Ukraine’s chief military leader promised to enhance the “scale and depth” of operations targeting Russia, as stated in public remarks released on Sunday.

He noted that these operations were demonstrating “effectiveness” and emphasized that Kyiv would focus solely on military objectives.

“Certainly, we will persist. We will expand both the scale and depth,” said Oleksandr Syrsky, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief, during a press briefing that included AFP.

His statements were made during a pause in diplomatic initiatives to resolve the ongoing three-year conflict. The last direct talks between the involved parties occurred nearly three weeks ago, and no additional discussions are on the agenda.

“We will not simply adopt a defensive stance. This yields no results and ultimately results in our retreat, as well as losses in personnel and territory,” Syrsky stated.

In a broad set of comments, Syrsky acknowledged that Russia had certain advantages in drone warfare, particularly in the development of tethered fiber-optic drones that are challenging to disrupt.

“Regrettably, they possess an edge in both quantity and operational range in this area,” he remarked.

He also asserted that Ukraine retains control over 90 square kilometers of land in Russia’s Kursk region, which Kyiv had boldly infiltrated last August.

“These actions are our preemptive measure in response to a potential offensive from the enemy,” he added.

In April, Russia claimed complete control over the Kursk region and denied any Ukrainian presence there.

Currently, Moscow occupies about 20% of Ukrainian territory and has declared four Ukrainian regions as its own since beginning its invasion in 2022, in addition to the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

Kyiv has accused Moscow of intentionally undermining peace negotiations in order to prolong its extensive military campaign and annex further areas.