Withdrawing from Kherson would allow the Russian military to retreat across the Dnipro in an organized manner, preserving the equipment and saving the lives of the soldiers.

However, such actions led to tensions between Putin himself and the top military leadership of the Russian Federation.

This is reported by The New York Times with reference to American officials.

A Russian retreat from the right bank of the Dnieper would be another humiliating public defeat for Putin in the war and would give Ukraine its second major victory in a month. 

Kherson was the first major city captured by the invaders after the full-scale invasion began, and remains the only regional center under Moscow's control.

The publication emphasizes that with

liberating the city would be a great achievement for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi.

In the US, they say that Putin has now assumed a direct leadership role in the war, in particular, Putin makes strategic decisions on the battlefield himself. 

Despite the fact that Putin listened to his military command and announced mobilization, such a decision regarding the Kherson Region 

created tension between the Russian dictator and his military.

In addition, Mr. Putin's refusal to withdraw from Kherson has led to low morale among Russian troops, who have already been cut off from their supply lines and are already preparing to surrender to the Ukrainian military.

The head of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mark Milley, noted that "the situation in Ukraine is clearly dynamic", and although it is still too early for a full assessment, personally, "it is clear to him that the strategic initiative has passed to the Ukrainians".  

According to American officials, the disagreement between Putin and the military command regarding the front line in Kherson illustrates how critically important the war in southern Ukraine is for both Kyiv and Moscow.

The Americans point out that senior Russian officers have repeatedly questioned the initial plans for the war, especially the first phase, which involved a quick capture of Kyiv.

They believed that Putin was going to war with insufficient troops and weapons, and their fears turned out to be correct.

American officials say they see problems with the Russian military in southern Ukraine.

Thus, some officials in the USA assume that Ukraine may repeat the lightning counteroffensive in the south, which the Ukrainian defenders managed to carry out in the Kharkiv region.

"

If Ukraine pushes back the Russian troops even further, the land bridge to Crimea won by Putin may be under threat," the newspaper writes.

After the defeat at Kiev, Putin reportedly relaxed his control over military planning and allowed senior generals to create a new strategy.

It was effectively a war of attrition and allowed Russia to advance its army in eastern Ukraine.

However, Putin demands a strategy without further retreats, but against the background of Ukraine's successful counteroffensive, the Russian military leadership is divided in its opinion on how to respond to the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation - some believe that they should be followed, while others believe that the dictator's orders should be resisted. 

Read also:

• Biden on the "referendums" of the Russian Federation: the USA will never recognize the territory of Ukraine as Russian

• The 8th package of sanctions: what will be the restrictions and how much EU countries are ready to squeeze the aggressor financially

• Erdogan was told how the list for the exchange of "Azov" commanders was agreed upon: initially there were 15 names