting local resident Pantelis Boubouras who is Greece’s honourary consul in Kherson and runs a construction business in Odesa said that after the initial success the counteroffensive had bogged down. “The second line isn’t falling easily. There are 25,000-30,000 soldiers, they’ve been there five months, and are very well equipped and dug in.”<\/p>\n The Guardian reported<\/a> a senior adviser to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky as saying that Ukraine’s counteroffensive to reclaim Kherson has neither stalled nor failed. Oleksiy Arestovych in a video message posted to Telegram early Thursday morning said:<\/p>\n “The fact that we have not taken Kherson yet does not mean that the operation in the south has stalled or failed. It is carried out in a planned manner. We destroy enemy logistics, air defense systems, fuel and ammunition depots… There will be no quick wins. Initially, a strategy was taken to systematically grind Putin’s army. It is long, so there is a lot of work to be done.”<\/p>\n Continues \u2026 https:\/\/www.ibtimes.com\/ukraines-counteroffensive-kherson-stalled-zelensky-aide-says-therell-no-quick-wins-3608255<\/a><\/p>\n Meanwhile, other paid mouthpieces that makeup the Western MSM are sounding similarly cautious, albeit from a somewhat different perspective:<\/p>\n Well-equipped Russians are fighting hard, say Ukrainian soldiers wounded in the fierce fighting<\/p>\n Continues \u2026 (by taking out a prescription)<\/a><\/p>\n The above Telegraph report echoes the Wall Street Journal:<\/p>\n Troops recuperating at a hospital in southern Ukraine say they face fierce fighting in a push toward Kherson<\/p>\n Continues \u2026 (The WSJ also demands a subscription)<\/a><\/p>\nUkraine retaking territory from Russians in the south, but at a heavy cost<\/strong><\/h2>\n
The Telegraph.co.uk — Sept 1, 2022<\/h3>\n
Ukrainian Soldiers Say They Are Advancing in the South, but at a Cost<\/strong><\/h2>\n
WSJ — Sept 1, 2022<\/h3>\n
Commentary \u2013 Sept 2, 2022<\/strong><\/h1>\n