Russian offensive near Avdiivka, air defense coalition and attack on Moscow: main events on the frontline over the week
The 641st day of Ukraine’s heroic resistance to Russian aggression is coming to an end.
This week was very eventful at the front. Near Avdiivka, the occupiers are “crawling out of all the cracks” and are advancing on the Kupiansk direction.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have managed to form several bridgeheads on the left bank of the Kherson region and are taking small steps to push the occupiers out in order to protect the population of Kherson from constant massive shelling.
Fakty ICTV talked to military expert and reserve colonel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Roman Svitan about the massive drone attack on Kyiv and the equally massive drone attack on Moscow.
Avdiivka sector
The third wave of the Russian occupiers’ offensive continues near Avdiivka, Donetsk region. According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), geolocation footage from November 24 shows that Russians have advanced north of Krasnohorivka, 7 km northwest of Avdiivka.
– The third wave of the Russian offensive is underway there, they started moving about a week and a half ago, using equipment. But we knocked out the equipment and they switched to a different mode – they are advancing with the help of “meat shafts” and using equipment only in the industrial zone,” Svitan said.
The expert confirmed that over the past week, the occupiers have indeed managed to advance northwest of Krasnohorivka. He noted that the occupants are trying to advance toward Ocheretyne.
Map: Fakty ICTV
– There is a certain amount of artillery in the area of Ocheretyne, which keeps the Russian military from encircling Avdiivka. there is indeed an advance there, but it is not critical. The critical advance of the Russians is in the area of the Yasynuvata fork, so to speak. There are three such areas, south and southeast of Avdiivka. These are the Yasynuvata fork, the so-called Tsar’s Hunt and Spartak. They tried to advance from these three points, and more or less succeeded in advancing in the gray zone, the so-called industrial zone. It is between Avdiivka and the Yasynuvata fork,” the military added.
Kupyansk direction
Recently, Volodymyr Fitio, the head of the Army’s public relations service, told the national telethon “United News” that the occupiers have also intensified their activities in the Kupiansk direction in Kharkiv region and are trying to find weaknesses in the defense there.
The Russian military want to reach the borders of the village of Synkivka in order to build on their success in the offensive on Kupiansk.
The full version of the interview with Roman Svitan can be found at the link below:
– Kupyansk itself is not far from the border with Russia. It is about 20 kilometers to the Russian border and 70 kilometers to Valuiky, which is the main military hub of the Russian Federation, through which they transfer a sufficient amount of forces and means by rail. This is the shortest logistics hub, so it is more convenient for them to conduct offensive actions against Kupyansk,” Svitan said.
The colonel emphasized that in any case, the occupants will not be able to cross the Oskol River. The Russians cannot encircle the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, so they are trying to advance from north to south.
Map: ICTV Fakty
Kherson direction
On the left bank of the Dnipro River in the Kherson region, the Ukrainian Armed Forces managed to form several footholds. As a result, the occupiers are forced to retreat and regroup, as well as to move their additional formations there. It is still a long way to go to create operational footholds, the expert says. However, the ones already held by the Ukrainian Armed Forces were created to push back the enemy’s artillery line for the safety of the region’s residents.
– These are small tactical footholds created by our military reconnaissance groups. These are tactical footholds with a depth of 3 to 8 kilometers. There is no such expansion to the level of operational bridgeheads, it should be 15-20 km from the coast. Engineer troops can begin to create pontoon and barge crossings, couplers, tugs, etc. Only after the operational bridgehead is created, plus the transfer of at least artillery to the left bank to be able to hold the enemy troops. This is still ahead,” he said.
Ramstein-17
On November 22, the seventeenth meeting in the Ramstein format took place. The participants of the meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine’s Defense discussed the formation of an air defense coalition. Its goal is to provide our country with the necessary systems, especially on the eve of winter.
Ukraine has already increased the number of air defense systems by 3-4 times compared to last year. In order to cover the sky by at least 90%, we need about 10 times more systems than we have now, the expert emphasizes.
– “We are now hearing about preparations to transfer German IRIS-T SLM, Italian-French SAMP/T systems to Ukraine, which can also work against ballistic missiles. And Germany is now preparing at least one more Patriot system for transfer. And where there is one, there may be two. After all, it was two complexes that were taken off combat duty in Poland, so maybe we will get two more complexes.
Drone attack on Kyiv
On the night of November 25, Russia launched a record number of Shahed-131/136 drones – about 75.
This attack was not an ordinary one, but an insidious action, the expert says. “It was on the anniversary of the Holodomor that the occupiers launched one of the most massive attacks on the capital since the beginning of the full-scale invasion.
– It was another meanness of the occupiers. On this day, we commemorated the victims of the Holodomor of 1932-33. My great-grandfather was shot in my family, in the Chernihiv region, and it was on this day that the Russian military decided to intensify our grief and our memory. We understand exactly who killed our people 90 years ago and who is killing us today.
Drone attack on Moscow
On the night of November 26, Russian cities were attacked by drones. According to propaganda media, it was about two dozen drones that were flying towards Moscow. A certain number were allegedly shot down in the Moscow region, in Bryansk, Tula, and Kaluga oblasts.
According to Svitan, it was a GUR operation, the details of which will be revealed later. However, the military emphasized that there should be more such attacks on Russian military infrastructure.
– Last night, the task of destroying Russian military facilities was completed. Moreover, certain military facilities were hit in several regions, including Kursk, Tula, Bryansk, and Moscow. Some of the drones were intercepted. They fell on civilian objects, and when a drone is intercepted, it falls where it is intercepted. I think the General Staff will soon talk about this operation. This kind of long-range drones are most likely the work of the GUR, and the production of these drones is the responsibility of the Ministry of Digital Transformation. It’s right, it’s competent, but I would like to see a little more of this kind of operation,” added the military expert.