UKRAINE: THE SITUATION 204 - SEPTEMBER 11, 2022

The Ukrainian counteroffensive in the Kharkiv Oblast forces the Russian forces to flee and causes Russia's northern axis in the Donbass to collapse. The Russian forces are not conducting a controlled withdrawal and are fleeing hastily from the southeastern part of Kharkiv region to avoid encirclement around Izyum.

Prior to this, the Russian forces weakened the northern Donbass axis by moving units from that area to southern Ukraine, making it difficult to slow down the Ukrainian advance or at least establish cover for withdrawal. Ukrainian gains extend beyond the Izyum area; Ukrainian troops reportedly captured Velikiy Burluk on September 10, bringing Ukrainian forces to within 15 kilometers of the international border. Ukrainian forces have penetrated up to 70 kilometers deep in some places into the Russian lines and have seized more than 3,000 square kilometers of territory in the past five days since September 6 - more territory than the Russian forces have captured in all their operations since April.

The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on September 10 the withdrawal of troops from the Balakliya-Izyum line, and the failure of the Russian Ministry of Defense to create effective information conditions is causing the Russian information space to collapse.

The announcement of the withdrawal and the failure of the occupation authorities to organize evacuation measures further alienates Russian milbloggers and Russian nationalists who support the grandiose vision of the Kremlin to conquer the entire Ukraine.

The full Russian Offensive Update 204 is available directly from UNDERSTANDING WAR.

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