Ukraine Sees Russian Forces Redeploying to South

Russia is rethinking its war strategy in Ukraine, redeploying forces to the southern regions of Kherson and Zaproizhya following recent successful counter-offensives by Ukrainian units that recaptured territory there.

President Vlodomyr Zelenskyy cited a series of Ukrainian attacks on Russian positions in the south in his daily address to the nation as the reason for Russia's new strategy.

“This won’t work,” he declared. “No Russian attack will be left unanswered. We’re ready for anything.”

Recently acquired HIMARS, a light mobile artillery rocket system – obtained from the United States, and similar weapons are being credited with changing the tide of battle. British intelligence reports that Ukrainian artillery batteries have been highly successful in destroying key bridges that Russia used for supplying its southern positions.

“Ukraine has used its new long-range artillery to damage at least three of the bridges across the Dnipro River, which Russia relies upon to supply the areas under its control,” a British intelligence report said. “One of these, the 1,000-meter long Antonivsky Bridge near Kherson city was damaged last week.”

However, the Operational Command South of the Armed Forces of Ukraine warned that the situation was still fluid.

According to the Operational Command, Russia is maintaining its defenses and is slowly rebuilding its forces on the southern frontline in anticipation of new counter-attacks.

“The situation is dynamic and complex, but is still under Russian control,” Operational Command spokesman Vladyslav Nazarov said.

Earlier, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine had been making rapid gains in the south. In Kherson, 46 settlements and towns have been recaptured. Kherson Gov. Dmytro Buryi reported on the freed towns in a televised press conference at the Ukraine Media Center.

Buryi commended the Armed Forces of Ukraine for working tirelessly on freeing the region, noting the use of precision artillery strikes that were made possible with recently arrived Western weapons like HIMARS.

But for locals, however, the defeat over the Russians still left freed towns destroyed and deserted.

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