The New York Times reported that US military and intelligence officials believe the Russia-Ukraine conflict is "no longer a stalemate," considering Russia's series of successes on the battlefield.
On November 1, the New York Times wrote that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky "looked tired and stressed, worried about his army's battlefield failures as well as the US election," when he met with US officials in Kiev last week. The Ukrainian army is facing a state of declining spirit, lack of reinforcements and inability to defeat Russian forces.
The Times quoted a Ukrainian major stationed at the border near Russia's Kursk region as saying that the Ukrainian army "continuously lost previously occupied positions", while the Russian army had advantages in terms of numbers and artillery.
However, according to the New York Times, US officials believe Ukraine will have the opportunity to exploit "Russian weakness" if aid from Washington "remains strong until next summer".
The Russian military has continued to win many victories in recent months, after capturing the heavily populated mining town of Ugledar in Donbass early last month.
President Zelensky has become increasingly worried throughout the conflict, admitting earlier this year that Kiev had truly become a "hostage" in the highly unpredictable US presidential election. In July, Mr Zelensky urged countries backing Kiev to redouble efforts and help end the conflict "as soon as possible".
BBC reported that Ukrainian soldiers and civilians are closely monitoring the US presidential campaign, where Republican candidate Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance and several prominent Republicans have proposed conditions for aid to Ukraine or cutting it off altogether.
"We should never provide money again without expecting to be rewarded or without accompanying conditions," Trump wrote on the social network Truth Social in February 2024.
In another development, General Aleksandr Syrsky, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said that the Ukrainian army is facing "one of the strongest attacks" by Russia since 2022.
Mr. Syrsky made the above comment on November 2 after a meeting with a military delegation from the Czech Republic led by Chief of Staff Karel Rehka. He stressed that Ukrainian units "continuously need to supplement resources".
Kiev officials have long complained that delays in Western arms shipments, as well as restrictions on the use of some long-range weapons to strike deep inside Russia, have contributed to recent losses in Donbass and elsewhere.
Ukraine's attack on Russia's Kursk region in early August has not significantly slowed down the Russian army's advances in other regions. In recent months, the Russian military has continuously gained more territory, capturing the solid mining town of Ugledar in October. Russia has also launched an attack to push Ukrainian forces out of Kursk province.
