Maps | Ukrainian troops tighten the siege on Liman, in territory annexed by Russia

The Kremlin troops deployed in Liman, a strategic railway junction for the Russian Army located in the Donetsk region, are close to being surrounded by the forces of kyiv: in three days Ukraine will capture it or surround it completely, estimates the Institute for the Study of the War (ISW), in view of the advance of the last days.

The town, located about 175 kilometers south of Kharkov, has been the scene of battles for weeks, in the context of a Ukrainian counteroffensive launched in early September that has forced Russian troops to withdraw.

Losing control of this population is a serious blow to Moscow, which on Friday staged the annexation of four new provinces of Ukraine.

The Kremlin spokesman, Dimitri Peskov, was unable to establish before journalists the border limits of the territories annexed by Russia, beyond indicating that the independent people's republics of Lugansk and Donetsk were proclaimed in 2014.

For Russia, Liman's role as a railway hub has been key in transporting supplies to troops deployed in eastern Ukraine.

The Ukrainian pincer closes in the southeast and northwest of the town: the Ministry of Defense has published videos with its troops in Drobysheve, a small town just 10 kilometers from Liman.

The self-proclaimed leader of the Donetsk region, Denis Pushilin, said on Friday that the city was "half-fenced".

Taking control of the population would mean for the kyiv troops to recover a communications hub to use as a base to launch attacks on cities in another of the provinces annexed by Moscow, Lugansk.

In the south of the country, in the provinces of Kherson and Zaporizhia, also illegally annexed by Russia, the front line has barely changed in recent days, despite constant fighting.

In Zaporizhia, at least 30 people were killed and 88 others wounded in a missile attack on a convoy of civilians.

kyiv points to Moscow.

From there they affirm the opposite.

This is the episode with the most civilian casualties since the massacre at the Kramatorsk train station on April 8, which left more than 50 dead in the city of Donetsk.

Previous days |

September 21st

kyiv troops maintain attacks on towns controlled by Russian forces in eastern Ukraine.

The fighting between the two contenders has taken place in recent days, in a dispute over control of territories that are on the borders of Donetsk and Lugansk, the two eastern regions where pro-Russian separatists, with the support of Moscow, proclaimed republics in 2014. independent popular.

Ukrainian troops have taken control of Bilohorivka, a small town located within the Lugansk region, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) after viewing videos showing Ukrainian soldiers.

The area has been the scene of fighting for days, but the images allow the organization to confirm the information of both contenders about the Ukrainian control of the population.

The loss of control of the territory by Moscow since Ukraine began a counteroffensive two weeks ago has led Russian President Vladimir Putin to announce partial mobilization in the country on Wednesday, a tremendously unpopular measure among citizens.

Russian troops on the Donbas front try to secure defensive positions against the Ukrainian advance, for which they also maintain ground attacks.

Especially in the surroundings of the cities of Donetsk and Bakhmut, towns in the Donetsk region through which the line that separates the territories controlled by both contenders passes.

The other area of ​​the country where the fighting is taking place is the Kherson region, to the south, in Russian hands since the first weeks of the offensive.

September 15

The Ukrainian army intends to extend the counteroffensive that it launched almost 10 days ago to cities in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, the two regions where pro-Russian separatists, with the support of Moscow, proclaimed independent people's republics in 2014, according to Oleksii. Arestovych, one of President Volodymyr Zelensky's advisers.

The adviser said in a video on Wednesday that Ukrainian troops were trying to retake the town of Lyman in Donetsk, about 175 kilometers south of Kharkiv.

“There is an assault on Lyman going on right now,” Arestovych said.

The collaborator of the Ukrainian president announced that his troops "are trying to gain territory" also in neighboring Lugansk, both under Russian control.

The successful counteroffensive carried out in the northeast of the country in the last week has allowed the Ukrainian army to reconquer nearly 8,500 square kilometers, according to kyiv, since last September 6.

For their part, the troops continue to work on consolidating control of the areas recovered in recent days in the province of Kharkov, in the northeast of the country, according to UK Intelligence on Thursday.

The ISW considers that the reconquest of Izium, in the Kharkov region, has dealt a serious blow to the Russian ability to carry out artillery attacks in the area, as it was used as a base to maintain the defense line on the Donbas border.

The US organization estimates that the Kremlin forces have been unable to build a new line of defense from which to maintain their positions in the area, and the remaining units have withdrawn to other flanks.

The northwest, however, is not the only battle zone between the two contenders.

To the south, in the Kherson region, under the control of the Kremlin since the beginning of the conflict, the fighting has also taken place in recent days.

The sustained counteroffensive by Ukrainian forces in Kherson is damaging Russian combat capabilities in the area, the ISW says.

Several civilians tow an abandoned Russian tank;

on the right, soldiers remove the marks of the occupation in

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State Border Service of Ukraine

September 12 |

Ukraine deals a "significant defeat" to Russia in the east of the country

The counteroffensive launched by Ukraine in recent days, which has taken the biggest and most unexpected turnaround since the Russian invasion of the country on February 24, has forced Kremlin forces to abandon their positions in the eastern Kharkov region, which borders with Russia and is the gateway to the coveted Russian-speaking Donbas.

Ukraine has inflicted a "significant defeat" on Russian troops with this counterattack operation, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

In the face of the Ukrainian advance, Moscow has ordered the withdrawal of its forces from the entire Kharkov region to the east of the Oskil River, according to British intelligence, so the withdrawal has returned the invading troops to Donbas.

The withdrawal order issued by Russia in recent days – the largest since the withdrawal of its troops from the outskirts of kyiv in March – at various strategic points on the eastern fringe provides an unparalleled military success in the Ukrainian counteroffensive.

The regaining of control of the essential enclave of Izium deals a severe blow to Moscow's aspirations to control Donetsk, one of the two breakaway regions that make up Donbas.

Russia used Izium as the westernmost location from which to launch attacks on Donetsk, according to the ISW.

The American organization echoes the latest update of the map of the conflict maintained by the Russian Defense Ministry, which reflects the withdrawal of troops.

kyiv's announcement that it intended to stand up to the invader in Kherson, in the south of the country,

Lost Russian position at

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AFP.

A civilian in front of a destroyed house in

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AFP.

Ukrainian armored vehicles in

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Reuters.

A Ukrainian soldier on a Russian tank, in

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Reuters.

The Russian forces have withdrawn precipitously, abounds the ISW, which mentions images shared on social networks in which abandoned tanks and military equipment are observed in the vicinity of Izium, indicating that the Kremlin forces were unable to organize a coordinated withdrawal. .

The Ukrainian General Staff affirms that it has recovered more than 20 towns and villages in the last day, increasing the lack of control of the withdrawal.

The line of Russian control just a week ago, marked with a red line on the map that heads this text, gives an idea of ​​the magnitude of the invader's withdrawal from Ukraine.

More information

Last minute of the war in Ukraine

The Ukrainian initiative allows the kyiv army to choose where the next battles will take place, unless Moscow finds a way to regain the upper hand, the ISW ventures.

The counteroffensive, however, will not end the invasion, warns the organization, as Russia will end up building a new defensive line from which to attack again, with which the war is likely to last until next year, according to the organization. American.

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