Speaking at a Ministry of Defense press conference on Friday, Col. Vendla said that the line of contact had not changed significantly over the past week. "Both sides have made attacks of a local nature, but without much success," Vendla explained.

He added, Ukraine had made minimal progress in the direction of Zaporizhzhia near the settlement of Robotnye and in the direction of Velyka Novosilka.

"In fact, there continue to be no breakthroughs from the first line of defense and the front largely remains stagnant," Vendla said.

The colonel added, that Russia has been most active on the front in the directions of Kupiansk, Svatove and Kreminna. However, even there the gains have been minimal.

According to Vendla, Ukrainian troops are currently in relatively good positions. "The Oskil River and the high altitude ranges provide a good basis for defensive actions," he said.

Russia, Vendla said, has been deploying additional troops in this direction for some time. "We can probably expect more intensity there. However, there is no sign of a breakthrough, according to the latest assessments."

"In the bigger picture, the war of attrition continues, with the Ukrainian armed forces attempting, as far as possible, to influence the Russian armed forces' logistical hubs in Crimea to restrict the flow of troop supplies to the southern front. The Russian Federation, in turn, will continue to attack sites of vital importance to Ukraine in order to deplete the country's economic and military-industrial resources," Vendla said.

The colonel stressed that Russia is diligently replenishing its resources and pointed out that a major recruitment campaign had been announced in March. "By now, it has been going on for some time and the targets announced are unlikely to be achieved, although the influx of contractors is sufficient to make up for combat losses," he said.

Vendla added, that in order for Russia to declare a major success, such as the capture of Donetsk Oblast, a larger wave of mobilization or a significant increase in the number of contracted soldiers deployed is likely to be necessary.

"From a purely military perspective, a mobilization of the Russian Federation would be necessary in order to increase its offensive power. However, that would obviously be a very unpopular move from a domestic political point of view, which is why, according to the latest information, the regime is still trying to refrain from organizing a new wave of mobilizations," Vendla added.

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