“Time will take its time back.” Zaluzhny published a video about the attack

Many mass media and users of social networks on Saturday drew attention to a video published on the official channels of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny. The video was also published by the official channels of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

In a video published with the comment “The time has come to take back our lives”, Ukrainian soldiers read a prayer, which, in particular, contains the words “Bless our decisive offensive”. The video series consists, among other things, of footage of Western equipment recently delivered to Ukraine, including Leopard tanks and HIMARS MLRS.

The video is considered by many commentators as a sign of the imminent start of the Ukrainian offensive – talks about the preparation of which have been going on for several months. At the same time, the video does not say that it has already started or will start at a specific time. General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine calls it is “part of the informational support campaign of the Armed Forces”, and the video itself contains a call to join the ranks of the Armed Forces to “raise the banner of victory”.

The Secretary of the Council of National Security and Defense of Ukraine, Alexey Danilov, said in an interview with the BBC that the offensive could begin “tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, or a week later”, and noted that Kyiv is taking it extremely seriously, as a “historical possibility”. which is “not to be missed”.

Counselor of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Mykhailo Podoliak, in an interview with the second British edition of The Guardian, in turn, said that the Ukrainian army has already begun “preparatory operations”, and the offensive itself is a process stretched over time, the beginning of which is not timed to a specific date or time . “The intensity increases, but the process itself will take quite a long time,” the publication quotes Podolyak as saying. He also commented on the recent raid in the Belgorod region, the responsibility of which was taken by volunteer formations made up of Russian citizens. According to Podolyak, there will be more such events with the beginning of the Ukrainian offensive. At the same time, he stated that the so-called Russian volunteer corps is not related to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and consists, in fact, of private individuals.

• The leaders of Ukraine have repeatedly spoken about the intention to launch an offensive in the spring-summer of this year. Its goal is the complete liberation of the country’s territory. On the eve of the offensive, Ukraine received modern armored vehicles and artillery from Western countries.
• Valery Zaluzhny has not appeared in public since the beginning of May, which led to rumors of his injury or even death. The Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported that Zaluzhny was seriously wounded, citing sources. On the next day after this message, May 25, a short video with Zaluzhny was published, and a day later another one. In the video, the Ukrainian commander-in-chief looks healthy.
• Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and in 2022 announced the annexation of four more regions. It controls parts of the Kherson, Zaporozhye, Donetsk and Luhansk regions and a small territory in the Kharkiv region. Ukraine claims that its goal is to return all these lands.