Ukrainian forces follow manual demining units, this restrains maneuvering actions during offensive - military expert Zgurets

Defense Express CEO Serhiy Zgurets said this on Espreso TV. 

"The Ukrainian Armed Forces operate in small units, whose advance is preceded by sapper units. These are 4 or 5 trained fighters who, at dusk, when it is impossible to detect them either by thermal imagers or visually, manually clear the territory of mines in narrow corridors," he said.

According to Zgurets, the use of engineering equipment is possible, but it will be the first target for the Russian Federation.

"Now the emphasis is on the actions of sapper units working manually. They are followed by units that are supposed to occupy enemy trenches under fire from our artillery. This is the current tactic of the Ukrainian army. The amount of engineering equipment is quite limited - deliveries are still ongoing, and some samples are on the way. This is one of the deterrents to act more actively," the expert added.

He believes that for some time the tactics of the Armed Forces will remain unchanged, and this in some way restrains maneuvering actions, because everything around is mined and the advance is extremely difficult.

"The movement now depends in any case on the pace of work of the sappers, who ensure demining by hand and then with the support of engineering systems supplied by the Ukrainian army," Zgurets summarized.

Ukraine's counteroffensive in the south

On June 4, the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a counteroffensive on the southern frontline, continuing a series of offensives near Bakhmut and in other directions.

On June 19, Deputy Defense Minister of Ukraine Hanna Maliar reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces liberated Pyatykhatky, Zaporizhzhia region, and advanced up to 7 km in the Tavria direction.

On June 24, the Ukrainian Defense Forces officially confirmed the liberation of the territories near Krasnohorivka in the Donetsk region, which had been under occupation since 2014.

On June 26, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar also said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces had de-occupied the village of Rivnopil, Donetsk region. It is located in the Volnovakha district of the Donetsk region. The Russian army occupied the village in March 2022.

On July 5, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy established ten military administrations in the Zaporizhzhia region and appointed their heads.

According to the General Staff on July 13, the Ukrainian Defense Forces continue to conduct offensive operations on three frontlines - Bakhmut, Melitopol, and Berdiansk. The General Staff reported that the Ukrainian army had some success in the areas of Novodanylivka - Shyroka Balka; Mala Tokmachka - Novopokrovka.

As of July 17, the Ukrainian Armed Forces had liberated almost 180 km² of territory since the start of the counteroffensive in the Melitopol and Berdiansk directions.

On July 18, Major Valeriy Shershen, spokesman for the Joint Press Center of the Tavria Defense Forces, said that the Ukrainian Defense Forces are engaged in heavy fighting for Staromaiorsk in the Donetsk region, with the Ukrainian Armed Forces controlling a certain part of the town.