Ukrainian army liberated almost entire Kharkiv region – ISW

The Ukrainian defenders quickly recaptured almost the entire territory of the Kharkiv region, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports.

"Ukrainian forces have inflicted a major operational defeat on Russia, recapturing almost all Kharkiv Oblast in a rapid counter-offensive. The Ukrainian success resulted from skillful campaign design and execution that included efforts to maximize the impact of Western weapons systems such as HIMARS. Kyiv's long discussion and then an announcement of a counter-offensive operation aimed at Kherson Oblast drew substantial Russian troops away from the sectors on which Ukrainian forces have conducted decisive attacks in the past several days," the report reads.

The analysts emphasized that the current counter-offensive would not end the war, and "the war remains likely to stretch into 2023."

On the russian defense ministry's map dated September 11, it is confirmed that russian troops are withdrawing from settlements around the city of Kharkiv, from the north of the Kharkiv region, and towns on the west bank of the Oskil River.

russian sources and military bloggers have identified the Oskil River, which flows through Kupiansk and Izium, as the new axis frontline, with russian troops likely also continuing to operate on the east bank of the Siverskyi Donets River southeast of Izium.

Geolocation and social media footage confirmed that Ukrainian forces entered Vovchansk and Velikyi Burluk, cutting the russian land lines of communication (GLOC) along the T2104 route, reaching the international border north of Kharkiv.

Geolocation footage also shows that on September 11, Ukrainian troops took control of Izium and settlements to the south and southwest.

"Russian troops likely withdrew from the area in great haste, and social media posts show abandoned tanks and other heavy military equipment near Izyum, which indicates that Russian troops failed to organize a coherent retreat," ISW said.

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