Kupyansk is considered a strategically important railway junction. Russian troops could attempt to capture the city in the coming weeks. US war experts have analyzed the situation.
US military experts warn of a possible new offensive by Russia in northeastern Ukraine. “Russian forces may increase their efforts to capture Kupyansk in the Kharkov Oblast in the coming weeks,” analysts at the US Institute for the Study of War wrote in their report. In their view, the units stationed there are less worn out than the Russian troops attacking elsewhere.
In its daily situation report, the Ukrainian General Staff reported seven repelled attacks on the Synkivka settlement not far from Kupyansk. Kupyansk is considered a strategically important railway junction. The city is divided in half by the Oskil River. The Ukrainians only hold a limited strip of land east of the Oskil near Kupyansk. After the Ukrainian military was able to partially advance into the neighboring Luhansk region during its counteroffensive in autumn 2022, it is now back on the defensive.
Rocket and artillery attacks on the Kharkiv region and the city of over a million inhabitants have also recently increased significantly. After a rocket hit Kupyansk, a 61-year-old woman was rescued from the rubble and taken to hospital at night, the region’s military governor, Oleh Synyehubov, said on his Telegram channel.
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A few days ago, the British daily newspaper “The Telegraph” linked the increasing number of air strikes on the Kharkiv region with an impending offensive. The number of rocket and artillery strikes could escalate as early as the weekend, and a Russian ground offensive on the Kharkiv region could begin from January 15, the paper predicted. This sparked speculation that Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin could try to conquer the city of Kharkiv before the upcoming presidential election in Russia in March. The city is only about 40 kilometers from the Russian border.
According to Ukrainian military officials, however, no Russian troop concentration has yet been identified in the region.
Source: Stern
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