During a Fox News interview on Monday, Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges said that he thinks Russian forces are only days away from being unable to continue their invasion of Ukraine.
“The Russians went after his [Fmr. Amb. to NATO Kurt Volker’s] training center in Yavoriv, outside the city of Lviv, partly to demonstrate that they could reach the lines of communication that bring supplies and support from Poland into Ukraine,” he said. “But also I think to maybe go after the logistics buildup that’s happening there. I don’t think we should overreact to this.”
“The Russians, I think, are about ten days away from what is called the culminating point, when they just no longer have the ammunition nor the manpower to keep up their assault,” he added. “I think we keep pouring it on, and the Russians culminate.”
Hodges comments come shortly after reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin has been frustrated by Russia’s slow progress during its invasion of Russia, and that Russia has lost respect on the international stage for its military failings.
As reported by The New York Times, “nearly two weeks into President Vladimir V. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine — Europe’s largest land war since 1945 — the image of a Russian military as one that other countries should fear, let alone emulate, has been shattered… Ukraine’s military, which is dwarfed by the Russian force in most ways, has somehow managed to stymie its opponent.”
“To be sure, most military experts say that Russia will eventually subdue Ukraine’s army. Russia’s military, at 900,000 active duty troops and two million reservists, is eight times the size of Ukraine’s. Russia has advanced fighter planes, a formidable navy and marines capable of multiple amphibious landings, as they proved early in the invasion when they launched from the Black Sea and headed toward the city of Mariupol,” the outlet added. “And the Western governments that have spoken openly about Russia’s military failings are eager to spread the word to help damage Russian morale and bolster the Ukrainians.”
