Ukraine has reportedly broken through Russian defences as its counter-offensive against Vladimir Putin’s invading forces seemingly gathers momentum.
The Ukrainian military’s 47th Mechanised brigade breached Russian lines to reach the outskirts of Robotyne, a village 12 miles to the north-east of Tokmak in the Zaporizhzhia region. And long-range Himars missiles – developed in the late 1990s for the United States Army – have reportedly hit an ammunition dump in Tokmak.
Vladimir Rogov, the head of the Moscow-installed administration in Zaporizhzhia, described the missile attack as “massive” and admitted that Ukrainian forces had breached Russian lines near Robotyne. And a member of Ukraine’s 47th reportedly told a UK newspaper that it was using Western weapons to “destroy the enemy”.
It come as part of a “significant counteroffensive” that could last up to three weeks as Kyiv attempts to punch a hole through deep Russian defence lines. Russia has fortified miles of occupied territory with mines and tank traps, in a bid to slow down the thrust of Ukraine’s three-point counteroffensive.
However, Rogov has now said that Ukraine has indeed breached Russian lines near Robotyne – using 100 armoured vehicles, including US Bradley fighting vehicles and German Leopard tanks. However, other Russian sources put the number of armoured vehicles at between 30 and 50, reports The Telegraph.
US-based think-tank the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said it was likely that Kyiv had “managed to penetrate and drive through tactically challenging defensive positions”. It comes after Pentagon officials said that Ukrainian forces had managed to secure a pathway through the heavy minefields in Zaporizhzhia, and were piling into attack through the channel.
Putin himself had confirmed that Ukraine’s counter-offensive has “intensified significantly”. But the Russian president claimed his forces had destroyed 26 tanks – and that Russian “heroism” had repelled he Ukrainians on all fronts.
The Russian MOD had also claimed that both the attacks in Zaporizhzhia Oblast had been beaten back, but provided no evidence of this. It is believed Ukraine will no try to advance towards the city of Tokmak, before staging a final push to the coastal city of Melitopol by the Sea of Azov.
Mellitopol has been considered a central aim of the Ukrainian counteroffensive for months. Reclaiming the city would sever Russian supply lines to their soldiers in the eastern regions.
