Russia has ramped up attacks on Kharkiv, and Moscow propaganda channels are urging it be wiped from the map.

Mõts said it is a miracle the city still stands as it lies not far from where the war is being fought. The general described it as an attempt by Russia to widen the front line and force Ukraine to spread out its defenses.

"The Russians are using what we may describe as amoeba tactics. Whether consciously or not, but they lack the strength for a major breakthrough, which sees them test the lines everywhere, with disregard for the lives of their soldiers and their machinery, hoping they might get an opportunity. It is their modus operandi not just on the battlefield, but also globally we might say," Mõts told the show on Sunday.

He said that the Russian regime also has eyes on Estonia and the other Baltic countries, waiting for an opportunity to stir something up. "That is also what happened in Africa where Russia elbowed its way in, spread its tendrils, while European forces and coalitions eventually pulled out, were pushed out, while the Russians are still there," the general added.

But Mõts said that while Russia can bomb Kharkiv, it lacks the strength to take the city.

"They might fight their way through the city once, but holding it requires a lot more troops. And that is what the Russians are lacking today. While we can see Russia making more troops for itself – it's a fact that it has more troops in Ukraine today than it did two years ago – their level of training and command is low, somewhere around the squad-company level. They've been trying to combine company-level armored assaults in recent weeks, but we've only seen a few such attempts," the general said.

Russia trying to wear out Ukraine and the West

The past week of fighting has been characterized by a number of missile and drone attacks aimed against Ukrainian infrastructure. Mõts said that this is made possible by the fact Ukraine still lacks sufficient air defenses, which Russia knows.

"I believe they are consciously exploiting that weakness. Of course, they are firing deep into Ukraine, at civilian infrastructure as part of attrition tactics. But this attrition is also aimed against the West in that the reconstruction of Ukraine, whenever it may happen, will largely be based on Western capital and support."

"I would clearly point out that the goal is not just to destroy the Ukrainians' will to defend themselves, it is to cause fragmentation in the West as rebuilding Ukraine will need a lot of resources, while resources are already being spent on the war. Creating such dilemmas disrupts Ukraine's supply and may deliver setbacks where support is withheld altogether. Western activity has been split into three parts: Western countries have to develop their own defenses, they have to make sure NATO plans work and they also have to support Ukraine. It comes together for one considerable headache. The political decisions are difficult," the EDF general said.

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