2023-04-21 16:52:48
The southern front of Ukraine is witnessing a state of remarkable military activity. In Zaporozhye, the Ukrainian forces launched several air strikes by means of marches. Moscow also accused them, according to Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Zaporozhye County Administrative Council, of using chemical weapons.
The southern front, which includes Kherson, Zaporizhia, and the regions annexed by Moscow last year, witnessed a visit, the first since the beginning of the war, by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and a meeting was held with the military leaders of that front.
According to military experts who spoke to Sky News Arabia, Ukraine has intensified its military preparations in the south over the past few days.
These moves come as part of an attempt to stop the bleeding of losses on the eastern front, in addition to not allowing the Russian forces to establish their foothold towards the four regions that annexed them last year, but there remains a strategic obstacle in front of Ukraine in the south.. Will it succeed in crossing it?
Dnipro River
Last August, the Ukrainian army succeeded in its counterattack towards Kherson from three eastern, northern, and western fronts, and the Himars missiles, which have a range of more than 60 km, were the secret word for the victory that was achieved, and forcing the Russian forces to withdraw to the western bank of the Dnipro River. .
Regarding that front in which the battles have been frozen in the past months, Matyushin Victor, a specialist in resolving international conflicts at the Ukrainian Tavrisky University, believes that the only obstacle facing Kiev on that strategic front is crossing the river that divides the entire city.
Matyushin Victor added, in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”, that the river that cuts through the Ukrainian lands for a length of about 1,100 km, where it empties into the Black Sea, and has a length of 2,290 km, contributed significantly to tipping the balance of the military rate in favor of Kiev in the recent period, and preventing Moscow from Imposing its control and incursion into Kherson completely and from there to the rest of the southern provinces.
According to Russian data, the Ukrainian forces monitored many points along the river, and began amassing military equipment, in addition to collecting medium-tonnage ships and fishing boats as well, in an attempt to mobilize as many means as possible to cross the river alongside the amphibious bridges that Kiev recently received from the west.
Last January, the Ukrainian Armed Forces attempted to cross the Dnipro River at Novaya Kakhovka during a night landing operation, but failed as a result of Russian defences.
The US Secretary of Defense confirms the continued international support for Ukraine
Matyushin Victor confirmed that the crossing process will be easier if the ammunition of the HIMARS missile system is available, which targets the supply routes of the Russian forces on the West Bank, isolating them temporarily and allowing the Ukrainian forces to cross and fully secure northern Kherson.
Russian plans
Russian forces are entrenched on the banks of the Dnipro River to prevent any landing, whether by air or land, by crossing the river on the part of the Ukrainian forces. .
Oleg Artyovsk said, in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”, that crossing the river by the Kiev forces is impossible for several reasons:
- Loss of firepower on the banks of the river and any exposed landings.
- Most of the forces present in the south without combat experience, the elite were withdrawn to the eastern front.
- Western armored vehicles and tanks are not enough to launch an open attack once the river, which is more than 100 kilometers long, is crossed.
- Its inability to continue the artillery bombardment in light of the ammunition crisis in Kiev.
Oleg Artyovsk confirmed that the losses of Kiev in Bakhmut will greatly affect the performance of the upcoming battles, as the losses were heavy on that front, in addition to the significant decline in Western support after the losses of Zelinsky.
The Kherson front, located in southern Ukraine, witnessed the first visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin since the beginning of the Russian war in February 2022, and he held talks with the commander of the Russian forces, General Mikhail Teplinsky, and other senior military leaders to discuss the field situation.
1682099939
#Missile #platforms #fishing #vessels. #Ukraine #succeed #crossing #river