For the first time since the early stages of the Russian invasion, Ukrainian forces are stationed on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River.
19FortyFive reports that Ukraine’s counteroffensive is making solid gains. Ukrainian soldiers are still advancing along four critical fronts in the Donbas and southern Ukraine.
In the final week of warfare, however, Ukrainian forces crossed the Dnipro River in the Kherson Oblast, threatening to form a new front and further strain Russian soldiers.
Using various tactics, the Ukrainian troops have constructed a bridgehead on the opposite bank of the Dnipro River from the now-destroyed Antonivsky Bridge. To prevent a quick retreat by Russian forces stationed on the western side of the Dnipro River last October, the Ukrainians used long-range artillery to demolish the bridge.
Russian military forces, including the elite 7th Guards Air Assault Division, are fighting fiercely to slow the attacks and force the Ukrainians into the ocean.
The Ukrainian counteroffensive has forced the Russian military to move soldiers away from the area, creating a personnel deficit that must be accounted for.
The Ukrainians appear to be following a plan of attacking from numerous fronts to wear down the Russian defenses and create space for a strategic breakthrough that may alter the battlefield.
However, the situation is compounded by the fact that Russian soldiers destroyed the Kakhovka Dam and Hydroelectric Power Station in early June. Because of the ensuing floods, mechanized large-scale combat in the area has been complicated.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is now 493 days old, bringing new, devastating losses for the Russian military every day.
Meanwhile, the two sides’ artillery war shows no signs of stopping. Ukrainian forces claim to have destroyed 35 Russian artillery pieces in the previous 24 hours and potentially more than 200 since the commencement of the counteroffensive.
228,870 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense’s estimates as of Saturday. Additionally, Ukrainian forces have reportedly destroyed 4,042 tanks, 4,162 artillery pieces, 7,868 armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles, 632 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), 18 boats and cutters, 6,794 vehicles and fuel tanks, 389 anti-aircraft batteries.
