Free Republic

Russia expected to finish off its invasion of Ukraine within a week and a half, making sweeping gains in the initial days of the invasion that started on February 24, 2022. But this failed to materialize in the face of what experts called Ukrainian defiance that took the Kremlin by surprise. Western analyses have also suggested that Moscow made a number of crucial mistakes in the early phases, including how it used its tank crews, sustaining heavy losses of experienced personnel... Russia currently controls about one-fifth of Ukraine's internationally recognized territory. Kyiv's ongoing counteroffensive, which began in early June, has...