Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, lies some 40 kilometers from the Russian border, and for weeks has been living through the hell of daily bombings. Nearly 2 million people lived there before the invasion on February 24, 2022. A few hundred thousand left, and while some have returned, life is becoming increasingly difficult.
Russian missiles and drones are systematically destroying the energy infrastructure of the city, which could well find itself without heating by fall. Despite Ukraine's connection to the European electricity grid, power cuts are increasing as thermal power plants across the country come under attack. In 2022, Kharkiv, where a large part of the population is Russian-speaking, valiantly resisted an attempt by Russian forces to take the city, forcing the occupiers to withdraw. Today, Russia seems to have opted for a different tactic: to make the city unliveable in order to force its inhabitants to abandon it. Even if this means destroying it.
Ukraine is now facing a crucial, and eminently dangerous, phase in its war with Russia. Outnumbered by the enemy, its soldiers are exhausted and anxiously awaiting relief, which is slow in coming. They are also anxiously awaiting weapons and munitions, which the West is having trouble delivering in the quantities required. The Russian army, on the other hand, can count on a far greater number of men, due to the size of its population, and benefits from the establishment of a war economy that keeps arms factories running at full speed. The Russian economy, far from being impoverished by Western sanctions, is holding up thanks to the circumvention of sanctions by a number of countries, including China.
Urgent need for military equipment
According to the Institute for the Study of War, an American research center, Russian forces have managed to gain 300 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory since January. The intensification of the civilian infrastructure bombing campaign highlights a serious shortcoming for Ukraine: insufficient air defense assets in the face of Russian firepower.
At this rate, the goal of a Ukrainian victory, which Western countries claim to support, risks becoming an illusion. General Christopher Cavoli, head of the US Army's European Command, spoke the truth on Wednesday, April 10, before the House Armed Services Committee: Ukraine can't go it alone; Russia continues to pose an existential threat. The Russian aggressor has lost some 2,000 tanks and 315,000 men, killed or wounded, but is rebuilding its forces at an unexpected speed. The Russian army is now 15% larger than at the start of the war. And it's getting help from China, Iran and North Korea.
Ukraine urgently needs military reinforcements to avoid collapse. The Europeans are trying to pool their resources. But on the other side of the Atlantic, in Congress, Trump-supporting Republicans continue to dither over the procedural games likely to bring to a vote the $60 billion (€56.2 billion) aid package promised by the Biden administration and stalled for six months. Putting a quick end to these sordid games, which dishonor American democracy while playing into Moscow's hands, is vital for Ukraine.