🟩 VANCE: RUSSIA IS PAYING A HIGH PRICE FOR EVERY KILOMETER IT GAINS
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said Russia has reached a point where its offensive operations are producing only limited battlefield gains despite enormous losses, while Ukraine’s defensive strategy is helping create the conditions needed to eventually end the war.
According to Vance, Russia can now achieve very little on the battlefield, and every square kilometer it captures comes at an extraordinarily high cost in manpower and equipment.
He argued that Ukraine should continue focusing on a strong defensive posture, saying the strategy has proven far more effective than attempting costly large-scale offensives.
His remarks echo a debate that has continued since the summer of 2023, when Ukraine launched its widely anticipated counteroffensive. At the time, many Western leaders and military analysts expected a breakthrough, and Kyiv faced significant pressure to launch a major offensive.
Instead, heavily fortified Russian defensive lines, vast minefields, entrenched artillery, and extensive drone surveillance slowed Ukraine’s advance, making the operation far more costly than many had anticipated.
Since then, Ukraine has increasingly shifted toward a strategy of attrition—using drones, long-range strikes, and precision attacks against Russian logistics, ammunition depots, airfields, and command infrastructure. Rather than chasing rapid territorial gains, Ukraine has focused on steadily wearing down Russia’s ability to wage war.
Vance’s comments are also notable because they represent a shift in tone. Earlier in the war, he was widely viewed as one of the more skeptical voices regarding continued U.S. support for Ukraine and often questioned the long-term strategy behind American assistance. While he has not abandoned his broader views, his recent remarks acknowledge the effectiveness of Ukraine’s current battlefield approach and the heavy price Russia is paying to sustain its offensives.
That evolution reflects a broader reality becoming harder to ignore: despite Russia’s continued attacks, its advances are measured in small increments and achieved only through immense losses, while Ukraine’s strategy of exhausting the Russian military is increasingly shaping the course of the war.
