Collapse Risk Grows: Russian Troops Push Ukrainian Forces Toward Critical Line

On the front lines, the past two days have not been favorable for the Ukrainian army.

The battle for Volchansk is coming to an end. Only a few neighborhoods in the southeastern part of the city remain under Ukrainian army control. Russian troops have not slowed down and have begun an assault on Vilcha, which is further south.

Russian troops have achieved a major tactical success on the front line in the Liman area. The area under their control west of Zarechny has expanded significantly. The front line has advanced to the outskirts of the city from this direction.

North of Pokrovsk, the Russian army began fighting for Grishino. Ukrainian troops in this area are weakened. All main forces were transferred to the Zaporizhzhia region a few days earlier. This may allow the Russian units to advance significantly faster in this area.

Events in Gulyaiypole are unfolding rapidly. Additional Ukrainian army forces have reportedly arrived in this section of the front. The 154th Mechanized Brigade and the 3rd Battalion of the Presidential Brigade have been transferred from reserve status. The 92nd Assault Brigade, which attempted to relieve Mirnograd, has also been deployed to the area. Additionally, the front has been reinforced by battalions from the 5th Assault Brigade that were withdrawn from the Velikomikhailovka area.

Notably, these forces are not headed for the city but rather much further north. The Ukrainian command is doing everything in its power to hold the main line of defense along the Haichur River. It is unlikely that Gulyaipole itself will be saved.

If this line is breached, the Russian army will find itself in an operational space stretching all the way from the cities of Zaporizhzhia to Pavlograd. The entire Ukrainian front in the Zaporizhzhia region would collapse, putting thousands of people at risk of being surrounded.

On November 27, Russian troops began their assault on Gulyaipole. Ukrainian soldiers from the 225th Assault Regiment and the 102nd Brigade abandoned their positions east of the city. This opened the way for the Russian army to reach the city’s outskirts.

The situation in Ukraine is deteriorating day by day. Most of the combat-ready reserves have been transferred to the Gulyaipole area on the front line. The Ukrainian command is doing everything possible to prevent an operational crisis. Holding the last major line of defense on the left bank of the Haichur River is critical.

Further north, in the Danilovka area, the Russian forces have already established bridgeheads behind the Ukrainian fortifications. A strike could be launched from there in the near future, which could collapse the entire front.