UK Foreign Secretary on Ukraine's counteroffensive: This isn't a Hollywood movie, we have to be realistic

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly expects Ukraine’s counteroffensive to succeed, but warns that it might not outperform expectations.

Source: James Cleverly during an Atlantic Council event

Details: Cleverly said the counteroffensive "isn’t a film" where the initial invasion and the defence of Kyiv are followed by the international community rallying around to support Ukraine, and then the counteroffensive brings about a "lovely ending".

"Of course, the real world doesn’t work like that. The Ukrainians have outperformed [expectations] throughout this conflict. And they have been preparing themselves, they have been training their troops, they have been learning through this conflict. And they have demonstrated themselves to be very, very effective defenders of their country. But we need to recognise that there might not be a simple, quick, decisive breakthrough," Cleverly warned.

He stressed that the UK, and he personally, "hope and expect" that Ukraine’s counteroffensive will be successful. "But, you know, we have to be realistic. This is the real world. This is not a Hollywood movie," he said.

The UK Foreign Secretary believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin will continue to escalate the conflict, and the world "need[s] to be ready for that".

Previously: Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that the counteroffensive should not be seen as a "decisive battle" in the war with Russia.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Ukraine’s "success on the battlefield is the best way and probably the quickest way to actually get to a negotiation that produces a just and durable peace".

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