Russians attempting to pressure east of Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi in Kharkiv region

Colonel Viktor Trehubov, head of communications for the Joint Forces Grouping, reported this on a television broadcast, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“Inside the city, the situation has not changed significantly at the moment, and the same goes for Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi. But the enemy is trying to apply pressure to the east of it, trying to force Ukrainian troops off the left bank of the Oskil River. Not very successfully, but there is real pressure there, serious attempts,” Trehubov said.

According to him, the enemy can replenish its forces only partially using reserves, but is unable to build up manpower for large-scale assaults.

“They have enough to replenish, but not enough to significantly increase their forces. These are trained troops, but not those who’ve been preparing for several months, and not ‘mobiks’ who were just thrown into battle. Usually, they are those who switch to contract service for financial incentives or some sort of social… advancement,” he explained.

He said that after failing with direct assaults, the invaders attempted to bypass Kupiansk, but encountered significant obstacles.

“The Russians did try to bypass the city, that’s true, but… there is a very large kill zone around it, and even attempts to bypass it run into objective difficulties,” he stressed.

Trehubov added that changing weather conditions are unlikely to significantly alter the situation.

“There may be weather that allows the Russians to move covertly, during heavy fog, for example, but currently they still have a major problem just getting close to the city,” he said.

As Ukrinform reported, a man was killed overnight in Kupiansk in a Russian strike.

Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine