London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2025

Western officials ‘surprised’ by Ukraine’s rapid gains in northern counteroffensive

Western officials ‘surprised’ by Ukraine’s rapid gains in northern counteroffensive

Kyiv notified top U.S. generals in advance of the plan to launch the two-front attack simultaneously.

Not even the Pentagon expected Ukraine’s blitzkrieg to move so quickly.

Top Western defense officials were informed in advance that Ukraine was planning a two-front counteroffensive to retake territory captured by Russia, but they have been surprised by the blistering pace of Kyiv’s gains in the north, according to four officials with knowledge of the discussions.

Ukrainian forces rolled through lightly manned Russian posts around Kharkiv over the weekend, retaking more than 1,000 square miles around the city and pushing east — in some cases all the way up to the Russian border. Russian forces retreated from two key logistical hubs, the towns of Izyum and Kupiansk, as their ranks were depleted by the simultaneous fight in Kherson in the south.

Kyiv informed top U.S. generals in advance of the plan to launch simultaneous attacks on two fronts, according to a Ukrainian official, but both governments were shocked by the success of the northern counteroffensive.

“Everyone was surprised how the Russians ran,” said the Ukrainian government official on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive operation.



The northern offensive has been conducted by a relatively small force — just a handful of brigades with a few thousand soldiers each, according to a U.S. official and a Western diplomat. Many of the Russian outposts were manned by conscripts and lightly trained and armed troops from occupied areas of Ukraine who were overwhelmed by the firepower and armored vehicles of the approaching forces.

The scale and pace of the Ukrainian advance was fueled by Western arms shipments, particularly precision rocket launchers and artillery shells provided by the U.S. that battered Russian forces in advance of ground movements and targeted their ammunition dumps and command-and-control facilities.

Also key were U.S.-made counter-battery radars that allow the Ukrainians to precisely locate and target Russian artillery pieces within minutes of their firing salvos, and a grab bag of heavily armored vehicles donated by the U.S., U.K., Australia, and others that are allowing the attackers to close with Russian forces quickly, and in relative safety.

The Ukrainian push to retake ground all but wiped out the hard-fought gains made by Kremlin forces this spring, including the city of Izyum, which the Russians seized in April after weeks of bloody fighting.

Ukrainian forces raised the national flag over the battered city this weekend after Russian troops fled in disarray. Ukrainian government officials have estimated that 80 percent of the buildings in the town of 40,000 had been destroyed in the fighting this spring.

Many of the retreating Russian forces have moved over the border into Russia, a senior military official said Monday. There have been reports of Russians abandoning military equipment, which could be indicative of Moscow’s “disorganized command and control,” the official said.

The U.S. has long provided Ukraine with a host of intelligence about the battlefield, from satellite imagery and other sources, which Kyiv uses to make decisions on targeting and troop movements, two U.S. officials said.

“We certainly provide them with information on conditions, but in the end, this is a Ukrainian choice,” a senior Defense Department official told reporters on Monday. “The Ukrainian military and the Ukrainian political leadership made the decisions on how to conduct this counter offensive.”

Western officials are now closely watching how far into the Donbas the northern offensive will get. The Ukrainians may be able to continue their push using new stockpiles of ammunition, vehicles and tanks the Russians left behind as they fled using civilian vehicles and whatever else they could pile in as the rout intensified, the U.S. official said.

“I would look to whether Ukraine can further exploit the momentum they have developed in the Donbas,” said Michael Kofman of the CNA think tank. “Russian forces are likely to try and reconstitute after retreat, and attempt localized counter-attacks.”

Meanwhile, the two sides continue to clash around Kherson in the south, where Ukraine is likely to increase pressure in an attempt to sever Russia’s land corridor from the Donbas to Crimea.

“The current period is best described as a window of opportunity for Ukraine, seizing the initiative to not just take territory, but also deal blows to the Russian military from which they will struggle to recover during the winter,” Kofman said.

The swift gains made by the Ukrainians come at an uncertain moment for Western support. On Monday, the German government again refused to allow countries that have purchased German-made Leopard tanks to transfer them to Kyiv. German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said “no country has delivered Western-built infantry fighting vehicles or main battle tanks so far,” and Berlin “will not take such action unilaterally.”

Germany has come under intense criticism for refusing requests from a number of countries to transfer domestically produced military equipment to Ukraine, including howitzer cannons and armored vehicles.

In Washington, the Biden administration is running up against the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 and with it the need for Congress to pass a new $13.7 billion Ukraine military and humanitarian aid package.

The Biden administration announced a $675 million drawdown of munitions and armored vehicles last week, and a congressional aide familiar with the issue said there will likely be another package announced as soon as this week for roughly $600 million more of similar equipment pulled by U.S. stockpiles, since DoD officials notified Congress recently that it would use $1.3 billion in drawdown authority in September.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
×