The Dnipro River essentially forms the boundary between Russian controlled territory and Ukraine. Everything East of the river is controlled by Russia, while everything west is controlled by Ukraine. This status is essentially the underpinning of the visible stalemate.
By most generally accepted accounts, the Russians have carved out the buffer zone they initially wanted. Russia is essentially no longer trying to take any more ground in Ukraine and in many places, they have begun rebuilding towns. That’s what it looks like on the ground.
Ukraine had crossed the Dnipro to take the village of Krynky (near Kherson) a few months ago and had been trying to hold the area. However, with the river behind them it was increasingly unrealistic to stop Russia from retaking the town. As expected, Russia pushed the depleted Ukraine forces back across the river.
UKRAINE – […] Ukrainian troops have lost a hard-won position on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River, near the southern city of Kherson, after months of bloody fighting to hold on to a piece of land in what some Ukrainian soldiers and military analysts have described as a futile operation.
The Ukrainian military said on Wednesday night that fighting continued on the eastern bank but that most of the main positions in the village of Krynky, where its troops had gained a foothold, “were destroyed by intense, combined and prolonged enemy fire.” The statement came after several Ukrainian news media outlets reported that Ukrainian forces had withdrawn from the village, which now lies in ruins.
The operation to establish a bridgehead on the Russian-controlled eastern bank of the Dnipro had been controversial from the start. Launched last fall, it was seen as an attempt to open a new front in the south that would disrupt Moscow’s logistics and tie down its troops in the area. But military analysts warned that the operation, which consisted of dangerous river crossings, was vulnerable in its logistics and unlikely to lead to rapid breakthroughs.
Ukrainian gains were limited to small pieces of land near the river, of which Krynky was the most notable.
[…] holding on to Krynky also cost Ukraine many lives. Ukrainian soldiers said they were stuck for days in muddy terrain with little to no cover from Russian artillery, drones and airstrikes.
An article published on Wednesday by Slidstvo Info, an investigative Ukrainian news outlet, reported that at least 1,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed on the eastern bank or are missing. That figure could not be independently confirmed. (read more)
It will be interesting to see what the State Dept/CIA do if Biden makes an exit announcement.
Will a successful Trump/Vance ticket fundamentally change the Russia-Ukraine war?
Lots of variables and financial interests positioning to keep the USA financial support in place.
The NATO alliance will do whatever the USA does.
