{"id":1966268,"date":"2023-07-07T00:55:02","date_gmt":"2023-07-07T04:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ukraines-slow-motion-offensive-and-frustrations-of-needing-to-be-model-good-guys\/"},"modified":"2023-07-07T00:57:45","modified_gmt":"2023-07-07T04:57:45","slug":"ukraines-slow-motion-offensive-and-frustrations-of-needing-to-be-model-good-guys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ukraines-slow-motion-offensive-and-frustrations-of-needing-to-be-model-good-guys\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine&#8217;s sluggish offensive and the frustration of being expected to be the perfect role models."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fukraines-slow-motion-offensive-and-frustrations-of-needing-to-be-model-good-guys%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1966268&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>In the Eyes of Many Western Supporters: Ukraine&#8217;s Struggle for Support<\/h2>\n<p>In the eyes of many Western supporters, Ukraine can do no wrong. That is to say, Ukraine better do no wrong. Or it risks losing that support, should it appear to be losing or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ilhan-omar-biden-should-back-referring-accused-israeli-officials-to-international-criminal-court\/\" title=\"Ilhan Omar: Biden Should Back Referring Accused Israeli Officials To International Criminal Court\">committing war crimes<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Bidenomics: How the Stock Market Has Fared Under Biden&#8217;s Presidency<\/h2>\n<p>The first month of Ukraine\u2019s much-anticipated counteroffensive is off to a sluggish start. With the losses of both men and materiel, there is a sense among many in Ukraine that, despite promises to back the country \u201cas long as it takes,\u201d Western pledges are predicated on the war going according to plan while producing quick victories and stunning successes.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, at the Pentagon, there is a concerted effort to temper enthusiasm, with officials invoking such time-tested wartime maxims such as \u201cThe enemy gets a vote\u201d and \u201cNo plan survives first contact with the enemy.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Real War, Real Consequences<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cWar on paper and real war are different. In real war, real people die, real people are on those front lines, real people are in those vehicles, real bodies are being shredded by high explosives,\u201d said Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in an appearance at the National Press Club at the end of June.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted last month that the counteroffensive is progressing &#8220;slower than desired.\u201d He also expressed frustration with the handwringing over the lack of dramatic gains in the early days.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Not a Hollywood Movie<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;Some people believe this is a Hollywood movie and expect results now. It&#8217;s not,&#8221; Zelensky told the BBC. \u201cWhat&#8217;s at stake is people&#8217;s lives.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Several factors are impeding Ukraine\u2019s ability to mount a blitzkrieg breakthrough of Russian defenses, including Russia\u2019s multiple lines of fortified trenches and heavy use of anti-tank mines.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Obstacles on the Front Line<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cIn some areas, the density of its minefields indicates that it has likely used many more mines than laid down in its military doctrine,\u201d the British Defense Ministry said in a statement posted to Twitter. \u201cHaving slowed the Ukrainian advance, Russia has then attempted to strike Ukrainian armored vehicles with one-way attack uncrewed aerial vehicles, attack helicopters, and artillery.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>In a more recent interview with CNN, Zelensky blamed the slow start on the long wait for advanced weapons including tanks and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/4-hostile-regimes-testing-joe-biden-during-his-first-months-in-office\/\" title=\"4 Hostile Regimes Testing Joe Biden During His First Months In Office\">long-range missiles<\/a>, which gave Russia too much time to prepare.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Waiting for Weapons<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cI wanted our counteroffensive happening much earlier because everyone understood that if the counteroffensive will be unfolding later, then a much bigger part of our territory will be mined,\u201d Zelensky said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cRussians, they&#8217;re not standing still,\u201d retired Gen. Wesley Clark, former top NATO commander, said on CNN, where he\u2019s a paid contributor. \u201cThe Russians are also developing new technologies. They&#8217;re trying to strengthen their electronic warfare, jam the drones. They&#8217;re jamming the HIMARS system now, so it&#8217;s not as effective in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ukraines-slow-motion-offensive-and-frustrations-of-needing-to-be-model-good-guys\/\" title=\"Ukraine's sluggish offensive and the frustration of being expected to be the perfect role models.\">striking precision targets deep<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ukraine is also moving cautiously, probing the 600-mile front line for weak points. While, unlike the Russians, seeking to minimize both military and civilian casualties.