According to the Ukrainian military, fighting has continued on Saturday but that Russian troops have not made any progress, but remain in what is described as the “grey zone” along the border with Russia.
Kharkiv Governor Oleh Synehubov said on Saturday that Ukrainian forces had repelled 13 attacks near Kupyansk and nine attacks at a smaller community further south in the past 24 hours.
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At the same time, Russia’s Ministry of Defense states that it has taken control of several villages, both in the Kharkiv region and in Donetsk.
Buffer zone towards Belgorod
Several analysts believe that the offensive could be the start of a Russian attempt to create a buffer zone along the border. According to Reuters, Russia plans to advance up to a mile into the Kharkiv region with the stated goal of establishing such a zone.
– The city of Kharkiv is approximately five kilometers from the border and it is not likely that Russian ground forces can reach there. However, their attacks on Kharkiv from the air can increase and be more successful, says SVT’s Bert Sundström.