Ukrainian marines and special forces managed to overcome what Prussian military genius Carl von Clausewitz called in 1832 nature’s best ally for a defending army: they were able to advance against an enemy entrenched on the opposite bank of the Dnipro River. Against all odds, several thousand Ukrainian crack troops have managed to gain a foothold along the river’s 12-mile east coast in the Russian-controlled portion of Kherson province on the war’s southern front.
Ukrainian forces have opened a new flank against the invader, where it seemed most difficult to reach. It is their biggest frontline success this year since the liberation of the western half of Kherson province on the right bank of the Dnipro. Another significant success for Kiev since the summer was air and sea drone attacks against the Russian fleet in Crimea, which pushed back enemy warships in the Black Sea. But on land there was not very good news for Ukraine. The counteroffensive launched in the Zaporizhzhia province in the summer did not produce the desired results, and Russia is attacking in the Donetsk and Kharkiv provinces. Its forces have numerical superiority in artillery, drones and troops, but this superiority has come at the expense of the vulnerability of the southern flank, including Kherson. Russian defense relies on the difficulty of crossing the Dnipro River and its thousands of wetlands.
In October, the Ukrainian armed forces launched a continuous attack campaign with speedboats in the utmost secrecy to gain a foothold on the other side of the Dnipro. Although there were several attacks in the summer, the large-scale operation could not be carried out earlier because thousands of fields were flooded when the Kakhovka dam was destroyed last June. The floodwaters eventually receded and as the weeks passed the fields dried out. The result is that troops have managed to establish what are known in military theory as two “beachheads” – two points secured by troops with boats arriving daily to relieve soldiers and even transport armored light infantry vehicles – as reported by Vitali EL PAÍS, the commander of a special forces unit who asked not to publish his last name.
The Antonivksiy Bridge in Kherson, where Ukrainian troops crossed towards the Russian-occupied bank of the Dnipro. Picture from November 20, 2023. Cristian Segura
The two beachheads are about 12 miles apart; One is near the city of Kherson, near the Antonivsky Bridge, while fighting is taking place in the city of Oleshky. The other is further north in the town of Krinki. The same strategy is also being pursued south of the city of Kherson, according to the weekly military analysis published on November 15 by Espreso, one of Ukraine’s leading media companies. Landings have increased in Hola Pristan, a settlement four miles from the provincial capital.
In the November 15 online publication Oboz, Roman Svitan, a retired colonel in the Ukrainian Armed Forces and one of the war’s most quoted analysts, claimed that this third spearhead could be crucial in liberating the mouth of the Dnipro up to Cape Kinburn. This would force Russian troops to retreat towards Skadovsk on the border with Crimea to avoid being cut off. The situation would also allow Ukraine to regain control of the Dniprovska Gulf, a safe river that flows into the Black Sea from Kherson and Mykolaiv.
The Ukrainian General Staff reports that the official immediate goal is to push the invader back 12 miles from the river to ensure that civil and economic life in left-bank communities can recover. This distance is the minimum to reduce Russia’s ability to wreak havoc on settlements along the river with its old Soviet-era artillery. Both Espreso and the Institute for the Study of War, an American center for analyzing the conflict, emphasize that one of the reasons for the operations in the Dnipro is to force a redeployment of Russian troops south from the Donetsk, Kharkiv and Zaporizhia fronts . Sources in the Southern High Command assure this newspaper that a land advance from the Dnipro towards Crimea, some 62 miles away, is currently impossible due to outnumbered personnel and artillery resources.
A view of Kherson from Oleshky on the left bank of the Dnipro. The city is the scene of fierce fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces. Picture from November 20, 2023. Cristian Segura
If the two armies agree on something, they will restrict media access to the Dnipro. The Ukrainian Southern Command denies media access and any opportunity to interview soldiers in the hinterland. During the summer counteroffensive on the Zaporizhia Front, the Ukrainian military was obsessed with maintaining secrecy. Government officials publicly complained that media and analysts were increasingly turning to Russian military sources to understand what was happening on the battlefield. The same thing happens in Kherson. In November this year, the BBC interviewed Russian soldiers fighting in Krinki. They claimed that members of the Ukrainian special forces attacked their positions wearing the uniforms of Russian firefighters or rescue workers, in violation of the Geneva Convention.
These Russian soldiers estimated that 500 Ukrainian soldiers had already landed in Krinki, although the number throughout the area was much higher, Western military sources told the Guardian on November 16. The British newspaper said Ukrainian forces had managed to land three naval brigades on the eastern side of Kherson, which would equate to 6,000 soldiers. Taking into account that these troops fight alternately over several days, this would mean that there are at least 3,000 soldiers deployed on the Left Bank.
The Russian soldiers also confirmed to the BBC something that Western and Russian analysts had highlighted. In the first wave, the special forces take enemy positions and then the Marine Corps goes into action. Clashes between the two armies were reported four kilometers offshore, but Vitali, the special forces commander, noted that his men had penetrated much further into the enemy’s ranks. The goal is to locate the Russian artillery and drone pilots so that the Ukrainian howitzers and unmanned devices can neutralize them. He says this is key to ensuring river bars can safely transport armored infantry vehicles like America’s Bradley tanks in maneuvers that can last up to 40 minutes.
Ukrainian soldiers prepare for a landing on the Dnipro River, Oct. 15, 2023. Mstyslav Chernov (AP)
At the moment, the infantry has not yet crossed the river with mechanized brigades, “but very soon it will be possible,” says Vitali. Retired Colonel Svitan was not so optimistic in his interview with Oboz, explaining that in addition to the current troops, assault companies capable of keeping the Russians nine miles away would first be needed. Pontoon bridges can then be built and anti-aircraft batteries can be set up on the west bank. At the moment, Svitan said, the Ukrainians have to operate in small tactical groups that are constantly on the move. This is particularly important as the Russian command has assigned a new paratrooper regiment to regain control of Krinki, the Ukrainian military research institute Center for Defense Strategies reported on Thursday. “The site [wetlands and sandbars] “It is not suitable for digging trenches, so the best defense is to keep moving and disperse,” Svitan concluded.
From the rear in Kherson, the Ukrainians are constantly firing howitzers and medium-range precision missiles such as the American Himars to disrupt the enemy’s logistics lines. The British Ministry of Defense confirmed this Friday that a Ukrainian attack on November 10 destroyed a Russian convoy on the Kherson front, 14 miles from the river, killing more than 70 soldiers. British intelligence also claims that a concentration of Russian troops was bombed in Donetsk on November 19, resulting in “dozens of casualties.”
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