While Russia continues to hold large parts of Ukraine, experts say the Ukrainian defeat of Russian forces in Kharkiv could be a sign of a major turning point in the war. Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told CNN anchor Fareed Zakaria that the gains indicate a weakening of the Russian position. “Let’s see how that goes,” Warner told “Fareed Zakaria GPS” on Sunday. “The Ukrainians show their will to fight, and that’s one of those things you can never fully appreciate, no matter how good your intelligence is. And, frankly, the weakness of the Russians and the lack of supplies to their troops is also played.” Warner noted that Russia expected a counterattack in the south, not in the northeastern region of Kharkiv, where its forces were forced to abandon at least 40 settlements. Fighting continues in the regional towns of Kupiansk and Izium, according to an intelligence briefing from the UK Ministry of Defence. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky remained upbeat on Sunday. Zelensky told Zakaria that his troops are “moving forward slowly, gradually” until Ukraine regains all lost territory. “We have no other way. And it is not our weakness. I believe it is our strength,” Zelensky said. “Because Russia has a way out. They can go back home. We only have this house to defend.” The counterattack could prompt a more aggressive response from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who last week vowed to “follow it through” to the end in response to a question about the war. Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesman for Ukraine’s foreign ministry, tweeted on Sunday that Russia attacked power plants and vital infrastructure in “an act of desperation” after “huge losses and retreat in eastern Ukraine”. “Even with their terror tactics, they are doomed to lose this war,” Nikolenko wrote. Ukraine’s counteroffensive offers the latest cause for optimism in its efforts to oust Russian forces. When Putin ordered an invasion of Ukraine on February 24, his forces launched a blitzkrieg of attacks across the country. Ukraine pushed Russian troops out of the vicinity of the capital Kiev within months, forcing Russia to regroup and focus on seizing territory in the east. While Russia succeeded in capturing key eastern cities – including large parts of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions – Ukraine’s counteroffensive erased significant gains made in the spring and summer. Luhansk’s regional chief tweeted on Saturday that Ukrainian troops were headed to the city of Lysychansk, a major city captured by Russia over the summer. Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Institute for Foreign Policy Research, said Russia was likely to lose the larger war effort because of “unclear objectives.” “Russia had to be able to defend a huge front line and control the territories it held. Not an easy job,” Lee tweeted. “It was never clear how Russia could achieve an end to the conflict, especially since Ukraine had the moral advantage,” he added. Jan. 6 panel set to resurface with eye on Newt Gingrich Kamala Harris says domestic threat makes US ‘weaker’ Mick Ryan, an adjunct fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, wrote in a Twitter thread on Sunday that if the Ukrainians bypassed Kupyansk, a key rail hub, it would “compromise Russian operations on their eastern front.” Ryan also said the surprise counterattack “introduces a larger psychological issue with the Russians fighting in the east.” “The Russians, while not defeated, are in real trouble,” Ryan said. “Ukraine now has the initiative in this war, as well as the tactical and operational momentum starting in the winter. The war is not over, but perhaps the tide is finally turning.”
