Syrsky about need to 'mobilize 500,000': After audit, this figure significantly reduced
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrsky said that there is no talk yet about the need to mobilize 500,000 reservists.
"After reviewing our internal resources and clarifying the combat strength of the Armed Forces, this figure (500,000 people) was significantly reduced. We expect that we will have enough people capable of defending the Motherland. We are talking not only about mobilized people, but also about volunteers," Syrsky said in an interview with Ukrinform.
According to him, a review of the number of certain units that are not participating in hostilities is currently underway, based on an audit of their activities. Syrsky indicated that "this allowed us to free up thousands of military personnel and send them to combat units."
He recalled that today the process of rotation of military units on the front line has already been launched, which allows for the rest and recovery of military personnel.
"We need people to ensure this process. That is why I would like every man of military age in Ukraine to understand: it depends on his will and actions for Ukraine to survive," the commander-in-chief emphasized.
Assessing how real the threat of a Russian attack on Kharkiv is now, Syrsky said that "we cannot ignore any information about the enemy's preparation for offensive actions, so we are taking all measures to adequately respond to this possibility."
"Today we are carrying out a large complex of works on the fortification of territories and positions, installing a comprehensive system of barriers, and planning the use of our troops in the event of such actions. We already have experience in combat operations in Kharkiv region, we managed to 'calculate' the enemy and liberate a significant part of Kharkiv region. It was then that a large-scale collapse of the Russian front occurred. If the Russians move there again, Kharkiv will become a fatal city for them," the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said.
At the same time, he noted that the current situation in certain areas is tense, the Russian occupiers are further increasing their efforts and have a numerical advantage in personnel. In addition, according to Syrsky, the experience of the past months and weeks shows that the enemy has significantly increased aviation activity, is using guided bombs, and is conducting dense artillery and mortar fire.
"Just a few days ago, the enemy's advantage in ammunition fired was about 6:1," he said.
Syrsky also pointed out that the enemy is suffering significant losses every day and continues offensive operations on a wide front, "trying at any cost to reach the borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, to push us out on the left bank of the Dnipro in Zaporizhia region."
"In certain sectors of the front, we managed to level out the situation with artillery, and this immediately affected the situation as a whole. Our artillerymen use high-precision ammunition to destroy enemy concentrations even tens of kilometers from the front line," he said.