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Today, the biggest news comes from the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Here, the Russians are trying to establish a more stable presence on the border between the Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions but encounter heavy Ukrainian resistance and terrain obstacles. To bypass the problematic area, they launched a risky pincer movement on the flank, hoping to surprise the Ukrainian defenders.
The Russians managed to advance by around 3 kilometers in the last months, which encouraged them to push further. Russia’s operational goal here is to capture Pokrovske, a key logistical hub that could open the gates to Zaporizhia and would allow them to bypass the strong Ukrainian defense lines to the southwest.
However, first, they need to take Velykomykhailivka under their control, as this would put the Ukrainian logistics via road N15 under constant risk. Securing it would also give Russian forces a substantial foothold beyond the Vovcha River, an important natural barrier, allowing them to consolidate and amass troops and supplies for a potential offensive. Additionally, such a breakthrough would create an additional pressure point for the Ukrainian command, further overstretching their already limited resources.
However, Velykomykhailivka’s terrain favors the Ukrainians, with a forest shielding it from the east and the winding Vovcha River to the south and east, making river crossings difficult and a frontal mechanized assault nearly impossible. The situation is further complicated by the higher terrain north of the town, which gives the defenders fire control and observation points.
Velykomykhailivka and the high grounds behind serve as a shield, as they are followed by open fields, which are harder to defend and would benefit the Russians if they manage to break through. Because of the disadvantages of the terrain, the Russian command has come up with a plan to outflank the defense and avoid a costly frontal assault. They will try to semi-encircle Velykomykhailivka by moving through Oleksiivka towards Kolomiitsi and then starve the well-protected town by exerting fire control over the logistics route to Pokrovske and by shelling Velykomykhailivka itself.
Russia’s tactical advantage is that they have already captured a hill ridge south of Velykomykhailivka, which provides them with a field of view and good launching positions for their drones. The Russian command has still not reallocated more forces here and is operating more with infantry and buggies, which are also better suited for such terrain, which disfavors armored vehicles.
Geolocated footage shows how Russian soldiers have managed to move through the fields and were spotted once they reached the farm hangars in the eastern part of Oleksiivka, so the Ukrainian command had to react quickly and opted for tanks to clear the infiltrators due to their speed and firepower.
They dispatched two T-80BV tanks to annihilate the enemy, which engaged the hangars with direct fire, demolishing them before withdrawing safely.
Another footage shows how Ukrainian drone operators systematically hunted down more infiltrators south of the same hangars, trying to penetrate through a slightly different vector. The Russians tried to shoot down the drones, but to no avail, with some being eliminated while others were taken as prisoners of war by the Ukrainian soldiers on the ground.
This prompted the Russian command to adjust its tactics from pure infantry attacks to using buggies, supported by military trucks with supplies. The idea was to approach the village quickly and dismount enough soldiers to establish positions inside it while avoiding the Ukrainian drones.
Unfortunately for the Russians, the Ukrainian operators located them on time, and FPV drones hit the supply truck first, before switching to the buggies. The immobilized vehicles were then finished off with drone-dropped grenades, while the surviving soldiers were annihilated in another Ukrainian tank raid before they were able to dig in.
As a result, the Russian outflanking attempts were halted, as the Ukrainians inflicted the enemy at least a dozen casualties, confirmed by footage from the outskirts of the village, littered with Russian corpses.
Overall, the unfavorable terrain and the Ukrainian surveillance near Velykomykhailivka forced the Russians to try a pincer maneuver. This was rebuffed by the Ukrainians with precision drone fire and the ability of tanks to clear small buildings with ease. Despite this initial failure, Russia will try again, as this is currently the sector where they have achieved the most gains with the least resources. However, even when more Russian forces are thrown in, the river and the Ukrainian defense behind it on the higher ground will be harder to overcome than the open fields leading to them.
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