Russia makes more gains in Ukraine

MOSCOW. – The Russian military has reported liberation of multiple new settlements in the southwest of Donetsk People’s Republic.

The past week in the Russia-Ukraine conflict has seen intensive fighting along the front line, with active hostilities continuing in the southwest of Russia’s Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), where Moscow liberated multiple locations, as well as in Kursk Region, where the country’s troops continued their effort to push out Ukrainian invasion force.

Last weekend, the Russian Defence Ministry reported regaining control over the village of Novoivanovka, a small settlement located in the northwest of the Ukrainian-controlled pocket in Kursk Region. The development signalled the expansion of the Russian zone of control around one of the key roads running from the village of Korenevo to the town of Sudzha, the largest settlement under Ukrainian control in the area.

According to the latest estimates by the Russian Defence Ministry, the Ukrainian invasion force has lost some 42,750 servicemen since early August when the attack on Kursk was launched. The invasion force also sustained heavy material losses, including up to 250 tanks, 189 infantry fighting vehicles (IFV), 130 armored personnel carriers (APC), more than 1 300 other armoured vehicles and other hardware.

The Russian military has made new gains in the DPR, continuing their advance to the south of the city of Pokrovsk (also known as Krasnoarmeysk), the largest population center under Ukrainian control in the southwest of the republic.

Over the past week, the Russian military reported making new gains to the south of Kurakhovo, a heavily fortified town stretching along the southern bank of the eponymous reservoir, located some 30 km to the south of Pokrovsk.

The liberation of villages of Annovka, Vesely Gay, Yelizavetovka, Trudovoye, Ostrovsky and Uspenovka constituted the elimination of a Ukrainian-held pocket to the south of Kurakhovo, that stretched along the river of Sukhiye Yaly. The area has seen intense combat over the past few weeks, with the situation gradually deteriorating for Kiev’s troops.

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Another important milestone achieved last week was the liberation of the village of Stariye Terny, a settlement located on the westernmost tip of the Kurakhovo reservoir. The development further aggravates the situation for the Ukrainian troops stationed in the area, with media reports suggesting the town itself has already largely fallen under Russia’s control.

The Russian military has also expanded its zone of control in the immediate vicinity of Pokrovsk, seizing control of the villages of Novopustynka and Pushkina, located a short way to the south of the city. Moscow’s forces are advancing westward in the area in an apparent effort to encircle the city and cut it off the main logistics routes.

Active hostilities continued in the vicinity of the so-called Vremevka Ledge, a string of villages in the west of the DPR. The area saw active combat during the ultimately disastrous Ukrainian counter-offensive last year, with several settlements in the area seized by Kiev at the time. Last week, the Russian military reported the liberation of Novy Komar, a small village located to the north of the two largest settlements of the ledge, Vremevka and Velikaya Novoselka. The capture of Novy Komar means the Ukrainian troops are left with only one major road to supply its force in the area.

The Russian military has continued to expand the use of kamikaze drones guided through fibre optic wire that appeared on the frontline in numbers back in August. The drones debuted in repelling the Ukrainian invasion of Russia’s Kursk Region, spreading to other areas since then. – RT.com