Overview

Russia has revealed that fierce battles erupted in the Zaporizhia region of southern Ukraine on Friday after it repulsed repeated attempts by the Ukrainian army in recent days to break through the front and divide its forces. A spokesman for Russia’s Vostok group said 13 Ukrainian tanks had been destroyed in battles in the Zaporizhia region and 8 in the Dsk region, according to Reuters.

Artillery Battles and Marches

The group also announced the outbreak of artillery and drone battles, in which infantry soldiers participated. In turn, Russian military bloggers reported that there were fierce battles on the Zaporizhia front near the city of Orekiv. Reuters could not verify in battlefield reports independently.

Great Counterattack

Interestingly, top military commanders told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that Moscow has been in able to successfully repel the attacks, which he said are part of a major counterattack launched by Ukraine since Sunday. Ukraine has refused to comment on the long-awaited counterattack, accusing Russia of spreading lies about it. The New York Times quoted three top US officials as saying it already was in launched a Ukrainian counterattack.

Future Implications

Interestingly, after Ukraine obtains tens of billions of dollars worth of Western weapons to fight Russian forces, the success or failure of the counterattack will determine the form of diplomatic relations and military support that the West will provide to the ‘Ukraine in future.