US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin reported that the Russian offensive in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, began to lose momentum just weeks after Russian forces breached Ukrainian front lines. “This activity continues, but it has slowed down a bit,” Austin said at a recent press conference after the Shangri-La Dialogue, cited by Defense News.
Western defense officials had anticipated this attack for weeks before its start on May 10, when Russia made “tactically significant advances,” according to the Institute for the Study of War. In the ensuing fighting, Moscow broke through the Ukrainian defenses on the outskirts of Kharkiv.
However, Austin explained that since then the loss of momentum in the Russian offensive is due to two main reasons. First, Russian forces are facing more robust Ukrainian defensive lines, which kyiv quickly reinforced in anticipation of the attack. Second, a recent policy change by the US administration now allows Ukraine to use US-provided weapons to attack Russian positions beyond the border, which countered the Russian strategy of stationing its forces beyond Ukrainian reach.
This change in US policy allowed Ukraine to attack Russian positions preparing to cross the border and use US equipment to do so. However, restrictions remain, and Ukraine can only fire across the border around Kharkiv, without using long-range weapons to attack inside Russia.
Zelensky calls for more help
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, also present at the conference, expressed that although he welcomes the change in policy, it is not enough. He noted that Russia still has numerous airfields from which it can launch safe attacks against Ukraine, using gliding bombs modified for greater precision, difficult to intercept. These attacks continue to pose a significant threat to cities like Kharkiv.
You may be interested: The United States Secretary of Defense and the Chinese Defense Minister met for the first time since 2022
