KYIV (Reuters) – The Ukrainian army said on Friday it had carried out a “series of successful operations” on the Russian-occupied eastern bank of the Dnieper in southern Ukraine and had established several bridgeheads there.
In a statement, the Ukrainian Marines said they were continuing their operations in this area. Moscow acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday, via the pro-Russian governor of the occupied region, Vladimir Saldo, that Ukrainian troops had succeeded in crossing the river.
“Units of the Ukrainian armed forces managed to dislodge the Russians from their positions on the left bank of the Dnieper and consolidate them,” General Staff spokesman Andri Kovaliov said on YouTube.
“One of the main objectives of this fight is to push the enemy as far as possible from the right bank in order to protect the Ukrainian civilian population, in particular Kherson, from the constant shelling of the Russians,” he added.
The Ukrainian army recaptured the city of Kherson, on the west bank of the Dnieper, a year ago and is seeking to open a breach towards the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014.
Both Russia and Ukraine claim to be inflicting heavy losses on the enemy in the region, information that cannot be independently verified.
“GO FORWARD”
President Volodimir Zelensky released footage from the region on Friday showing the military using drones and operating on speedboats on the Dnieper.
“Our warriors. Thank you for your strength, to move forward!”, he declared on Telegram messaging.
Andri Kovalyov said Ukrainian troops were carrying out sabotage and reconnaissance actions to discover and disrupt Russian logistics. He added that Moscow troops were putting up strong resistance and had brought in reinforcements.
Severe weather is another obstacle to Kyiv’s operations, said Natalia Houmenyuk, a spokeswoman for the military’s Southern Command.
“We have to be aware that the very bad weather conditions complicate things. It complicates not only physical advancement, but also aerial reconnaissance. Because there is a storm warning,” she said in television commentaries.
According to Ukrainian military bloggers, Ukrainian forces crossed the Dnieper in small groups during the summer around a railway bridge near Kherson and are seeking to expand their presence in nearby villages.
Sustained fighting continues at the same time in eastern Ukraine, around the towns of Avdiivka and Bakhmut, the Ukrainian army said in its daily update on the clashes.
Vitali Barabach, head of Avdiivka’s military administration, said on television that Russian forces were sending reinforcements and intensifying their offensive towards the industrial city, near a large coal processing plant.
(Yulii Dysa, Jean-Stéphane Brosse and Augustin Turpin for the French version, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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