The breakthrough of the front line by the Russian army in the Ocheretiny region in the spring of this year caused the invaders to advance further into the Donetsk region. The troops of the aggressor country approached Pokrovsk, at the same time attacking with large forces in the area of Vugledar and Kurakhovo. Donbas Realiy (a Radio Liberty project) discussed the situation at the front with Mykola Melnyk, an officer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and a military expert who is currently recovering from a serious injury.
“Total superiority of the enemy in everything”
– In the spring of this year, in Ocheretiny, the Russian army managed to break through the solid front line for the first time in a long time, creating a bridgehead for a further offensive deep into the Donetsk region. After that, Russian forces began to advance in several directions at once. Why do you think this happened?
The main thing: the advantage of the Russians in forces, means of both fire resolution and intelligence
– The first reason: the total superiority of the enemy in everything. Secondly: we have a lack of people, a physical lack of people who can hold positions. Third: a large number of added units in the brigades, which, in my opinion, always complicates the coordination of actions. But the main thing: the advantage of the Russians in forces, means of both fire resolution and intelligence. All this was completely predicted.
Therefore, one can, of course, ask the question: if everyone understood everything perfectly, why are there no conclusions? It should be addressed to the commanders who are responsible for these areas. And I wouldn’t even blame the brigade commanders here, because they proceed from those tasks, from those resources that they have.
This is more of a question for the leadership of the troop groupbecause they own the situation, they understand everything perfectly, but why do they allow a situation in which the brigades are physically reduced to a state when there are no more than 5-6 people in the line infantry company?
– Currently, the Russian army is tentatively attacking in Donbas in three directions: Pokrovsky, Kurakhivskyi and Vugledarskyi. Why did the aggressor country, stopping 8 kilometers from Pokrovsk, throw its main forces in the direction of Kurakhovo?
– Because the defense near Pokrovsk nevertheless began to acquire signs of multi-echelonnessand even more so, if you look – Grodivka rests against the canal [Сіверський Донбас – Донбас]and there really were additional reinforcements, that is, the Russians realized that advancing there would be more difficult.
While due to a certain – I wouldn’t say collapse, but due to certain actions that led to the fact that in the direction of Selidove – Memryk, the enemy managed to increase the speed of the offensive by 2-3 kilometers per day, which, in principle, is quite fast, – for about a week, we could not establish ourselves in new positions.
Read also: Ammunition hunger for a long time: why does the Armed Forces of Ukraine have nothing to replenish artillery reserves?
This provoked a situation in which the enemy realized all the advantages of the situation that had developed. And he changed the focus from the attack on Pokrovsk to the encirclement of the group, which is located between the Vovcha and Netaylov rivers. And once again, the admiration of Karlivka, because Memrik (from Karlivka to Memryk is less than 7 km straight west – ed.) is the dominant height.
The enemy understood all the advantages of the situation that had developed. And changed focus
I noted from the beginning that Selidove is not so strategically important for the implementation of the tactical operational plan that was in the group [російських] troops advancing on Pokrovsk. It was necessary to defend Memrik. Of course, I cannot comment on why we could not organize the defense of this settlement.
The Russians entered the height, which dominates Karlivka, and attacked it from the eastern flank. It is not clear why the bridge was not blown up, that is, the Russians calmly entered the bridge. Our unit, which was there, simply did not have the strength and means to restrain the enemy’s attacks from several sides and simply retreated to, thank God, pre-prepared positions.
Therefore, I think that the change of focus was not planned from the beginning by the Russian troops, but was directly provoked by the fact that they had the greatest success in the direction of Selidovoy due to the insecurity of this particular area.
– It seems the most logical that now, when the forces of the Russian army are attacking Girnyk, our group, which is still holding in the area of Nevelskyi, Zhelany First and Zhelany Second, may be about to find itself surrounded.
– Well, of course. Because the Russians understand that this protrusion can hypothetically be used for flanking attacks. I say hypothetically, because actually now the units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which are in this “bag”, are connected to the mainland by one bridge, which is under the fire control of the Russians.
I think this “bag” will be lost
Therefore, the supply of BC (ammunition – ed.)taking out the wounded, bringing in soldiers – it is as complicated as possible. Of course, our Armed Forces are trying to do something about it, but when the enemy has total superiority in the air, there is nothing you can do. Therefore, I think, this “bag” will be lost.
The only question is how successfully we will be able to get out of it and how much we will be able to keep the staff. Because now, in this situation, the Ukrainian soldier is the main gold reserve of our army.
The equipment is not very important, it is the soldier that is important, and I hope that all the efforts of the military group of the Defense Forces stationed there will be directed to his preservation.
“Coal mining is of great strategic importance”
– Regarding Ugledar. What is the intention of the enemy here? Is this the same tactic of finding weak points in the Ukrainian defense in order to surround the city, or is the idea more global?
I hope more units will be introduced
– Russians learn from their mistakes. They realized that they could not take Ugledar head-on, so they would try to attack through the flanks. First they captured Vodiane, then expanded this bridgehead, which now looms over Wugledar from the north.
