18 Sep: Ukrainian Pincer Maneuver Destroys Russian Counteroffensive In Kursk - Reporting from Ukraine

Today, the most interesting developments come from the Kursk direction.

Here, Ukrainian forces have launched a daring flanking maneuver, breaking through Russian defenses and putting the entire Russian strike force on the verge of encirclement. This bold maneuver could completely neutralize Russia’s counteroffensive and give Ukraine an ultimate upper hand in this region.

As reported last time, Russians took control of Snagost and reestablished ground lines of communication with the Glushkovo pocket; however, to keep Russians cut off from the mainland, Ukrainians kept the road under strict fire control with FPV drones. Geolocated footage shows Ukrainians destroying a Russian transport vehicle on its way to resupply Russian forces to the west.

Russians knew that to eliminate the threat of Ukrainians launching another attack and cutting off the pocket again, they had to push Ukrainian forces further west. Russian military sources reported they launched a series of infantry assaults on Byahkovo, Vnezapnoe, and Gordeevka and had captured these minor settlements. Russians launched a spearhead mechanized assault on the settlement of Liubimovka, a slightly larger settlement that Ukrainians are able to use as a launching point for future offensive actions. Taking control of Liubimovka would allow Russians to sever the Sudzha-Korenevo road and cut off and outflank Ukrainian positions further to the north.

Ukrainians report that Russians launched the assault with two tanks, eleven BMD infantry fighting vehicles, and one armored personnel carrier. Geolocated footage shows how Ukrainians destroyed the Russian armor as it advanced toward the town with anti-tank mines, javelin ATGMs, and FPV drones mounted with anti-tank weapons. If you want to get access to the original uncensored combat footage, you can find it on our Telegram channel by using the QR code or the link in the description.

Interestingly, the BMD-2 vehicles that Russians used for their assault belong to Russian VDV airborne infantry units. This, along with reports from the Institute for the Study of War stating that Russians redeployed several naval infantry or marine battalions, indicates that Russians have redeployed more combat-effective units to launch these assaults. Most other Russian units along the frontline in Kursk are either conscripts, Donbas volunteers, police, or even just guards of military facilities. This means that Russians are not yet able to launch a full-frontal counteroffensive but have to rely on smaller tactical operations from these more well-trained marine and airborne battalions to force Ukrainians to withdraw from their territorial gains.

If we look at the topographic map, we can better understand how Ukrainians defeated the Russian assaults. As you can see, Russians mainly advanced in and along the lowlands, while Ukrainians maintained control over the high ground. This has allowed Ukrainians to fight off Russian assaults in the south and destroy the Russian spearhead toward Liubimovka. In the south, Russians were also able to assault from the high ground themselves, and defending the settlements here would just lead to unnecessary losses, which is why Ukrainians pulled back. The Institute for the Study of War also concluded that Russians have only captured weaker Ukrainian positions in the lowlands but experienced much more difficulty penetrating deeper, as Ukrainians maintained stronger positions further into the Kursk salient.

Ukrainians also continued their offensive operation on the Glushkovo salient, moving further west and capturing the border settlements of Volfino and Krasnooktyabr'skiy. As it turns out, Russian units had turned the large school building in the settlement of Veseloye into a base of operations, storing manpower and ammunition here, and were using it to coordinate the defense. As all civilians had been evacuated, Ukrainians were free to air strike the Russian base with precision-guided bombs, destroying the building completely. Geolocated footage also shows how Ukrainians used their tanks to fire on any Russian position left in the settlement. The original uncensored video of this operation can be found on our Telegram channel as well.

With the main Russian base of operations destroyed, Ukrainians, under the cover of their tanks, were able to move in and successfully clear the settlement of any remaining Russian resistance. Russian...