Commander of Ukraine's Ground Forces Oleksandr Syrsky has said that the main force of his offensive reserve is yet to be committed into battle with Russia, saying: "Everything is still ahead."

The world has to be patient, he said in an interview with The Guardian.

"Everyone wants to achieve a great victory instantly and at once. And so do we. But we have to be prepared to have this process take some time because there are a lot of forces massed on each side, a lot of materiel, and a lot of engineered obstacles," the commander said.

He also stressed that Ukraine is probing for weak places in the enemy defences.

"I want to say that our main force has not been engaged in fighting yet, and we are now searching, probing for weak places in the enemy defences. Everything is still ahead," Syrsky said.

He also said there had been "hard fighting" in the Serebriansky forest near Bakhmut in Donetsk region, with Russia having moved key forces from the south.

"The Russians are trying to seize the initiative. So, the situation is really difficult," he said.

Syrsky also said that the enemy should not be underestimated, adding that the occupation forces have built up strong defenses.

"The enemy has anticipated and continues to anticipate the most dangerous directions of our movements, and builds up strong defences there which are quite difficult to penetrate," he said.