Ukrainian soldiers ride a tank near the village of Robotyne on August 25, 2023. Portal/Viacheslav Ratynskyi
- Ukraine has likely made a “significant tactical breakthrough” on the southern front, according to a new report.
- The report was released on Saturday by the US think tank Institute for the Study of War.
- The advance comes after a successful week for Ukrainian forces.
Ukraine has likely made “a significant tactical breakthrough” along Russia’s complex defenses on the southern front beyond the village of Robotyne, a report from the US think tank Institute for the Study of War said on Saturday.
The report adds, clarifying that “Ukrainian armed forces have not yet managed to break through this defensive layer with heavy armor and vehicles.”
Ukrainian officials have suggested that the series of Russian defensive positions ahead of the Ukrainian advance may be less challenging than the initial Russian defensive layer that Ukrainian forces broke through in the north, the ISW said.
Ukraine announced in early September that it had retaken control of the village of Robotyne.
This latest success comes after a week of notable military actions by Ukraine.
On Thursday, a video appeared that appeared to show Ukrainian soldiers entering and liberating the village of Andriivka near Bakhmut.
“Capturing and holding Andriivka is our path to breaking through on the right flank of Bakhmut and the key to the success of the entire further offensive,” Ukraine’s Third Attack Brigade, which was involved in the push, said, according to Portal.
According to Al Jazeera, Russia denied Ukraine’s advances and said Ukraine had “unsuccessfully attempted to expel Russian troops from the population centers of Klishchiivka and Andriivka.”
However, the ISW’s Saturday report states that geolocation has taken place Footage released on September 15 confirms that Ukrainian troops have advanced into the Bakhmut area, not only around Adriivka but also into the nearby villages of Rozdolivka and Klishchiivka.
Devastating attacks by Ukraine on land and sea
Video captures the moment an S-400 explodes in Crimea. Screenshot/Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
Also on Thursday, an attack in Crimea destroyed Russia’s advanced S-400 “Triumf” air defense system worth over $500 million using modified Neptune cruise missiles.
ISW said this could indicate that Russian air defenses in Crimea have “systemic tactical errors” and that Russian forces were “unprepared or unable to intercept missiles with the system.” It was the second attack to destroy S-400s in Crimea in just a few weeks.
On Friday, Ukraine attacked and damaged a Russian missile ship off the coast of Crimea. Ukrainian forces told Portal and Ukrainian media that an experimental maritime drone called Sea Baby was used as part of that attack.
The Russian Defense Ministry denied any damage and said the attack was repelled and the drone was destroyed, Portal added.
Ukraine also claimed that its naval drones attacked at least two Russian corvettes in the Black Sea, according to ISW, according to the newspaper Ukrainska Pravda.
BlackSky’s images showed the damage caused by a Ukrainian cruise missile attack on the dry docks of the Sevastopol Shipyard in Russian-occupied Crimea on September 13, 2023. Courtesy of BlackSky
According to British intelligence, a major Ukrainian attack with missiles and naval drones on a naval base in Crimea earlier this week may have dealt a serious blow to the operations of Putin’s Black Sea Fleet.
According to the British Ministry of Defense, Ukrainian forces launched an attack on the Russian Black Sea Fleet base in Sevastopol on Wednesday, attacking a submarine and a landing ship.
In his latest Intelligence update released FridayThe British Ministry of Defense said the two ships – identified as the landing ship Minsk and the Kilo 636.3 Rostov-on-Don class submarine – were hit during repairs in the dry dock of the Sevmorzadov shipyard.
The attack also put the dry docks, which are important for the maintenance of the Black Sea Fleet, out of operation for the foreseeable future.
“The complex task of removing the debris from the dry docks will also put the facility out of action for many months,” the UK Ministry of Defense said.
On Saturday, a NATO admiral told the military alliance that “history books will show that Ukraine changed modern warfare. And she is making progress every day. Every success is one step closer to victory.”
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