The Ukrainian counteroffensive entered its third week with mixed results Kyiv retook eight small towns

The Ukrainian counteroffensive entered its third week with mixed results in the face of air superiority and Russia’s kilometer-long defensive lines., particularly in the eastern and southeastern region of Zaporizhia, where heavy fighting is concentrated and Moscow has sent reinforcements. The Ukrainian presence is still there Eight small villages were recaptured in southern Donetsk and Zaporizhia, Being the last PiatijatkiIt was taken after heavy fighting, according to Valery Zalushny, the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

“Difficult” situation in the East

Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar admitted that “the situation in the east is difficult” because Russia is conducting an offensive in the direction of Liman (Donetsk) and Kubiansk (Kharkov) “trying to take the initiative from us.” To that end, Maliar says, Russia “concentrated a significant number of its units in the east, especially air assault units.”

kyiv troopsThose attempting to reach the occupied cities of Berdyansk and Melitopol to break through the land route established along the shores of the Sea of ​​Azov, They pushed back the Russian forces at Zaporizhia to a distance of seven kilometers and liberated 113 square kilometers.. The Russian Defense Ministry has not acknowledged the loss of any cities and continues to say daily that it is repelling Ukrainian attacks.

Russian military spokesman Igor Konashenkov pointed out on Monday Units of the Vostok and Southern groups repulsed three attacks in the south of the Donetsk region, two in Zaporizhia and four near the city of Donetsk, resulting in 440 casualties among enemy soldiers., in addition to destroying weapons. However, Vladimir Rokov, head of the “United Russia” movement in Zaporizhzhya, admitted on Sunday that he had lost operational control of Byatikatki, while saying that 24 hours later Ukrainian soldiers “launched another offensive in the direction of Orihiv”. From the epicenters of the wars in the southeast.

Destination: Sea of ​​Azov

From Piatijatki the Ukrainians could reach Vasilivka, where an important road leads south to Melitopol, near the Sea of ​​Azov, an important logistics and supply center for Russian troops. From Origi, Q’s troops also pushed south, where Dokmok was located, from which two highways lead to Melitopol and Berdyansk respectively.

The route to these strategic points in Zaporizhzhya was not easy for the Ukrainian army. An interactive map updated frequently by American Enterprise Institute’s Department of News and Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) analyst Brady Afrik shows a thick defensive line in the south, where heavy fighting is currently taking place, particularly around Vasilivka. and Dogmac.

Russia attacks with highly accurate missiles

This Monday, hours after Ukraine condemned missile attacks against the Black Sea port of Odessa, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had destroyed warehouses containing Western weapons with high-precision missiles. Russia launched four Iranian-made Shahed kamikaze drones over the Dnipropetrovsk region, which were intercepted by Ukraine’s military, the region’s military authority said.

At least seven people, including a child, were injured in Ukrainian artillery fire in Valuisk district, in the Russian region of Belgorod, said Vyselav Kladkov, the governor of this federal body bordering Ukraine. One man and three women were hospitalized with moderate injuries and two, with minor injuries, received medical treatment on an outpatient basis.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that Moscow would be forced to create a so-called “sanitary zone” on the neighboring country’s territory if the offensive continued along the Ukrainian border. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his regular speech on Monday: “Our troops are advancing, position by position, step by step, we are advancing”.

At a meeting of the General Staff of the Supreme Commander with army commanders and the head of military intelligence, Zelensky discussed the operational situation, ammunition supply, and forecasting of enemy actions in the future.

UN

Meanwhile, the United Nations is ready to go to all parts of Ukraine, including those under Russian control. Denis Brown, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine, criticized Moscow this weekend for not allowing access to the Russian-controlled Kakhovka hydroelectric plant, which was destroyed on the sixth of this month. Kherson region, under Ukrainian and Russian control.

Earlier, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it would be very difficult to guarantee the safety of UN experts who want to inspect the area around the hydroelectric plant after its destruction because the area is subject to constant shelling and provocations.