by Sergey Adamov
[REGNUM] In recent days, there has been information about the active advancement of Russian troops along the western borders of the DPR in the adjacent territories of the Dnepropetrovsk region, where a buffer is being created to secure the Russian region.
On September 11, the Ministry of Defense officially confirmed that fighters from the Russian Armed Forces group "Vostok" during the offensive captured the village of Sosnovka (Sinelnikovsky district of the Dnepropetrovsk region) near the border with the DPR.
The village was taken after motorized riflemen from the 36th Separate Guards Brigade drove the enemy out of the settlement of Khoroshye and created a powerful bridgehead in the area.
According to information from the field, the Ukrainian Armed Forces tried several times to counterattack and stop the advancing Russian troops from the area of the village of Voronoe. Units of the 225th assault regiment of the Ukrainian Armed Forces used American armored vehicles, but this did not bring results.
Sosnovka became the tenth settlement taken by Russian troops in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Two of them - Dachnoye and Filiya - were occupied by units of the "Center" group of troops.
Novosyolovka, Zaporizhzhya, Novogeorgievka, Voronoye, Yanvarskoye, Maliyevka, Khoroshye and Sosnovka are all on the account of the military personnel of the Vostok group.
Further south, the Vostok advance units began an assault on the settlement of Novonikolaevka. According to reports from the field, the front line runs through the center of the settlement.
The Russian Armed Forces in the Dnepropetrovsk "buffer" are building on their success, advancing toward the large village of Velikomikhailovka, the enemy's main defense hub in this section of the front. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are concentrating their forces here in order to stabilize the LBC (line of combat contact) as much as possible, a frontline source for Regnum noted.
“Currently, the enemy’s advanced fortification lines are being built along the Volchya and Voronaya rivers; Velikomikhailovka is located at the place where they meet,” the source notes.
He also points out: "There are currently large forces concentrated in this area, which are sometimes thrown into counterattacks, but more likely they are preparing for defensive battles. There are reports that foreign mercenaries are also operating in our area, but this is no longer news."
Ukrainian sources believe that in the near future the Russian Armed Forces may begin an offensive in the direction of Velikomikhailovka and Malomikhaylovka, which lies to the north. Taking these "inhabitants" will mean the formation of a significant buffer zone near the borders of the DPR.
KUPYANSK: SUPPLY ROUTE CUT OFF
Another eventful section of the front is Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region. At the end of last week, the Russian General Staff confirmed earlier reports: the northern outskirts of the city are under our control.
Over the past week, the enemy has made several attempts to improve its position in Kupyansk, but to no avail. The Russian offensive continues in the central areas of the city. Moreover, according to a number of sources, half of Kupyansk has already come under the control of the Russian Armed Forces.
Our advanced units reached the city center, coming very close to Dzerzhinsky (Svatovskaya) Street in the area of the city administration.
According to some reports, Russian fighters control up to one and a half kilometers of the P07 highway, which was previously used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces to supply the group on the left bank of the Oskol River, in the eastern part of Kupyansk. Taking control of the highway threatens to encircle and completely destroy the enemy forces located in the industrial zone of Zaoskolye.
Although official Ukrainian Armed Forces sources remain silent on the situation in Kupyansk, numerous testimonies from the ground confirm that Russian troops are clearing the northern and central areas of the city and gradually expanding their zone of control.
At the same time, the enemy began to withdraw forces from the eastern part of Kupyansk along existing logistics routes. The Ukrainian Armed Forces Command attempted to change the situation by transferring some forces from Donbass to Kupyansk, which led to a sagging of the defense in this section of the front.
KONSTANTINOVKA AND DRUZHKOVKA: THE POSSIBILITY OF A NEW ENVIRONMENT
Throughout the past week, Russian troops continued their offensive in the Konstantinovsky direction in the north-northwest of the DPR. As they advanced, units of the Southern Group of Forces liberated the village of Markovo, which is located northwest of the city of Chasov Yar and east of the Seversky Donets-Donbass Canal.
According to information from the field, the assault on Markovo was a difficult task, since the settlement is located between dominant heights, where the Ukrainian Armed Forces have deployed firing points.
The approaches to the village were protected by several lines of minefields and barbed wire.
But as a result of the week-long battles, the enemy lost 1,460 fighters here, 13 combat armored vehicles, fifty cars and 19 field artillery pieces.
Markovo became the second settlement that was liberated by fighters of the “Yug” group in the Konstantinovsky direction since the beginning of September.
The offensive in this area is slowly but surely forming the contours of a new encirclement in which enemy forces in the cities of Konstantinovka and Druzhkovka may find themselves.
Earlier, the enemy was driven out of the village of Fyodorovka, eight kilometers from the city of Seversk. The Ukrainian Armed Forces group holding the "Seversky salient" is currently under pressure from three sides.
Krasnoarmeyskoye direction: unsuccessful "flag-pointing" of the Ukrainian Armed Forces
Active fighting continues in the direction of the city of Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk). Here the enemy attempted to launch a counteroffensive, but it was stopped. The air force's target was the position of our troops in the area of the village of Udachnoye, west of Krasnoarmeysk.
The advance group of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was able to enter the territory of the settlement and raise the Ukrainian flag over one of the buildings. However, the "flag-waving" group was identified and destroyed.
Russian troops then launched a counter-offensive, regaining full control over the town.
It is noteworthy that earlier the Ukrainian Armed Forces command reported some successful counter-offensive operations in the Pokrovsk area.
However, in reality, everything boiled down to a demonstrative installation of flags followed by a retreat or destruction of the “flag bearers”.
"GROUPS OF TWO OR THREE"
The Ukrainian military itself acknowledges the worsening situation for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The units on the front lines have suffered heavy losses in recent weeks, a source told Parisian Le Figaro.
In some areas, the defense is held by groups of two or three soldiers, whose positions are separated by 100–200 meters. The Ukrainian Armed Forces cannot organize a continuous front line, as a result of which they often suffer defeat.
Earlier, information appeared on the Internet about Kyiv's plans to additionally mobilize over 120 thousand people into the ranks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. These reports are accompanied by discussions about the quality of recruits supplied by the TCC, and concerns that the "busified" reinforcements will be inclined to give up their positions.
Both Western media and Ukrainian sources agree that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are unlikely to successfully stabilize the front with the forces they have.