Ukraine – Ukrainian victory: – I think it’s possible

– If you had asked me a month ago, I would not have thought that a Ukrainian victory was possible.

– But I now think that this is a possibility, says Lieutenant-General Arne Burd Dalhaug to Dagbladet.

The comment comes a day after Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said nearly two-thirds of the city’s residents have returned after fleeing hostilities.

– Before the war, 3.5 million people lived in Kyiv. Nearly two-thirds of them have left, Klitschko said during a news conference on Tuesday.

– good news

According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian forces regained control of several villages in the Kharkiv region.

– Our troops have given us good news from the Kharkiv region. In a speech on Tuesday, Zelensky said that the occupiers are gradually being removed from Kharkiv, according to what he reported. Watchman.

There is now optimism in Ukraine, says Dalhaug, which has become more pronounced in recent days.

– This is primarily due to the significant advances in Kharkiv, where they took a lot of land. He adds that the troops are now ten kilometers from the Russian border, which could threaten Russian supplies at Izyum.

– successful

According to the US-based think tank ISW (Institute for the Study of War), the Ukrainian counterattack in the Kharkiv region was so successful that it was likely that Russian forces would be pushed to the border.

Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haiday said on Wednesday that Russian forces had failed in their attempt to storm the cities of Robyzhny, Nizhnyi, Toshkivka and Orikhov in the region. Writes for the Ukrainian local newspaper Unian.

– Despite the offensive launched by the Russians in recent weeks, little has changed on the frontages of the Donbass, Dalhaug explains.

The Lieutenant General also noted that the Russian reserves are not large.

The Russians will be expelled

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says in an interview with financial times Ukraine is now modernizing its war objectives.

Kuleba explains to the newspaper that in the first months of the war, the victory of Ukraine will be the withdrawal of Russian troops to the occupied territories occupied before the outbreak of war on February 24.

Russia’s hypersonic missiles: – Very commendable

– But now, if we are militarily strong enough, and win the Battle of Donbass, our victory in this war will be the liberation of the rest of our lands, he says.

In other words; The plan is to completely expel the Russians from the country.

The foreign ministers stress that this requires the West to continue to supply Ukraine with weapons.

Biden’s new law

The progress is also due to incoming large arms supplies that have already arrived in Ukraine, says Dalhaug, referring to the new Biden legislation.

On Monday, US President Joe Biden signed a new law and lease law, allowing the United States to lend or lease military equipment to Ukraine and other war-affected Eastern European countries.

The price of the game is not cheap. But the president said that giving in to aggression costs more.

Biden also asked Congress to approve a new $33 billion — $320 billion — grant to support Ukraine.

Germany is advancing

There is also a steady increase in the West’s sanctions against Russia, which indicates that Ukraine has a lot of support, Dalhaug notes.

He says it is now clear that Germany has stepped up its support for Ukraine.

German Foreign Minister Annalina Barbock said during a visit to the Ukrainian capital that Germany is reopening its embassy in Kyiv.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has thanked Berbuk and Germany for changing their policy towards Moscow, by allowing a boycott of Russian oil and sending weapons and military equipment to Ukraine.

Putin has no plan

“Germany has changed its position regarding arms shipments to Ukraine, and Prime Minister Olaf Scholz has announced the start of a new policy towards Russia,” Kuleba said.

– No reason to stop

Although there is optimism in Ukraine, which is due to several factors, this does not mean that it cannot return, assures Dalhaug. He points out that if Ukraine wins, it is not certain that Russia will be left with Ukrainian territory.

– If Russian troops are brought back to the border in Donbass, where they were before February 24, I see no reason to stop there.

According to Dahlhog, the big question is what happens to Crimea.

– If this scenario happens, Crimea will be the last to be abandoned, the lieutenant-general believes.