Russian offensive overwhelms unprepared Ukrainian forces in Kharkiv

The Russian offensive in the Kharkiv Oblast, in northeastern Ukraine, is essentially a consequence of Western policies that do not allow Ukrainians to use Western weaponry to attack military targets in Russia, wrote the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in one of its reports.

The Moscow Times portal indicated that "Ukraine was not ready" for the Russian attack in the region. The service pointed out that since the beginning of spring, there had been reports in many media about a planned attack by Putin's forces on Kharkiv. Additionally, the Russian dictator said in mid-March that "it is necessary to create a 'sanitary zone' on Ukrainian territory to protect Russian regions from shelling." A month later, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that Kharkiv "played an important role in implementing the overall strategy."

British military intelligence warned Kyiv of the Kremlin's intentions - a source familiar with the matter told "The Guardian" newspaper.

"However, when about 5,000 to 10,000 Russian soldiers crossed the state border in the Kharkiv Oblast for the second time in over two years, units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were not ready to stop the advance," reads the Moscow Times publication.

"The first line of fortifications and mines simply did not exist. The enemy freely entered the grey zone along the entire line of the cordon, which essentially should not have been grey!" wrote Ukrainian military officer Denis Yaroslavsky on Facebook on Sunday.

A veteran of the Ukrainian army quoted in The Guardian stated that units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were simply not ready to fight, the command was not prepared for the Russian offensive, and the defence structures were not properly deployed.

Military analysts said preparing the "grey zone" for defence purposes was almost impossible. Along the border stretches a sparsely populated, open area. The situation was complicated, among other things, because the defenders could not use US-supplied weapons on Russian territory.

It would be suicide for Ukraine to place the main line of defence at the border, where the Russians can shoot at them with artillery and drop bombs. Due to restrictions imposed by the United States, Ukrainians could not respond, explained George Barros of ISW.

In other regions, Putin's army supply lines run through temporarily occupied territories so Ukrainians can strike them, preventing the enemy from gaining the initiative on the front line.

However, this cannot be done in the northeast, which is why the Russian army freely ensures supplies, equipment, and ammunition for advancing units from the territory of the Belgorod Oblast, it reads.