Ukrainian forces have made limited progress in its counteroffensive to push Russian troops out of their borders, though the top U.S. general wouldn’t describe it as a failure.
Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, noted on Tuesday that Ukraine had “several months to put in a very complex defense in depth,” which includes minefields, barbed wire, and trenches among others.
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“It is far from a failure, in my view. I think that it’s way too early to make that kind of call,” he explained. “Right now, they are preserving their combat power. And they are slowly and deliberately and steadily working their way through all these minefields, and it’s a tough fight. It’s a very difficult fight.”
Despite the tough conditions for Ukraine’s forces, the chairman explained that Ukraine has “a significant amount of combat power not yet committed” to the fight.
He and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hosted the 14th iteration of the Ukrainian Defense Contract Group, which is a monthly meeting of approximately 50 defense leaders globally, where they discuss Ukraine’s most pressing needs.
Austin told reporters he asked allies to “continue to dig deep into their military stocks,” particularly for ammunition, which Ukraine urgently needs due to their exorbitant use of them.
The Pentagon didn’t announce a new aid package on Tuesday to coincide with the meeting, though Reuters reported the United States will announce a new $1.3 billion aid package in the coming days.
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President Joe Biden agreed earlier this month to provide cluster munitions to Ukraine because their rapid use of munitions had begun depleting U.S. stockpiles of the munitions they had been providing, whereas the U.S. had plenty of cluster munitions ready and able to give them. Cluster munitions are a specific type of munition that breaks apart before reaching its intended target, covering a larger area than it would otherwise.
The use or transfer of unexploded submunitions, which amount to landmines, has been banned by more than a hundred countries, though the U.S., Ukraine, and Russia are not a part of the treaty. The U.S. is providing Ukraine with cluster munitions that have a dud rate below 2.35%, whereas Russia’s cluster munitions have a dud rate between 30%-40%, according to Pentagon officials.
