"We have no right to make a mistake". Danilov reveals when the Ukrainian counteroffensive will begin

The Ukrainian army is ready to initiate the long-awaited counteroffensive. This statement was made by the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC), Oleksiy Danilov, in an interview with the BBC.

Oleksiy Danilov would not name a date but said that counteroffensive could begin "tomorrow, the day after tomorrow or in a week".

He warned that Ukraine's government had "no right to make a mistake" on the decision because this was an "historic opportunity" that "we cannot lose". As secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, he is at the heart of President Zelensky's de facto war cabinet. His interview with the BBC was interrupted by a phone message from Zelensky summoning him to a meeting to discuss the counteroffensive.

During the interview, he also confirmed that some Wagner mercenary forces were withdrawing from Bakhmut, but he added they were "regrouping to another three locations" and "it doesn't mean that they will stop fighting with us".

Danilov also said he was "absolutely calm" about russia beginning to deploy nuclear weapons to Belarus, saying: "To us, it's not some kind of news".

Ukraine has been planning a counteroffensive for months. In the meantime, russian forces have been preparing their defences. Danilov said the armed forces would begin the assault when commanders calculated "we can have the best result at that point of the war".

"It could happen tomorrow, the day after tomorrow or in a week. It would be weird if I were to name dates of the start of that or those events. That cannot be done…. We have a very responsible task before our country. And we understand that we have no right to make a mistake", - he said.