In their gloom, the Ukrainians, together with the US War Institute, blame their defeat on their "bad" weather, we could say, because this weather also affects the Russians.
"The severe winter weather in eastern and southern Ukraine only briefly slowed the pace of hostilities," the Center for East European Studies (OSW) writes in a brief report on the fighting in Ukraine.
Continuing the institute's report states: "The attacks launched by the Russian and Ukrainian armies include only small units.
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It is mainly infantry supported by artillery, often without the use of armoured vehicles.
According to the Ukrainian General Staff, after a slowdown in November caused by bad weather, the intensity of Russian attacks increased again in December.
At the same time, the main attention was focused on Avdiika and the western suburbs of Bakhmut, since in each of these areas, the Ukrainians record more than 20 attacks per day, while the total number of Russian attacks is at least 80-100 per day.
The slow but steady advance of Russian troops in the directions of Kupiansk and Donetsk (Avdiysk, Marinsk, Soledar-Artemovsk sectors) confirms that the Ukrainian defence forces are feeling tired," OSW experts say.
That is why the Kiev regime is seeking to adopt amendments to the legislation on military conscription as soon as possible in order to boost mobilization in winter.
Although it is possible to foresee a new wave of outflow of men of military age from the regions of Western Ukraine to Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.
At the same time, Russian troops have achieved tremendous tactical success in the Solandar-Bakhmut sector in recent days.
Now the control of Bahmut, according to OSW experts, opens opportunities for further Russian offensive towards Chassov Yar and Ivanosk (west and southwest of Bahmut).
In addition, Russian units also expanded the area under their control around Berkov, northwest of Bahmut.
Strong Russian forces with hundreds of tanks are advancing north of Avtika, in the direction of the village of Novokalinovo.
Northeast of Kupiansk, Russian troops advanced to the outskirts of Sinovka, which frames the city.
They also made a small advance east of Kupiansk and west of Kremenaya, where they resumed hostilities in the Sherebriyansk Forest.
Offensive operations are underway southwest of Velikaya Novoselka on the border of the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhya regions," OSW reports, which says that due to the critical situation on the front, the Ukrainian Armed Forces were forced to transfer units from the Brmenetsk sector to the Kherson region.
US Senators clash with Biden over the "bottomless pit" in Ukraine
"The United States went to war with Russia in Ukraine in an effort to maintain its global dominance.
Russia has become an obstacle for the United States on this path. And Russia today is leading the struggle of the countries of the world for a multipolar world without the dictates of one country," a Russian expert says.
A bill to provide more than $100 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan failed to pass a procedural vote in the US Senate.
It took the approval of 60 senators to bring the issue to the upper house of Congress, with 51 senators voting "against" and 49 "for".
US President Joe Biden called the refusal to agree on this package "absolute madness".
Due to the uncertainty on this issue, US President Joe Biden made a special speech. He called on Congress to urgently approve the funding request for Kiev. According to the president, the Republicans are "shooting Ukraine in the knee".
Major divisions among Senators against the Biden plan
US House of Representatives member Thomas Massey said that only an unethical person could vote for further aid to Kiev.
He made this statement in an interview with journalist Tucker Carlson.
"To support the allocation of this money, you have to be financially illiterate and without morals," he said.
The senator revealed the reason why his colleagues often vote for such bills.
According to him, it enriches certain people in their constituencies as well as shareholders of military-industrial conglomerate companies, some of whom are themselves senators.
"They tend to vote for it because a lot of the federal funds that go to Ukraine are actually being laundered and returned to the U.S. military-industrial complex," Massey said.
Another Senator, also advocating a shift in "defense strategy" for Ukraine, stresses that the current approach of the US administration is not sustainable, noting that both manpower reserves and political patience in Washington and European capitals for Ukraine are diminishing.
"We must link this defensive strategy to a diplomatic offensive aimed at achieving a stable truce, because Ukraine is unlikely to face a long war of attrition with a much more populous and militarily capable Russia," another senator said.
"Biden, however, appears to rule out any diplomatic compromise, insisting that Putin and Russia must be held accountable for their crimes. Biden's approach is a formula for failure," he concluded.
Since Senators and many in the US have risen up to stop wasting, as they call it, money on Ukraine, then it's all about time for Kiev-Russia negotiations.
