(MENAFN- UkrinForm) Russian troops continue to concentrate their main offensive capabilities on the Kupiansk axis while Ukraine's forces continue to repel their attacks. That's according to Serhii Cherevatyi, the spokesman for the Eastern Group of the armed forces of Ukraine, who spoke on the air of the national telethon, Ukrinform reports.
"The enemy is now concentrating its main offensive capabilities in this direction. They massively employ artillery and aviation. In the past day, they shelled our positions 603 times with all types of artillery, both barrel and jet. Their attack aircraft made eight air raids. There were also five attacks on Senkivka and Ivanivka in the Kupiansk district. As we repelled those attacks, 36 invaders were killed, 57 were wounded, and five were captured," Cherevatyi said.
According to the official, the Ukrainian Defense Forces destroyed five T-72 tanks, three infantry fighting vehicles, a BTR-80, and two mobile radars, a Msta-B howitzer, two mortars, an unmanned aerial vehicle, three field ammunition depots, and two dugouts.
Read also: ukraine's troops advancing in southern direction - british intelligence As the spokesman for the Eastern Group noted, the enemy is forced to constantly regroup in the Kupiansk direction and carry out rotation amid significant losses. Regular troops, airborne assault and infantry units are now concentrated there. The enemy has powerful reserves at the expense of newly-mobilized soldiers.
"They don't have enough regular troops so they deploy their combat army reserve and territorial defense troops. These are poorly trained light infantry recruited under pressure from their regional governors. But even this force is not enough, that is why the 'Storm Z' companies, which our commander just spoke about, recruited from prisoners, as well as small PMCs, are used," said Cherevatyi.
As reported, on August 16, in connection with the escalation in the Kupiansk direction, for most of the day, the commander of Ukraine's Ground Forces, Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrskyi, joined the work of the units holding the defense lines on the approaches to the city. According to him, the enemy is trying to penetrate those lines, deploying assault squads consisting mainly of former convicts. The enemy aims to besiege and later capture Kupiansk.
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