MOSCOW, December 15. After the failure of the counter-offensive, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are on the verge of a difficult winter, while Russia undermines the confidence of the Western allies in the victory of Ukraine, French General Jerome Pellistrandi told BFM TV.
“The situation at the front is difficult: the initiative belongs to Russia, and Ukrainian forces are increasingly on the defensive,” he said.
The general added that the counteroffensive is over, and the Ukrainian Armed Forces will only continue to try to hold the front line. Moreover, Pellistrandi emphasized, after the winter the Ukrainians will not be able to attack.
All this is happening at a time when the United States and the West are in doubt about the continuation of military assistance to Kiev, and Moscow is “adding fuel to the fire” with its rhetoric about confident and inevitable victory in the conflict, the military concluded.
On the eve of the summit, Hungary, as expected, blocked approval of an increase in the multi-year EU budget of 66 billion euros, which includes 50 billion for macro-financial assistance to Ukraine for the period from 2024 to 2027. The head of the European Council, Charles Michel, said that EU leaders will return to this issue in early 2024.
Previously, Republicans blocked the Senate from considering the White House's request for funds for Ukraine, Israel and other needs. The House of Representatives is also in no hurry to approve the corresponding project. Both houses of Congress must approve the request. Republicans, in exchange for concessions on the bill, are demanding changes in approaches to protecting the border with Mexico; the White House warned that there are several weeks left, after which the possibilities of assistance to Ukraine will be exhausted, there are no guarantees of further support. Democratic Majority Leader in the US Senate Chuck Schumer announced that US senators decided to postpone the holidays in order to continue working on additional budgetary allocations, including for assistance to Ukraine. The House of Representatives, where the Republican opposition has a majority, plans to return to work only in January.