On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave detailed comments regarding the progress of the war in Ukraine. The Russian leader said that Ukraine’s counteroffensive which he confirmed was launched on June 4, is failing. He went on to say that Kyiv has lost 25 to 30 percent of the Western-supplied military vehicles that had been transferred to Ukraine, including tanks.
In statements on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Kyiv’s counteroffensive has started. “Counteroffensive and defensive actions are being taken in Ukraine,” Zelensky announced in Kyiv alongside Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Zelensky’s remarks came days after international press reports had indicated that Ukraine’s much-anticipated counteroffensive had finally begun.
On Monday, the Russian Defense Ministry (MoD) suggested that Ukraine launched its highly-anticipated counter-offensive on Sunday only to have it immediately quashed within hours by Russian forces. According to the MoD, Ukraine began a “large-scale offensive” when it attacked 5 sections of the frontlines in the Donbas region. Russia has said that it stopped the major attack before it got off the ground and killed some 250 Ukrainian troops in the process. As part of the offensive, Ukraine sent 6 mechanized and 2 tank battalions to Russian-controlled Donetsk in the south.