Ukraine needs more attack aircraft for combat operations – Syrsky
Ukraine needs more military aircraft for combat operations, such as American A-10 attack aircraft to support infantry and aircraft capable of launching long-range cruise missiles, Commander of the Ukrainian Ground Forces Oleksandr Syrsky said in an interview with Reuters.
"I would talk about A-10s as an option if they'll be given to us ... this is not a new machine, but a reliable one that has proven itself in many wars, and which has a wide array of weapons for destroying land targets to help the infantry," he said.
"It is for destroying land-based targets: tanks, artillery ... everything that counters the infantry," he said.
Syrsky added that attack helicopters such as the AH-64 Apache and AH-1 Super Cobra, as well as the UH-60 Black Hawk, could also play an important role.
He said that Moscow's forces are now back on the offensive in some parts of the east, where Syrsky said fighting remained fierce.
He added that Russian forces were continually attacking in several parts of the front, with Ukrainian forces conducting small counterattacks.
"This is active defense when we are not just sitting on the defensive but constantly counterattacking, and in some directions switching to the offensive. And the enemy knows this," he said.
"As well as calls for more aircraft, Ukraine has asked allies to speed up the supply of artillery ammunition, which some units have complained is running short," the report says.
"While drones are increasingly influential on the battlefield, artillery is a mainstay for both armies, and Ukraine has to balance its use of various caliber shells based on the available supply," it reads.
"We have developed an expertise with this and adjust to our daily realities," said Syrsky.
"I think there are always chances. You just need to find them and use them," he said, asked if there could be a turning point in the war in Ukraine's favor.
He added that it was "impossible" for Russia to have built robust defenses everywhere, and that there were always weak spots because of the landscape and other factors.
