While there’s continued activity all over the Ukraine theater of war, the battle for Chasov Yar remains one of the most relevant focus points of the war, both because of its strategic relevance and also because of what it tells about the state of the confrontation.
Located in the Donetsk region, Chasov Yar lies 3-6 miles from Artyomovsk (Bakhmut), captured by Russian Federation forces in May last year after a bloody months-long siege.
Watch: heavy bombardment of Ukrainian defense positions.
CHASOV YAR: heavy bombardment of Ukrainian defense positions. pic.twitter.com/Cw291i5fJ6
— Paul Serran (@paul_serran) April 17, 2024
Ukraine’s top commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, has stated that Moscow aims to capture the town by the patriotic ‘Victory Day’ of May 9.
Reuters reported:
“The fall of the town west of the shattered city of Bakhmut by the date Moscow marks the Soviet victory in World War Two would indicate growing Russian battlefield momentum as Kyiv faces a slowdown in Western military aid.
Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, who warned this weekend that the situation in the east had deteriorated, said Russia was focusing its efforts west of occupied Bakhmut to try to capture Chasiv Yar before moving towards the city of Kramatorsk.
[…] ‘The threat remains relevant, taking into account the fact that the higher Russian military leadership has set its troops the task of capturing Chasov Yar by May 9’, he said, without elaborating.”
Russia traditionally celebrates ‘Victory Day’ with a big military parade on Red Square.
While the progressive Russian advance all over the 600-mile-long frontline has forced the MSM into being more factual and less hopeful, it’s still far from adequate to form a comprehensive picture of the developments.
Watch: Russian artillery barrage is unleashed.
CHASOV YAR: Russian artillery barrage is unleashed. pic.twitter.com/R1XBSltaX6
— Paul Serran (@paul_serran) April 17, 2024
Let’s find out what we can gather from a variety of Telegram channels, mostly Sputnik International, Intel Slava Z, Slavyangrad, and Bellum Acta.
To begin with, Russian Federation forces have captured additional positions on the flanks along the administrative borders of the city, in its never-ending encircling the enemy in ‘boilers’, pincers and all kinds of tactical maneuvers.
While Avdeevka Moscow’s forces made comparatively fast advances, when it comes to urban warfare, the fight becomes street by street, block by block, building by building.
Combat now takes place in the Canal microdistrict of the city along Oleg Koshevoy Street from the T-shaped intersection with Gorbatova street. The fighting is taking place near the food market.
Military correspondent Yevgeny Lisitsyn:
“There are active battles in the Chasov Yar area. The Russian Armed Forces take positions in the Canal microdistrict on the eastern outskirts of Chasov Yar and in the Stupki-Golubovskie-2 area, where one of the enemy strongholds was captured. Russian troops are actively using aviation to attack the positions and rear of the Army, which significantly complicates the defense of the city for Ukrainian forces.”
But while the fierce Ukrainian defenders have been reinforced with artillery and drones, and electronic warfare devices, as per a Reuters report, the striking feature of this battle is the fact that Nazi Azov brigades seem to be ‘sitting this one out.’
Watch: Drone attacks target Ukrainian troops and equipment.
CHASOV YAR: Drone attacks target Ukrainian troops and equipment. pic.twitter.com/dUvlRYBKHy
— Paul Serran (@paul_serran) April 17, 2024
The experience from previous sieges apparently has made the most ideological Ukrainian forces weary of defending ‘to the end’ localities that they deem un-defendable.
Aleksander Khodakovskiy writes:
“Information has emerged that Azov, the menace of all the ‘Moskals’, has again refused to sacrifice itself for European values. […] in Ukraine, those who made the mess are now pushing forward the gray masses, who were driven against their will, while they themselves prefer to save themselves for future political feats.”
The telegram channel from the Z 105th regiment:
“However, not everyone faces threats like ‘pincers’, ‘cauldrons’, and other blockades. The 3rd brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (formerly known as “Azov”) is one such example. These nimble soldiers have already departed from Chasov Yar in advance, drawing from their experiences in Mariupol and honing their skills in Avdeevka.”
Besides the 3rd Assault Brigade AZOV refusing to go to Chasov Yar, the 67th Mechanized Brigade (‘right sector unit’) refused orders and left Chasov Yar and reportedly will be dissolved.
Russian will need to cross the Severo Donetsk chgannel before attacking the city.
In the last couple of days, the fighting shifted westward to the area of the Seversky Donets Canal.
A lot is written these days about how Ukrainians are outgunned by the Russians, with all the blame assigned to its allies. Not enough is written about how it faces a manpower shortage due to a real demographic catastrophe caused by the hundreds of thousands of dead.
And certainly, almost nothing gets published about how Ukrainians are outmaneuvered by the Russian strategy of ‘death by a thousand cuts,’ attacking at multiple axis at once, making the defenders scramble to move reinforcements around.
Now we learn that there’s a downsizing of the Ukrainian group in the northern Kupyansk direction. A significant amount of troops and equipment is being relocated to Chasov Yar.
And so, maybe we’ll see rapid advances – in Kupyansk.
Watch: Mi-28N and Ka-52 launch unguided missiles at Ukrainian Armed Forces positions in Chasov Yar.
Russian Helicopters launch unguided missiles at Ukrainian Armed Forces positions in Chasov Yar. pic.twitter.com/2XwiMY0woj
— Paul Serran (@paul_serran) April 17, 2024
It is also reported that drone operators of the 98th Airborne Division have begun ‘free-hunting’ Ukrainian forces in the urban area of Chasov Yar.
Drones with night vision are also used. The use of quadcopters and FPV drones directly in the residential areas of Chasov Yar has increased drastically.
Despite all this activity, the assault on Chasov Yar from both flanks reportedly remains a distant prospect. This process requires not only taking control of key enemy strongholds but also force-crossing the Seversky Donets-Donbass Canal.
Powerful airstrikes were carried out on the suburb of Chasov Yar, where temporary deployment points of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are located.
The post Chasov Yar: Russians Want To Conquer City Before ‘Victory Day’ on May 9th – Besiegers Advance, Pound Defensive Positions – Azov Brigade Keeps Out of the Confrontation (VIDEOS) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
