Teathat situation The regime under which Lt. Gen. Oleksandr Pavliuk took control of Ukraine’s ground forces in February could hardly have been less auspicious. The president was quarrel in public With the outgoing commander-in-chief, mobilization was faltering and Republicans in the U.S. Congress had delayed Significant aid package The agreement would last for six months, giving Russia a chance to regain the initiative.

Yet the general dismissed suggestions that his new role could be a poisoned chalice. Despite recent setbacks on the front lines, he insisted Ukraine should not be judged by “a few people… who are scared and screaming in panic.” His weakened soldiers are “standing firm” because they know what is at stake. “Wherever Russia is, there is nothing. Where there used to be thriving cities, there are now skeletons, corpses and ruins.”