Why neither Russia nor Ukraine can turn the tide of the war — and how they still pull off successful offensives like Kyiv’s Operation Vivaldi

Ukrainian soldiers who took part in Operation Vivaldi say a new tactic made their successful offensive near the Siverskyi Donets River north of Sloviansk possible. They are withholding the details so they can exploit the Russian army’s vulnerabilities again. Judging solely by the available evidence — videos published by both sides — the offensive’s pace and methods were no different from those of other operations in the full-scale war: Ukrainian forces spent months “chipping away” at the enemy’s defenses. They used similar methods in the Zaporizhzhia region this summer, as did Russian forces n