- Dec 29, 2008
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n a rare admission, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged Friday that Russia is sustaining “significant losses” in the war on Ukraine.
“In recent days, we have seen significant losses in Ukraine, they exceed the classical figure,” he said, according to the Kremlin.
The Russian president also confessed that Russian forces were dealing with artillery problems, adding in his remarks that “Yes, we still do not have enough of these modern weapons, but the defense industry, the country's military-industrial complex is developing rapidly.”
The dispirited comments about Moscow’s prospects in the war come just as Ukraine has launched a series of counteroffensives to push Russian forces out of the country.
The acknowledgment is a stark departure from typical messaging from Moscow. Putin and other Kremlin officials have long sought to paint the invasion as a success throughout the war, despite a stinging slew of losses and failed war plans. In March of last year, Putin claimed the operations were going according to plan, regardless of the Russian military’s failure to seize Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in an embarrassing defeat.
The Daily Beast
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Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Kremlin via REUTERS via third party© Provided by The Daily Beast
In a rare admission, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged Friday that Russia is sustaining “significant losses” in the war on Ukraine.
“In recent days, we have seen significant losses in Ukraine, they exceed the classical figure,” he said, according to the Kremlin.
The Russian president also confessed that Russian forces were dealing with artillery problems, adding in his remarks that “Yes, we still do not have enough of these modern weapons, but the defense industry, the country's military-industrial complex is developing rapidly.”
The dispirited comments about Moscow’s prospects in the war come just as Ukraine has launched a series of counteroffensives to push Russian forces out of the country.
The acknowledgment is a stark departure from typical messaging from Moscow. Putin and other Kremlin officials have long sought to paint the invasion as a success throughout the war, despite a stinging slew of losses and failed war plans. In March of last year, Putin claimed the operations were going according to plan, regardless of the Russian military’s failure to seize Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in an embarrassing defeat.
It doesn’t appear that Putin has completely thrown in the towel just yet, though. The Russian president attempted to throw cold water on the idea that Ukraine is fully succeeding in their counteroffensive. He added, however, that the Ukrainian military may yet achieve victory on the battlefield.
“It can be stated that all counteroffensive attempts made so far have failed, but the offensive potential of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has still been preserved,” Putin said.
The Kremlin has been working to right-size expectations within Russia about the outcome of the war. Moscow recently circulated a memo to propagandists suggesting that Russia hasn’t underestimated Ukrainian forces, in an apparent effort to set the stage for a less humiliating defeat.
Add to this that yesterday the head of RT said Ukraine is now too strong for Russia to fight and that Russia should seek a negotiated peace to avoid further humiliation, perhaps ordered to do so by Putin, and it appears Putin may be catching glimpses of reality now and then.
“In recent days, we have seen significant losses in Ukraine, they exceed the classical figure,” he said, according to the Kremlin.
The Russian president also confessed that Russian forces were dealing with artillery problems, adding in his remarks that “Yes, we still do not have enough of these modern weapons, but the defense industry, the country's military-industrial complex is developing rapidly.”
The dispirited comments about Moscow’s prospects in the war come just as Ukraine has launched a series of counteroffensives to push Russian forces out of the country.
The acknowledgment is a stark departure from typical messaging from Moscow. Putin and other Kremlin officials have long sought to paint the invasion as a success throughout the war, despite a stinging slew of losses and failed war plans. In March of last year, Putin claimed the operations were going according to plan, regardless of the Russian military’s failure to seize Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in an embarrassing defeat.
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Putin Cops to ‘Significant Losses,’ Inferior Weapons in Stunning War Admission
Story by Shannon Vavra • 42m agoSputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Kremlin via REUTERS via third party© Provided by The Daily Beast
In a rare admission, Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged Friday that Russia is sustaining “significant losses” in the war on Ukraine.
“In recent days, we have seen significant losses in Ukraine, they exceed the classical figure,” he said, according to the Kremlin.
The Russian president also confessed that Russian forces were dealing with artillery problems, adding in his remarks that “Yes, we still do not have enough of these modern weapons, but the defense industry, the country's military-industrial complex is developing rapidly.”
The dispirited comments about Moscow’s prospects in the war come just as Ukraine has launched a series of counteroffensives to push Russian forces out of the country.
The acknowledgment is a stark departure from typical messaging from Moscow. Putin and other Kremlin officials have long sought to paint the invasion as a success throughout the war, despite a stinging slew of losses and failed war plans. In March of last year, Putin claimed the operations were going according to plan, regardless of the Russian military’s failure to seize Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in an embarrassing defeat.
It doesn’t appear that Putin has completely thrown in the towel just yet, though. The Russian president attempted to throw cold water on the idea that Ukraine is fully succeeding in their counteroffensive. He added, however, that the Ukrainian military may yet achieve victory on the battlefield.
“It can be stated that all counteroffensive attempts made so far have failed, but the offensive potential of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has still been preserved,” Putin said.
The Kremlin has been working to right-size expectations within Russia about the outcome of the war. Moscow recently circulated a memo to propagandists suggesting that Russia hasn’t underestimated Ukrainian forces, in an apparent effort to set the stage for a less humiliating defeat.
Add to this that yesterday the head of RT said Ukraine is now too strong for Russia to fight and that Russia should seek a negotiated peace to avoid further humiliation, perhaps ordered to do so by Putin, and it appears Putin may be catching glimpses of reality now and then.
