Ukraine began “a large-scale offensive” to recapture territories taken by Russia

2023-06-05 22:35:00

The start of Ukraine’s counter-offensive on the Russian-occupied eastern border began with conflicting claims regarding the “success” of the campaign. The defense authorities of Russia They affirmed this June 5 that they repelled “a full-scale offensive” of the Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk region, while Ukraine ensured that his troops advanced around Bakhmut while downplaying the importance of his “offensive actions”.

“The enemy launched a full-scale offensive on five sectors of the front” in the south of Donetsk, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Telegram. But “it did not achieve its goal, it was not successful,” he added.posting a video it claims to be of the battle, in which Ukrainian armored vehicles face heavy artillery.

The advance on Bakhmut

The advance on the Bakhmut area was confirmed by the Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister, Hanna Malyar, who reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces began “offensive actions” at some points in what is one of the main combat fronts with Russian troops. in the last weeks.

Malyar explained that the Ukrainian defense “includes everything”, which also includes counterattacks to which Kiev prefers not to give special consideration for now, after speculating about the imminent start of a new offensive to try to recover lost territories in the east. .

Bakhmut “remains the epicenter of the fighting. We are advancing there on a fairly broad front,” said the deputy defense minister., which sees the Russian forces “on the defensive”, wanting to hold their position. In this sense, he pointed out that the references made by Russia about a possible counteroffensive only seek to “divert attention” from what is happening in Bakhmut. “The defensive operation includes counteroffensive actions. Therefore, in some sectors, we are carrying out offensive actions,” he explained.

A prominent Russian war correspondent, Alexander Kots, said “battles raged” around Vugledar in the southern Donetsk region, and further north at Soledar and Bakhmut, which were occupied by Moscow forces after months. fighting. He added that Ukrainian forces were “carrying out offensive operations” in and around Bakhmut, but suggested that kyiv had not yet “introduced the main forces into the battle.”

Zelenski called the reaction of Russian troops “hysterical”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenski thanked his troops for their advances near the devastated city of Bakhmut in the east of the country on Monday. He also described Moscow’s reaction “hysterical”which claims to have repelled large-scale attacks.

“We see how hysterically Russia reacts to every advance we make in this sector, to every position we take. The enemy knows that Ukraine is going to win,” Zelensky said in a video message.

The Ukrainian president’s assertions contrasted with that of the Russian government and came as Pope Francis’ peace envoy, Italian Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, arrived in Kiev to push the Vatican’s peace proposal forward.

Pope Francis and Volodimir Zelensky.

Russia’s defenses “are more fragile than previously thought”

Russia’s defenses could be “more fragile than previously thought,” Western officials advising Kiev have warned. The statements were published by The Economist and came out as part of the start of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, which has already advanced up to five or six kilometers and where “fierce battles” are being fought, according to reports.

For his part, Vladimir Rogov, an official in the Kremlin-backed administration in the occupied Zaporizhia region, said fighting resumed Monday near Donetsk after Russian defenses resisted the Ukrainian counter-offensive on the eastern border.

“The enemy launched an even larger force into the attack than yesterday (Sunday),” and the new attempt to break through the front line was “more large-scale and organized,” the official said, adding: “The battle is underway.” . His statements, meanwhile, occurred after the Putin government announced that Ukrainian “big attacks” had been thwarted in that area.

According to Rogov’s interpretation, Kiev’s idea is to deploy a strategy towards the coasts of the Azov Sea in order to cut off the continental corridor towards Crimea, where one of the most important Russian military bases is located. The advantage of this strategy for kyiv is based on dividing the Russian forces into two parts by putting pressure on the supplies sent to the peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.

Waiting for the big Ukrainian offensive

The Ukrainian government has been preparing a major counteroffensive for months to recover lost territories since Russia launched its military operation in February 2022. However, the Ukrainian authorities warned that they would not reveal anything about their plans or the timetable.

In May, Russia said it seized the now-destroyed city of Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine, the scene of one of the war’s longest and bloodiest battles, after which Kiev again anticipated a major offensive to retake the territory. lost.

Much of Donetsk has been under the control of pro-Russian separatists since 2014.. . . . It is one of four Ukrainian territories Russia annexed last September, along with Lugansk, Zaporiyia and Jerson.

In May, the Russian Wagner paramilitary group claimed to have captured the city of Bakhmut after the longest and deadliest battle of the war. Its chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, confirmed on Monday that Ukrainian forces had recaptured part of the town of Berkhivka, north of Bakhmut.

The new incursion of pro-Ukrainian forces into Russian territory came shortly after Russia attacked central Ukraine from the air.. In one of those attacks, a two-year-old girl was killed on Saturday night and 22 others were injured in the city of Dnipro. In another attack, on Sunday, an airfield near the city of Kropivnitskii in the center of the country was hit, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Russian bombing of Ukraine intensified in recent weeks, as did incursions by pro-Ukrainian forces in the opposite direction. The Russian army said it had carried out night attacks against Ukrainian military airfields, and claimed to have hit command centers and equipment, without specifying the location of these facilities.

The war has intensified in recent weeks, with attacks on both sides of the border with Russia rising, as military experts hope Ukrainian forces will test Russian defenses for weaknesses before launching a full-blown offensive.

You may also like