The advance of the Ukrainian Army has been faster than expected and surprises the invaders, who have lost high-value strategic nodes such as Kupiansk
The advance of the Ukrainian troops in their effort to expel the Russians from the Kharkov region is being much faster than the specialists in military affairs had predicted. The kyiv Army, which raised the Ukrainian flag on Friday at the main official buildings in the town of Balakleya, has also taken control of Kupiansk this Saturday, an important railway transport hub, vital for the logistics of the Russian Army, according to all the signs.
The Ukrainian authorities this morning confirmed the capture of Kupiansk. This was assured by the adviser to the head of the Kharkov Regional Administration, Natalia Popova, who illustrated her statement on Facebook with a photograph of Ukrainian soldiers in the center of Kupiansk waving flags of her country. The former Minister of Defense of the Donetsk separatists, Igor Guirkin, confirmed through his Telegram channel that the Russian forces “have withdrawn from the western part of Kupiansk, approximately two-thirds of the entire city.”
Guirkin regrets that the Russian command claims that the abandonment of Kupiansk “is the correct tactical decision to organize the defense on the outskirts”, but considers that it is nothing more than an unfounded justification. The former pro-Russian military chief estimates that “we are facing an acute operational crisis (of the occupying troops) in a large sector of the front, which has turned into a great defeat.”
Guirkin believes that “on our part now we can only talk about how to stop the deepening of the enemy and prevent the operational defeat from becoming strategic.” “Although, in fact, it already is. The enemy has already won the battle of the initiative and now we should consider how to prevent the Ukrainian forces from encircling and destroying large formations of our troops », which have been left encircled and without supplies, he lamented. According to his information, “I also receive data, although not yet verified, of attacks and alleged advances towards Limán and Lisichansk by the Ukrainian troops, who are also subjecting Donetsk to heavy bombardment.”
Blocked in Izium
British Intelligence believes that the Ukrainian Army “is blocking Russian units near Izium, a city located a little further south and the main stronghold of the Russian device in the area, and is preparing to deprive Russia of the supply line with destination to Donbas. Ukrainian Telegram channels maintain that Russian troops have already left Izium.
However, the adviser to the Presidency of Ukraine, Oleksiy Arestovich, declares in a video posted on YouTube that the Russians in Izium are practically isolated, hundreds of them have died in the recent fighting and several hundred more have become prisoners.
Ukrainian troops launched the counteroffensive in the southern Kharkov region on September 6, managing to advance 50 kilometers, which seems to indicate that it was a surprise for the Russian forces. In reality, it seems that the announcement of the counteroffensive in Kherson was a ploy to force Moscow to divert troops there and leave the fronts in the Kharkov and Donetsk regions unprotected.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that “more than 30 areas of the Kharkov region have been liberated.” He said he was hopeful that his army would continue “gradually advancing” to recover the towns occupied by Russia since February 24, when President Vladimir Putin ordered the start of the invasion. In his speech, Zelensky urged the inhabitants of these territories to inform the Ukrainian military of the crimes committed by the “occupiers”, with the aim of collecting as much evidence as possible. On Friday, according to Russian media, Moscow sent “reinforcement” troops to the Kharkiv area to try to stop the ongoing Ukrainian counter-offensive.
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