Latest news with #ChasivYar
Forbes
3 days ago
- General
- Forbes
Fierce Battle For Chasiv Yar Shows That Russia Is Not Ready For Peace
Over the past months, there has been ongoing discussions about potential peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. Meanwhile, the war between the two nations continues to rage, with Russia mounting a number of attacks along its 600-mile front. Much of the fiercest fighting has recently taken place in the city of Chasiv Yar in the Donbas region. Although the battle for the city has been ongoing for more than a year and Russian forces now control a large portion of it, Russia has recently intensified its efforts to capture the entire city. The exact state of Chasiv Yar is uncertain, as Russia and Ukraine are reporting conflicting information. Russia first launched their assault to take the city in April 2024, and The Moscow Times reported on January 29, 2025, that they had fully captured the city. However, the Institute for the Study of War, citing geo-located footage, has stated that Ukraine is still fighting to maintain control of the southern portion of the city. This fighting is inherently intense, due to the nature of urban conflict in a small, practically abandoned city. The buildings create a three-dimensional battlefield, offering both cover and concealment, while alleys become choke points. The fighting has become even more complex with the introduction of drones, which the Ukrainians are using extensively to push back the Russian assaults. Over the past weeks, the Russians have increased their assaults on Chasiv Yar. As part of this effort, Russia has augmented their forces with soldiers from the Federal Security Service Presidential Regiment. This unit, which is approximately the size of a motorized rifle brigade, is usually assigned ceremonial duties around the Kremlin. Although not considered elite, its presence suggests that Russia is attempting to plug gaps and address manpower shortages by repurposing even a ceremonial unit to maintain momentum in capturing the city. Ukrainian officials have also reported an increase in armored vehicle assaults. The number of daily attacks has risen from three to five to as many as seven to nine. This escalation is notable given Russia's ongoing shortages of armored vehicles and the demand for them in other regions. Russia's decision to deploy armored vehicles in Chasiv Yar is particularly striking, as their effectiveness in urban environments is limited. In cities, armored units are often funneled into narrow streets and become vulnerable to attacks from above. As a result, Russia can expect to lose a significant number of these in-demand vehicles. Still, their use has become a necessity, as Ukrainian drones are quickly destroying lighter vehicles. Russia is also deploying new technologies on the battlefield hoping to get a tactical edge. Ukrainian social media posts have included footage showing their own drones stalking and destroying Russian drones. These drones appear to be newer models that likely include features that allow them overcome Ukrainian jamming. Further, Ukrainian sources have also posted footage of various Russian unmanned ground combat vehicles. These units, which appear to be providing resupply to Russian forces in the city, are also being targeted and destroyed by Ukrainian drones. Although capturing Chasiv Yar is critical to the Russian war effort, it carries little long-term strategic value. The city is not a symbolic or economically vital city like Mariupol, Bakhmut, or Kherson, whose capture appears to be part of the overarching objectives of the Russian invasion. Rather, Chasiv Yar is a fortified position that blocks Russian forces from advancing deeper into the Donetsk region toward Kostyantynivka, Kramatorsk, and Sloviansk. The sacrificing of personnel, equipment, and advanced technology to take Chasiv Yar indicates that the Russian military does not expect peace to come soon. Rather, they appear to be laying the groundwork for their summer offensive. More likely, the Russian military anticipates continued fighting through at least the summer. Russia's long-term objectives remain uncertain, but their intensified operations in Chasiv Yar are clear. Meanwhile, Ukraine's goals are straightforward. Ukrainian forces aim to prevent Russia from taking full control of the city and to bog Russian troops down in a prolonged, bloody urban battle. This approach forces Russia to expend valuable soldiers and equipment, potentially wearing down Russian resolve and strengthening Ukraine's position ahead of future negotiations. As such, the outcome of the Battle of Chasiv Yar may not only shape the next phase of the war but also set the terms for any future peace.
