Over the past few days, Ukraine's Defense Forces have demonstrated high tactical efficiency, not only disrupting a series of large-scale offensive operations by the Russian army but also steadily advancing in key sectors of the frontline. According to a fresh analytical report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Ukrainian units have seized the initiative in certain areas of the Donbas and Zaporizhzhia region, forcing the enemy onto the defensive.
Situation on the Eastern Frontline and Ukrainian Counterattacks
On September 27 and 28, Russian troops continued active offensive operations in the Kupyansk direction but failed to achieve success. The occupiers' plans were thwarted by fierce and coordinated counterattacks by the Ukrainian Armed Forces southeast of Kupyansk. Analysts pay special attention to a flagrant incident: during their retreat to the pipeline north of Kupyansk, Russian servicemen cynically used Ukrainian civilians as human shields, which is a gross violation of international humanitarian law. On the Borova and Lyman directions, as well as east of Slovyansk near Mykolaivka, assault attempts also stalled under strikes from Ukrainian defenders.
Successes in the Chasiv Yar and Druzhkivka Areas
Russian military bloggers and Kremlin-linked sources are forced to acknowledge the presence of Ukrainian fighters in the strategically important area of Chasiv Yar. Reports indicate the ongoing penetration of the Defense Forces into the city via Mykolaivka, which de facto remains an unstable "gray zone." Moreover, the Ukrainian Armed Forces recently advanced southwest of Chasiv Yar, depriving the occupiers of consolidated positions in Mykolaivka and Podilske.
Simultaneously, Ukrainian units knocked Russian reconnaissance groups out of positions southwest of Druzhkivka. Military experts emphasize that these preventive actions effectively disrupt the enemy's plans to organize an operational encirclement of Druzhkivka from the southwestern flank.
Advancement in the Zaporizhzhia Direction
In addition to successes in the Donbas, ISW analysts recorded the advance of Ukrainian forces southeast of Orikhiv in the Zaporizhzhia region. This fact is confirmed by recent geolocated video footage published on September 27. The videos capture a massive Russian strike on Ukrainian army positions south of Mala Tokmachka, indirectly confirming the consolidation of Ukrainian forces at new frontiers in this sector.
Contradictory Data
Despite the general trend toward the advancement of Ukraine's Defense Forces, the information field contains certain discrepancies in assessments of tactical control over individual settlements. While independent ISW analysts and official Ukrainian sources report successful counterattacks and the expulsion of the enemy in the Donbas and Zaporizhzhia, pro-war Russian bloggers are trying to downplay the scale of the retreat. Propaganda channels claim that a positional deadlock persists in the Mykolaivka and Chasiv Yar areas, and describe reports of lost positions as a "tactical maneuver," though geolocated footage and on-the-ground evidence refute these claims.
