Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba, at the conference of French ambassadors, told how a consolidated group of 31 Ukrainian fighters carried out the most difficult work and made possible the attack of an entire brigade on the village of Robotyne in Zaporizhia region and its liberation after weeks of assaults.

“Right now, the Armed Forces of Ukraine continue to move forward during the counteroffensive. It's very difficult. The number of minefields and fortifications is unprecedented. Russian drones, helicopters and planes dominate the air. But we are gradually succeeding. A few days ago, we broke through the Russian defense on one of the most difficult sections of the front and liberated the strategically important settlement of Robotyne,” Kuleba said speaking at the conference of ambassadors.

The Minister said that for several months one Ukrainian unit conducted continuous assaults on this most difficult sector of the front, as a result of which the personnel were physically and mentally exhausted.

“At some point, this unit simply lost the ability to continue the offensive. Then radical decisions were made and the leadership was changed in it. The new commander asked to gather motivated and ready to perform combat missions fighters. A consolidated group of 31 fighters was created, a third of whom had no combat experience, but all of them had the knowledge and will to win,” the Foreign Minister said.

He stressed that thanks to the leadership of the commanders and sergeants, this group established horizontal links with adjacent units and started working on the contact line.

“After 18 hours, they crawled literally on their stomachs kilometers of minefields, where the Russians put six mines for every square meter. Finally, the unit got to a strip of trees, which is divided by farm fields. Everyone in Ukraine knows this word – ‘planting.’ It is in these inconspicuous plantings on maps that the greatest tragedies and heroism of the war take place. So, our unit knocked out the Russians from there and held this position for two days until reinforcements arrived,” Kuleba said.

He added that this group walked another 10 kilometers with backpacks of 35-40 kg of weight through minefields. So, in 40 days, this unit conducted six assaults and two reconnaissance missions. According to the minister, a group of 31 people performed the work of an entire battalion, which should consist of about 400 people, and the losses amounted to seven wounded, of which one had serious injuries, who stepped on a mine.

“In fact, the work of this group made it possible for an entire brigade to attack Robotyne and liberate it after weeks of assaults. After securing on its flanks, we open the way to Tokmak and, finally, Melitopol and the border with Crimea,” the Foreign Minister stressed.

As the head of the ministry noted, this story demonstrates three principles that are also useful for diplomats: leaders lead forward, no matter what all kinds of skeptics say, and no matter how difficult it is; it's not about quantitative superiority, but about motivation, intelligence and the ability to act cohesively; focus on victory should be unconditional.