Telegraph
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Russia's elite drone unit destroying Ukraine's precious Himars launchers
Footage captured the moment a Ukrainian Himars rocket launcher was destroyed by an elite Russian drone unit just 10km (six miles) from the front line last month. In a grainy video filmed just outside Chasiv Yar, in Donetsk, the US-supplied missile system was seen hurtling along a dirt-laden road as a Russian UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) closed in from above. The feed cut out seconds before impact, but separate footage showed an explosion moments later, confirming one of Ukraine's most valuable rocket systems had been destroyed. The attack was reportedly carried out by Rubicon, the Kremlin's elite drone warfare unit that Ukrainian soldiers have come to fear. Previously deployed earlier this year during Russia's brutal campaign to recapture the eastern town of Kursk, Rubicon has now been redirected to hunt Ukraine's most valuable battlefield assets: its US-supplied long-range missiles. There are signs it is succeeding. Since the start of the war, Ukraine has received around 40 vital Himars systems from Washington. The satellite-guided rocket launchers, capable of striking targets with pinpoint accuracy up to 80km away, have played a key role in blunting Russia's advances, allowing Kyiv to pin Russia back by disrupting logistics, command hubs and ammunition depots. Their advantage lies in the fact that they can sit deep behind the front line, out of Russian reach. Because of their importance, it is unusual for a Himars launcher to be placed just 10km from the front line. The one that was destroyed near the war-torn town of Chasiv Yar was therefore probably being used to hit a target deep behind enemy lines. 'Himars have remained an important tactical and operational level system for the Ukrainians, particularly as it can hold Russian targets at risk some distance from the front line, affecting Russian logistics and command and control, as well as combat power,' said Tom Withington, a weapons expert at Rusi, a defence think tank. But, following the latest destruction of the launcher near Chasiv Yar, at least four have now been lost – a small but significant dent in Ukraine's arsenal at a time when US support appears likely to dry up. Donald Trump's administration has given no indication it will resupply Ukraine with new Himars systems, further raising the stakes for Ukraine over its remaining ones. The latest method used to destroy a Himars launcher is especially concerning for Kyiv. Unlike previous losses, which mostly resulted from missile or artillery strikes, the latest attack on one of the systems was reportedly carried out by a first-person view (FPV) drone using a fibre-optic guidance cable – a sophisticated and largely jam-proof design that signals a dangerous shift in the conflict. Traditional FPV drones are vulnerable to Ukraine's electronic warfare systems, which jam incoming frequencies and render them blind mid-flight. But fibre-optic drones are physically tethered to their operators via ultra-thin cables that transmit real-time video and guidance signals. 'Fibre optic cables are basically impossible to jam,' Mr Withington said. 'The cables are very small, in some cases the breadth of a human hair, so that makes them incredibly difficult to detect physically.' Rubicon, established in October 2024 at the personal instruction of Andrei Belousov, Russia's defence minister, has become a test bed for this type of new technology. Its drone pilots now operate in at least seven specialist detachments across eastern Ukraine, carrying out complex, decentralised missions. The unit's tactics are equally modern. During the Kursk offensive, Rubicon drones reportedly struck short segments of road – just 100 to 300 metres long – from multiple angles at once, catching convoys in lethal ambushes. Some drones were embedded in road surfaces, exploding beneath passing vehicles like land mines. Others attacked head-on, targeting the front and rear vehicles to trap the rest in a kill zone. The results were devastating, with the majority of Ukrainian troops pushed out of Kursk after the Rubicon unit destroyed their supply route. In the process, Rubicon is believed to have disabled hundreds of Ukrainian vehicles, including M2 Bradley infantry carriers and heavily armoured MaxxPro trucks, often with fibre optic cable drones. Ukrainian drone operators, unable to jam or outmanoeuvre them, began referring to the airspace above Kursk as the 'road of death'. The redeployment of Rubicon towards high-value weaponry like Himars marks a new and troubling phase for Ukraine. Russia is no longer just harassing Ukraine's supply lines in Kursk – its sights are firmly set on systematically targeting the strategic backbone of Kyiv's long-range strike capability that it has used so effectively. The symbolic significance of these losses is not lost on Ukraine. Himars launchers are more than just tools of war; they are symbols of Western support. Their destruction delivers a psychological blow as much as a military one. For much of 2022 and 2023, the arrival of Himars shifted the balance on the battlefield. Ukraine used them to force Russian withdrawals from key cities, including Kherson, where a strike destroyed a Russian training camp on a beach. But if stockpiles dwindle further and replacements are in doubt, Ukraine could lose a significant battlefield edge. The strike near Chasiv Yar – believed to be the first destruction of a Himars launcher by a fibre optic cable drone – suggests that Russia now has the means to reach even Ukraine's most protected assets. If Kyiv cannot adapt quickly to this new threat, the consequences could be far-reaching. 'Years ago, I spoke to soldiers stationed in Germany during the Cold War. They said there were fields and valleys filled with wire-guided munitions… I wouldn't be surprised if Ukraine starts ending up like that too,' Mr Withington said. 'Until a meaningful counter is developed, the uptake will just continue.'
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
UK Defence Intelligence: Russia has advanced in Donetsk Oblast but has failed to consolidate control
The UK Ministry of Defence has reported minor tactical successes by Russian forces in Donetsk Oblast over the past month, particularly near the city of Kostiantynivka. Sources: UK Defence Intelligence update dated 17 May on X (Twitter), as reported by European Pravda Details: UK Defence Intelligence notes that over the past month, Russian forces have made increased tactical gains in Donetsk Oblast, particularly near Kostiantynivka, which is adjacent to the large urban areas of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. Quote: "Russia is carrying out attacks in three areas: Chasiv Yar (12 km to the north-east), Toretsk (15 km to the south-east) and to the east of Pokrovsk along the H-32 highway [now marked T0504 on the map – ed]." Details: The update includes a reminder that the fighting for Chasiv Yar and Toretsk has been going on for a year. Quote: "Russia occupies the majority of both but has been unable to fully consolidate control or to exploit slow advances. Most of Chasiv Yar has been destroyed due to heavy Russian aerial and artillery bombardment. Ukrainian forces remain in several fortified buildings in defence." Details: UK Defence Intelligence noted that Russian forces have expanded a salient southwest of Kostiantynivka, pushing forward by up to 5 km in some areas. Quote: "Russian forces have highly likely severed the H-32 highway which connects Kostiantynikva with Pokrovsk and will likely seek to advance further on this axis in coming weeks." Background: In an earlier update, UK intelligence analysed a large-scale explosion of ammunition at a Russian depot in Vladimir Oblast. Earlier, UK Defence Intelligence suggested that Russia could suffer record losses in the war against Ukraine in 2025. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
