Kupiansk is Russia's second-most important target after Pokrovsk-Kostiantynivka – analyst

Military observer Vasyl Pekhno shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"If we talk about the Kharkiv region, we’ve seen enemy attempts to push forward in the border areas – the settlements of Mylove and Ambarne. These are all moves along the border headed toward Velykyi Burluk. I expected the enemy to ramp up activity there, but so far we haven’t seen that. Still, I don’t rule it out in the coming weeks, since the Russians want to take the Kupiansk area, the city of Kupiansk itself. Basically, they’re trying to stretch our troops along the border," Pekhno said.

According to the observer, Russian forces are trying to distract from Kupiansk, even though it remains a priority. Kupiansk is task No. 2 after the Donetsk region, after the Pokrovsk-Kostiantynivka direction. Kupiansk is their second key target for a major strike.

"For now, the Russians don’t have the strength to put serious pressure on the front. They’re mostly concentrated on the right bank of the Oskil River and north of Kupiansk. Infantry units are working there, since the occupiers can’t move equipment across the Oskil. At the same time, enemy offensive activity on the left bank has dropped sharply.

It looks like they can’t apply full pressure on all front sections at once and cause huge problems like the ones we’re now seeing near Pokrovsk," Pekhno added.

• On Monday, July 21, there were 176 combat clashes recorded across the front. In the most active area – the Pokrovsk direction – Russian forces launched 57 attacks.