The counteroffensive in Ukraine may soon be reaching a new tipping point after Ukrainian forces entered Robotyne last week and officially claimed liberation on Monday.
Capturing the town means Ukrainian forces have breached thick Russian lines in the southeastern Zaporizhizhia region and may soon have a breakthrough in the campaign to reach the Sea of Azov.
If accomplished, Ukraine would sever the so-called land bridge connecting Russia to the Crimean Peninsula.
Still, Ukrainian troops have plenty of Russian defenses remaining to get through — and a finite amount of resources and time for the campaign.
Ukrainian officials, however, are celebrating the latest advance as they try to breathe new life into the slow-moving counteroffensive launched in June.
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said his country is "solving tasks of extreme complexity, none of which have been experienced by any army since World War II."
"And yet, we are advancing," he wrote on X. "And we are advancing every day, pushing the Russians back and liberating our territory."
Russian military bloggers say there is still limited fighting around Robotyne. Russia's Defense Ministry said it repelled the latest attacks around the town.
Russian sources are also denying reports that Ukrainian forces are moving toward the town of Tokmak, a key waypoint on the way to Melitopol and the Sea of Azov.
At the same time, Russian forces are moving in one of their own offensives.
Russia is seeking to capture the cities of Kupyansk and Lyman further north from the Ukrainian operation in the eastern part of the country.
"As Ukraine continues to gradually gain ground in the south, Russia's doctrine suggests that it will attempt to regain the initiative by pivoting back to an operational level offensive," the U.K. Defense Ministry said in an intelligence update over the weekend.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment