General Valerii Zaluzhnyi made the assessment on social media on Thursday, Polish state news agency reported.
Ukraine’s top commander said on the Telegram social messaging app that he had held a phone call with the US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, about the current situation on the front.
Zaluzhnyi wrote: “I talked on the phone to General Mark Milley, US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Told him about the operational situation across the entire frontline in detail.”
He added: “The Armed Forces of Ukraine are methodically eliminating enemy forces despite the opponents’ minefields, anti-tank obstacles and firing systems and are continuing to conduct offensive operations to liberate our territory. We have made gains on several fronts. Our soldiers are heroes."
Zaluzhnyi also wrote that he and Milley had discussed deliveries of military assistance, including ammunition and equipment, the Ukrainska Pravda website reported.
Ukraine’s top commander thanked Milley and everyone in the United States for their steadfast support and continuing dialogue, according to Ukrainska Pravda.
On Thursday, Ukrainian forces reportedly advanced south and north of Bakhmut, in the eastern Donetsk region, in the Berdyansk direction on the border between Donetsk and the southeastern Zaporizhia region, in the Melitopol direction in Zaporizhzhia, and south and southeast of Orikhiv in Zaporizhzhia province, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a US think tank.
Ukraine starts using cluster munitions against Russia: US
Meanwhile, Ukraine has started deploying US-supplied cluster munitions in its fight against the Russian invasion, the White House has confirmed.
John Kirby, the spokesman for America’s National Security Council, told a media briefing on Thursday: “We have gotten some initial feedback from the Ukrainians, and they’re using them quite effectively,” the Reuters news agency reported.
Kirby added that cluster bombs were having an impact on Russian defensive formations and manoeuvring, according to Reuters.
The United States announced it would provide Ukraine with cluster munitions as part of an USD 800 million military aid package earlier this month, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
Cluster bombs are banned by more than 120 countries, due to posing a danger to civilians, according to news outlets.
Ukraine has pledged to use cluster bombs only to dislodge concentrations of Russian enemy soldiers, Reuters reported.
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, launching the largest military campaign in Europe since World War II.
Friday is day 513 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, Ukrainska Pravda, Reuters, The Guardian, ISW
