Ukraine’s drones have opened a summer window of opportunity behind Russian lines. Front-line soldiers tell Ukrainska Pravda the army is on track to waste it.

Ukrainian forces have stepped up their use of “midstrikes” — drones able to hit targets several dozen kilometers behind the front line.

Their success, alongside that of “deepstrikes,” has fueled assertions that Ukraine has wrested back the initiative and blunted Russia’s advance.

Ukrainska Pravda asked soldiers how much the strikes on the “middle rear” are actually changing the situation at the front.

Most were cautious about the claim that Ukraine has “seized the initiative,” saying front-line troops don’t yet feel the effect — even as the outlet calls the strikes promising and says their full impact is unlikely to be felt until late summer or early fall. ...