Syrskyi confirmed that there are plans for an offensive: Victory cannot be achieved in defense

Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi said that the leadership of the Ukrainian army has plans for an offensive, as "it is impossible to achieve victory in defense". The military commander said this in an interview with TSN.

The journalist asked whether the chief sees "room for another daring operation," as was the case with the offensive on the Kursk region of Russia.

"We have plans, of course. You can't win on defense – only on offense," Syrskyi said.

Regarding how to achieve the end of the war, the military commander stated that "we must inflict such losses on him [the enemy] that he will go [to this]" not from a position of strength, but on Ukraine's terms.

Earlier, The Washington Post, citing a Ukrainian anonymous official, said that during a July 4 call, US president Donald Trump said to his colleague Volodymyr Zelenskyy that to win, Ukraine needs to go on the offensive.

• The last major offensive of the Defense Forces so far was Kursk operation, that began in August 2024. In the spring of 2025, the defenders had to withdraw from most of the Russian region, and the invaders managed to occupy part of Sumy region on another section of the border.
• In June, the chief of the Armed Forces reported that the Kursk operation had managed to draw back almost 63,000 Russians and about 7,000 DPRK soldiers, which eased the invaders' pressure in other areas and allowed Ukraine to regroup its troops.
• He also said that in April, active actions of the Defense Forces in another district of Kursk region thwarted the replenishment of Russian offensive groups in the occupied territories. In addition to the Kursk region, Ukrainian troops are present in and in the Belgorod region of the Russian Federation.
• According to Syrskyi, during the year of the Kursk operation, the total losses of the Russian Federation amounted to 77,000 military personnel.