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Strategic Caution<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cIn some directions, we cannot even think of starting it, as we don&#8217;t have the relevant weapons,\u201d Zelensky said. \u201cAnd throwing our people to be killed by Russian long-range weapons will be simply inhumane. So we&#8217;re not going to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>The primary impediment to a U.S.-style \u201cshock and awe\u201d campaign is the lack of modern combat jets and longer-range precision missiles, along with Marquess of Queensberry restrictions on the use of U.S.-supplied weapons to attack Russian territory.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Limitations on Ukraine&#8217;s Offensive<\/h3>\n<p>That eliminates the option of creating a diversion by sending Ukrainian forces across the border in the north in order to divert Russian troops from the front lines or attack Russian trenches and supply lines from the rear.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Ukraine is required to play by rules designed to prevent NATO from being drawn directly into the conflict, while Russia is free to fire missiles indiscriminately from its own territory and airspace and commit war crimes with impunity.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Playing by Different Rules<\/h3>\n<p>So when Ukraine\u2019s top general Valery Zaluzhny hears defeatist talk about how the counteroffensive is moving too timidly, it \u201cpisses me off,\u201d he told the Washington Post in an interview.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>While Zelensky says there can be no victory for Ukraine if it does not include taking back Crimea, illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, current and former U.S. commanders doubt that\u2019s possible unless the United States stops lifting limits on the kinds of weapons it will supply. And take the gloves off on how they are used.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>The Challenge of Taking Back Crimea<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cIt looks to me, as someone who&#8217;s looked at these military battles historically and many other times, that the Ukrainians simply don&#8217;t have the combat power to get into Crimea without air power, without the ATACMS [Army Tactical Missile System], without better electronic warfare, without the ability to target deep and go after Russian reserves,\u201d Clark said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Viewing a video on Twitter showing the destruction of a huge Russian ammunition storage facility behind enemy lines in the eastern Donetsk region, retired Gen. Ben Hodges, former commander of the U.S. Army Europe, opined on Twitter, \u201cImagine how much more damage to Russian logistics Ukraine could do if they had ATACMS and Gray Eagle Drones. No Russian ammunition storage site anywhere inside Ukraine would be safe. Russian bases and the Black Sea Fleet would not be safe. [Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin] Sir, what are we waiting for?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Zelensky never fails to express gratitude for the more than $40 billion in military assistance provided by the U.S. and at least 50 other countries, while at the same time arguing he needs more.<\/p>\n<p>The pattern of denying certain advanced weaponry, only to relent months later, has resulted in a sort of stoic fatalism among Ukrainians who have seen their country and their lives destroyed.<\/p>\n<p>Ukrainians are growing tired of being praised for their heroic grit and determination, while they still fight with one hand behind their back.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h3>Ukraine&#8217;s Struggle for Recognition<\/h3>\n<p>\u201cTo us, it feels as though the world is anticipating yet another tragedy as if we are simply characters in a dystopian series. Only when faced with a concoction of pandemics, floods, bombings, torture, and rape can we receive help and support,\u201d wrote Ukrainian researcher Mariam Naiem in an essay published in Politico last month. \u201cAnd not only this, but we have to repeatedly prove to the audience that we are brave, honest, \u2018civilized\u2019 and not wasteful.&#8221; Gen. Jim Mattis, the legendary Marine commander and former defense secretary, used to tell his troops, \u201cRemember, we are the good guys. We\u2019re not the perfect guys.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>These days Ukraine is feeling as though it has to be perfect in order to defeat Russia and win the right to join the West as a full member of NATO.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/ukraine-russia-war-counteroffensive\">Click here to read more from the Washington Examiner<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In the eyes of Western supporters, Ukraine must avoid any wrongdoing to maintain their support. Any signs of losing or committing war crimes could result in losing that support. The stock market&#8217;s performance under Biden&#8217;s presidency is analyzed in &#8220;Bidennomics.&#8221; Ukraine&#8217;s highly anticipated counteroffensive has begun its first month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1966269,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1966268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1966268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1966268"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1966268\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1966269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1966268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1966268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1966268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}