Anatolii Stepanov | Afp | Getty ImagesWhen Ukraine's counteroffensive started last week there was no fanfare or official announcement, but that wasn't entirely unexpected. "We are trying to find the weakest places in the Russian defense line. Nonetheless, Ukraine's deputy defense minister conceded Wednesday that the fighting was "extremely fierce" and that the counteroffensive had only had "partial success" so far. CNBC contacted Ukraine's defense ministry for further comment and is awaiting a response. "We will see the main punches of Ukrainian forces in the nearest future.

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Persons: Anatolii Stepanov, Nick Reynolds, Andrius, Oleksandr Musiyenko, Musiyenko, Matthew Miller, RUSI's Reynolds, they've, it's Organizations: Afp, Getty, Kyiv, CNBC, Defense, Centre for Military, Legal Studies, Velyka Novosilka, Ukrainian, Anadolu Agency, NATO, . State Locations: Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Russian, Kharkiv, Kherson, London, Russia, Central, Eastern Europe, Kyiv, Velyka, Donetsk, Bakhmut, Crimea, Donbas, Moscow