With Kharkiv Reclaimed, Is Ukraine Winning the War Against Russia?
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Commentators from around the world weighed in on Ukraine’s recent string of victories against Russian forces. Is Ukraine finally winning the war?
Equipped with billions of dollars of Western military equipment, Ukrainian forces reclaimed hundreds of square miles in the northeastern Kharkiv Oblast. As a result, about 150,000 Ukrainians were freed from living under Russian occupation. Russian forces often reportedly fled “hastily,” sometimes looting occupied communities and abandoning military vehicles as they retreated.
In Ukraine, the victories were cause for celebration. On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a highly-publicized visit to the newly-recaptured city of Izyum. “What happened in early September in the east of Ukraine's Kharkiv Oblast may ascend in history as the Miracle on the Oskil River,” The Kyiv Independent’s (Center bias) Illia Ponomarenko wrote Tuesday.
Voices across the spectrum offered a wide range of perspectives on Ukraine’s recent victories. Opinions from Western writers were generally positive; a writer in the German outlet Deutsche Welle (Center bias) predicted Ukrainians would succeed in their fight. The Guardian (Lean Left bias) called Ukraine’s progress a “stunning breakthrough,” and National Review’s (Right bias) Rich Lowry (Right bias) said it proved “there’s no substitute for hard power.” In The New York Times (Lean Left bias), Paul Krugman (Left bias) said Ukraine deflated “MAGA macho myths,” and Bret Stephens (Lean Right bias) said Ukraine’s victory was also a victory for President Joe Biden.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
With successful Kharkiv operation, Ukraine turns the war in its favorIn warfare, there's no such thing as a miracle.
Yet what happened in early September in the east of Ukraine's Kharkiv Oblast may ascend in history as the Miracle on the Oskil River.
Within a few days, a Ukrainian strike prompted the collapse of the Russian front in the region.
To escape a crushing defeat, the Kremlin’s forces were forced to withdraw in a stampede from the territory they had held since March.
Ukraine’s offensive operation has done more than liberate most of Kharkiv Oblast, as Ukrainian units approach the...
From the Left
The meaning of Ukraine’s strike in Kharkiv — and Russia’s retreatWhat unfolded on the battlefield of Kharkiv oblast in recent days was a remarkable turning point in Ukraine’s desperate battle to resist Russia’s invasion. A more agile force chased a lumbering army into retreat. The war is not over by any means, but the counteroffensive in Kharkiv has exposed anew Russian President Vladimir Putin’s catastrophic miscalculations that Ukraine would collapse, that it would surrender, that it would be steamrolled by Russia’s massive armor. Not so.
Russia apparently figured the next battle would be for Kherson, to the south, and redeployed forces in...
From the Right
Ukraine aid is working and Russia’s invasion is losing groundIt’s official. Ukraine is on the attack, and it’s working. On Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a surprise visit to Kyiv promising help "for as long as it takes" and announcing $3 billion in aid. Then at the Pentagon, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley confirmed Ukraine has launched a major counter-offensive in the south.
Ukraine’s been out of the headlines this summer, and the sheer mass of Russia’s army and their limitless barbarity stoked fears Russia might be...
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