At Kupiansk, Fast Ukraine Flanking Maneuvers Force Russian Retreat

Russian forces have attempted to position themselves for a spring offensive and their tiny, vulnerable foothold on the west bank of the Oskil River is one key to that strategy. 

But like much of the Russian front, the troops in the bridgehead have suffered massive casualties are sparse. This allowed the Ukrainians - using their fast new Bucephalus armored personnel carriers (made in Ukraine) to outflank, ambush and then wipe out many of the remaining Russians. Ukraine has retaken key positions, forcing some Russians to retreat and preparing the ground for pushing the Kremlin troops off the west bank entirely. JL

Euromaidan Press reports:

Ukraine launched a large-scale encirclement to tighten the noose around Russia's Oskil River bridgehead. With the ice on the river melting, Russian forces were only able to move infantry across in small rubber boats, without armor and heavy firepower, leaving them vulnerable to Ukrainian mechanized assaults with BTR-4E Bucephalus armored personnel carriers, Ukraine’s best domestically produced armored vehicle. The Russians had only 500 soldiers along the 20-kilometer foothold - 25 soldiers per km. This allowed Ukrainian vehicles to drive through the weakest Russian defenses. Ukrainian fighters used these gaps to go around the main Russian defenses then ambushing the Russians, ultimately eliminating them. Ukrainian forces retook key positions to push them back into the river.

Today, there are a lot of interesting updates from the Kupiansk direction. Here, in the northern Kupiansk sector, Ukrainian forces are deploying their latest reinforcements, combining mobility and firepower to reshape the battlefield. With fresh deliveries of Bucephalus APC’s, they tighten the noose around a key Russian foothold, setting the stage for a decisive turn in the fight along the Oskil River.

Screenshot from Reporting from Ukraine

Ukraine aims to eliminate the Russian bridgehead west of the Oskil River and push Russian forces back from Kupiansk, neutralizing the combined threat to the town. Kupiansk serves as a critical logistics hub and a key crossing point supporting Ukraine’s eastern bridgehead since the 2022 Kharkiv counteroffensive. After two years of failed frontal assaults, Russia is now using its foothold west of the Oskil to flank Kupiansk and cut off Ukrainian forces in the east. To counter this, Ukraine launched a large-scale encirclement operation, attacking Russians from multiple directions to tighten the noose around their outflanking attempt and eliminate the threat.

Screenshot from Reporting from Ukraine

 

Speed and firepower keeps Ukrainian forces one step ahead

 

To support this operation, the Ukrainian high command reinforced the 14th Mechanized Brigade, veterans of the Kharkiv counteroffensive, with BTR-4E Bucephalus armored personnel carriers, among Ukraine’s best domestically produced armored vehicles. With a top speed of 110 kilometers and hour, and amphibious capabilities, the BTR-4E is ideal for combat along the Oskil Riverbank’s difficult terrain. It enables rapid advances, maneuverability across marshes and muddy terrain, and safe river crossings, ensuring Ukrainian forces can outmaneuver and overwhelm Russian positions.

BTR-4E Bucephalus armored personnel carrier. Screenshot for Reporting from Ukraine

The BTR-4E is armed with a 30-millimeter autocannon, enabling it to suppress Russian infantry while transporting up to eight fully equipped soldiers. Its armor protects against small arms fire, grenades, and even RPG’s, making it ideal for assault operations in this sector. As with the ice on the river melting, Russian forces on the west bank were only able to move infantry across in small rubber boats, meaning they had no access to armor and heavy firepower support. This limited them to light equipment and munitions only, preventing the deployment of heavier anti-tank weapons, leaving them vulnerable to Ukrainian mechanized assaults.

Gunner station of BTR-4E. Screenshot for Reporting from Ukraine

 

Ukraine cuts through weak Russian defenses

 

Screenshot from Reporting from Ukraine

 

Such difficulties left Russians in no state to resist the oncoming Ukrainian assault, setting the stage for a Ukrainian mechanized assault, with BTR-4 Bucephalus armored vehicles leading the way. Furthermore, Ukrainian intelligence reports that Russians have only around 500 soldiers along the entirety of the 20-kilometer foothold across the river, amounting to just 25 soldiers per kilometer of the frontline. This allowed the Ukrainian Bucephalus vehicles to drive through the weakest and most vulnerable points of the Russian defenses to dismount their infantry squads. Subsequently, the Ukrainian fighters used these gaps to go around the main Russian defenses, moving through cover, and then ambushing the Russians from behind, ultimately eliminating them. This allowed the Ukrainian forces to retake several key positions near the settlements of Fyholivka and Zapadne, effectively containing the Russians to a handful of tree lines, while they continued to press on with their assaults.

Screenshot from Reporting from Ukraine

Furthermore, the Ukrainians also deployed special forces operators directly north of Kupiansk to aid in the counterattacks, clearing enemy hideouts with grenades and gunfire, as well as capturing several prisoners of war. This led to the tightening of the noose around the Russian bridgehead, as Russians lost critical positions to accumulate forces, as well as threatening the weak underbelly of the Russian offensive effort.

Ukrainian special forces deployed north of Kupiansk. Screenshot from Reporting From Ukraine

Overall, the Ukrainians successfully exploited the weaknesses in the Russian Oskil river bridgehead, utilizing high-quality, domestically produced equipment, with the standout being the BTR-4E Bucephalus armored personnel carriers, providing an effective combination of firepower, protection, and mobility. Further intensification of the Ukrainian mechanized assaults in this area against the overstretched Russian positions will allow them to eliminate the Russian bridgehead for as long as the Russians are unable to reinforce their forces there. Additionally, as the main Russian supply hub in Svatove is approximately 75 km away from their efforts here, Russians are unlikely to receive the rapid reinforcements they need to stabilize the front and continue their offensive, as Ukrainians will continue to dismantle the Russian effort and push them back into the river.