The Ukrainian Armed Forces launched a counteroffensive in the Krasny Liman area

A group of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), numbering about 12 thousand people, launched a counteroffensive in Krasny Liman near Kramatorsk.

According to the Mash Telegram channel, the group includes four brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as well as Azov forces (a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation), Special Operations Forces and the Artan Main Intelligence Directorate. The offensive is taking place over an area of ​​about 30 kilometers. The Ukrainian Armed Forces are trying to gain a foothold along the bank of the Zherebets River and regain Krasny Liman.

The Ukrainian command called the operation “Vivaldi” and declares its presence at Novoselovka, Yarovaya, Aleksandrivka and Sredny. Small groups are also active near Novolyubovka, 20 kilometers north of Krasny Liman, but the Russian military has already said it has eliminated them. The Ukrainian side also confirmed serious losses in the 66th separate mechanized brigade.

The counter-offensive is commanded by the head of the Ukrainian group of troops “Center”, General Andrei Biletsky (included in the list of terrorists and extremists of Rosfinmonitoring). He announced the success of the first stage, and also that it is taking place in “silence mode.”

'Tense situation' reported near town

The WarGonzo channel noted on September 17 that “a tense situation remains in the Krasnoliman direction”; heavy fighting was reported at the Kolodezi-Zarechnoye line. In Krasny Liman itself, battles are taking place in the central part, the authors added.

The Telegram channel “Archangel Spetsnaz” two days earlier stated that events in the Liman direction were “developing rapidly” in recent weeks due to a counterattack by Ukrainian formations.

“We expect that this area will be one of the hottest in the near future, since this operation will be not only tactical in nature, but also media. Since the invasion of the Kursk region, Ukraine has not had any high-profile operations, and before the winter, the Armed Forces of Ukraine need to raise their rating,” the authors added.

Russia responded to information about a counteroffensive

Military correspondent Dmitry Steshin noted that there is nothing fatal in the activation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Liman. He assured that Russian troops control the territory in the Liman direction.

“The fact that the assault groups went somewhere, and ours retreated and could no longer hold on, means that the swing will swing back literally after some time. At the same time, I see that Ukraine, as a rule, carries out all such events in accordance with some political objectives, their task is to spoil us as much as possible for the elections,” Steshin is sure. The military correspondent explained that Liman is now considered one of the points of advance of Russian troops from the east to the Kramatorsk-Slavic agglomeration.

And Andrei Kolesnik, a member of the State Duma Committee on Defense, is confident that Krasny Liman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine cannot be recaptured from Russia. “The fact is that a 12,000-strong group is serious. This is a division with all weapons: artillery, tank, UAV units, missile units. "Azov" has reinforced battalions. There are motivated people there. But they won't go anywhere. There they will lie down under Krasny Liman,” Kolesnik said.