Ukraine is being outgunned, outmanned, and outfight in fierce fighting with a Russian force pushing east, but delays in shipping arms from the US and Europe have lead them to this precarious point
Last July US President Joe Biden declared that Russian leader Vladimir Putin had “already lost” the war in Ukraine.
These words now look spectacularly ill-judged. Yesterday Volodymyr Zelensky was forced to cancel an overseas trip amid mounting concerns Russian forces are poised for a major breakthrough in the Kharkiv region.
Although the situation is not lost, Ukraine is being outgunned, outmanned and outfought.
The most pressing issue for Zelensky is the shortage of munitions. For every shell fired by the Ukrainian forces, Russia is firing five. While the Kremlin has a stockpile of weapons, topped up with armaments from North Korea and Iran, the EU has so far delivered only 30% of the one million shells it promised Ukraine.
Months of wrangling in Washington DC has also delayed the delivery of a $61billion (£49billion) US military aid package.
Alongside the shortage of munitions, Ukraine is also struggling with a shortage of manpower. The average age of its frontline troops is 43.
Reluctantly, Zelenksy has lowered the conscription age from 27 to 25 in a desperate attempt to recruit more forces. But this risks undermining the morale of a country which has now been at war for more than two years.
The Ukrainian president has also been criticised for failing to build fortifications to prevent the Russian advances.
There are reports of Russian soldiers walking into towns and villages as there were no concrete defences or land mines.
Ukraine is now hoping it can weather the onslaught until the supply of US arms and equipment comes fully on stream over the next few months.
The outcome of the conflict has come down to a race against time.