The soldiers covered 15 km in gas pipelines. A Ukrainian operation on an unprecedented scale

Behind the scenes of the Ukrainians' action

Before the operation, soldiers were prepared to operate in closed spaces. An underground route was marked and our own technological solutions were used in the field of communication, navigation and life support.

Activities underground and on the surface were coordinated with drone strikes, including: through a joint coordination center with the "Achilles" brigade, reports the Ukrainian formation.

According to the 2nd Corps, Ukrainian soldiers covered 15 km in gas pipelines where there was no light, access to a GPS system or stable radio communication. As reported, the operation helped break the deadlock on the Kupyansk section of the front and prevent Russian forces from getting to the rear of the Ukrainian troops near Kupiansk.

“We went underground to stop them.”

We knew that gas mains ran through the Kharkov region, and we were sure that the enemy would try to use them. The Russians intended to use gas pipelines to get to the rear of our troops, so we went underground ourselves to stop them, explained the commander of "Khartia", General Ihor Obolenski.

He added that from the very beginning, Ukrainian soldiers had been observing the enemy's activities underground and analyzing the methods he used.

We learned about their experiences (...) and turned this threat into our advantage - he concluded.

The first operation on such a scale

Chartia described the operation as the world's first counter-offensive of this scale to be carried out underground. Ukrainian media previously reported on the use of underground infrastructure by Russian troops during combat operations - not only gas pipelines, but also water and sewage pipes.

Such cases have been reported, among others, near Avdiivka in the Donetsk Oblast in January 2024, during the fighting for Suja in the Kursk Oblast in Russia in March 2025 and in the Kupany direction in the Kharkiv Oblast in September 2025.

Record personnel losses in Russia

Last 24 hours, October 21, 2026, "the Defense Forces of Ukraine neutralized 2,250 Russian occupiers," reported the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. "This is the highest daily rate of enemy personnel losses since the beginning of Russia's full-scale armed aggression against Ukraine," it was noted.

As indicated in the statement, Russia's other highest daily personnel losses are 2,200 soldiers (December 19, 2024), 2,100 soldiers (October 18, 2026), 2,090 soldiers (September 27, 2026), and 2,030 soldiers (November 28, 2024).

"Since the beginning of 2026, the total personnel losses of the Russian aggressor have amounted to approximately 363,820. Since February 24, 2022, the Russian army has lost 1,572,790 soldiers," the Ukrainian military emphasized.