UKRaine Slows Counteroffensive to ‘gradually wear down’ Russian Troops, Liberate Towns; US to Send Cluster Munitions to Bolster UKR’s Fight Against Dug-In RUssians; UKR Possibly Fields More Tanks Than RU; RU Pretend They Destroyed UKR Leopards But Showcase Own Losses, LIVE UPDATES and MORE

NY POST: Ukraine slows counteroffensive to ‘gradually wear down’ Russian troops, liberate towns:

Ukraine’s forces appear to be pivoting toward a strategy of “slow and steady wins the race” in their counteroffensive — opting to conserve manpower at the expense of slower territorial gains, according to analysts.

Kyiv’s troops have been focusing on “gradually wearing down Russian manpower and equipment,” according to the latest assessment of the situation on the front lines from a Washington-based think tank The Institute for the Study of War.

But the analysts noted that “the current pace of Ukrainian operations is not indicative of a stalemate or evidence that Ukraine cannot retake large areas.”

The assessment echoes recent comments made by President Volodymyr Zelensky, who stressed that Ukraine’s goal is to liberate all the occupied territories while preserving as many lives as possible — even if that means that the progress would be slower than desired.

“We cannot throw people [into battle]. We do not treat them as a commodity, the way Russia treats their people,” Zelensky told Spanish reporters last week. “Our people are our treasure. That is why we are being careful.”

Despite the slower-than-expected pace of the counterpunch, Ukrainian forces are said to be making incremental gains and are staying on the offensive.

Geolocated footage that emerged Wednesday showed that troops conducted counteroffensive maneuvers in five sectors of the front and advanced around the war-ravaged eastern city of Bakhmut, which Russian forces seized in May after 10 months of grueling battles.

Russian military bloggers reported that Ukrainians liberated an important height near the village of Klishchiivka southwest of Bakhmut, and Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar confirmed that Kyiv’s fighters were advancing on Bakhmut’s southern flank. —>READ MORE HERE

WSJ: U.S. to Send Cluster Munitions to Bolster Ukraine’s Fight Against Dug-In Russians:

The Biden administration plans to send cluster munitions, which strew small bomblets over a wide area, to Ukraine to strengthen its hand in a high-stakes offensive against Russian forces, senior U.S. officials said.

The White House has agreed to grant a waiver under the U.S. arms export laws to send the weapons, formally known as dual-purpose improved conventional munitions, or DPICM.

The administration is expected to announce the decision on Friday as part of a broader package of military assistance, U.S. officials said.

Ukraine has long appealed for the weapons, and the Pentagon has said they could be effective when employed against Russian troop and armored formations as well as trench lines. Russia used cluster munitions as far back as the first day of the invasion in February 2022, human-rights organizations said.

The munitions “would be useful, especially against dug-in Russian positions on the battlefield,” Laura Cooper, a senior Defense Department official, told Congress last month.

Human-rights groups say unexploded submunitions could maim or kill civilians long after a conflict ends, which initially made the White House’s National Security Council reluctant to approve the transfer.

But the possibility the cluster munitions could help Ukraine’s efforts at a critical stage in the conflict has swayed opinion within the administration and among some lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Proponents of the decision also say that the provision of cluster munitions would reduce Ukraine’s dependence on 155mm artillery shells, of which the U.S. has a limited supply.

More than 110 countries have signed an international Convention on Cluster Munitions that prohibits all use, transfer, production and stockpiling of cluster bombs. But the list of signatories contains notable absences.

The U.S., Ukraine, Russia, China, India, Pakistan and South Korea haven’t signed the convention. Neither has Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Turkey nor most countries in the Middle East. —>READ MORE HERE

Follow links below to +++++relevant+++++ and related stories:

+++++Russia-Ukraine News LATEST UPDATES: (REUTERS) (AP) (NY POST) and (WSJ)+++++

+++++Bloomberg: Ukraine possibly fields more tanks than Russia+++++

+++++Russians pretend they destroyed Ukrainian Leopards but showcase own losses+++++

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