A Ukrainian army lieutenant says Russian soldiers keep ‘falling into the same traps’ as Putin’s commanders force them forward

• A Ukrainian army lieutenant said Russian soldiers are fighting “stupidly” and without strategy.
• Second Lt. Tatiana Chornovol told CBS News that Putin’s army is “falling into the same traps.”
• “It’s pure evil what they did,” volunteer Ukrainian soldier Andriy Rogalski also said of Russian forces.

A Ukrainian army lieutenant said Russian soldiers are fighting “stupidly” and without strategy as President Vladimir Putin’s forces continue to make little military progress in their five-week-long war in the eastern European country.

“The Russians are fighting stupidly,” Second Lt. Tatiana Chornovol, a former politician, told CBS News in an interview that aired on Thursday. “They don’t have a strategy or tactics — they’re falling into the same traps and their commanders are just pushing them to advance.”

Volunteer Ukrainian soldier Andriy Rogalski criticized Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian cities in his own interview with CBS News.

“It’s pure evil what they did,” Rogalski, who said he worked as a crane operator and received just two weeks of basic training before heading to war, told CBS News. 

Russia’s defense ministry said earlier this week it would scale down attacks in the northern part of Ukraine, as it planned to withdraw forces from around Kyiv and redirect focus on the eastern Donbas region. 

The US and Ukraine have expressed skepticism with Russia’s claim — which comes amid ongoing peace negotiations — and said troop movement is likely a redeployment rather than a withdrawal.