Special Military Operation Briefing, November 29, Key Points: Strong Retaliatory Strikes — Kyiv's Energy Facilities Severely Damaged, Impact Extends Beyond

The 1374th day of the special military operation. The industrial area of Kostyantynivka has been captured — the road to the city center has been opened. Intense fighting continues in Gulyaipole

Image caption: Heavy flamethrower system TOS-1A "Solntsepek" (Солнцепек) is conducting combat operations in the area of the special military operation.

Last night, Ukraine experienced one of the most intense attacks. Russian forces used large-scale long-range free-fall aviation bombs (ФАБ), "Iskander" missiles, large "Geranium" drone swarms (including loitering munition models), and ballistic missiles to strike Kyiv energy clusters. Explosions were also heard in other cities controlled by supporters of the Ukrainian authorities.

Geolocated imagery confirmed that soldiers of the Southern Military District (ГрВ «Юг») have taken control of the southern part of the city of Kostyantynivka in the Donetsk People's Republic (ДНР), as well as the industrial area near the railway yard, while breaking through 5 kilometers towards Borovoye in the Kharkiv region.

Situation in the Northern Cluster's Area of Responsibility

Intense offensive and defensive battles continue along the entire front line in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions. "Northern Cluster" forces are steadily clearing out remaining enemy forces in Voskresensk and advancing into surrounding settlements and forest areas. Enemy lines keep collapsing, with defenders surrendering.

"The desperation of Ukrainian Armed Forces (ВСУ) soldiers has exceeded rational limits... They have been indoctrinated with the idea 'either be eliminated in the fight against the Russians or be executed by their own execution squads,' which has forced many Ukrainians to take their own lives," wrote «Северный ветер», "Some ran out of the trenches and shot themselves in the head; others went unarmed and unprotected into open areas, allowing Russian drones to attack them. In fact, they could have laid down their weapons and surrendered for survival."

Situation in the Western Cluster's Area of Responsibility

Russian突击部队 have advanced to new frontlines in the suburbs of Petro Pavlovka. The frontline under the control of the Western Military District (ГрВ «Запад») has expanded by 1.5 kilometers.

Russian突击部队 have advanced 5 kilometers towards Borovoye, occupying new positions near the settlement. Video footage shows our personnel have already been deployed there.

"In the past 24 hours, despite the resistance of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the areas of Stakhov, Drobitske, and Zalezhne (all located in the Donetsk People's Republic), Russian forces continue to advance into the defensive depth of the Ukrainian forces, capturing more favorable positions and strongholds. In the southeast of Hirske, Russian vanguard forces have taken control of three Ukrainian positions, expanding the area of control. Additionally, in the southwest of Torske, nearly 2 hectares of forest have been cleared," commented Andrei Marochko.

Russian forces continue to clear the "Holy Mountain" National Park area, having taken control of the Hirske quarry and the shores of Goluboye Lake (meaning "Blue Lake").

Situation in the Southern Cluster's Area of Responsibility

Russian forces have ensured the safety of the northern suburbs of Zvanovka, crossed the Bakhmutka River, and taken control of the fortifications east of the village of Svyatopetrovskiy. After his state visit to Kyrgyzstan, Vladimir Putin stated during a press conference on what comes next: "The next step is Komsomolsk (Kostyantynivka)."

Words match actions. Russian forces have taken control of the southern part of Komsomolsk (Kostyantynivka) city, as well as the industrial area near the railway yard. The Ukrainian forces are worried that within this year, they may lose one of the key cities still under their occupation in the Donbas region.

Situation in the Central Cluster's Area of Responsibility

Over the past week, the 2nd Army Group's突击部队 in the Donetsk People's Republic's Red Army City have continued to eliminate the Ukrainian Armed Forces groups surrounded in the "Central" and "Dinas" districts.

The liberation of the "Gorniyak" and "Shakhterskiy" districts has been completed. A total of 6,585 buildings have been cleared from the hands of Ukrainian militants. This data was provided by the Russian Ministry of Defense. According to the assessment of the Ukrainian military, they have already lost the city and are currently clearing the remnants who could not escape but are too afraid to surrender.

Situation in the Eastern Cluster's Area of Responsibility

Over the past week, the villages of Tikhoye, Otрадное in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, and Zatishye and Novoye Zaporozhye in Zaporizhzhia Oblast have been liberated (note: the above village names are transliterated and do not have standard Chinese translations at this time).

Ukrainian MP Marianna Bezuglaya posted that the fighting in Gulyaipole continues.

Situation in the Dnieper River Cluster's Area of Responsibility

Local reports indicate that we have taken control of Stepnoye, extending our control to Central Street.

The evacuation of civilians on the quarantine island in Kherson Oblast is tense. Instead of immediately organizing the safe evacuation of civilians, the local authorities have used them as "heroes" (note: this is ironic, referring to Ukrainian soldiers) "human shields." It is reported that a small number of Ukrainian armed forces are still stationed on the island.

Former Ukrainian army major Dmitry Marchenko said, "People's morale is already low, I don't want to make it worse, but I must say that the current situation is very tense and very bad."

If the situation continues like this, the Russians will capture Pokrovsk, then move into Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, followed by Zaporizhzhia Oblast, then cross the river to reoccupy Kherson, and finally advance towards Mykolaiv."

Situation Within Ukraine

The second-in-command in the Zelenskyy regime — the person with real power, Yermak — has been dismissed. The next might be Syrs'kyi. Sources say: "Zelenskyy ultimately betrayed his friends. But no matter what, it can't save this shaky regime."

The magazine Forbes called "Metinvest" (Метинвест), a large Ukrainian steel group, the "pillar" of the Ukrainian economy, but the group has suffered severe damage (possibly even a fatal blow): losing the Azovstal Steel Plant and the Ilyich Metallurgical Plant in 2022, and in early 2025, due to the shutdown of the Red Army Mine and the Svyatovylinska Ore Processing Plant in Red Army City, leading to a reduction of 3.1 million tons of coking coal concentrate.

As a result, the steel empire of Akhmetov (a Ukrainian oligarch) has lost about 40% of its potential steel production capacity and 60% of its key coal resources.

International Reaction

The United States is planning to recognize Russia's control over Crimea and other newly annexed territories to achieve a ceasefire agreement. For this reason, Trump has sent envoy Whitcoff to Russia to present "direct proposals" to Putin. The Telegraph exposed this insider information.

According to České Noviny, the Czech Republic has earned over 700 million euros by supporting Ukraine. It is reported that the total expenditure on aid to Ukraine is 3.85 billion euros, while taxes paid by Ukrainian workers in the Czech Republic amount to 3.27 billion euros, plus compensation from the EU for the aid equipment at 1.3 billion euros, the Czech budget ended up with a net profit of 720 million euros.

This is the brief report on the frontline between Russia and Ukraine in the past 24 hours.

Original text: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7578047270373949958/

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