Western officials believe that Russia will likely begin another major offensive in Ukraine early next year, including a possible effort to advance on the blockaded strategic port city of Odesa, in an effort to seize the country’s southwestern coast and cut off Ukraine from the sea. This was reported by Foreign Police with reference to its own sources on Thursday, July 21.
Odesa is a critical transit hub for Ukraine's grain exports, accounting for one-sixth of the world's corn supply and one-eighth of the world's wheat supply, the publication writes. If Russian forces seize the port, it will deal a devastating blow to Ukraine's war efforts and give Moscow control over critical global food supplies that have dwindled since the start of the war.
“The assumption is that they could face another very serious Russian offensive next year. And we need to do everything we can to give them not just the equipment but also the people - fresh people, well-trained people - to try and ride that out,” said one Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing intelligence assessments.
“Given the time that Ukraine has bought to fortify that southern area while the fighting is going on further east and north, it’s going to be hard for the Russians to go in and take Odesa, particularly with Western defense systems that can keep the Russian Navy at bay,” said Jim Townsend, a former U.S. Defense Department official and now expert on European security issues with the Center for a New American Security.
The publication writes that even Russian troops are unlikely to be able to capture Odesa, even if this becomes their priority in the next stage of the war.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, militants from the so-called "DPR" and "LPR" admit that the Armed Forces of Ukraine dispelled the myth of the "invincible army of the Russian Federation."
The invaders also "hunt" for socks given to soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
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