On September 2nd, Ukraine confirmed that another POW exchange had taken place. The location was not indicated, but with a high probability the exchange took place in the Zaporozhya region. Ukraine claims that it was handed over 14 POWs from the 30th and 58th Ombr, who were taken prisoner last spring. Who Russia got back, it is not known, but according to Ukrainian sources the exchange should have been one-to-one.
On September 5th, it was learned from the Russian-affiliated social sphere that Ukrainian activity on the Nikolaevo-Krivorozhskoe route had somewhat subsided, indicating the Ukrainian command’s decision to temporarily concentrate its efforts on consolidating its achievements, enlisting new reserves, replenishing its ammunition, after which the offensive will, with a high degree of probability, continue. In the bulletin of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, in fact, the 57th Ukrainian mechanised infantry brigade reappeared, which seemed to have been completely crushed in the ‘Severodonetsk cauldron’, but within a month and a half was restored and already launched on the offensive.
Apparently, it is a matter of time before another brigade participating in the battles near Severodonetsk, the 24th Mechanised Brigade, which was recently re-equipped with Slovenian BMP80A tanks and Polish T-72s, appears in the area. Especially since the funerals of the fighters of this unit have already been filmed in the Lvov region. It is therefore likely that the Ukrainian General Staff reinforced the regrouping in the direction of Kherson with as many as three reserve brigades, apparently considering the defence in the Donbass to be sufficiently stable. All this indicates that the month of September will be characterised by the ‘battle for Kherson’.
Below is the situation at the front in the Peski directorate, taken at 17:00 on 5 September 2022. The 11th regiment of the People’s Militia of the DNR, and thus composed of pro-Russian Ukrainian personnel, is assaulting the positions of the Ukrainian armed forts on the Donetsk bypass, between the settlements of Peski and Pervomaiskoye. After a prolonged artillery preparation, fighting began for the strongholds of the Ukrainian Armed Forces near the bridge on the Donetsk bypass between Peski and Pervomayskoye.
According to reports, assault groups of the 11th DNR National Front regiment, supported by armoured vehicles, managed to enter the territory of the Pervomayskoye settlement from the side of a road junction on the Ring Road south of Peski. The Ukrainians reportedly lost two tanks, two APCs and up to 50 men in the fighting over the past 24 hours on the outskirts of Pervomayskoye. North of Peski, Kiev units abandoned strongholds near the western part of the Donetsk airport runway. The occupation of the last positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces along the Donetsk ring road in this area will allow an offensive towards Pervomayske and Nevelske in the west and along the northern ring road towards Vodyanyi.
On September 4th in the direction of Kherson the Ukrainians said they had taken Vysokopolye. The Russians confirmed the news by stating that they had abandoned Vysokopolye (4,035 inhabitants counted in 2019) by the Russian Armed Forces after exhausting battles. In particular, two Russian majors report that the Ukrainians lost many men and equipment. The withdrawal of the Russian forces is explained by the reluctance to lose men in a position held by the Ukrainians; individual settlements have changed hands more than once in the direction of Nikolaevsk since the beginning of the defensive operation.
And now the situation on the Nikolaevsko-Krivoy Rog direction, last recorded at 15:00 on September 5th. During the seventh day since the start of the Ukrainian offensive on Kherson, the front line has stabilised. The Ukrainian Armed Forces did not stop transferring reserves and expanding the bridgehead to further advance towards Nova Kakhovka and Kherson.
During the night, the Ukrainian Armed Forces began to build up their shock force and transfer equipment to the Posad-Pokrovsky sector: reinforcements arrived in Krasnoye Znamya (Lubomirka), Novohryhorivka and Posad-Pokrovske. Units of the 28th and 59th Ukrainian brigades reinforced the 24th Yavorivska Brigade. Russian units of the 7th VDD and 20th MSD opened artillery fire against the Ukrainian reinforcements, preventing them from advancing and suppressing artillery firing positions. Units of the 33rd Infantry Division conducted a successful raid on enemy positions from the direction of Ternovy Pod and captured the commander of the 59th Shadow of the Kiev Regular Armed Forces and a unit of the Right Sector militia.
In the Snigirev sector of the front, all is relatively quiet: the Russian armed forces periodically attack Ukrainian firing positions and interrupt counter-offensive attempts. A Kiev observation post in Kiselevka was destroyed.
In the Andriivka sector of the front, fighting is localised in the narrow Andriivka – Sukhoy Stavok ‘gut’. Kostromka has been placed under the control of the Russian Armed Forces, one of the crossings established on the Ingulets has been destroyed, Ukrainian forces continue to move individual pieces of equipment along the narrow corridor.
Russian Air Force planes operated without interruption, burning enemy equipment and reinforcements. The Andriivsky section has turned into a large cemetery, where the command continues to send people. On the Olginsky section of the front line, Ukrainian forces used Bayraktar TB2 UAVs on the positions of Russian forces in Olgino and Vysokopolye during the night. The front line stabilised, with the Ukrainian formations attempting to capture the strongholds of the Russian forces.
Graziella Giangiulio