I hope that, once again, additional units will be introduced in this direction by the Defense Forces of Ukraine, because it is clear that those brigades that have been standing there for quite a long time – among them the 72nd brigade – no longer have the necessary resources to to deter the enemy.
Not because there are any complaints against them. In no way. These guys are heroes. And because there is a lack of people, there is a lack of equipment, there is a lack of firearms, there is elementary fatigue among the guys without rotation. Therefore, only additional forces and the introduction of reserves will be able to stabilize the situation there. I hope that our fathers-commanders understand this very well.
– If the command of the Armed Forces, in order to save people, withdraws Ukrainian units from these “bags” at the cost of lost territories, how can the situation in Donbas develop in the future?
– Until Russia runs out of people ready to fight, they will press on. But they have already demonstrated that they cannot effectively advance – if you take one grouping of troops – in several directions at the same time.
While they were advancing in the direction of Pokrovsky, while they were pressing on Halytsynivka with one fist, they were advancing in the direction of Ukranian. As soon as they began to scatter forces between Ukrainskyi and Grodivka, they stalled.
However, the situation near Vugledar and the situation near the Vovcha River in the Kurakhiv direction cannot be compared. Why? Because Vugledar is of great strategic importance, behind it begins one large, wide steppe with rather small settlements, and the Russians will have a huge advantage there, and we will again have to cling to new frontiers.
And as practice shows, we don’t always do it, I would say – we can. Parents-commanders do not always have enough skill to properly organize defense. As for the “bag” between the Vovcha and Nevelsky rivers, I think nothing will change much from the loss of those three landings.
Read also: On one brigade of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, Russia throws up to seven combatants about the Ugledarsky direction
Yes, we have a fairly powerful grouping of troops there, and if the Russians knock us out of this “bag” – they will release forces, which will then be directed, apparently, to the Kurakhiv direction, or to Pokrovsky. There is a certain meaning from the fact that we are there.
The only question is: we have too few soldiers to risk them. I do not call for anything in any way – I do not have a strategic situation, a tactical-operational situation – I only speak based on the experience that I have.
Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine
On February 24, 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine on the ground and in the air along the entire length of the common border. The territory of Belarus was used for the invasion of Kyiv region with the intention of capturing the capital. In the south, the Russian army, in particular, occupied part of the Zaporizhia and Kherson regions, and in the north – the regions of Sumy region and Chernihiv region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin calls the full-scale invasion a “special operation.” Initially, its goal was defined as “demilitarization and de-Nazification”, later – “protection of Donbas”. And in September and early October, Russia made an attempt to annex the partially occupied Zaporizhia, Kherson, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions. Ukraine and the West have declared that these actions are illegal. On October 12, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution condemning the Russian Federation’s attempt to annex the occupied territories of Ukraine.
The Russian authorities say that the army does not attack civilian objects. At the same time, Russian aviation, missile forces, navy and artillery shell Ukrainian cities every day. Residential buildings and objects of civil infrastructure throughout the territory of Ukraine are subject to destruction.
At the end of October, Ukraine estimated Russia’s losses in the war at more than 70,000 dead soldiers. In September, Russia announced that its losses were less than 6,000 dead. In June, President Zelensky estimated the ratio of losses of Ukraine and Russia as one to five.
Having not overcome the resistance of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the surviving Russian units withdrew from the territory of Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy regions at the beginning of April. And in September, as a result of a lightning counteroffensive, the Ukrainian army liberated almost the entire occupied part of the Kharkiv region.
On November 11, the Ukrainian Defense Forces pushed the Russian forces out of Kherson.
After the liberation of Kyiv region from Russian troops, facts of mass murders, torture and rape of civilians, including children, were discovered in the cities of Bucha, Irpin, Gostomel and villages of the region.
Ukrainian authorities have declared that Russia is committing genocide. Western countries are involved in confirming the facts of mass murders and investigating them. The Russian Federation rejects accusations of war crimes.
Later, the facts of torture and murder of Ukrainian citizens began to be revealed in almost all settlements that were liberated from Russian occupation. In particular, in Chernihiv Oblast, Kharkiv Oblast, Kherson Oblast.
Since September 2022, fierce battles of the Russian-Ukrainian war have been going on in the east and south of Ukraine.
On June 6, 2023, the dam of the Kakhov reservoir was completely destroyed (it was under the control of the Russian army from the beginning of March 2022, and in October it was mined by the occupiers), which led to the flooding of a large area, human casualties, the destruction of agricultural land, and the pollution of the Dnipro and the Black Sea. Ukraine called it ecocide.
In total, during the full-scale war from February 24, 2022 to the end of June 2024, the UN verified data on at least 33,878 civilian casualties, including 11,284 deaths.
According to experts, the real number of losses is much higher. According to the Ukrainian authorities, more than 20,000 people could have died during the blockade and bombardment of Mariupol alone.
