The extent of Ukraine’s counterattack in the Kherson region is still unclear and it has not been possible to assess the progress.
The Office of the President of Ukraine said on Tuesday that heavy fighting is taking place in southern Ukraine in almost the entire Kherson region. According to the regional authorities, the long-awaited attack is the beginning of the recapture of the region.
Ukraine says it struck 13 Russian military targets in the settlements of Kherson, Beryslav and Kakhovka, reports the Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform. All three cities are located along the Dnieper River.
The Russian Ministry of Defense has denied the progress of the counterattack and said that Ukrainian forces suffered heavy losses.
According to the Guardian newspaper, the city of Mykolaiv, located northwest of Kherson, has come under heavy Russian bombardment. Two civilians have been killed and 24 wounded, the Ukrainian authorities say.
The British intelligence service also said on Tuesday morning that the troops of the Ukrainian armed forces have bombed Russian troops heavily in southern Ukraine and the long-range precision strikes have disrupted Russian supplies.
The units depend on the supply lines of the ferries and pontoon bridges crossing the Dnieper.
There is no information on the scope
According to Britain, it is not yet possible to assess the extent of the counterattack launched by Ukraine on Monday.
Since the beginning of August, Russia has strengthened its defense positions on the west bank of the Dnieper River around the city of Kherson.
If Ukraine manages to maintain its counterattack, the functionality of the Russian chain of command is an important factor to monitor, estimates the British intelligence service.
On Tuesday, the governor of the city of Kharkiv also said that four people have died in the Russian attacks.
“Go Home”
In his daily speech on Monday evening, the president Volodymyr Zelensky did not specifically mention a counterattack, but said the occupation forces would be driven “to the border”.
– If they want to survive, it’s time for the Russian army to flee. Go home, Zelensky said.
Russian troops captured the city of Kherson with a population of 280,000 on March 3.
Spokesman of the Southern Military District of the Ukrainian Army Natalia Gumenyuk has said that the forces of Kiev are now attacking from many directions.
Gumenyuk’s Facebook update said early Tuesday that the situation has remained “tense” in the southern military district’s operational area.
According to ISW, the Ukrainian authorities have not yet confirmed the transfer of any settlement center back to Ukraine.
Advisor to the President Oleksiy Arestovych warned Ukrainians in a video not to expect quick victories.
Several precision strikes
Ukraine says it hit Russian anti-aircraft stations with six separate airstrikes.
In addition, Ukraine claims to have destroyed from Russia, among other things, the S-300 anti-aircraft missile series, two tanks and 11 howitzers, as well as Russian weapons depots near the settlements of Beryslav, Vyskopillian and Antonivka in the Kherson region.
ISW estimates that Ukraine is trying to take advantage of the disruptions in the Russian chain of command, which Ukraine has caused in recent weeks in its attacks with Himars rocket launchers from behind Russian defense positions.
The Russian Ministry of Defense and several Russian media reported that Ukraine’s counterattack was propaganda. According to ISW’s assessment, information about the development of the situation is likely to be fragmented for some time due to the panic of Russian sources.
A group of UN experts is currently on their way to inspect the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which was hit by new bombings over the weekend. On Tuesday morning, Russia again accused the Ukrainians of two explosions near the nuclear power plant.
The city of Kherson is located 200 kilometers from the Zaporizhia power plant.