Ukraine Holds Initiative On Battlefield NATO Military Committee Chief

(MENAFN- UkrinForm) NATO Military Committee Chair Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone said this in comments to Ukrinform on the sidelines of the Berlin Security Conference.

"I've been briefed that things on the land are proceeding positively for Ukraine, even if slowly," the admiral said when asked to assess the battlefield situation.

At the same time, he stressed the importance of moving toward negotiations and ending hostilities, noting that Ukraine is ready for this, while Russia still needs to be convinced.

"The thing is that everybody is really keen to sit at the negotiation table and stop fighting. I think that Ukraine is ready to do this. I think that Russia needs to be convinced. But this is the only next step that we can try for," Dragone said.

Read also: Europe must secure its place at negotiating table – Dutch expert

Asked to clarify which side currently holds the initiative on the battlefield – Russia or Ukraine – Dragone gave an unequivocal answer.

"From our information, there is a Ukraine initiative. They are gaining a small amount of terrain, but it is not a Russian initiative; it is a Ukrainian initiative," the admiral said.

Asked what Ukraine needs most from a military standpoint to change the situation, Dragone named air defense systems and interceptors as the top priorities.

"First of all, it's air defenses, interceptors, and that's the very first thing," he said.

According to the admiral, NATO and its member countries are making every effort to provide Ukraine with the necessary equipment before winter.

"NATO is doing the maximum effort with all the nations to try to provide them before winter," Dragone said.

In October 2026, Ukrainian forces inflicted record losses on the Russian army for the entire period of the full-scale war and liberated 96.2 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory – 10.4 square kilometers more than Russian forces captured during the same period.

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