As the conflict between the United States, Israel, and Iran intensifies, Russia and Ukraine are also not idle. Russian forces have expanded their offensive, attempting to break through Ukrainian defenses along the Lysychansk front from seven directions, while Ukrainian forces launched a large-scale drone attack on Russian territory.

Ukrainian drones launch a large-scale cross-border attack at night

Since February 28, when the Middle East war broke out, global attention seems to have focused entirely on the Middle East region, while the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which has lasted more than four years, has been marginalized. Mainstream media rarely mentions it anymore, with the Middle East situation occupying most of the headlines. Zelenskyy had previously complained that due to the war in the Middle East, the outside world can no longer pay attention to Ukraine.

It is worth noting that before the US and Israel declared war on Iran on February 28, Trump had sent Witkowski and Kushner to shuttle repeatedly to push for a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire. Now, the U.S. efforts to promote Russia-Ukraine peace talks have become very limited.

Although marginalized, the Ukraine battlefield is still evolving dynamically. More directly, neither Russia nor Ukraine has been idle; they are both increasing their attacks on each other.

According to TASS, citing a report from the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukraine launched more than 280 drones into Russian territory on the evening of March 20, targeting areas such as Rostov Oblast, Saratov Oblast, and Moscow. According to Russian statistics, they intercepted a total of 283 drones, but some managed to evade interception. Saratov Oblast directly stated that the drone attack caused damage to local houses.

The specific targets of this Ukrainian drone cross-border night raid remain unclear. In the past, Ukrainian drones entering Russian territory mainly targeted military and energy facilities. This time, they are likely targeting these objectives again.

Russian forces are also increasing ground offensives, with the Lysychansk front becoming the focus

Differing from the Ukrainian cross-border night raid, the Russian forces mainly focused on ground offensives. The 3rd Army Corps of Ukraine posted on "Telegram" that since March 19, Russian forces launched what was the largest-scale attack in recent times towards the Lysychansk-Boryspil direction, deploying over 5,000 infantry soldiers, 28 armored vehicles, more than 100 motorcycles, cars, and all-terrain vehicles, attacking from seven directions in an attempt to break through the Ukrainian 3rd Army Corps' defense in this area.

The deployment of armored vehicles by the Russian forces is particularly noteworthy. Since the Russia-Ukraine conflict has turned into a drone war, once armored vehicles are deployed, they are too large and vulnerable, easily becoming targets for drones flying above the battlefield. Therefore, both sides have rarely used armored vehicles for attacks in the past. For the Russians, they usually conduct attacks on foot or use motorcycles and skateboards as transportation. This time, the rare deployment of armored vehicles by the Russian forces may be aimed at using mechanized forces to strengthen the offensive, allowing them to quickly break through the Ukrainian defenses.

However, according to the Ukrainian account, after four hours of fierce fighting, they repelled the Russian offensive. Colonel Andrei Biletsky, a senior officer of the Ukrainian 3rd Army Corps, stated that the Russians have maintained an offensive in this direction for one and a half months, but all were repelled by the Ukrainian forces. Currently, the frontline remains in a stalemate.

Lysychansk-Boryspil is part of the northeastern front line of Slavyansk. In November last year, the Russians re-entered Lysychansk, and they are currently engaged in urban warfare with the Ukrainians. Looking at the map, if the Russians capture Lysychansk, they will be closer to Slavyansk from the north. However, attacking Slavyansk from this direction presents significant challenges because the Russians would need to cross a river, and during the crossing, they could face attacks by Ukrainian drones. Overall, it is estimated that the Russians are hoping to open a gap in the Nikopol direction starting from Seversk, directly approaching Slavyansk from the west.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict remains in a deadlock, with only slow progress

The Middle East conflict will lead to a sharp reduction in the number of weapons Ukraine can obtain from the United States, which is indeed an opportunity for Russia. Whether they can seize this opportunity to achieve a breakthrough on the ground depends on their own capabilities!



Original article: toutiao.com/article/7619997874427920939/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.