17 May: KHARKIV HOLDS STRONG: Ukraine’s Multi-Layered Defense Halts Russian Assaults!

17 May: KHARKIV HOLDS STRONG: Ukraine’s Multi-Layered Defense Halts Russian Assaults!

today there are a lot of updates from the kiv direction here Russians made tactical gains along the border and recently reached lipy and vens the two main strongholds in the KV direction ukrainians are making incremental efforts to stabilize the front and put the Russian offensive to a Hal the situation was very unclear last time we discussed this direction as the Border settlements north of lipy and vens were in a gray Zone as the situation further developed new information about the events in this direction became available the first line of defensive fortification stretches from lipy up to vens and kopans the line is located 5 to 10 km from the international border and the reason for this is that any equipment and force concentrations would be detected and fired upon directly at the border Russians used to fire artillery and missiles at forces concentrations of pro Ukrainian groups like RVC during their incursions at the border demonstrated in how unsafe the immediate border is for large troop groupings for this reason borders were never heavily protected so ukrainians only deployed small infantry squads on the immediate border the protection of Ukraine’s immediate borders is assigned to the state Border guard service of Ukraine a branch subordinated to the Army the Army was the first to respond to initial Russian attacks on karv the task of the Border guards was to meet the Russians at the border report to the headquarters about the Russian offensive estimate their strength and then manage a fighting withdrawal to the first line of defense meanwhile the leading Ukrainian forces men in the fortifications were to adjust themselves to meet the Russian offensive and allocate additional troops held in reserve in KV City to react to such developments during the fighting in lipy Direction despite challenging conditions small Ukrainian Border guard units managed to hold their ground for 8 to 10 hours on the first day of the offense without reinforcements or contact with other units a situation they were prepared for as a result of continuous Russian assaults in this area The Villages of sta krna morovat boriska andov came under their control however by then the Border guard units continued their fighting withdrawal to the following positions meant to slow the Russian advance to the first line of defense at lipy such Fierce resistance did buy invaluable time for regular Ukrainian units to allocate troops along the Villages of zalain lugans and helibo at the same time the main Force adjusted themselves at the first line of defense these positions were prepared to slow down the Russians by taking lukeni khb and zelen to give them more time to strengthen the first line of defense due to the lack of natural barriers or good Geographic positions ukrainians continued the fighting withdrawal south of lukan SE meanwhile in kova Ukrainian reinforcements in the form of the 42nd mechanized Brigade made quite a difference due to their intense fpv drone strikes drone operators of the 42nd mechanized Brigade managed to repel wave after wave of Russian armored assaults causing a slower advance for the Russians Ukrainian control of part of the village to the south of a small River enabled this highly efficient strikes which Russians still struggle to cross over this overall line of defense was the first of many fortifications s in extensive multi-layer defense in depth deeper in the region that ukrainians prepared such complex lines of defense will gradually slow the Russian advance until it comes to a hold h both lukans and zelan positions are only meant as a short-term defense until more Ukrainian reinforcements arrive to reinforce and adjust at the first line of defense some 3 km south of the current front line meanwhile the Ukrainian Army deployed additional reinforcements from Reserves in karv including elements of the elite Special Forces Unit Kraken and the 215th territorial defense Brigade these units managed to additionally stabilize the front to the point where Russian assaults in the direction of lipy were being repelled the latest combat footage from Ukrainian fighters in the area shows how a group of Russian troops HED up in a house got pinned down by an fpv drone to set the stage for further clearing operations by ukrainians a squad of five Ukrainian Fighters subsequently cleared the house and took three Russians captive after a brief shootout after capturing and disarming the three captives ukrainians provided help for a wounded Russian by applying a tourniquet on his leg to stop the bleeding Russian forces likely ended up isolated in the Northern Duchess of lipy due to much stronger resistance than they anticipated which led to unorganized dispersal in the area in the fens direction the situation is just as intense and dynamic here initial Russian assaults at Villages very close to the Border led to their a quick fall just like in lipy because immediate positions at the border do not provide conditions for setting up a defense small Ukrainian Border guard squads wen’t the main force of the Russian offensive they pulled out a fighting Retreat from The Villages of platona oera and Kesha with Russian Assault Squad securing positions in the area on footage published by Russians in the town we can see almost no damage to local infrastructure which shows that there was not much fighting in the first place and that ukrainians pulled back to more favorable positions the fighting moved to vens where high-rise buildings factories and house basements provided the most favorable defensive positions gained Russian positions in Border Villages mean nothing unless the town itself is taken the small high-rise building area provides powerful firing positions at the Russian forces on the city’s outskirts and can slow them down significantly thanks to the obstacles provided by the urban environment Ukrainian Border guard squads managed to slow the Russian advance in Northern parts of the Town however the central defensive positions are not in the city itself but partly to the south of River vcha where the first Ukrainian line of defense is located it is strongly reinforced by natural obstacles like the river which Russians struggled to cross for the past few days from this positions ukrainians are deploying forces to the north of the town to further bog down the Russians in preparation for the fight on the first line of defense so far the slowing down operation against Russian forces has been very successful as the Russians only reached the first line of defense in two areas near vens and Bug ratka after a week of fighting if you’re against the invasion of Ukraine and you want to support the work that I am doing consider making a purchase in the online store youa supporter here you can find a lot of products with Ukrainian symbols to not only show your support for this channel but also for Ukraine the link to the online store is in the description thank you for watching this report and I will see you in the next one

