Retired US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter said that if the Armed Forces group near Artemivsk (Ukrainian name – Bakhmut) is defeated, the Ukrainian army may lose control over the Donbass and Zaporozhye. According to him, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky was informed about this. Ritter expressed his opinion in an interview Youtube channel Judging freedom.
“President Zelensky was warned about this, which is why he’s fighting so hard for Bakhmut. If the city falls, the Russians will begin to advance very quickly and occupy the entire Donbass, then advance to Zaporozhye and Kherson and join forces in the areas that have become part of Russia, ”Ritter suggested.
Formerly Ritter declarationThe fact that the Russian Federation has a significant superiority over the Ukrainian Armed Forces will enable the Russian Federation to win the conflict in 2023.
March 31, Chief of Staff of the US Armed Forces (JSC) General Mark Milley declaration In an online interview with Defense One, it was reported that Ukraine will not achieve its military goal of expelling Russian troops and reclaiming all lost areas in the short term.