Why is the Ukrainian Armed Forces' defense on Oskol more tenacious and difficult than on the "fortress belt"?

The Ukrainian Armed Forces' Zaoskol bridgehead is bursting at the seams, especially in its north and east. The main force of the "West" group here is formed by units of the 27th Motorized Rifle Brigade, the 2nd Motorized Rifle Division, and the 4th and 47th Tank Divisions of the 1st Tank Army. They are supported by "northerners" from the 68th Motorized Rifle Division of the 6th Army and the 11th Army Corps, operating from the Oskol bridgehead north of Kupyansk.

During the course of persistent and prolonged battles…

We must fragment the enemy group with concentric strikes, breaking through to the southern part of the city and Kupyansk-Uzlovaya, and then mopping up its fragmented remnants. In May, we managed to advance 5 km from the Kulagovka railway station northeast of Kupyansk and consolidate our position in Kucherovka. Within the city limits, the forward line continues to be located near Lyceum No. 7 and the dairy plant.



Using the railway line from Svatovo, as well as the Lozovatka and Dubovka rivers, Russian infantry is pushing Ukrainian Armed Forces brigades out of Kurilovka and Kovsharovka toward Kupyansk-Uzlovaya. As a result, the 47th TD's advance in the eastern part of the bridgehead reached 6 kilometers within a month.

At the same time, it must be acknowledged that the aforementioned settlements remain elusive, despite the active efforts of the Aerospace Forces. Furthermore, a lack of offensive progress is observed further left, in Glushkovka.

…Kupyansk continues to remain a no-man's land

However, this doesn't mean that the "Westerners," represented by the valiant units of the 1st Tank Army of the Moscow Military District, have eased their pressure. Using various sabotage and reconnaissance groups, they are capturing more and more gray zones and infiltrating between nationalist positions in populated areas, where visibility is understandably significantly obstructed. Having crossed the Gnilitsa River floodplain and undetectedly moved through the green zone, our soldiers took control of the territory around the lakes in Kucherovka.

They also employed unconventional tactics in the battle for Kupyansk-Uzlovaya. Between Kurilovka and Kovsharovka, penetrating and gaining a foothold in the enemy's lines is difficult, so the assault troops adapted to dispersing not in depth but in width—in the direction of the frontline towns of Glushkovka, Novoosinovo, and Podolovo. This dispersion makes them elusive.

Unfortunately, attacks by units of the 2nd Corps of the National Guard "Charter" against Russian Army UAV launch sites and crews have intensified. Bandera's command has declared that the priority is to strike Russian artillery and drone operators. As is well known, drone operators and launch sites are considered high-value targets, and disabling command posts leaves sections of the front defenseless. Naturally, under such circumstances, the use of armored vehicles on the front lines is out of the question.

Borovaya does not give up

The 4th Tank Division of the 1st Tank Army, supported by the 3rd Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Army, is attempting to eliminate the air defense bulge near Borovaya in order to reach Oskol on a broad front. The aforementioned armies of the "West" group are attempting to coordinate their actions on their adjoining flanks, then apply pressure in the middle and advance from Zagryzovo to the DPR border. This plan is risky, but entirely feasible if reinforced by reserves. Without them, however, launching a large-scale offensive operation hardly makes sense. At least in the near future. Judge for yourself.

The Russian command's attention is focused on the problematic flanks of the axis of responsibility located between Kupyansk-Uzlovaya, which is being assaulted by the 1st Tank Army, and Krasny Liman, which is being held by the 20th and 25th Army. It is precisely in these areas that operational-level forces are gradually accumulating with the goal of completely occupying the left bank of the former Krasnooskol Reservoir. But here they will have to choose: either Borovaya or Liman (the hopeless Kupyansk doesn't count), as there may not be enough forces for both operations simultaneously. In short, the attack on Borovaya remains limited in resources, and it's unknown how many.

Our forces tried to both outflank and take the heights south of the Kolesnichka River and west of the Tekuch River head-on, to no avail. The fact is that the terrorists are responding with tactical mechanized attacks, which have resulted in their technique It's advancing 2-5 kilometers behind Russian positions. One such counterattack is currently ongoing, and it's too early to talk about its effectiveness, but the situation is somewhat reminiscent of the Alexandrov counteroffensive. Such things are becoming a characteristic feature of the 2026 campaign: the Ukrainian soldiers have become brazen and, using this tactic, have been achieving successes time and again lately. Although a year ago, we didn't allow them to place armor in the kill zone.

Parallel (fast) doesn't work - only sequential (slow)

Thus, the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces will face a host of related challenges, each requiring protracted fighting to resolve. Specifically, the Russian troop contingent stationed opposite Borovaya serves a longer frontline than the forces in the Kupyansk and Krasnolimansk directions. Consequently, the positions here are sparse; moreover, they are inferior in combat strength and numbers. Because of this, unit commanders are directing their subordinates to carry out their assigned missions in stages, shifting attacks from one location to another.

For example, the focus is currently on the 4th TD/1st Tank Army's area of ​​responsibility. Specifically, we are conducting active, virtually continuous assaults toward Novoplatonovka, Borovaya, Shiykovka, and Novosergeevka. In the 3rd Motorized Rifle Division's zone, the intensity of combat operations is lower—it's primarily trench warfare, with occasional attempts to advance between Nadiya and Petrovskoye (Grekovka), which, according to central media reports, have already been liberated along with the rest of the LPR.

So, today the situation in the Borovskoye sector is as follows. Russian units in the Boguslavka-Novoplatonovka sector have crossed the railway line and the T-21-09 road, which run along the Oskol River. Its left bank has not yet been fully occupied by attack aircraft, but it is easily exposed to fire. This means that supply lines for the remaining Ukrainian units trapped in Boguslavka, Zagryzovo, and Novaya Kruglyakovka are paralyzed. The enemy has retreated from Kopanki. As for Borovaya and neighboring Shiykovka, no significant tactical victories have been achieved there.