Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Ukrainian army’s ongoing counter-offensive should “gain pace” after a slow start. Speaking at the Aspen Security Forum, Zelensky attributed the slow progress of the operation to the delay in getting it started, as well as a lack of ammunition. “We planned to launch it in the spring, but we didn’t, because frankly we didn’t have enough ammunition and armaments and not enough properly trained brigades with these weapons,” the Ukrainian president explained.
“Because we started a little late, it can be said – and it is the truth, shared by all experts – Russia had time to mine all our land and build several defense lines,” he added. “They definitely had a little more time than they needed because they built all those lines. They have placed a lot of mines on our fields due to the slower pace of our counteroffensive actions,” Zelensky said.