The Ukrainian counter-offensive is taking place largely under the cover of darkness, several media reports.
The Ukrainian counter-offensive continued to advance in at least three directions during Friday, according to the ISW think tank.
According to Forbes, the Ukrainian attacks are increasingly taking place at night. Under the cover of darkness, the advancing Ukrainian forces are less visible to Russian helicopters, planes and drones.
The Ukrainian forces, equipped with modern Western weapon systems, are said to have better night optics than the Russians, which the Ukrainians are trying to take advantage of.
“Imported equipment has excellent night vision. They can scout, aim and control the accuracy of their fire. Therefore, the enemy chooses the night,” writes a Russian military blogger, according to Forbes.
The US has been supplying the Ukrainian army with night vision equipment since at least 2018, according to the country’s embassy in Kyiv. In addition, the Leopard tanks and other armored vehicles are said to be equipped with advanced optics.
The Ukrainians themselves are silent about their tactics, instead it is the opposing side that confirms the nocturnal attacks.
“The main reason is to reduce the efficiency of the flight; the second is to reduce losses from the precision hits of kamikaze drones from our 42nd Division; the third is to take advantage of the advantages of Western-supplied equipment,” writes Vladimir Rogov, a Russian-savvy leader in the occupied parts of Zaporizhzhya, on Telegram, according to CNN.