Retrieved military plans, details of which were shared with The Economist, suggest that Russian troops planned to partially encircle Kharkiv and put pressure on the Ukrainian forces to the east of the Pechenihy reservoir amid their renewed offensive on the region.
On the morning of 10 May, Russia launched a new offensive in Kharkiv Oblast, effectively opening a new front. Since then, according to the Ukrainian analytical project DeepStare, Russian forces have occupied 174 square kilometers of territory in the region.
The operation was supposedly planned for May 15-16 but was brought forward by nearly a week for unknown reasons. According to the military plans, Russian troops planned to fight on two axes on either side of the Pechenihy reservoir. The invaders intended to bring troops within artillery range of Kharkiv city at the village of Borshchova over 72 hours to strike the city.
Russian forces were halted by the elite 92nd Brigade, which was quickly redeployed to the Kharkiv front. Until the brigade pushed Russians back 10 km away, reports emerged about Ukraine’s poor defensive fortifications, how the 125th Brigade should have repelled the attack but fled from positions while under pressure, and serious Ukrainian losses.
On the Vovchansk axis, further east, the Russian plan was to advance along the reservoir down to the town of Pechenihy. The Russians initially succeeded quickly, moving through an area that should have been fortified with minefields and robust engineering defenses but wasn’t.
Ukraine’s army is also preparing for another strike just east of Vovchansk, towards the village of Bilyi Kolodiaz. Despite having an estimated 48,000 troops ready, experts say these forces are insufficient for a major attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city.
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