Leaders avoid victory dance in Ukraine combat advances

WASHINGTON (AP):

US leaders from President Joe Biden on down are being careful not to declare a premature victory after a Ukrainian offensive forced Russian troops into a messy retreat in the north. Instead, military officials are looking towards the fights yet to come and laying out plans to provide Ukraine more weapons and expand training, while warily awaiting Russia’s response to the sudden, stunning battlefield losses.

Although there was widespread celebration of Ukraine’s gains over the weekend, US officials know Russian President Vladimir Putin still has troops and resources to tap, and his forces still control large swathes of the east and south.

“I agree there should be no spiking of the ball, because Russia still has cards it can play,” said Philip Breedlove, a retired US Air Force general who was NATO’s top commander from 2013 to 2016. “Ukraine is now clearly making durable changes in its east and north, and I believe that if the West properly equips Ukraine, they’ll be able to hold on to their gains.”

Lawmakers particularly pointed to the precision weapons and rocket systems that the US and Western nations have provided to Ukraine as key to the dramatic shift in momentum, including the precision-guided High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, and the High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile, or HARM, which is designed to target and destroy radar-equipped air defence systems.

“They’re there, they’re in theater, and they’re making the difference,” Senator Chris Coons, a Delaware Democrat and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In the hands of highly motivated Ukrainian fighters who are making the most of weapons ranging from off-the-shelf drones and abandoned Russian arms to advanced weapons from the West, the HIMARS are enabling Ukrainians “to turn the tide, dramatically,” Coons said.

Meanwhile, a senior defence official said the US is looking at future needs, including discussions about providing more intensive combat training for larger Ukraine units, a change from current training focused on smaller teams learning to handle specific weapons. It is also considering sending additional air defence systems, as well as lethal strike drones and more surveillance drones. The official was one of two who briefed reporters on Monday, on condition of anonymity, to discuss planning details.