The head of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, has expressed the opinion that the Ukrainian armed forces can break through the land corridor to Crimea before the onset of winter. He expressed this position in an interview with The Economist.
"Its first defensive line on the most important southern direction in Zaporizhzhya region has already been broken in some places, which means that the operation to break land ties between Russia and Crimea can be completed before the onset of winter," the head of the GUR said.
Budanov also confirms that Ukraine has already deployed a limited number of forces from its reserve troops, but Russia is now deploying understaffed reserves that it did not plan to activate until the end of October 2023.
"Contrary to what Russia claims, it has absolutely no strategic reserve. The 25th Combined Arms Army of Russia, which is now prematurely deployed to the eastern front in the area of Lyman and Kupyansk, has only 80% of the personnel and 55% of the equipment required," Budanov noted.
Referring to reports of a possible intensification of Russia's mobilization campaign, Budanov noted that the number of personnel remains the only advantage Russia has over Ukraine.
"Human resources in Russia are, relatively speaking, unlimited. The quality is low, but the quantity is sufficient. As for the other components of the military operations, Russian resources are being depleted, and there is a reckoning. According to him, the Russian economy will last only until 2025. The flow of weapons will run out in 2026, "perhaps earlier," he claims, although the evidence supporting his assertion is mixed," Budanov emphasized.