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I am Ukrainian. My country has been invaded by Russia. In this video, I will tell you what happened on the eight-hundred-fourteen day of the war.

Day 814: May 17

Today, there are a lot of updates from the Kharkiv direction.

Here, Russians made tactical gains along the border and recently reached Liptsy and Vovchansk, the two main strongholds in the Kharkiv direction. Ukrainians are making incremental efforts to stabilize the front and put the Russian offensive to a halt. The situation was very unclear last time we discussed this direction, as the border settlements north of Liptsy and Vovchansk were in a grey zone. As the situation further developed, new information about the events in this direction became available.

The first line of defensive fortifications stretches from Liptsy up to Vovchansk and Kupiansk. The line is located five to ten kilometers from the international border, and the reason for this is that any equipment and force concentrations would be detected and fired upon directly at the border. Russians used to fire artillery and missiles at forces concentrations of pro-Ukrainian groups like RVC during their incursions at the border, demonstrating how unsafe the immediate border is for large troop groupings. For this reason, borders were never heavily protected, so Ukrainians only deployed small infantry squads on the immediate border.

The protection of Ukraine’s immediate borders is assigned to the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, a branch subordinated to the army. The army was the first to respond to initial Russian attacks on Kharkiv. The task of the border guards was to meet the Russians at the border, report to the headquarters about the Russian offensive, estimate their strength, and then manage a fighting withdrawal to the first line of defense. Meanwhile, the leading Ukrainian forces manning the fortifications were to adjust themselves to meet the Russian offensive and allocate additional troops held in reserve in Kharkiv city to react to such developments.

During the fighting in Liptsy direction, despite challenging conditions, small Ukrainian Border Guard units managed to hold their ground for eight to ten hours on the first day of the offensive without reinforcements or contact with other units, a situation they were prepared for. As a result of continuous Russian assaults in this area, the villages of Strilecha, Krasne, Morokhovets, Borysivka, and Oliinykove came under their control. However, by then, the Border Guard units continued their fighting withdrawal to the following positions meant to slow the Russian advance to the first line of defense at Liptsy.

Such fierce resistance did buy invaluable time for regular Ukrainian units to allocate troops along the villages of Zelene, Lukiantsi, and Hlybove. At the same time, the main force adjusted themselves at the first line of defense. These positions were prepared to slow down the Russians by taking Lukiantsi, Hlybove, and Zelene to give them more time to strengthen the first line of defense. Due to the lack of natural barriers or good geographic positions, Ukrainians continued the fighting withdrawal south of Lukiantsi. Meanwhile, in Hlybove, Ukrainian reinforcements in the form of the Forty-second mechanized brigade made quite a difference due to their intense FPV drone strikes. Drone operators of the Forty-second mechanized brigade managed to repel wave after wave of Russian armored assaults, causing a slower advance for the Russians. Ukrainian control of part of the village to the south of a small river enabled these highly efficient strikes, which Russians still struggle to cross over.

This overall line of defense was the first of many fortifications in extensive, multi-layered defense-in-depth deeper in the region that Ukrainians prepared. Such complex lines of defense will gradually slow the Russian advance until it comes to a halt. Hlybove, Lukiantsi, and Zelene positions are only meant as a short-term defense until more Ukrainian reinforcements arrive to reinforce and adjust at the first line of defense, some three kilometers south of the current frontline.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian army deployed additional reinforcements from reserves in Kharkiv, including elements of the elite special forces unit Kraken and the two-hundred-fifteenth territorial defense brigade. These units managed to additionally stabilize the front to the point where…