Head of Ukrainian Intelligence predicts Ukraine to come back to Crimea by late spring

IRYNA BALACHUK – FRIDAY, 30 SEPTEMBER 2022, 22:19 

Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Chief Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Defence Ministry, has claimed that Ukraine is going to come back to occupied Crimea; it will happen militarily and soon enough.

Source: Budanov, in an interview on the 24/7 news broadcast on 30 September 

Quote: "I have been there many times. This is my second homeland, so to speak. I grew up in Crimea. And we are going to come back there quite soon. Yes, with weapons. There is no other option."

Details: Budanov expects that the war is not going to last as long as people might expect, and "soon it will be over".

Quote: "Well, I never said [it would last] 2 or 3 weeks. If you remember my statements in late May, I revealed how it would work. I said that in June, we would, unfortunately, suffer certain losses; in July, there would be a relative stalemate; and in August, we would start moving to reclaim our territory. In winter, the war will fade away, to a large extent. After the winter is over, the conflict will start reaching its end; the first stage would be us reaching the administrative borders [of Ukraine] as of 1991."

Details: Budanov added that the liberation of Crimea will happen "not in summer, but by the end of spring – perhaps, even a little earlier". 

He added he was not afraid of making such predictions because "it’s not even the beginning of the end [of the war]; it’s a process, and it’s in the making".

Background: 

• On 30 September, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine had taken over the initiative in the war and was achieving significant results; in particular, he had confirmed the liberation of Yampil and the Armed Forces’ success in Lyman.
• On 14 September, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claimed that Crimea and other territories would be liberated from Russian invaders.  

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