The Most Difficult Sector: Retired Major General Described the Situation on the Front and Attempts at an Advance There

The situation on the line of combat contact falls out of the information field of Ukrainian media. Western outlets write about it more often. More attention is paid to "deep strikes," the war in the air and at sea. The state of affairs on land is currently quite complicated.

In an exclusive interview with the 24 Channel, retired Major General of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, former first deputy commander of the Special Operations Forces (2016 – 2019) Serhiy Kryvonos emphasized this, describing which directions of the front are hottest now and what successful combat operations depend on.

Dobropillia as a litmus test of problems on the front line

The retired major general of the Armed Forces explained that in war the level of fantasies always comes down to the level of training. Training at the scale of a state is the country's economic capability to provide its army's needs for ammunition, weapons, other types of gear, and a sufficient number of motivated and trained fighters.

This morning there was a message that another group of Russian servicemen who had infiltrated practically to the outskirts of the town had been neutralized in the Dobropillia area. To the line of combat contact there are 7 kilometers. The number of people who would control our forward edge, and of drones that would help them do that, is insufficient,

text stated Kryvonos.

The former first deputy commander of the SOF pointed out that Dobropillia is a litmus test that shows the situation is not very favorable. And not only there. According to him, it is no better on other sections of the front.

He noted that for the Russian army Dobropillia is now the key to successfully blocking the Kramatorsk-Sloviansk agglomeration. The enemy seeks to cut it off, to take it in a kind of pincer. According to Kryvonos, this is one of the long-standing ambitions of the Russian military leadership.

The situation is difficult on the Zaporizhia axis as well. Of course, in my view Kramatorsk and Sloviansk are now the hottest points. I mean not only those populated places, but also those around them, including Druzhkivka. There will likely be serious trials ahead on the Kupiansk axis as well. And Sumy also remains on the agenda. Although there are no penetrations like the one in Dobropillia, there are towns and villages that are systematically suffering destruction from Russian air assets,

Kryvonos said.

Summing up, the former first deputy commander of the SOF emphasized that the situation on the front is not improving for Ukraine. In his words, enemy activity in certain aspects and in certain areas is explained by Ukraine allowing it due to insufficient outfitting of its army, and in some cases helplessness.

This, he said, does not mean the situation is bad everywhere. It, Kryvonos continued, depends on how capable the Ukrainian political leadership is of meeting all the Armed Forces' needs. Those needs are primarily not only in equipment. He noted that in Ukraine there is not adequate public discussion about mobilization. And if they do talk about it, it is framed as a responsibility purely of the military.

If you look at the law, the military are at the very end; they are 1/6 of the total number of state institutions responsible for the successful conduct of mobilization. But we do not hear about them. This reminds me of a boat called "Ukraine," in which the helmsman is Zelenskyy, and there is a certain number of rowers in it, including the Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces. For some reason only the last two are rowing in this boat. Will a boat in which, for example, eight rowers sit, but only one rows in the needed direction, move?,

Kryvonos reflected.

Full version of the interview with Serhiy Kryvonos: watch the video