Ukrainian forces advance near Bakhmut and Zaporizhzhia – ISW

Tuesday, 12 September 2023, 02:58

Ukrainian troops continued counteroffensive operations in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia Oblasts on 11 September, and advanced in the area of Bakhmut and in the west of Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Details: The Ukrainian military have said that over the past week, 2 square kilometres of territory on the Bakhmut front have been liberated and successes have been achieved near Klishchiivka and Andriivka.

Hanna Maliar, Deputy Minister of Defence, also said that over the past week, Ukrainian troops liberated a total of 4.8 square kilometres on the Tavriia (Zaporizhzhia Oblast) operational front.

In addition, Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said that Russian troops are changing their tactics and using drones "en masse".

At the same time, Russian troops continued offensive operations at the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line and advanced on the Kupiansk front on 11 September. Geolocation footage released on that date shows that Russian troops made progress near a forest belt northeast of Sinkivka.

To quote the ISW’s Key Takeaways from 11 September:

  • Ukrainian forces continued counteroffensive operations in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia Oblasts on 11 September and have reportedly advanced near Bakhmut and in western Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
  • The Rosgvardia may be recruiting previously imprisoned former Wagner Group fighters, likely to further subsume Wagner remnants while bolstering Russia’s domestic security apparatus.
  • Russian border guards expressed similar grievances about limited capabilities and equipment to those voiced by Russian troops serving in Ukraine and continued to express concern over potential Ukrainian raids into Russia.
  • The Kremlin’s ruling United Russia party unsurprisingly achieved most of its desired results in highly fraudulent local elections in Russia and occupied Ukraine.
  • North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet in Vladivostok in the coming days, likely to discuss bilateral relations and North Korea’s supplies of artillery munitions to Russia.
  • US and Armenian forces began joint military exercises in Armenia on 11 September.
  • Russian forces conducted offensive operations along the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line, near Bakhmut, along the Avdiivka-Donetsk City line, in the western Donetsk-eastern Zaporizhzhia Oblast border area, and in western Zaporizhzhia Oblast and advanced in some areas on 11 September.
  • Ukrainian forces conducted offensive operations in at least one sector of the front on 11 September and advanced near Bakhmut, along the Avdiivka-Donetsk City line, in the western Donetsk-eastern Zaporizhzhia Oblast border area, and in western Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
  • Russian Central Election Committee Head Alexander Sidyakin unsurprisingly claimed that United Russia received the majority of votes in occupied Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson Oblasts.
  • Ukrainian and United Kingdom military officials reported on 11 September that the Russian military intends to mobilise over 400,000 personnel by the end of 2023.

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