Russians enter Avdiivka through sewers, and Putin admits strikes on Russian rear: a week at the front
Over the past week, Ukrainian troops have been able to expand their bridgehead on the left bank of the Dnipro River and repel assault attacks near Avdiivka.
In addition, the number of strikes on Russian cities that were previously considered rear-guard cities has increased significantly, a fact that even Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has acknowledged.
Fakty ICTV talked to Oleksandr Musienko, head of the Center for Military and Legal Studies, about the expansion of the bridgehead on the left bank of the Kherson region, the fighting for Avdiivka, and strikes on Russia’s rear cities.
- The left bank of the Kherson regionЛівий берег Херсонщини
- Avdiivka
- Kharkiv direction
- Massive attacks in Ukraine
- Strikes on the rear cities of the Russian Federation
The left bank of Kherson region
The past week has seen a slight expansion of the foothold on the left bank of the Kherson region, allowing the Ukrainian Armed Forces to expand their foothold in the south.
According to Musiyenko, Ukrainian forces on the left bank of the Kherson region are trying to unite three footholds – Krynky, Kozachi Lageri and Antonivskyi Bridge – into one to increase coordination and enable coordinated defense efforts.
At the same time, the enemy is trying to push Ukrainian units out.
– This will allow for more coherent defense and opportunities for further offensive actions. Obviously, as soon as the enemy’s attacks are repelled and there is an opportunity for our Defense Forces to advance in some of the areas, this slight advancement is happening,” the expert said.
According to him, this direction is important for the future offensive actions of Ukrainian troops in this area of the front, in particular, in the direction of Crimea.
Photo: Fakty ICTV
At the same time, the issue of redeploying armored vehicles from the right bank to support the defense capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and further hold the bridgehead remains important. Today, it is about providing fire support to Ukrainian units on the left bank through artillery and drones deployed on the right bank of the Dnipro. Air support and additional air defense systems that could support Ukrainian forces on the ground remain equally important in this area of the front.
Musiyenko says that without air support, air defense systems and armored vehicles, it will be “difficult, if not impossible, to make a rapid movement of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
– But if we consider conducting offensive operations there, this issue will still arise, if it hasn’t already, in terms of crossing the Dnipro. There are many difficulties in warfare, and forcing a water barrier is not the most important of them… The main difficulty is the peculiarity of the landscape and soil where our forces are located,” says the expert.
During the week, as in previous months, fierce fighting continued around Avdiivka. After a meeting of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief’s Staff on Friday, February 2, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that the situation in this area remains particularly difficult.
Colonel Musiyenko explains that three areas remain the main ones on this section of the front: the northern and southern flanks, as well as the enemy’s attempts to break through in Avdiivka itself.
– Attacks on Koksokhim in Avdiivka have resumed. The enemy is trying to get through the sewage and other drains there, i.e. to get into Avdiivka by any means. The number of air strikes has increased. The enemy’s pressure is constant. But in general, the enemy has not made any significant progress. During the week, despite significant pressure, there were only minor tactical successes. But the achievement of this week is that our forces, despite numerous attacks by Russian troops, managed to stabilize the situation,” the expert said.
Photo: Fakty ICTV
Musiyenko cites the main threats as the fact that if some parts of the frontline fall, Ukrainian troops will have to retreat even further.
– It is clear that the nature of the offensive is such that Avdiivka will remain one of the priority areas during the enemy’s winter offensive,” the expert said.
A few weeks ago, a number of materials were published about the Kharkiv direction, especially Kupiansk, which reported a possible Russian offensive.
Colonel Musiyenko notes that the enemy’s assault actions have indeed intensified.
– Another point was added to the Kupyansk direction. Previously, it was primarily Sinkivka, and now the direction from which Russian troops were preparing to leave the area of Ivanivka has been added – and they entered through the village of Krokhmalne, capturing the village. Now there is fighting for the village of Tabayivka. Mostly, there are clashes for the heights controlled by Ukrainian forces, but the enemy plans to capture them, of course,” he explains.
Photo: Fakty ICTV
The military expert emphasizes that the enemy is trying to unite with its group in the area of Tabayivka from Sinkivka.
– This is a tactic of small flanking attacks, closing the so-called claws. Just as Russian troops are advancing in other directions, as they did in the Bakhmut sector, or in the Avdiivka sector, or in the Maryinka area. You can see that they are using the tactics of flanking attacks, this kind of semi-encirclement,” he explains.
“The main goal of the enemy in this area is to reach Kupyansk and the Oskil River, as Kupyansk is an important logistics center with several important roads running from it. From Kupyansk, if the enemy manages to advance, the Russians want to connect with the Liman direction.
– It is impossible to say that the enemy is making progress. But the fighting is in an active hot phase. I predict that this will also be one of the most important areas in the next month and a half,” he says.
Russian massive attacks with drones and unmanned aerial vehicles in Ukraine have recently become less frequent than they were at the end of last year and in early 2024.
However, according to the expert, the enemy has not abandoned its intentions to attack Ukraine, as evidenced by reconnaissance by Russian strategic aviation, as well as the activity of enemy aircraft in general. According to the expert, another massive attack may take place in the near future.
At the same time, Musienko says that there is no tendency to increase the use of Shahed-131/136 attack drones today, because Russia’s production facilities, which have established the production of Iranian drones, do not correspond to the injections within the framework of Russian information and psychological operations that were carried out earlier.
Strikes on Russian rear cities
Recently, we can see that drones are regularly attacking Russian cities that were recently considered to be rear cities. Mostly, the strikes are against oil refineries or airfields, which can be seen almost every two or three days.
Musienko points out that strikes on oil refineries affect not only the logistics of Russian troops but also the enemy’s economy.
– “Such combined strikes are aimed at: first, reducing the possibility of using oil products on the territory of the Russian Federation for military purposes, and second, reducing Russia’s ability to receive funds that Russians receive from export sales,” the expert says.
At the same time, he does not rule out that any military facilities could be targeted, including any enterprises that work for the enemy’s defense.
– “The geography of these strikes is expanding, the execution is filigree and very skillful, because we see that they are actually hitting processing centers, without which the refinery stops. These are not just fuel tanks, they require complex repairs. These are losses,” the expert emphasizes.
Musienko adds that today Ukraine has already received its strategic aviation, which is long-range drones.
– “We are hitting what we can. This is quite a good trend, the success of which was recognized by Putin himself, who said that it is necessary to create a demilitarized zone and push back the front line. What does this mean? It means that they have had enough of these strikes, otherwise he would not have mentioned it. Putin recognizes the problems,” he said.
The military expert adds that today Russia does not have the capacity to cover every refinery on its territory.
