KYIV, Ukraine — On Monday, Russian officials announced that they have taken control of the village of Levadne located in southern Ukraine. This move comes as Russia seeks to identify vulnerabilities along the extensive front line that stretches approximately 1,000 kilometers (600 miles), with particular emphasis on areas in the east where Moscow’s military operations are concentrated ahead of the winter season.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials reported an absence of night-time drone strikes utilizing Shahed drones for the first time in approximately six weeks. This follows a recent announcement about a successful strike on a Shahed drone storage site in the Krasnodar region of Russia, where it is believed around 400 drones were housed.
The Russian Defense Ministry declared that forces had secured Levadne in the Zaporizhzhia region. This village had been under Russian control earlier in the conflict but was retaken by Ukrainian forces during their counteroffensive in the summer of 2023.
Ukrainian soldiers are currently under immense pressure to fend off the advances of the Russian military, particularly in the eastern Donetsk region. They are struggling with a lack of personnel and resources to mount an effective counter-offensive. Despite the slow pace of Russian progress, each small gain further compels Ukrainian forces to retract.
Ukrainian authorities emphasize the necessity for increased Western support to effectively counter the ongoing invasion by Russia.
In September 2022, Russia unlawfully annexed four territories in Ukraine, including Zaporizhzhia, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has insisted on the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from these regions as a precondition for any peace negotiations—conditions firmly rejected by Ukraine and its Western allies.
Recent statements from the Ukrainian General Staff highlighted a successful strike on the Shahed drone depot located within Russian territory. They claimed that hitting this drone storage site would greatly diminish the capability of Russian forces to conduct aerial assaults on Ukrainian civilians.
Ukrainian officials are determined to demonstrate to Western allies that they remain committed to resisting the much-larger Russian military. In a significant show of defiance, Ukrainian troops have conducted incursions into the Kursk region of Russia, maintaining a presence on Russian soil for over two months.
Additionally, Ukraine has been utilizing advanced long-range drones to target various strategic sites in Russia, including military airfields, oil refineries, and munitions depots.
On Monday, the Ukrainian Main Directorate of Intelligence reported the destruction of a Russian military transport aircraft, a Tu-134, located at a military airfield in the Orenburg region of Russia.