ussian troops may make further territorial gains, but tempo is likely to be slow without a "significant operational pause" to reorganize, the British Defense Ministry said in its daily assessment of the war.
The Kremlin faces a dilemma between deploying reserves to the Donbas or defending against Ukrainian counterattacks in the south Kherson sector, the assessment said.
"Russia has struggled to sustain effective offensive combat power since the start of the invasion," the assessment said. "This problem is likely becoming increasingly acute."
The Russian-occupied southern city of Kherson could soon open the "next chapter" in the war with a major Ukraine counter-offensive operation, experts told the Kyiv Independent. Russia claims Kherson is “full-fledged Russian territory” and is planning a referendum aimed at
annexing the region. But President Volodymyr Zelensky has urged the military to establish a plan to challenge Russia's occupation in the south, an area vital to the national economy.
Russia, meanwhile, has committed large numbers of troops and equipment toward claiming the eastern Donbas region.
“Russians are not capable of completely securing the whole duration of the giant frontline in Kherson,” Kirill Mikhailov of the Conflict Intelligence Team (CIT), an investigative project, told the Independent. “Nor is Russia capable of sending quick reinforcements to the area, as they would have to drastically reduce or even abandon their offensive in Donbas.
Latest developments:
►The Russian invasion has killed at least 353 children and injured another 676, the Ukraine government reported.
►Ukraine Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin shared some "great news" and promised details would be released soon.
►Donetsk Gov. Pavlo Kyrylenko said four Russian strikes blasted the city of Kramatorsk, and he urged the more than 150,000 residents to evacuate.
►Ukraine high jumper Andriy Protsenko won the bronze medal at the World Athletics Championships on Monday in Eugene, Ore.