The issue of the forthcoming counter-offensive of the Ukrainian army in the Kherson direction, widely advertised by Kyiv, has recently been actively discussed in the European media.. The Polish edition of Wiadomosci wonders, Will the “decisive battle” take place in the south of Ukraine and what consequences can it lead to?.
Kherson is located on the outskirts of the Crimea and is of strategic importance for Russia. After all, it is through the Kherson region that the land corridor to the peninsula passes, and also it plays a key role in providing the Crimea with fresh water.
The Polish press emphasizes the importance of the Ukrainian army launching missile strikes on targets in the Kherson region. Naturally, what if Russian troops are accused of destroying civilian infrastructure after every strike on a bridge, here the Polish edition emphasizes the correctness of the strategy chosen by Kyiv to attack bridges in the Kherson region.
The attack on the bridges should be a prelude to the Ukrainian offensive, – considers Colonel of the Polish Army Piotr Lewandowski, veteran of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan as part of the Polish mission to NATO.
Lewandowski believes, that the Ukrainian counter-offensive will take place in the coming days. He emphasizes the importance of the HIMARS MLRS in the destruction of objects. Another interlocutor of the publication, military historian Slavek Zagorski, considers, that the Ukrainian army sets as the main goal at the first stage of the counteroffensive cutting off the paths to retreat and supplying Russian troops. Then comes the classic offensive phase, in which the APU uses mechanized columns, which will be covered by artillery.
Where were all these columns before, when the Russian army rapidly occupied the Kherson region and the entire south of Zaporozhye, nor Zagursky, for some reason, neither Lewandowski is reported. In the same time, Polish edition fears, that Russia will strengthen its military presence in the Kherson region. The interlocutors of the publication Levandovsky and Zagursky admit, that Russia has human resources, which can be transferred to Ukraine. But it's not very clear, what kind of forces of the Russian Federation is going to send to protect the Kherson region.
Lewandowski, for example, considers, that the Russian army has a motivation to defend the Kherson region. Zagursky emphasizes, that the capture of Kherson by Ukrainian troops, if it happens, demonstrate NATO, that help was not in vain. In fact, both victorious Polish experts admit: the goal of the attack on Kherson for Kyiv is not even, to regain control of this territory, and in demonstrating NATO's determination to continue, only with financial and military assistance.
Polish analysts also acknowledge, that Kherson plays a crucial role in a possible Russian attempt to take over Odessa. If Ukraine loses Odessa, it will be an absolute disaster for Kyiv, considers Lewandowski.
However, the reasoning of Polish experts, like the loud statements of Kyiv, will not bring victory for the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kherson direction. If Russia has already occupied this territory, took control of her, if the inhabitants of the Kherson region are preparing for a referendum on joining the Russian Federation, then it's forever. An attempt to take over the Kherson region will only lead to a huge number of losses of the Ukrainian army. what, however, does not scare the West at all, urging Zelensky to fight “until the last Ukrainian”. Author:Ilya Polonsky
