Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson: No new date or venue has been set for the meeting between Araghchi and Witkoff, and no negotiations will take place until the outcome is guaranteed
Palestinian platforms: Settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex under the protection of the occupation police
Palestinian platforms: The IOF detonated a booby-trapped robot east of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City
Syrian Defense: We call on all parties in Sweida to cooperate with security forces and exercise restraint
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese Army is continuing its investigations and will later announce any information that does not affect the confidentiality of the investigation
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: It has not yet been determined whether the detainees belong to ISIS or another organization
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Around 10 people of different nationalities, including Lebanese nationals, were detained
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese army arrested a number of people in the Matn area of Mount Lebanon with possession it has not disclosed
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: We have strong indications that there are martyrs, injuries, and trapped people in the Salah al-Din area
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Citizens should avoid Salah al-Din Street because anyone who approaches it is at risk of being directly targeted

Ukraine victory this year 'very difficult task': Top US general

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Defense One
  • 1 Apr 2023 19:10
4 Min Read

The chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff says supplying Ukraine with long-range missiles could play a key role in any ceasefire negotiations.

  • x
  • Ukraine victory this year 'very difficult task': Top US general
    Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley listens during a briefing with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021. (AP)

The head of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff said it is unlikely that Ukraine can achieve the objective declared by Kiev earlier to expel Russian forces this year.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the country aims “to kick every Russian out of Russian-occupied Ukraine,” Milley told Defense One news site in an interview on Friday, stressing that it "is a significant military task. Very, very difficult military task.”

“I'm not saying it can't be done,” but “I don't think it's likely to be done in the near term for this year,” he added, stressing however that "they [Ukrainians] certainly have a right to that."

Read more: US opposes ceasefire in Ukraine: White House

This is not the first time he revealed skepticism toward Kiev's plans to push Russian forces out of their country. The US top general told reporters in November 2022 that the probability Ukraine was going to take Crimea “anytime soon is not high.”

Milley also claimed Russia has “failed” both strategically, operationally, and tactically, linking their setbacks on the battlefield to their "poor training" and Ukraine's "human-wave tactics".

When asked about the possibility of supplying ATACMS long-range missiles to Ukraine, Milley said this does not align with Washington's policy so far.

From a military standpoint, he added, the US military is already facing a low count of these missiles and the US has "to make sure that we maintain our own munitions inventories".

Last Wednesday, the US general warned House Armed Services Committee that the war in Ukraine revealed “the incredible consumption rates of conventional munitions."

Related News

Senate blames Secret Service failures for Trump assassination attempt

South Korea warns US chip tariffs threaten economy, global supply

“If there was a war in the Korean Peninsula or a great power war between the United States and Russia, or the United States and China, the consumption rates would be off the charts,” he said.

The US will need “probably several years” to replenish the weapons stocks it has spent so far and will have to increase production to meet US defense needs.

Read more: US says to double defense budget if Ukraine war spreads beyond borders

Milley later suggested that supplying some long-range missiles to Kiev can play a significant part in any potential ceasefire negotiations.

“Are we preventing escalation, are we encouraging Russian escalation?” he said, referring to the split opinions regarding supplying Ukraine with missiles that can threaten major Russian cities, which might lead to a direct clash between Moscow and NATO.

“Having systems with a longer range that could put valuable Russian targets at risk would be a deterrent against any renewed aggression if there were some kind of mutually acceptable ceasefire over the coming months,” he said.

Ukraine’s Defense Minister Alexey Reznikov said earlier this week that Ukraine will use newly received German Leopard battle tanks to carry out several offensives on different fronts starting this April or May.

However, Zelensky later said Ukraine needs more western weapons and munitions, claiming that the situation on the front was “unfavorable".

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba called Washington and Kiev's Western allies to keep up the supply of arms to Ukraine even if the spring offensive is not fully successful. On the other hand, his deputy Andrey Melnik said during an interview for the German outlet Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that the offensive is not ready yet.

“We don’t want to start a counteroffensive until we’re prepared,” he told the news outlet. “We have approximately 50-60 Western tanks now, but the Russians have been able to produce ten tanks a day. This means we will be unable to achieve a decisive advantage on the battlefield for a long time to come.”

Read more: China urges Russia, Ukraine to hold talks, warns against using nukes

  • United States
  • Nato
  • US
  • war in Ukraine
  • russ
  • Defense One
  • Ukraine

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS