Since the beginning of the war, Russian troops have controlled large parts of the Cherson region. For a few days they have had to defend themselves against a Ukrainian counter-offensive. According to the British secret service, the Russian supply lines are in danger of being demolished.
According to the British secret service, the Russian troops on the southern front of Ukraine are coming under considerable pressure. The British Ministry of Defense reports in the daily situation report that heavy fighting has raged west of the Dnieper River in the province of Kherson for the past 48 hours. "Russia is trying to stop the Ukrainian advance with artillery fire along the Ingulets," it says. The Ingulets is a tributary of the Dnieper and a natural barrier in the region.
According to the British government, the Russian defense is apparently not successful. "To the west of the Dnieper, the risk for the Russian supply lines increases," says the status report. Ukraine had succeeded in further attacks on the Antonivka Bridge. This crosses the Dnieper and is of central importance for supplying Russian troops west of the river. However, the Russian military is said to have successfully made some repairs.
Since the beginning of the war, Russian forces have controlled large parts of the Cherson region and from there threaten the port city of Odessa and the remaining Ukrainian coastal strip as far as Transnistria. Military experts fear that Moscow could use the positions in the region for a new offensive next spring. Last week, however, the Ukrainian leadership announced a major offensive to recapture the south of the country.
So far, the Ukrainian offensive seems to have been successful. According to information from Kyiv, Ukrainian forces are said to have surrounded more than 1,000 Russian soldiers in the area. The Russians were in a "tactical encirclement" not far from the Vysokopillya settlement, said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's adviser, Oleksiy Arestovych, on Friday evening. On Thursday they had unsuccessfully attempted a breakthrough. The statements can neither be confirmed nor denied.
Some time ago, the Ukrainian army also declared the capture of the village of Potemkyne. In addition, the population in the city of Cherson had repeatedly protested against the Russian occupiers in recent months. There were also attacks against pro-Russian members of the administration deployed by Moscow.
