Ukrainian forces leverage adverse weather for tactical advantages in Kherson Oblast, conducting HIMARS raids and troop rotations, posing threats to Russian command centers, and exposing communication weaknesses.
Day 645: Nov 30
Today, there are a lot of interesting developments in the Kherson region.
Here, Ukrainian forces secured new positions in the forest, transferred additional reinforcements, and launched an extensive HIMARS raid intending to destroy Russian command centers, forces concentrations, and a lot of air defense systems.
Last time, I told you that the weather conditions had deteriorated, significantly affecting the ongoing operations along the river. The bad weather presented the biggest challenges to the reconnaissance teams, both Russian and Ukrainian. However, the limited visibility also gave a lot of opportunities, especially for Ukrainians, because they could conduct rotation of forces and ship supplies of ammunition much more easily.
In fact, Russian sources reported that over the last few days, Ukrainians have successfully transferred additional units to the eastern bank of the river and that up to 400 Ukrainian personnel are now operating near Krynky.
Moreover, today, some Russian sources admitted that Ukrainian forces advanced southwest of Krynky and established a foothold in a nearby forest area. Russian analysts started raising the alarm that Ukrainians used the time wisely and were fully prepared to launch the next phase of the offensive operation.
Recently, the weather improved, and the Russian Air Force resumed their airstrikes on the region. Russian sources reported that Russians used FAB-250 bombs to target potential Ukrainian positions.
Interestingly, Russian soldiers on the ground expressed their pessimism about the effectiveness of the strikes because they said that the communication between different detachments and especially branches of the military is virtually non-existent, and the strikes do not happen based on the reconnaissance collected by the Russian drone operators. In part, this explains how Ukrainians managed to cross the river and hold the ground so successfully.
It seems like the scale of the offensive operation is going to increase even more because the moment the weather improved, Ukrainians started targeting Russian command centers, forces concentration, and air defense systems relentlessly.
Ukrainian fighters from the thirty-fifth brigade recently released footage showing HIMARS strikes in Korsunka. The video features multiple strikes, and, according to the fighters, they destroyed several houses that Russians used as barracks for soldiers and at least one warehouse with equipment, which could be seen from the rising fire.
Another video shows how the Ukrainian Special Force identified a Russian command and control vehicle near Nova Maiachka. The immediate HIMARS strike destroyed the vehicle together with the Russian commanders.
Ukrainian forces also struck a building in occupied Yuvileine during a Russian occupation law enforcement meeting. Russian sources reported that a Ukrainian HIMARS strike killed four occupation police and injured 18 others.
Ukrainians also focused their attention on the Russian air defense systems. Since Ukrainians are actively using drones in the Kherson region, the destruction of air defense systems is indispensable for ensuring freedom of movement. The first strike happened near Novoselivske. Here, the HIMARS crews destroyed an air defense rocket launcher Buk-M2.
Another Russian BUK-M2 surface-to-air missile system destroyed in the war zone
Recent videos show that Ukraine intensified its campaign to deplete the Russian air defenses, destroying another BUK and one TOR M2, damaging the third BUK.
📹 via https://t.co/wMue8uwWLF pic.twitter.com/5k3DgmmHYx— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) November 30, 2023
Several days prior, Ukrainians also identified and destroyed an even better version of the system, more precisely, an air defense rocket launcher Buk-M3.
Several days ago, Ukrainians also published a video of the training of the marines. The marines were learning how to ford the river in large numbers with heavy equipment.
Ukrainian soldiers training to cross water bodies on BMP infantry fighting vehicles
📹via https://t.co/anJfcQQE7O pic.twitter.com/LLw6xyn5aI
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) December 1, 2023
And we saw that Ukrainians have already transferred at least one armored fighting vehicle to Krynky, so it is possible that Ukrainians are looking for the moment when Russian forces are in the weakest and most disorganized position to launch an attack.
Overall, Ukrainians used the bad weather to their advantage and brought in fresh troops to the bridgehead. The moment the weather reasonably improved, Ukrainians conducted a series of devastating strikes on the Russian force concentrations, command centers, and air defense to undermine the Russian defensive capabilities. So, very soon, we may see a lot of interesting developments in the region.
In our daily frontline report, we pair up with the military blogger Reporting from Ukraine to keep you informed about what is happening on the battlefield in the Russo-Ukrainian war.
