Ukraine reclaims about half of territory seized by Russia, says US

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday that Ukraine has retaken approximately half of the territory that was seized by Russia.

In an interview with CNN, the top US diplomat reiterated that Russia has already lost the war in Ukraine that began in February 2022.

"The objective was to erase Ukraine from the map, to eliminate its independence, its sovereignty, to subsume it into Russia. That failed a long time ago," according to Blinken.

"Now Ukraine is in a battle to get back more of the land that Russia seized from it. It’s already taken back about 50% of what was initially seized," Blinken said, adding that Ukrainians are "in a very hard fight to take back more."

He also noted that Ukraine's counteroffensive against Russia could last several months, saying, "These are still relatively early days of the counteroffensive. It is tough".

During his remarks, the secretary of state also noted that Ukrainians will receive F-16 fighter jets to bolster their fight against Russia.

"I believe that they will (get), and the important focus is on making sure that when they do, they are properly trained, they’re able to maintain the planes and use them in a smart way," Blinken added.

Denmark and the Netherlands are playing a leading role among Western countries in training Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets.