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DNIPRO, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces and their armored automobiles punched by Russia’s fundamental line of defense on the conflict’s southern entrance and are working on the opposite aspect, a neighborhood commander mentioned Saturday, in a modest however essential acquire for Kyiv because it seeks a significant breakthrough in its grueling counteroffensive.
A Ukrainian air assault unit commander preventing within the southeastern Zaporizhzhia area mentioned that over the previous week, the armored automobiles pushed by the so-called “Surovikin line” close to Verbove, a small village situated a number of miles from Robotyne, which Ukrainian forces liberated final month. Russia nonetheless has substantial defenses constructed south of the road, comparable to these surrounding Tokmak, about 25 miles southwest of Verbove.
The commander additionally mentioned that sending by the automobiles, together with German Marders and American Strykers, has come at a excessive value. “Loads of tools was misplaced there,” he mentioned, talking on the situation of anonymity as a result of he was not approved to take action publicly.
The Surovikin line — named for the previous head of Russian forces in Ukraine, Gen. Sergey Surovikin, whom President Vladimir Putin fired initially of this yr — consists of three defensive belts, with a last line of trenches and “dragon’s enamel,” concrete pyramid-shaped obstacles supposed to decelerate automobiles and channel them into kill zones.
The commander mentioned that Ukrainian infantry handed the ultimate line “two to a few weeks in the past,” however the automobiles have solely just lately been in a position to transfer by. He mentioned that “the entrance line has additionally moved additional again behind the dragon’s enamel,” however this has taken place “extra slowly.”
“You simply have to know that there’s a saturation of antitank mines and a saturation of enemy forces, it’s simply colossal,” the air assault forces commander mentioned. “Within the route of Robotyne and Verbove, there’s a relentless incoming site visitors of assault troops.”
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Analysts on the Washington-based Institute for the Examine of Struggle mentioned in a report on Thursday that geolocated pictures indicated that “armored automobiles are working past the ultimate line of the Russian defensive layer,” however they had been “not but ready to evaluate that Ukrainian forces have damaged absolutely by” Russian defenses.
“It’s unclear if Ukrainian forces retain these positions, nevertheless,” ISW wrote. “That is the primary noticed occasion of Ukrainian forces working armored automobiles past the Russian tri-layer protection.”
However Ukrainian forces’ “potential to carry armored automobiles to and thru essentially the most formidable Russian defenses” and “function these automobiles close to ready Russian defensive positions” had been “essential indicators of progress within the Ukrainian counteroffensive,” ISW wrote.
Since launching their counteroffensive in June, Ukrainian forces have made solely incremental progress towards Russia’s well-fortified defenses, which embrace areas saturated with tank and antipersonnel mines between three and 10 miles deep.
The gradual tempo of the assault, which goals to drive Russian forces from Ukraine completely, has led Western officers to conclude that the counteroffensive will most certainly not obtain its short-term objectives — comparable to reaching the town of Melitopol close to the Azov Sea — earlier than winter begins.
Open-source photos shared on social media, however that weren’t verified by The Washington Put up, confirmed armored automobiles past the line of defense. They included photos of U.S.-supplied Strykers, an eight-wheeled assault car that may ferry 11 troopers to the battlefield however has restricted safety towards tanks and anti-armor rockets.
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Footage additionally confirmed different Western-made mine-resistant automobiles, which supply safety for troopers on their technique to the battle, and Marders, a German-manufactured assault car, which makes use of a 20 mm cannon gun to focus on enemy forces and shield weak allied automobiles.
Stern reported from Kyiv. Anastacia Galouchka in Kyiv contributed to this report.
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