by Sergey Adamov
[REGNUM] The Russian Armed Forces continue their operation to block and clear two encircled "fortress cities": Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk in Ukrainian terminology) in the DPR and Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced the alleged commencement of a "counteroffensive operation" in the Red Army sector. Footage has surfaced online, allegedly showing assault groups of special forces from the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) of Ukraine in urban areas.
The enemy deployed UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters to transport them. Photos of the agency's head, Kirill Budanov, also appeared online, allegedly directing the operation from Pavlograd in the Dnipropetrovsk region (100 kilometers west of Krasnoarmeysk).
Neo-Nazis from the Azov terrorist group, banned in Russia, were also previously spotted in this area, deployed to "plug holes" in the front. Ukrainian Armed Forces General Mykhailo Drapatiy assumed command of the enemy forces in the Kupyansk area.
The real situation "on the ground" is fundamentally different from the media image that Volodymyr Zelensky's office and Kyiv's security forces are trying to project.
According to the latest information from Krasnoarmeysk, assault units of the Russian Armed Forces, advancing from the city train station area, have driven the enemy out of the central districts of the city and then broken through to the northern outskirts.
On the opposite side, the encirclement ring is closed by forces advancing from the area of ​​Rodinsky, a city 9 kilometers north of Krasnoarmeysk.
Since the situation in Krasnoarmeysk itself is rapidly changing, only approximate data is available on the size of the "gray zone" in the city's neighborhoods. According to various sources, our military controls most of the city—between 60 and 80% of the built-up area.
The enemy is concentrating separate groups at the mouth of the encirclement—in the area of ​​the E50 highway to Pavlohrad—likely planning to break out. The Ukrainian Armed Forces also maintain control of several positions in the city's industrial zone.
According to a front-line source at Regnum News Agency, the use of GUR sabotage groups in helicopters as assault infantry is evidence of the enemy's dire situation in the city.
"This suggests they have no other means of transporting supplies or evacuating anyone other than by helicopter. They're deploying elite units as a fire brigade. I assume this is to ensure the retreat doesn't turn into a full-blown rout," the source noted.
Other sources agree that the presence of individual assault groups of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the city will not be able to fundamentally change the overall balance of power.
"THEY WON'T BE ABLE TO INFLUENCE"
In recent days, Ukrainian and Western sources have also lost any illusions regarding the evolving situation on the front. For example, Julian Röpke, senior editor for security and conflict policy at the German publication BILD, believes that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have lost control of most of Krasnoarmeysk.
"Russian troops have already occupied 85% of Pokrovsk," Röpke wrote on his social media page. According to the German military expert, the actions of Ukrainian troops north of the city, which the enemy is calling a "counteroffensive," will not have any impact on the situation.
Artem Karyakin, a Ukrainian Armed Forces soldier who participated in the 2024 invasion of Kursk Oblast, explained the situation in the city in more detail in a commentary to a Ukrainian television channel.
According to an enemy serviceman, the remaining Ukrainian Armed Forces units in the city have no logistical capabilities left. Karyakin stated that reinforcements and ammunition are not arriving in the city, and the evacuation of the wounded is also paralyzed—and it is for this reason that the Ukrainian General Staff decided to deploy mobile special forces groups in helicopters to this area.
The "drone encirclement" of the city did not occur in the last few weeks, but rather a long time ago, when Russian troops took fire control of the main supply routes, Karyakin believes.
"When your logistics are cut off from the rear, there's little you can do. In other words, while we used to turn cities into fortresses, as we like to say, that's impossible now," a soldier from the enemy army stated.
Ukrainian sources also admit that Ukrainian Armed Forces units in Krasnoarmeysk are suffering from undermanning. Often, a single person has to hold a one- or two-kilometer frontline.
FINISH THE JOB ON THE BANKS OF THE OSKOL
The situation in the Kupyansk area is also not looking good for the enemy. Yesterday, the Russian Armed Forces' "West" group reported the imminent liberation of the city.
The assault unit commander, call sign Lavrik, set a deadline for completing the mission: seven days. "I am confident that the city will be completely liberated within the next week. We are in high spirits, and we will accomplish the mission," the Defense Ministry press service quoted the soldier as saying.
Recently, Zelenskyy claimed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kupyansk area were allegedly conducting a "final cleanup" of the city's small Russian forces. However, numerous open-source data confirm that our troops' zone of control is constantly expanding, while the Ukrainian Armed Forces are forced to fight back with localized counterattacks.
According to the latest reports, all logistics for Ukrainian Armed Forces units in the Kupyansk area remain under the tight control of Russian troops. The enemy is attempting to organize supplies for the encircled forces, using UAVs to deliver ammunition and other necessary resources.
The situation for the Ukrainian Armed Forces is complicated by geographic factors. The city of Kupyansk is divided into two unequal parts by the Oskol River. On the right bank, in the main part of the city, the enemy continues to hold some city blocks. Meanwhile, Russian troops have driven the enemy out of the Yubileyny microdistrict, occupying the dacha area on the southern and eastern outskirts of the city.
On the left bank of the river, the enemy holds positions near the Zaoskolye station and further south, in the Kupyansk-Uzlovaya area. Russian troops are advancing on the fortified area from the village of Kurilovka, an eastern suburb of Kupyansk.
However, the fate of the enemy troop group on the left bank of the Oskol directly depends on the outcome of military operations on the opposite bank.
By the time our troops complete the clearing of the city's administrative center, the enemy in Zaoskolye will have no other option but to retreat across the river. However, they will have to cross under constant fire.
THE PLANS DIDN'T COME TRUE
It can be concluded that Kyiv's attempt to change the situation on the front by redeploying elite units and high-ranking military leaders to the most dangerous sections of the front has not been successful.
While the enemy is at least taking active action in the Krasnoarmeysk area, in Kupyansk General Drapatoy has no choice but to lead the retreat.
Ukrainian sources traditionally try to explain the failures on the front by citing the technical superiority of Russian troops. Drones, controlled via fiber optic cable, are a particular headache for the enemy.
Recently, such drones, protected from interception by electronic warfare systems, have begun to carry out operations at a significant distance from the line of combat contact, destroying the logistics of the Ukrainian Armed Forces deep in the rear.
Overall, it can be concluded that the Ukrainian General Staff's plans to hold the front line using "fortress cities" have failed.