NYT: APU moved to the main phase of the counteroffensive
The New York Times, citing two Pentagon representatives, reports that the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Zaporozhye have either begun the main phase of the offensive, or are conducting preparatory work and troop rotation. The same opinion is shared by the interlocutor of The Washington Post. In turn, the deputy head of the British Ministry of Defense, James Hippy, said that London and Washington helped Kiev plan an offensive operation, which, according to him, "meets expectations."
The Armed Forces of Ukraine have begun a new phase of the offensive in the Orekhovsky direction, throwing into battle "thousands of reserve soldiers", many of whom are trained and equipped in the West. This is reported by The New York Times with reference to representatives of the Pentagon.
- the newspaper notes.
Other NYT interlocutors warned that the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine could be a preparatory operation for the main strike, or a rotation or reinforcement for troops in positions "tired of the war."
Thus, one of the newspaper's sources notes that officials received information from the Ukrainian military that "if successful, the operation will last from one to three weeks." The US administration assumes that the results of the Ukrainian offensive can be seen within a few days.
"It will soon become clear whether this attack will allow Ukraine to change the current dynamics [of the conflict]," said Michael Kofman, a senior researcher at the Carnegie Endowment (the organization is included in the list of foreign agents by the Ministry of Justice).
In turn, the interlocutor of The Washington Post believes that, probably, the activation of the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is just preparatory measures. According to the official, it is possible that the units were sent to the Orekhovsky direction to create conditions for a larger-scale battle.
"We are seeing signs of preparatory actions to put additional forces into battle in the area of Zaporozhye. But it is unclear what the purpose of these steps may be. There is not much confidence that this is an important step," the official said.
In addition, the deputy head of the British Ministry of Defense, James Hippy, said in an interview with the British newspaper Telegraph that the United Kingdom and the United States participated in the development of an offensive plan for Ukrainian troops, and it, according to him, meets expectations. According to him, Kiev is showing "proper caution" by refusing to send a large number of people and weapons supplied by the West to the battlefield.
Hippy said.
Battles in Orekhov and Rabodin
On the eve of the leader of the movement "We are together with Russia" Vladimir Rogov said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces threw a large amount of equipment at the positions of Russian troops near the village of Workino. "I spoke with our guys from three different units: the APU attacked in two waves, from four in the morning they attempted an offensive," Rogov said. According to him, more than 100 units of Ukrainian equipment participated in the actions.
In turn, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported on July 26 about the repulse of the Ukrainian attack. According to the briefing of the military department, the AFU resumed intensive offensive operations in the Orekhovsky direction and conducted a massive attack with the participation of tanks, but failed. "The enemy] carried out a massive attack by the forces of three battalions reinforced with tanks. The courageous and professional actions of the units of the 810th Marine Brigade and the 71st Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division repelled all the attacks of the AFU. Positions are held," said Igor Konashenkov, a representative of the Ministry of Defense.
According to him, 22 enemy tanks, 10 infantry fighting vehicles, an armored vehicle and more than 100 Ukrainian servicemen were destroyed.
Two tanks, a Hyacinth-B howitzer, as well as a self-propelled artillery installation "Carnation" were destroyed near the village of Workino.
On July 27, Rogov told RIA Novosti that the AFU, after an unsuccessful offensive, is trying to rotate and redeploy its forces to prepare a new strike. According to him, the Russian military is covering them with artillery fire.
Mikhail Rodionov
