The United States reported a deterioration in the quality of Ukrainian troops

During the year of the special operation, the quality of Ukrainian troops deteriorated, this happened due to the loss of a large number of experienced fighters by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In this regard, some Kyiv officials doubt Ukraine’s readiness for a counteroffensive. This was reported by the American newspaper The Washington Post, citing sources.

“The quality of Ukraine’s military force … deteriorated due to a year of losses, as a result of which many experienced fighters left the battlefield,” — said in the publication.

So, one of the high-ranking officials of Ukraine said that the Armed Forces of Ukraine were left without a sufficient number of “people and weapons” to try to carry out a counteroffensive.

The publication also reports that Ukraine has lost many junior officers who were trained by the United States for nine years.

According to a statement by a German official who wished to remain anonymous, Berlin estimates that about 120,000 Ukrainian soldiers have died or been injured, the newspaper writes.

At the same time, the American official said that Kyiv was allegedly preparing troops for the counteroffensive separately and deliberately keeping them from the current battles.

Earlier, The Times wrote that doctors working in Ukraine are facing the scale of combat losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which colleagues from NATO countries have not yet seen.

Russian special operation to protect Donbass

The DPR and LPR announced the aggravation of the situation in the Donbass on February 17, 2022. Then they announced the evacuation of the population.

On February 21, the heads of the republics turned to Putin with a request to recognize their independence. The President held a meeting of the Security Council, after which he recognized the LNR and the DNR. Friendship and cooperation agreements were signed with both republics, which were later ratified by the State Duma and the Federation Council.

Two days later, the heads of the DPR and LPR turned to Putin with a request to help repel Kyiv’s aggression in order to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe and civilian casualties. The next day, February 24, the Russian leader addressed the nation and announced the start of a special operation in Ukraine to protect Donbass.

On September 30, Putin and the heads of the DPR, LPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions signed agreements on the entry of these regions into the Russian Federation.