Budanov told how the situation at the front can change after Avdiivka

This was stated by the head of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, according to The Wall Street Journal.

He acknowledged that Ukrainian forces, which are outnumbered and outgunned, are in a difficult position.

"But Russia also has problems," Budanov said.

According to him, Russia’s professional army was largely destroyed in the first year of the invasion of Ukraine, so it is now throwing untrained conscripts into suicidal attacks.

Budanov noted that Russia is using more artillery shells than it can produce, and although hundreds of tanks entered service last year, most of them were old models taken out of storage and repaired, with only 178 new ones.

He stressed that in recent weeks, missile attacks on Ukrainian cities have stopped as Russian supplies have run out.

As a result, Budanov said, it will be difficult for Russia to achieve its main strategic goal of capturing all of the eastern districts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions this year.

"They don’t have the strength," Budanov said.

Western officials and analysts see Budanov’s view as the best-case scenario for Ukraine this year. If Ukraine is able to conduct a competent defence, weakening Russian forces while rebuilding its own, it will be able to launch a new counter-offensive against a weakened enemy in 2025.