Ukrainian tanks ignite northern offensive with brutal close-quarters fire

Today, the biggest news is coming from the northern Kharkiv direction.

Here, Ukrainians unleashed a massive armored assault into Russian lines as a devastating close-quarters opener for the Ukrainian autumn counteroffensive. As Russians desperately try to close a pocket around Ukrainian forces set up against the international border, this Ukrainian assault just stopped the Russian plans right in their tracks.

Geolocated footage shows the opening of the Ukrainian assaults. Two heavy tanks equipped with additional armor advanced into the village of Vilkhuvatka controlled by the Russians. Mirroring the Russian turtle tank design, Ukrainian tanks did not seem slowed down by the additional weight, and demonstrated similar maneuverability as if the additional armor was not there. The assault column was being escorted by a series of Ukrainian drones; reconnaissance drones with high-resolution cameras were able to guide the tanks accurately around possible dangers on the road, as the additional armor still reduced their situational awareness.

Heavy Vampire bomber drones loitered overhead, ready to drop heavy explosives and carpet-bomb Russian positions if they dared to ambush the tanks. Along the way, the tanks ran over several light mines that failed to damage the Ukrainian armor. Once they reached the Russian lines, they fired several shots into known enemy positions. Taking up positions and firing rapidly, they were able to completely dismantle the Russian strongpoints guarding the entrance to the village. After the mission was completed, they withdrew quickly, but Russian drone operators had already launched several kamikaze drones heading straight toward the Ukrainian tanks. Unfortunately for the Russians however, the Ukrainian turtle tanks withstood the Russian strikes. The outer layer of armor, specifically designed to deal with enemy kamikaze drones, was able to shrug off all the hits as they withdrew safely back to the Ukrainian rear.

Looking back at the map, we can see that the Ukrainian armored assault took place on the eastern flank of the Russian pincer effort in the northern Kharkiv region. Here, Russian forces are trying to encircle Ukrainian defenders against the international border, before making their way south between the Siverskyi Donets and Oskil rivers. Ukrainians had already cleared and broken the tip of the Russian spearhead on the eastern flank, eliminating the direct threat of encirclement and breaking Russian offensive momentum. However, Ukrainians quickly realized that Russian forces closer to the border had managed to entrench and fortify in the series of villages and forests on the Ukrainian side of the border. Leaving this fortified Russian foothold intact would inevitably lead to Russians trying again to infiltrate and encircle Ukrainians to the north, meaning Russians could not be allowed to maintain their positions here.

This is why Ukrainians decided on a shock-and-awe armored assault to punch a hole in the Russian line of fortifications. Russians had not defended themselves against a possible armored assault, meaning that the tanks could easily create a breakthrough for Ukrainian infantry to follow. And this they did, as the tank assault allowed Ukrainian infantry clearing groups to move in and clear several parts of the grey zone leading up to the settlement. It is highly likely that Ukrainians have also inserted forces directly into Vilkhuvatka in conjunction with the heavy armored assault; however no footage of this has yet been released for operational security reasons.

Overall, Ukrainians are opening a powerful counteroffensive effort in the most northern regions. Spearheading it with heavily armored tanks, Russian fortifications are being broken down through intense fire. As Russian forces are being pushed back to the border on the east, the last hope of the Russian high command to achieve a major victory against Ukraine by the end of year is unraveling as fast as it is everywhere else.