Ukrainian Armed Forces can liberate occupied territories through series of counterattacks
Western aid will help Ukraine liberate occupied territories (photo: Getty Images)
Western aid will enable Ukraine to thwart President Vladimir Putin's plans and liberate the territories occupied by Russia not all at once, but in several stages, according to a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
It is noted that currently, the Ukrainian Defense Forces have conducted several large-scale counter-offensive operations, which have been successful operationally throughout the full-scale Russian invasion. However, such an approach to territory liberation is not the only option for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Analysts at ISW believe that transitioning from the current positional warfare in Ukraine is a complex task for both Russian and Ukrainian forces. The Institute is convinced that less extensive Ukrainian counter-offensive operations create opportunities to achieve operationally critical objectives without the challenges associated with larger-scale counter-offensives.
"Smaller-scale counteroffensive operations would likely allow Ukraine to start degrading Russia's ability to leverage the theater-wide initiative sooner and more quickly reduce some of the theater-wide pressures on Ukrainian forces," the report states.
At the same time, ISW argues that Western aid to the Ukrainian Armed Forces is the only viable means to diminish Russian President Vladimir Putin's intentions of destroying Ukrainian statehood and identity, without sparing time or cost.
Furthermore, defensive assistance from Western partners can provide the Ukrainian Defense Forces with necessary equipment and weapons in quantities, timelines, and regularity that enable them to conduct extensive operations to liberate temporarily occupied territories.
"These Ukrainian operations do not need to be individual, distinct large-scale endeavors, however, and instead can be a series of compounding counteroffensive operations over the course of late 2024 and throughout 2025," according to the ISW report.
Frontline situation
According to the latest data from the Institute for the Study of War, Russian forces have advanced near Avdiivka and along the administrative border between Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.
Per DeepState, Ukrainian defenders have liberated the village of Sotnytskyi Kozachok in the Kharkiv region from the enemy.
For updates on when the Defense Forces can launch an offensive and the current obstacles to doing so this year, read the article by RBC-Ukraine.
