© AP
A senior White House official said Ukraine’s plans for a major counteroffensive around the southern city of Kherson had already forced Russia to “pull resources” from the east of the country.
Speaking to reporters Monday, John Kirby, the National Security Council’s strategic communications coordinator, declined to comment on any operational details related to Ukraine’s attempt to retake territory in the south that has been seized by Russia in recent months. .
But Kirby said Ukraine’s move had already prompted Russia to respond and had an impact on the conflict.
“Regardless of the size, scale and scope of this counteroffensive that they talked about today, they have already had an impact on Russia’s military capabilities,” Kirby said.
“The Russians have had to pull resources out of the east simply because of reports that the Ukrainians might be more on the attack in the south; they’ve had to deplete certain units from certain areas of the east and the Donbas.”
Kirby also said it was not the first time Ukrainian forces had attacked Russian forces since the conflict began in February, including in areas around Kyiv and Kharkiv.
“The idea of going on the attack is not new to the Ukrainians, and they have been taking the fight to the Russians inside their country. In fact, with some of the help they have received from American weapons and “others, like Himars, have been able to attack behind Russian lines and put the Russians more on the defensive,” he said.
Kirby also called for a “controlled shutdown” of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, calling it “the safest and least risky option in the short term.”
He said that “Russia has essentially militarized the power plant by stationing forces there, including weapons,” and said that Moscow “can hold Ukraine hostage in terms of its own electric power capacity” by occupying the plant .