With a few remaining months of calm weather in Ukraine, there are talks of offensives on both sides of Russia's war. The Ukrainians are aiming to retake much of the southern, coastal areas seized by the Russians during their initial invasion. The Kremlin is talking about pushing forward with its campaign in the East, looking to control the entire Donbas region.

But armies on both sides are more than a little exhausted, in terms of available fighters and weapons. And for the Ukrainians, that's where Western aid is absolutely critical.

The Ukrainians are upping their requests for Western weapons, whether its more long-range precision missiles or fighter jets. They're reemphasizing that this is a fight for Ukraine's very survival ... as Vladimir Putin and other Russian leaders make it clear their goal is still the destruction of Ukraine as a sovereign, independent country.

Peter Mansoor is a retired U-S Army Colonel and former executive officer to General David Petraeus in Iraq. He's currently a professor of military history at THE Ohio State University. 

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