The Russian Defense Ministry reports the capture of towns in three Ukrainian regions. The most important successes are likely to be west of the city of Donetsk.
In the war against Ukraine, the initiative is clearly in Russian hands: while air and missile attacks are targeting the economic base, rear bases and the fighting spirit of the Ukrainian people, bitter fighting is taking place along almost the entire front line in eastern Ukraine. Russian units are apparently succeeding in advancing in some regions.
In the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, the Russian Defense Ministry reports the almost complete capture of the small town of Krasnohorivka, west of the annexed regional capital of Donetsk. According to the state news agency Tass, Ukrainian soldiers were also captured during the advance. In addition, civilians from the city were “brought to safety”.
Conflicting parties as a source
In the current situation, information on the course of the war, shelling and casualties provided by official bodies of the Russian and Ukrainian parties to the conflict cannot be directly verified by an independent source.
The US research institute Institute for the Study of War (ISW) confirmed after evaluating geolocated images that Russian soldiers have advanced into the center of Krasnohorivka. In addition, there have been Russian ground attacks southwest of the city of Donetsk in recent days.
The complete capture of the Donetsk region is one of Russia's most important strategic war aims. The region was annexed by Russia in violation of international law, but is not under the complete control of the invading troops. The further the front line can be moved westward from Donetsk, the better the city can be used by Russia as a supply base and for training and stationing soldiers.
Map of Ukraine, hatched: areas occupied by Russia
Villages in Luhansk and Kharkiv captured
The Defense Ministry in Moscow also reported the capture of further towns further north in the Luhansk and Kharkiv regions. The village of Rosivka in Luhansk and the village of Pishchane Nizhne in Kharkiv have been “liberated,” Russian state news agencies report.
The ISW reports fighting without any gains in ground on many other front sections. The front is more than 1,100 kilometers long in total. According to some reports, the Ukrainian troops do not have enough ammunition and anti-aircraft defenses to defend themselves effectively. Above all, they are outnumbered by Russia and many Ukrainian forces are in constant action – to the point of complete exhaustion.
Many combat-experienced army members have fallen, military expert Gustav Gressel of the European Council on Foreign Relations told the ARD Studio KyivUkraine has experienced brigades, but also many that are poorly trained. And the level of training of individual commanders varies greatly. “That is the problem of every mobilization army,” said Gressel.
The Ukrainian army has major personnel problems – this photo is said to show newly mobilized infantrymen during training (July 2024).
High Russian losses?
According to Ukrainian sources, the Russian armed forces are suffering massive human losses – hundreds of soldiers are reportedly being killed or injured every day. Western intelligence services estimate that Russia is recruiting about 30,000 soldiers every month.
