Ukrainian commanders have sent in mechanized brigades, including heavy battle tanks, along with conventional troops to assault several locations in the southern Donetsk region, where Russian troops are entrenched.
One Ukrainian official said its military is “shifting to offensive actions” in some areas, but Kyiv has largely remained silent on the attacks. A range of Western and Russian analysts are reporting that the operation signals the start of the counteroffensive.
The heavy fighting in southern Donetsk indicates Ukraine may be attempting to strike through perceived weaknesses in the fortified Russian lines of eastern Ukraine after weeks of probing, though Ukrainian soldiers have yet to make any serious advances.
Most of the fighting is taking place near two urban towns, with Russian military bloggers and officials saying that Ukraine is primarily assaulting the area surrounding Novodonetske and Velyka Novosilka in the southern Donetsk region.
Both towns lie near the southern Zaporizhzhia region, which military analysts say Ukraine may target in order to cut off a land bridge and a major supply hub linked to Russian-occupied Crimea.
The main campaign appears to be centered on Novodonetske, which is nestled between Velkya Novosilka and Vuhledar, a city largely held by Ukrainian forces that Russia has attempted to capture for months.
Despite growing pressure on Russian forces, Ukraine has yet to commit its main forces to the battle.
Col. Oleksandr Bakulin, who leads a contingent of troops near Bakhmut, told ABC News that the fighting underway now was part of a bigger plan and the clashes in south Donetsk would “eventually lead to the counteroffensive.”
Ukraine’s government, meanwhile, remains mostly silent. Besides Bakulin’s vague comments to ABC News, Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said on Telegram the military was “shifting to offensive actions” in some areas around Bakhmut.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
