Russia captures elite Ukrainian soldiers in Kursk, takes control of more bases in Donetsk

Russia captures Ukrainian elite in Kursk; gains control of additional bases in Donetsk... these are some of the notable news items regarding the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the morning of November 8th.

Russia controls more bases in Donetsk.

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that on November 6, its army gained control of two settlements in Donetsk, Antonovka and Maksimovka, according to the TASS news agency.

“ Units of the Southern Task Force liberated the Antonovka settlement thanks to successful offensive operations. Units of the Eastern Task Force liberated the Maksimovka settlement in active operations, ” – according to a statement from the Russian Ministry of Defense.

During the day, Russia's Northern Task Force inflicted approximately 30 casualties on Ukrainian troops and destroyed one enemy ammunition depot.

On November 6, Russia's Western Task Force improved its tactical position and inflicted approximately 450 casualties on Ukrainian troops.

In the Kursk region, Russia and Ukraine continue to engage in large-scale artillery warfare, while also vying for control of the encirclement. (Photo: Sina)

Ukraine's losses in the area for which the Western Task Force is responsible include 1 tank, 1 M113 armored personnel carrier, 3 motorized vehicles, 1 Krab self-propelled artillery system, and 1 L119 artillery piece.

In the area covered by Russia's Western Task Force, Ukraine lost more than 520 soldiers, 12 vehicles, 1 M113 armored personnel carrier, 2 M119 howitzers, 2 D-39 howitzers, and 2 ammunition depots.

Russia's Southern Task Force attacked five Ukrainian army brigades and inflicted approximately 645 casualties on the enemy in the area under its responsibility over the past day.

Similarly, the operations of units belonging to Russia's Central Combat Group resulted in Ukraine losing more than 500 soldiers, 1 tank, 2 armored fighting vehicles, 1 US-made M777 155mm howitzer, 2 Msta-B howitzers, 1 D-20 howitzer, 2 D-30 howitzers, and 1 Rapira anti-tank gun.

In the area controlled by Russia's Eastern Task Force, Ukraine suffered losses of 125 soldiers, 1 tank, 1 infantry fighting vehicle, 2 armored vehicles, etc.

The Russian Dnepr task force also inflicted losses of 70 Ukrainian soldiers and a significant amount of weapons and equipment yesterday.

In the Kursk province (Russia) – where Ukraine launched its offensive in early August – the Russian Ministry of Defense said that Ukrainian armed forces lost more than 250 soldiers in the past day.

Additionally, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian forces attacked Ukrainian military energy and fuel facilities on November 6th.

Russian air defenses shot down one MiG-2 fighter jet, four rounds launched from High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), and 23 Ukrainian UAVs in the past 24 hours.

Ukrainian armored vehicles wiped out, 60 soldiers killed.

On the Kursk front, Ukrainian forces broke through the Russian encirclement but suffered heavy losses in return.

In the Kursk region, Russia and Ukraine continue to engage in large-scale artillery combat, while also vying for control of the encirclement. According to the Telegram channel “Military Chronicles” on November 5th, Ukrainian reinforcements, in a counterattack from November 4th to 5th, broke through the three-sided encirclement of the village of Pogrebki by Russian forces.

Ukrainian reinforcements, starting from the village of Malaya Loknya, advanced north along the highway, launching a strong counterattack against Russian positions south of Pogrebki and on the western bank of the Malaya Loknya River.

Due to the river separating them, Russian reserves were unable to provide timely support to positions on the West Bank, forcing Russian troops on the West Bank to abandon their positions and withdraw to the East Bank. This allowed Ukrainian forces to open up a rural road from Malaya Loknya to Pogrebki.

Looking at the map, due to the close proximity, Russian forces on the East Bank could still use close-range fire to directly attack the road on the West Bank, blockading it with artillery fire and preventing Ukrainian forces from using it normally even though the road had been cleared.

