Slicing the Sausage: Ukraine’s Upcoming Counteroffensive

In this podcast Dmitri Alperovitch interviews Sergii Grabskyi, a Reserve Colonel in the Ukrainian military, about Ukraine’s upcoming counteroffensive. Michael Kofman, Research Program Director in the Russia Studies Program at the Center for Naval Analysis, also joins the show to share his latest analysis of what’s happening on the ground in Ukraine. Topics covered: Ukraine's weapons needs for a successful counteroffensive and the challenges they will face Strategic objective of the counteroffensive and how can it help turn the tide of the war Why now is the window of opportunity for a counteroffensive and why it may be narrowing How Ukraine preserved their best troops despite high combat losses The strategic importance of partisan movement in the south and its command and control by Ukrainian special forces The story of how Russians captured Luhansk oblast by shelling their own forces How maneuver defense stopped the Russian offensive in the Donbas How the Russians underestimated Ukrainian forces and the importance of NATO training The lessons the Russians have learned since their earlier failures and their plan in the third phase of the war Why long range missiles are not currently a priority for Ukraine Morale impact of Russian apparent torture and execution of POWs