Recently, the newly formed northern cluster of the Russian army suddenly launched an offensive on Kharkiv.
From the beginning of the offensive on May 10, the Russian army quickly achieved a breakthrough in border operations, capturing 9 villages and eating hundreds of square kilometers of territory in just two days.
At present, the Russian army on the western route has attacked the periphery of Lipzi; The Russian army on the eastern route entered the city of Volchask.
These two towns differ from the average border village in that they are larger in that they have a pre-war population of more than 4,000 and the latter 17,000 pre-war population.
Because the town is slightly larger and located on the main local communication route, it is operated by the Ukrainian army as an operational base on the front line, whether it is as a fulcrum for the border defense of the Ukrainian army or a base for attacking the Russian mainland, it has played a huge role.
Therefore, although the purpose of this round of Russian offensive is not Kharkiv City, it is more likely to create a safe buffer zone; But the Russian army easily attacked these two important fulcrums, which made the Ukrainian army extremely defenseless.
Moreover, since the Ukrainian army counterattacked Kharkiv in the fall of 2022, it has begun to build a defensive line, spending huge resources to build a defensive line for a year and a half, which was once the "pride" of the Ukrainians.
Some Ukrainian media even claimed that the Kharkiv defense line was the strongest on the whole front, and other fronts should learn from Kharkov.
The cow blew out, but the Kharkiv defense line was pierced as soon as it was stabbed, and even the video taken by the Ukrainian drone showed that the Russian army was swaying in a foot column and entered Kharkiv with a walk.
Some Ukrainian army officers scolded that there were no minefields in the border area, let alone a line of defense.
For a while, there was an uproar in Ukraine, accusing the Ukrainian army's defense line of being a non-existent force, and also asking where the funds and resources for building the defense line went?
To be honest, Ukraine's defense line is actually not built on the border line, there is no such condition at all, after all, how can the Russian army watch the Ukrainian army digging fortifications on the border?
In fact, in the direction of the offensive of the Russian Western Route Army, the Ukrainian defense line is 5 to 10 kilometers from the border; In the direction of the offensive of the Eastern Route Army of the Russian army, the Ukrainian defense line is even 10 to 20 kilometers away.
However, although the real line of defense is backward, a number of support points along the border line should play the role of early warning and delay, but the defending territorial defense forces have slipped; In addition, border towns such as Voltsk City should have certain urban defense measures in themselves, and they cannot constitute line defense, but at least point defense should still exist.
But these should or should be done, and the Ukrainian army obviously did not do it.
In the face of the unfavorable situation on the front line, the Ukrainian army had to urgently transfer field troops from other fronts to reinforcements, and the 42nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade, the 57th Motorized Infantry Brigade, the 92nd Assault Brigade, and the 93rd Mechanized Infantry Brigade all sent troops, which will seriously affect the operations on other fronts.
Under the wrath of the headquarters of the Ukrainian army, Brigadier General Yuri Galushkin, who was originally in charge of the command of the Kharkiv operational group, was replaced, and replaced by Brigadier General Mykhailo Drapatoy, deputy chief of the General Staff of the Ukrainian army.
Obviously, the newly appointed commander of the Ukrainian army in Kharkiv is of a very high rank, which is enough to prove that the Ukrainian army attaches great importance to operations in the Kharkiv direction.
In addition, since Liptsy and Voltsy have not yet been lost, and now the main field forces reinforced by the Ukrainian army have arrived one after another, the situation has not yet reached the point of being out of control.
The northern cluster that the Russian army is now attacking is a newly built unit, and it does not have many field troops and rich actual combat experience, although it is equipped with very strong firepower, but it is not without shortcomings.
If the Ukrainian army can rely on major towns and real defensive lines to block the current offensive of the Russian army, it will still be able to hold in the Kharkiv direction.
Therefore, the current defensive battle of Liptsy and Voltsask is crucial.
Of course, the Ukrainian army is likely to continue to send troops to reinforce Kharkiv, and the defensive density of the Ukrainian army on other fronts will inevitably decrease, which will provide opportunities for Russian troops to attack in other directions.
We will follow up on the specific follow-up situation at any time.