Hostilities in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, equipment to fight Russian UAVs. Military expert Serhiy Zgurets

Fighting in Luhansk and Donetsk regions

Let's focus on the Lyman direction, where the enemy has been holding defensive positions for a long time. But now Ukrainian General Staff reports that the occupying forces have intensified their efforts in this area. Colonel Serhiy Cherevatyi, spokesman for the Ukrainian Eastern Military Group, said that the advance of the Ukrainian defense forces in the Svatove-Kreminna area has slowed down due to a number of circumstances, and combat operations are not always offensive. Now Ukrainian Armed Forces are working to deplete the enemy. The spokesperson for the Eastern military grouping emphasized that under favorable factors and conditions, Ukrainian troops will certainly move to decisive action.

AFU serviceman Yuriy Fedorenko said that due to weather conditions it was not possible to conduct active counter-offensive actions to recapture Svatove. Bad weather started, and it became almost impossible to supply manpower. But the Ukrainian Armed Forces improved their position, advancing every day. These were sectoral heavy battles to take 20-30-50-100 meters of our territory. A week ago, the Ukrainian Armed Forces, namely the 92nd Mechanized Brigade, succeeded in the Svatove direction. The village of Novoselivske was completely de-occupied, as well as a number of other positions that improved our situation. At the same time, the enemy is trying to carry out attack and assault operations to regain control of these settlements. The enemy is concentrating its forces and means, and we clearly understand and feel it. The war is aimed at maximum destruction of the enemy's armored vehicles and manpower. As soon as the necessary preconditions are in place, Fedorenko believes, Svatove will be de-occupied. The enemy partially understands this, because we can see the characteristic fortifications outside Svatove. That is, the enemy is building a second line of defense.

Yuriy Fedorenko noted that the enemy deploys Wagner mercenaries on this section of the frontline, trying to "feel out" our defense line to check for weaknesses. The enemy also deploys special forces who dress in the uniform of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, speak Ukrainian and try to penetrate deep into our operational space. The Ukrainian side counteracts such actions quite successfully, so Russia's intentions to destabilize the situation, conduct sabotage and occupy our positions are constantly being thwarted.

Fedorenko noted that Russian troops are using an incredible amount of mines, minefields are everywhere. The enemy is mining outside the positions of their recently mobilized troops to prevent them from retreating when the Ukrainian Armed Forces press on them. They leave small corridors to bring in replenishment and manpower from the positions that the Ukrainian Armed Forces keep under fire, systematically destroying the enemy.

The situation around Kupyansk

As for the information about the enemy's manpower concentration and attempts to regain control of the city of Kupyansk, there may be such attempts, but the Ukrainian Armed Forces are definitely ready at this point and will not lose the initiative. The enemy will not be able to re-occupy Kupyansk. There may be heavy fighting ahead. The enemy has prepared a certain grouping of troops, it may be 150,000 approximately, which will be used as a striking group.

According to Yuriy Fedorenko, it is important for the enemy to show at least some results by the anniversary of the outbreak of a full-scale war and aggression against Ukraine. They will pressure Donetsk and Luhansk regions as much as they can, and after the anniversary of the attack on Ukraine, they may target Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia regions.

The enemy will make false claims in the information space that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are losing ground, but Ukrainian forces will retain all the necessary strategically important areas with blood and sweat. Where necessary, maneuvers will be made to occupy more favorable positions to repel the enemy's attack. We will have to pay a high price for this.

We will receive the necessary amount of ammunition and equipment from our partners to continue counteroffensive actions to de-occupy our territories. There is every reason to believe that we will be able to do something similar to what happened in Kharkiv and Kherson regions on this scale. It is important that the rear is held, and that the Ukrainian Armed Forces, with its support, fulfill their tasks.

Means of countering enemy UAVs

Anton Mikhnenko, editor-in-chief of the Ukrainian Defense Review magazine, commented on Hunter F700 drones that Ukraine is beginning to receive to protect energy facilities. Hunter F700 drone is manufactured by an American company, and its main purpose is to detect drones moving in the airspace. The American UAV can operate at an altitude of up to 5.5 km. And the countermeasure is that Hunter launches a specialized net that confuses the enemy drone. If a small drone is caught, Hunter suspends a small drone in a net, and if a larger drone is encountered, a net with a parachute is launched which makes the enemy drone land.

Of course, like any weapon, it has advantages and disadvantages. If we are talking about high-speed drones, then this drone has certain speed limits. There are also limitations on the overall dimensions against which Hunter drones can be used. But nevertheless, it is an effective and intelligent thing. A special radar is installed on board to detect airborne targets, process the information accordingly, and release a net in time to capture an enemy drone. This means that it is an intelligent system that can be effectively used to protect specific infrastructure facilities targeted by Russia.

Anton Mikhnenko noted that there is also another development that is being integrated into Ukraine. This product provides direction finding and detection of drones in the airspace. The system allows our units to detect an enemy drone in a timely manner, warn about the location of this enemy aircraft and respond in a timely manner or transmit information to the relevant units. This is an effective tool that allows us to prevent the enemy from using these drones in time.