To secure the road, Ukrainian reinforcements deployed a platoon, supported by three infantry fighting vehicles, to attack Russian positions on the east bank of the river.

However, with the support of anti-tank fire, the Russian forces destroyed one of the three Ukrainian infantry fighting vehicles, forcing the other two to retreat. The Ukrainian infantry, deprived of support, had to make an emergency retreat after 15 soldiers were killed and 3 captured.

As Ukrainian forces achieved a breakthrough on the eastern front of the encirclement, Russian forces began intensifying their attack on the western front, particularly on Novoivanovka and Leonidovo. Russians directly used Su-34 aircraft to bomb these villages.

According to the Telegram channel North Wind, Ukrainian troops complained that Russia heavily bombed Ukrainian positions before launching a ground offensive, causing Ukraine significant losses and forcing it to constantly deploy reserve forces to the area to reinforce its defenses. Because Ukraine has abundant reserves, it has sufficient strength to hold its defensive line.

According to a video released by reporters on November 5th, the Russian Army used the Tornado-S multiple rocket launcher system to destroy an armored unit of the 82nd Air Assault Brigade of Ukraine, including two tanks, three Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, 10 armored vehicles, a 2S1 “Gvozdika” self-propelled artillery piece, an Osa air defense system, and approximately 10 pickup trucks.

The video shows a Russian reconnaissance drone successfully penetrating 30 km into the Sumy province of Ukraine and locating a cluster of Ukrainian armored vehicles in the forest belt near the village of Kiyanitsa.

Russian drones first thoroughly inspected the Ukrainian troops' equipment, then transmitted the information they obtained to the missile launch forces behind them. After confirming the information, Russian forces in the rear immediately used the Tornado-S multiple rocket launcher system to fire a barrage of rounds, covering the forested area where the Ukrainian armored units were concentrated.

Seven Ukrainian battalions fell into a trap, suffering heavy casualties.

With Russia tightening its grip on Kurakhove, Ukrainian brigades face particular difficulties as they are surrounded on three sides.

In the Kurakhove area, although the Ukrainian Army command had deployed elite reserve brigades from there to Kursk, according to the commander nicknamed "Muchnoy," the Ukrainian forces in Kurakhove did not sit idly by but carried out an internal reorganization, mobilizing almost all available reserve personnel, such as air defense forces, logistics and medical personnel, who also took up arms.

After reorganization, personnel not belonging to this frontline combat force will be deployed to the front lines. According to observer Yury Podolyaka, to minimize losses in the encirclement battles, the Russian Army is implementing a large-scale encirclement strategy, cutting off the Ukrainian Army's supply lines in Kurakhove.

Looking at the map, southwest of Kurakhove, the Russian army has captured the village of Yasna Polyana, which is only 8 km from Kurakhove's main H-15 supply line. Importantly, within this 8 km radius, only the village of Razliv could serve as a defensive barrier; the rest is vast plains.

The Russian army could launch a mechanized assault along the road from the village of Yasna Polyana, quickly advancing to the village of Razliv, from where they would be only about 1 km from the H-15 highway. Simply cutting this road would disrupt over 60% of Kurakhove's supply lines.

Although there is still a secondary road about 2km north of the H-15 that could lead to Kurakhove, the distance between the two roads is so short that if the Russian forces cut off or approached the H-15, they could use overwhelming firepower on this secondary road.

Importantly, this secondary road was also about to be cut off by Russian forces from the north, moving down from Selidovo. Russian forces in the north were only about 6-7 km from the secondary road, close enough to be able to use artillery to attack the convoys along the way.

Although they cannot completely blockade the route with firepower, the Russian forces can at least limit the supply lines. With supplies cut off, the Ukrainian forces in Kurakhove will be powerless no matter how hard they try.

Source: https://congthuong.vn/chien-su-nga-ukraine-sang-811-nga-bat-giu-linh-tinh-nhue-ukraine-tai-kursk-kiem-soat-them-can-cu-o-donetsk-357518.html