Ukrainian forces successfully defend western outskirts of Robotyne

This information was provided by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

On October 21, Ukrainian troops continued their offensive operations in the western part of the Zaporizhzhia region, although no confirmed advances were made. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces noted that Ukrainian troops remained engaged in offensive operations in the direction of Melitopol.

During the same timeframe, Kostyantyn Mashovets, a Ukrainian military observer, reported that Ukrainian forces successfully repelled Russian troops from the western outskirts of Robotyne. Russian military bloggers also asserted that Ukrainian forces continued their offensive along the Robotyne-Kopani and Robotyne-Novoprokopivka lines.

Mashovets further indicated that units from the Russian 247th Airborne Regiment (7th Airborne Division) had retreated several hundred meters in the direction of Novofedorivka.

The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that Russian troops repelled three Ukrainian attacks near Verbove, located 10 kilometers east of Robotyne. Another notable Russian media blogger alleged that Ukrainian forces were conducting mechanized assaults along the Robotyne-Novoprokopivka line, up to 2 kilometers south of Robotyne, employing up to 10 tanks and armored fighting vehicles.

On the same date, Mashovets reported that Russian troops had initiated a counterattack to the west of Verbove, advancing 200 meters into the nearby forested area. The observer added that units of the Russian 108th Airborne Regiment (7th Airborne Division) were advancing near Novopokrovka, located 16 kilometers southeast of Orikhiv, toward Mala Tokmachka, situated 9 kilometers southeast of Orikhiv.

Russian sources asserted that fighting continued along the Robotyne-Kopani line, up to 5 kilometers northwest of Robotyne. Mashovets suggested that the Russian 104th Airborne Regiment might be too weakened to impede the Ukrainian advance toward Novoprokopivka.

• As per the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ morning report, the Ukrainian Defense Forces successfully repelled over 60 attacks on the front, including all those occurring in the Bakhmut, Shakhtarsk, and Zaporizhzhia directions.