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Russia has failed to fulfill its main military objectives after just one day of attacks in Ukraine, the British defense secretary has said.
Ben Wallace said the Kremlin had lost more than 450 troops and a large amount of armor after the first day of the offensive.
“Our assessment as of this morning is that Russia has not achieved its main objective, even behind schedule,” he said. sky news.
“They have lost more than 450 people and one of the important airports which they tried to capture with their Spetsnaz elite could not be taken and in fact Ukraine took it back.
“So I think contrary to Russia’s grand claims and indeed President Putin’s vision that somehow the Ukrainian people will be released and join his cause, he is gravely mistaken.
“The Russian army has not fulfilled the first day, its main objective.”
Wallace noted that Ukraine “had a lot of struggles in it” and that “President Putin didn’t get what he wanted.”
He added: “Russia has lost a huge amount of armor and people, Ukraine is fighting and they are fighting bravely.”
But the minister said the British government believed that President Putin intended to take Kiev and oust Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky from power.
“Clearly our view is that Russia intends to attack all of Ukraine,” he said.
Wallace, who was criticized earlier this month for claiming Ukraine had “the smell of Munich,” said Putin had been “determined” to attack Ukraine for more than a year.
He said it seemed the West’s efforts at diplomacy were “unimportant” because the Russian president always wanted “land grabs”.
“Putin has been focused on this for, months and certainly more than a year, and I think that’s why no matter how much effort we put in, and we all put in an incredible effort, we see President Macron, wow, prime my minister. the minister talks regularly with Putin, it doesn’t matter,” he said.
“As we saw today, it’s not about the Donbas, it’s not about minorities, it’s about greed to incorporate Ukraine into the Russian Federation, or about President Putin seizing the land.”
Ukraine had been hit by a missile strike in the early hours of Friday morning, when Russia launched its second day of strikes.
A government adviser said “today will be the most difficult day” as Russia tries to take over Kiev.
They said Russia was planning to use tanks to penetrate the city, adding that Ukraine’s defenses were ready with anti-tank missiles supplied by foreign allies.
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