Ukraine's military intelligence chief says counter-offensive will press on in face of worsening weather

"Combat actions will continue in one way or another," the HUR chief told news agency Reuters.

“In the cold, wet and mud, it’s more difficult to fight. (But) fighting will continue. The counter-offensive will continue.”

He added that the counter-offensive is taking place in several areas, while acknowledging that progress is slower than he had wanted, and describing the situation as difficult.

In addition to the huge concentration of Russian mines, he cited the large number of small Russian kamikaze drones as a key factor that has slowed Ukraine's progress so far.

Ukrainian counteroffensive – Latest

Earlier, U.S. newspaper the New York Times reported that a new phase of Ukraine's counter-offensive has begun, with the main thrust coming from the southeast, where Ukrainian soldiers are gradually advancing through minefields while under attack by Russian aircraft.

According to UK newspaper the Financial Times, Ukraine changed its tactics after "chaos" at the beginning of the counter-offensive, and now Ukrainian forces are focusing on striking Russian defensive positions with heavy artillery and are achieving tangible results.

U.S. newspaper the Wall Street Journal, citing an unnamed U.S. official, earlier reported that Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi, while commenting on criticism of the "slow pace" of the counter-offensive, told U.S. officials that Ukrainian forces were on the verge of a breakthrough.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense officially confirmed on Aug. 28 the liberation of the village of Robotyne village in Zaporizhzhya Oblast. Now the Ukrainian troops are moving further towards Novoprokopivka, Ocheretuvate, and have been successful near Verbove.

In early September, the commander of the Tavria operational and strategic grouping of troops, Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had broken through the first line of Russian defense on the southern section of the front line.

On Sept. 5, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said that the offensive would be a long process, and that “war is not quick.”