Russia exhausts strategic reserves in Kharkiv offensive, Ukrainian military official says
Russia has already activated all its strategic reserves during the offensive in the Kharkiv region and is now trying to prevent the Ukrainian Forces from assessing their capabilities, potential, and objectives, said Colonel Ivan Tymochko, Chair of the Reserves Council of the Ukrainian Ground Forces during a national news broadcast.
Colonel Tymochko asserted that the Russian Armed Forces have not achieved their objectives, and the redeployment of troops from one direction to another suggests an "illusion of continuous offensive or limitless reserves." He further noted that Russia's attempts to transfer additional forces from Kherson and the Kupiansk direction to the north of the Kharkiv region aimed to prolong the offensive and make it effective. However, the Ukrainian Forces halted the Russian troops at the initial lines of conflict established in the early days of the attacks.
"Maximum depth where the enemy managed to advance is 8 kilometres, and if we talk about depth, it is within the combat operation zone, considering our defence's depth," Tymochko emphasised.
Tymochko highlighted that Russia's main objective now is to create a sense of irrationality in their actions to make it challenging for Ukraine to predict and evaluate their potential. He added that even with small forces, Russia might attempt offensives in regions like Sumy. "For them, the loss of several thousand men in specific directions means nothing," he said.
According to Tymochko, the Russians are conducting reconnaissance in combat to gauge the strength and responsiveness of the Ukrainian Forces, as well as to identify supply routes. The Russian Armed Forces also aim to keep Ukraine's population on edge. He mentioned that the current combat operations span 1,500 kilometres of the shared border with Russia.
"Of course, along the thousand-kilometre stretch where we border Belarus and Russia, there are continuous skirmishes between sabotage and reconnaissance groups, as well as artillery duels. We do not have large-scale linear battles across the entire border line, although threats and potential can arise anywhere," Tymochko concluded.