Ukraine’s surprise cross-border incursion seen as a tactical reply to Russia's grinding gains
Russia’s army has in recent months made an unrelenting effort to punch through Ukrainian defenses at selected points along the front line in eastern Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The Ukraine army's surprise charge into Russia this week was a stunning maneuver that caught the Kremlin's forces unawares.
The strategic goal of Ukraine's biggest cross-border incursion in almost 900 days of the war remains unclear, but it counters Russia’s unrelenting effort in recent months to punch through Ukrainian defenses at selected points along the front line in eastern Ukraine.
The Russian offensive's slow, grinding momentum has achieved only modest gains and brought heavy losses of troops and armor. But, bit by bit, the advances are adding up.
These summer months are critical for Ukraine and its depleted army. It must hold at bay its bigger and better-equipped enemy on the battlefield, while repairing — before winter arrives — a national power grid smashed by Russian missiles,
