Ukrainian troops advance towards Russia’s primary defensive line – military expert Serhiy Zgurets 

The Defense Forces are continuing their liberation efforts in Urozhaine

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine yesterday acknowledged several positive developments on the front line, where significant tension persists across the board. It was reported that the Defense Forces are making progress in the Tavria direction, with the ongoing liberation of the village of Urozhaine. This liberation is being approached cautiously, given recent reports by Russian media that the Russian army had withdrawn from Urozhaine. This village sits on the border of the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.

The success of the Armed Forces' actions is also attributed to Ukrainian artillery support. The liberation of Urozhaine is a significant achievement, one that was hard-fought. At present, the Defense Forces are making the most of the available opportunities along the entire front line. Armed Forces units are coming ever closer to the enemy's primary defensive position. Meanwhile, the enemy is increasing its activities in the Kupyansk direction, possibly in an attempt to divert the attention of the Defense Forces from the southern front.

The fighting is intense in the Kupyansk direction

Yuriy Fedorenko, who leads a group of attack drones in the 92nd separate mechanized brigade, said that in the last week, 6 armored vehicles, including tanks, were destroyed near Kupyansk. Fedorenko mentioned that there's a lot of fighting happening in the Kupyansk direction. The enemy is trying to attack using heavy armored vehicles, but their main focus is on using their soldiers.

Fedorenko highlighted that the enemy could lose about a whole group of soldiers in just one day of fighting. Many of them are either drafted soldiers or prisoners taken from jails. The enemy puts these soldiers at the front, especially for tasks like removing mines. According to Fedorenko, these drafted soldiers and prisoners usually go into battle without much protection from armored vehicles. He added that the Defense Forces are putting a lot of effort into the Kupyansk direction. They are using air reconnaissance to find enemy artillery and targeting them for counterattacks. Fedorenko also stressed that the Defense Forces have managed to make the situation more stable in the Kupyansk area.

Yuriy Fedorenko also mentioned that drones are considered expendable in the army. This is because many drones, of various types, are lost due to enemy electronic warfare and anti-aircraft systems. Fedorenko highlighted that Ukraine has significantly increased the production of various drone types over the past 8 months. Ukraine is one of the first countries to develop and effectively use night bomber drones. These drones are proving successful on all parts of the front.

These drones are used to target the enemy's firing positions and have successfully destroyed Russian armored vehicles. Fedorenko noted that the production rate of such drones in Ukraine is improving and showing positive trends. According to him, one of the reasons for this improvement is the simplification of the process of getting the necessary parts for making different types of drones.

Russian attack on Turkish cargo ship Sukru Okan

According to naval expert Volodymyr Zablotskyi from Defense Express, the Russians indeed fired warning shots at the Sukru Okan cargo ship. The incident occurred about 12 miles away from Turkey's waters in the Black Sea, as reported by the Black Sea Research Institute. Once the ship stopped, a team was sent onto it from a helicopter to inspect it. Zablotskyi stressed that the Russians acted like regular pirates in the Black Sea. After Russian officials inspected the ship, it changed its course to the Romanian port of Sulina.

Volodymyr Zablotskyi believes that we should wait for Turkey's official response to these Russian actions in the Black Sea. He also mentioned that NATO should react to these events as well. Any actions by the Russians, which increasingly resemble piracy, should receive an appropriate response. Zablotskyi pointed out that Ukraine has the means to destroy Russian Black Sea Fleet ships in the area where this incident happened. He reminded that the two previous attacks on Russian ships occurred in the southwestern part of the Black Sea. While Ukraine can't fully monitor all ships going to Ukrainian ports, we still have resources to respond to Russian actions in an unconventional way.

Zablotskyi also believes that Turkey won't likely respond strongly. This is because Erdogan has been building economic ties with Russia. According to the expert, Erdogan won't allow NATO ships to enter the Black Sea, except during the time specified by the Montreux Convention, which is one month.