Tyotkino is trap zone Russia keeps walking into — Ukrainian analyst on Russian Su-35 downing

This was noted by military analyst Vasyl Pekhno on Espreso TV.

“As far as I know, the aircraft was shot down in an ambush, so to speak. It could have been an anti-aircraft missile system, or it could’ve been a Ukrainian aircraft operating near Tyotkino, on the Russian side, where border operations are taking place between Sumy and Kursk. Tyotkino is essentially a wedge into our border — that's just how the borders between Russia and Ukraine were historically drawn: jagged, irregular, full of odd indentations. And now Russian military bloggers are shouting that their troops are trapped there,” he said.

Pekhno noted that while Russian troops in that area aren’t physically encircled — their logistics haven’t been cut off and there are no Ukrainian forces positioned inside the village — that's not necessary. The point is that Russian forces can’t effectively withdraw, while Ukrainian defenders can continually strike them without crossing into enemy territory.

“That’s the beauty of Tyotkino,” Pekhno said. “I support the current operation precisely because there’s no need to move in. We should keep allowing the Russians to enter this wedge, which is surrounded on three sides by our forces — and where we can keep setting up ambushes. The Su-35, Russia’s best jet, was flying in to try to break the encirclement of troops stuck in Tyotkino. And we can keep destroying them there — the personnel that get trapped, the aircraft sent to support them. We don’t need to physically cut them off, because politically, the Russians will never give the order to retreat — even though, from a logical military standpoint, that would make the most sense. They simply can’t allow themselves to do that. So we should continue the bloody grind in Tyotkino,” the analyst added.

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