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Ukraine War Map Shows Russian Troops Abandon Key Town Amid Drone Threat.
Ukrainian drones have driven Russian forces away from the key city of Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region, it has been reported, as a map shows the latest state of play along the war’s front line.
Kremlin-affiliated Telegram channel Rybar said that Russian forces had retreated from Kupiansk, which Moscow was aiming to take over, due to the onslaught of the Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
Newsweek has contacted the Russian and Ukrainian defense ministries for comment by email.
Why It Matters
Faced with troop shortages and steady Russian advances along the front line in the east of Ukraine, Kyiv’s forces have become more reliant on drones to fight Moscow’s aggression. This strategy appears to be working as Russia had been aiming to take over Kupiansk, a railroad hub that separates the Kharkiv region, which Kyiv mostly liberated in 2022, and the Luhansk region, occupied by Moscow’s forces.
What To Know
Kremlin-affiliated Telegram channel Rybar said on Friday that Russian forces had retreated from Kupiansk, which Moscow was aiming to take over, due to the onslaught of the Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
It said that geolocated videos showed that Russian forces had retreated “some time ago” from the outskirts of the city to fortified positions north of the settlement of Petropavlovka, around 5 miles east of Kupiansk.
It said that this decision was probably made due to problems with the supply of assault units in the face of enemy UAV activity and the use of additional reserves.
“No new attempts by the Russian Armed Forces to enter the outskirts of the city were reported,” the posted added.
The post did not specify a date for the withdrawal nor the type of drone used but it also said that in the Kupiansk-Svatovskoye direction, Russia’s offensive continues on the left bank of the Oskol (Oskil) river.
Newsweek’s map shows this withdrawal and a Russian advance to Terny. It also outlines other front-line developments in the Donetsk region such as Russian advances in parts of Toretsk, near Kurakhove, as well as in Pokrovsk and Siversk.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that his country aims to produce at least 30,000 long-range UAVs in 2025.
Having unveiled its Palianytsia and Peklo hybrids this year, Ukraine has touted its development of long-range “missile-drones,” which are upgraded UAVs with turbojet engines are cheaper alternatives to cruise missiles.
What People Are Saying
The Rybar Telegram channel said on December 27 that Russian troops “withdrew from the city limits (of Kupiansk) to fortified positions north of Petropavlovka. Probably, this decision is due to problems with the supply of assault units in the face of enemy UAV activity and the use of additional reserves.”
The U.S.-based think tank, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), said on Sunday:Â “Russian forces withdrew from northeastern outskirts of Kupiansk to fortified positions….a while ago due to Ukrainian drones disrupting Russian ground lines of communication but did not specify the date of the withdrawal.”
What Happens Next
In its latest update on Sunday, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said Russian forces continued their offensive along the Kupiansk-Svatove-Kreminna line but without making confirmed advances.
Meanwhile, as Ukraine ramps its production of drones which may offset reduced Western military assistance in the coming year, Russia has continued to expand its domestic production of Iranian-designed Shahed drones.
CNN reported on December 27 that Russia’s Shahed drone production facility in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in the southern Tatarstan region produced 5,760 drones between January and September 2024—double the amount from 2023.
The ISW said that this increase in production comes ahead of its “winter 2024-2025 strike campaign against Ukraine.”
(Miami herald)