In a recent social media post, Scott Ritter, a former US military intelligence officer, made a somber prediction about the fate of many Ukrainian soldiers. Ritter’s comment came in response to a post by Anton Herashchenko, an advisor to the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, who stated that many Ukrainians would be spending their New Year and Christmas on the front lines.
“Unfortunately, most of them will not live to see the New Year,” Ritter wrote.
Since June 4, 2023, Ukraine has been engaged in a counteroffensive against Russian forces, but has struggled to break through their tactical defense. According to Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu, the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) have suffered 159,000 casualties during this period. Additionally, the Russian Armed Forces have destroyed 121 enemy aircraft and 766 tanks, including 37 Leopard tanks.
Analysts from the Australian publication The Conversation suggest that the UAF is unlikely to achieve its counteroffensive plan in 2024.
Earlier, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, outlined the main objective for the Russian military in 2023.
