A commander of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (VSU) in the south of the country said Kiev believes it has penetrated Russia's strong defenses there.
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| Photos provided by VSU show Ukrainian soldiers entering the village of Rabotino, Zaporizhzhia. (Source: Reuters) |
On August 26, Reuters quoted the commander of the Rabotino group, who used the guerrilla code name “Kombat”, as saying: “We are not stopping here. Next we have (the town of) Berdyansk, and beyond. I told the soldiers clearly: Our goal is not Rabotino, our goal is (the Sea of) Azov.” He stressed: “We have passed the main roads strewn with mines… I believe we will advance faster from here.”
Earlier, on August 23, the VSU said it had raised its national flag in Rabotino in Southern Zaporizhzhia, 10 km south of the town of Orikhiv. The Ukrainian commander also clarified that only two houses in Rabotino are currently under Russian control, but the VSU will soon achieve its goal.
However, Russia has not confirmed this information.
Rabotino is about 100 kilometers from Berdyansk, a port on the Azov Sea, and 85 kilometers from the strategic city of Melitopol, both of which are currently under Russian control.
Last week, a US official said there was “no indication” that the VSU could advance and regain control of Melitopol, thereby “splitting” Russian forces in the south.
On the Russian side, on August 26, the country's Ministry of Defense announced that it had destroyed an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in the Belgorod region, on the border with Ukraine.
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