Good morning to readers. Kyiv remains in Ukrainian hands.
And I’m back in the capital.
The counteroffensive for which this publication is named after may still be a ways off.
Ukraine is waiting for more equipment from its western partners, Zelenskyy said.
"We can go forward and be successful," Zelenskyy told reporters.
"But we'd lose a lot of people. I think that's unacceptable. So we need to wait. We still need a bit more time."
https://www.dw.com/en/ukraine-updates-counteroffensive-needs-time-zelenskyy-says/a-65588225
Meanwhile the head of the Wagner Group, the Russian mercenary organization, said that Ukraine's counteroffensive is “in full swing.” “Zelenskyy is lying,” said Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Ukrainian forces likely broke through some Russian lines in localized counterattacks near Bakhmut, prompting responses from Wagner Group financier Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD). Ukrainian Eastern Group of Forces Commander
The Counteroffensive newsletter today begins with Andriy Stepanenko, a pseudonym for a Ukrainian drone pilot we visited in the hospital today. We cover his injuries, and his greatest fear for the counteroffensive. Hope you'll subscribe, free or paid:
A war correspondent's open notebook, reporting live from Kyiv. Compelling human stories that illustrate what’s happening during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Click to read The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscribers.
I imagine this feeling decreases as one gets closer to the front? I hope.
Tim Mak
Robert Denby