That dedicated units are being formed and trained to take Crimea specifically poses a warning to Russian military planners trying to anticipate the next Ukrainian offensive. Some of their attacks around Bakhmut and Vuhledar are seen as efforts to offset Ukrainian initiatives, but the emphasis on Crimea, generally considered a difficult target because of its isolation and because of Russia's emotional attachment to it suggests that Ukraine has no intention of bargaining away any of its land. JL
Isabel Van Brugen reports in Newsweek:
Ukraine is preparing "assault brigades" to take back its occupied territories, which include part of the eastern Donbas region as well as Crimea. The decision to create the assault brigades was made "by our fighters, who have enough rage to beat the enemy. Many servicemen who have defended and are defending our country came up with the initiative to recruit people to such units. These are people who went through the crucible of 2014-2015, some of whom have fought in 2022. Some were wounded. The units will consist exclusively of volunteers driven by patriotism, and there are a lot of such people in our country."