RUSSIAS TRICKY STRATEGY IN SOUTHERN UKRAINE

While the front was stabilized in eastern Ukraine, and none of the warring sides claim any significant successes, Russian missiles provide Russian forces with some tactical advantage on the front lines in the southern regions of Ukraine. On the evening of September 14, a missile strike damaged the Karachunovskaya dam and a pumping station on the Ingulets River, which caused water levels to rise by more than 2 meters flooding a number of districts in the city of Krivoy Rog. On September 15, hydraulic structures in the region again came under attack. No sooner had the water left the streets of the city, as another Russian missile hit another dam in Iskrovka in the Kirovograd region. According to official data, there were no casualties as a result of the flooding. The purpose of the strikes was not to flood the streets of Krivoy Rog but to raise the water level in the Ingulets River downstream, where the front lines run, and the Armed Forces of Ukraine are trying to build pontoon bridges across the river. On September 16, the local deputy head of the civil-military administration confirmed that the Ukrainian units found themselves in a tactical encirclement near the borders of the Kherson region, on the left bank of the Ingulets River. As a result of the rising waters, it will be more difficult for the Ukrainian units deployed on the left bank in the area of Davydov Brod to retreat or transfer ammunition. It was also reported that the Ukrainian military camp in Krivoy Rog was flooded. As a result, sending reinforcements from there to the front lines was interrupted. The Ingulets spill played an important role in the ongoing battles in the southern regions of Ukraine. It delayed the offensive operations of the Ukrainian forces, which have been prepared by the Ukrainian military in recent weeks. In the areas of Alexandrovka, Posad-Pokrovsky and Snigirevka artillery duels continue. Near the village of Andreevka, the Ukrainian offensive has been stopped. Fighters of the Russian Aerospace Forces do not stop strikes on Ukrainian troops along the corridor from Andreevka to Sukhoi Stavok, where Ukrainian units found themselves in a tactical encirclement. Dozens of gravely wounded Ukrainian soldiers are evacuated from the area every day. It is reported that Ukrainian aviation is used in evacuation operations and that Russian forces do not prevent the removal of bodies. Despite heavy losses, the Ukrainian military continues to transfer reserves to a bridgehead on the left bank of the river, apparently preparing for new offensives. In the Olgino area, Ukrainian forces are trying to advance with infantry and tanks but units of Russian paratroopers, with the support of artillery and MLRS, continue to repel attacks.