Ukraine Prepares for Possible Russian Attack from North

Ukraine’s top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said his forces were preparing for a possible new Russian attack from the north, though any attempt to advance on Kyiv was unlikely.

“The most likely scenario, and this is confirmed by several data sources, is possible offensive action in the north from the territory of Russia, from the Bryansk region”, Syrskyi said in an interview with TSN Ukrainian television.

“This is a realistic option, of course, and we are preparing for it.”

He said the aim of such an operation would not be to move on Kyiv, as Russian forces tried to do at the start of the invasion in February 2022. Instead, Russia could try to seize territory in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region and draw Ukrainian forces away from other parts of the 1,250 km front line.

Such a strategy would amount to “stretching the front and depriving us of reserves”, Syrskyi said.

He described an attack from Belarusian territory as unlikely, although he said Kyiv was still taking the possibility into account.

Syrskyi also said there were signs that Russian troops were exhausted and that the intensity of front-line battles was declining. He said Russian front-line activity had fallen by 30%, while Ukrainian forces continued long-range strikes against targets in Russia, mainly facilities linked to the oil industry.

(Reuters, Lud)