Zaluzhny Critiques Ukraine’s 2023 Counteroffensive Failure and Kursk Operation Analysis
Valeriy Zaluzhny, the former Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces and now Ukrainian ambassador to the United Kingdom, openly expressed his views on the reasons behind the failure of Ukraine’s counteroffensive in 2023 and analyzed why strategic goals were not achieved.
According to him, the main cause of the setback was the lack of sufficient resources and inadequate preparation of the offensive units.
He emphasized that breaking through well-fortified enemy lines requires operational superiority, mobile reserves, and rapid response capabilities—none of which Ukrainian forces could fully provide due to both objective and subjective limitations.Zaluzhny highlighted that a deep reevaluation of the summer 2023 offensive results is necessary, not only in response to the unintended ‘show’ elements of the war — where Ukrainian plans appeared in the public eye and were subject to ridicule and misinterpretation by media and commentators.
He noted that the failure still painfully resonates and calls for strategic adjustments to ensure Ukrainian survival in the new realities of modern warfare.He also pointed out that since 2022, hostilities have shifted into a positional deadlock, resembling the trench warfare of the First World War, especially on the Donetsk front from autumn 2022.
Ukrainian and Russian troops are faced with a strategic stalemate, unable to breach defenses or quickly achieve operational breakthroughs.Critiquing Russian tactics, Zuluzhny discussed the method of ‘push-out’ tactics, which are effective only in limited scenarios and rarely enable operational breakthroughs.
An example of an unsuccessful operation he cited is the Kursk region, where Ukraine attempted a surprise attack.
According to him, such isolated tactical breakthroughs do not produce significant strategic gains and often come at a high cost.He called for a comprehensive analysis of lessons learned to develop new tactics capable of ensuring Ukraine’s viability amid current military and strategic challenges, particularly in the face of a situation where offensive success is elusive.