“The problem is very delicate. Evidently there is an intelligence problem that Kiev is unable to fill. It is foreseeable that heads will probably roll in the armed forces entourage,” said Graziani.

“If Kiev is lying about the dawning of the Russian aircraft, it means that the Ukrainian leadership fears to face the public opinion, tired of this conflict, that could start protesting in the streets,” Marsili told Sputnik.

“To the domestic audience, cancelling arms supplies is presented as a ‘sovereign political decision’. In relation to foreign partners and their diplomatic representation, communication can be different, in the style that ‘there is nothing left to send’ due to the excessive activity of the previous government.”

"It's something that we're looking into," Singh said during press briefing.

"Regarding whether Ukrainians will build this three-tiered defense line or not – it all depends on how fast Russia will advance (…) And secondly, [it depends] on how much money they will steal from the construction of this defensive line," retired Russian Army colonel and veteran military analyst Viktor Litovkin told Sputnik.

"If this line is built, it, of course, may delay our offensive, but in no way will it hinder the determination of [the Russian] Armed Forces to fulfill the tasks set by the president. Namely: to ensure the security of our country, to demilitarize and de-Nazify Ukraine," the retired colonel concluded.

“Those looking to form the next government should be honest about these trade-offs. If they are promising tax cuts, let’s hear where the spending cuts will fall. If they are going to raise, or even protect, spending, they should tell us where taxes will rise,” the IFS director said.

“We are considered as cannon fodder… they don’t explain anything,” he added, echoing complaints of ill-prepared Ukrainian troops arriving on the battlefield with little military training.