The Pentagon is concerned about recent Russian troop advances in Ukraine.

The head of the Pentagon, Lloyd Austin, said that the US is worried about Russian forces’ progress in Ukraine.

Observations reveal that in July the Russian Federation expanded its occupied territory in the east of Ukraine by about 198 square kilometers. However, after the Russian offensive in Kharkiv Oblast was repulsed, the pace of the enemy’s advance significantly decreased. Russian troops captured 449 square kilometers in May – the largest figure for a month since March 2022 – and 129 square kilometers in June. However, since the beginning of 2024, Russia has conquered 1,246 square kilometers of Ukraine’s territory, significantly more than the 584 square kilometers captured for the whole of 2023.

President Zelenskyy named the reasons for the significant advances by Russian troops at the front, which were the lack of a sufficient number of weapons, the Russian military’s disregard for the lives its soldiers, and being denied permission to destroy military facilities in Russian territory with Western weapons.