Military operations are unpredictable, but we'll help Ukraine succeed – White House on Ukrainian offensive

The United States will focus on ensuring that the Ukrainian Armed Forces succeed in their counteroffensive actions, while taking into account that the dynamics on the battlefield may change.

Source: European Pravda, citing a statement by John Kirby, the White House Strategic Communications Coordinator, on Friday.

"We’re focused on making sure that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have everything that they need to be successful. War is unpredictable, and the enemy gets a vote," Kirby said.

He stressed that he would not comment on Ukraine’s counteroffensive instead of the Ukrainian side, but expressed confidence that they would not have started if the Ukrainian military leadership had had "a false sense of confidence" in its success.

"And we talked about this many times, it’s not as if the Russians weren’t preparing for this, throwing bodies at the problem set, putting in additional forces, building defence lines, sometimes three lines deep. It’s not as if the Russians weren’t preparing for defence, and defence is a strong form of war," the White House representative explained.

"And the Ukrainians are fighting through this. We just all have to recognise that combat can be unpredictable, and sometimes your plans don't always go exactly the way that you expected them to. We’re going to focus on making sure they are ultimately successful," Kirby added.

Background: Earlier, CNN, citing sources, reported that the initial counteroffensive operations have been less successful than anticipated by the West, while Russian forces have demonstrated greater competence than previously thought.

Earlier this week, the Pentagon, commenting on the progress of Ukraine's counteroffensive operations, said it believes that the Ukrainian forces have the necessary means to ensure that its actions are successful.

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