The invaders' offensive has stalled: NYT maps the failure of the Kremlin's plans to capture Ukraine

The military and political leadership of the terrorist state of Russia continues to aim to capture the entire Donetsk and Luhansk regions. At the beginning of 2023, Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin set the Russian army command the task of reaching the administrative borders of these regions by the end of March.

Thanks to the competent and selfless defence of Ukrainian soldiers, the dreams of Russia's chief war criminal remained unattainable, but at the cost of huge losses, the aggressor was able to capture only a few small settlements. This is stated in the analytics of The New York Times.

Back in late 2022, the media announced a major offensive by Russian troops in eastern Ukraine. The enemy was indeed preparing and deploying a huge amount of equipment and personnel to the war zone. As a result, the occupiers often became cannon fodder, resulting in the loss of about 1,000 Russian soldiers every day.

Despite the fact that the Kremlin hoped to reach the administrative borders of Donetsk region during the winter offensive, the occupiers managed to capture only three settlements - Krasna Hora, Kurdyumivka and Soledar.

Fierce fighting continues in Bakhmut. The Russians are throwing huge forces at the assault, but as a result, they are only increasing their casualty statistics. Moreover, analysts stressed that there are dozens of other settlements in the Donetsk region, some of which are much larger than Bakhmut, and they remain out of reach of Russian troops.

Experts say that Russia's success in eastern Ukraine seems increasingly unlikely. Regardless of the outcome of the fierce battle for Bakhmut, Moscow's inability to gain a foothold in Donbas shows how little it has achieved in the offensive.

The NYT stressed that due to partial mobilisation, the terrorist state was able to solve the problem of understaffing, but even with a large number of troops and firepower, Russia managed to make only a small advance. The aggressor faced well-prepared Ukrainian positions and heavily fortified defence lines.

Recall that dictator Vladimir Putin has ordered his occupation army to completely seize the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The Kremlin leader dreamed that the invaders would reach the administrative borders of these regions by March.

Earlier it was reported that the Russian occupation forces suffered huge losses during the attempts to storm Bakhmut. Enemy trenches dug near the town are littered with the bodies of the invaders.

According to UK military intelligence, Russian troops have resumed their offensive and advanced in Bakhmut, and the key "lifeline" for the Ukrainian Armed Forces is under threat.

As OBOZREVATEL previously reported:

- The Ukrainian Armed Forces said that the situation in Bakhmut is getting more complicated, but our military is controlling the situation in the city;

- The Russian army is trying to advance on the front line in the Donetsk region between Avdiivka and Maryinka. The enemy is suffering heavy losses there, but still continues to attack;

- The situation in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, is becoming more complicated as the terrorist state of Russia has focused all its efforts on capturing it. However, the Ukrainian military is in control of the situation in the city.

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