"FROM THE ANALYST"

MAJOR ADVANCES!

Ukrainian forces have managed to cut the link road between Novopropivka and Verbove, therefore denying easy relocation for the Russians as they race to fill gaps in either frontline. This seriously hampers their tactical flexibility.
The Russian loss here was precipitated only by the loss of a number of running engagements north and west of Verbove that preceded it. The road capture was in effect, the cascaded result of an earlier loss.
Ukrainian gains were over 1km in depth and almost 3km wide overall around the village and west along the road.
Having managed to quickly force the Russians to back off the Ukrainian forces rapidly switched from the Verbove side to NE Novopropivka and south of Robotyne. Substantial gains into the north of Novopropivka were made and a significant area is now in the grey zone.
A failed Russian counter attack made things worse.
Novopropivka is regarded as an unwise defensive position. The terrain is not at all suitable for a defence such as that conducted at Klieshievka and there is a strong argument that the Russians would be better off just letting it go in the wider scheme of things. However they have a centuries long history of defending settlements that’s ingrained in them and to just give it up runs counter to their DNA.
A good day for Ukraine with smart local strategic thinking and outstanding technical execution.

Slava Ukraini 🇺🇦