Ukraine's Top General Issues Desperate Message as Russia Gains Ground

A top Ukrainian military official has issued a desperate plea for resources as Russia gains momentum in its war against Ukraine.

Despite Ukrainian victories in the Black Sea, Kyiv's counteroffensive operation this year did not turn out as planned for the war-ravaged nation, with top commander General Valerii Zaluzhnyi characterizing the 600-mile front as a "stalemate" and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stating the effort "did not achieve the desired results". Meanwhile, Russia is gaining ground in numerous regions as the war nears its second anniversary in February.

Zaluzhyni, who is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, recently issued a desperate plea for military resources including people, ammunition and weapons to continue its fight against Russia, RBC-Ukraine reported.

"Most important to me is that people come to the military and can carry out the assigned tasks. Who gets a deferral or who doesn't, who the state will call up—that's not my competence today," he said. "I need people, I need ammunition, and I need weapons to continue military operations."

Newsweek reached out to the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine by email for comment.

Zaluzhyni's request comes as the Ukraine parliament proposed a draft law on Monday that would lower the age of mobilization from 27 to 25 and reduce exemptions, meaning more Ukrainians would be eligible for the draft. Recently, Zelensky said that the General Staff had requested an additional mobilization of 450,000 to 500,000 more troops as the war against Russia nears its second anniversary, CNBC reported.

Zelensky has placed blame on Ukraine's Western partners, including the U.S., for Ukraine's lackluster counteroffensive results. Zelensky claimed that the counteroffensive started later than planned because of a need for more resources.

Recently, countries that have helped Ukraine throughout the war have begun to block aid to the nation, including Hungary and the U.S., which blocked a $111 billion emergency spending bill with $50 billion in aid for Ukrainian war efforts this month.

Meanwhile, Russia is advancing on multiple fronts. On Friday, Kremlin military bloggers claimed that Russian troops had advanced along the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line northeast of Kupiansk, although the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank said it could not confirm these claims.

Russian forces also gained ground northeast of Bakhmut in the Donetsk oblast, following recent advances southwest of the town which has been fiercely fought over for months. The forces made marginal advances southeast and northwest of Avdiivka, the Donetsk town it launched an offensive towards in October which has come at high losses.

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