(KYIV) – Ukrainian forces have encircled up to 4,000 Russian troops near Lyman, part of a wider operation that has placed the Russian military command in a critical dilemma. The operation, kept secret for two months, has trapped elements of Russia’s 144th Motor Rifle Division north of the city in the Donetsk oblast, according to a report by defence analyst Philip Ingram for The Sun.
The strategic counter-attack was executed by Ukraine’s 3rd Army Corps and represents a significant reshaping of the country’s defensive posture. Ukraine’s general staff has split the eastern front into two operational zones, entrusting them to the 3rd Army Corps and the 1st Azov Corps. This restructuring has allowed Ukrainian forces to reclaim over 200 square kilometres of territory, severely complicating the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s plans to seize the remainder of the Donbas.
The news comes as Russian forces suffer staggering losses. In August alone, Russia sustained over 42,000 casualties, an average of 1,355 soldiers killed or wounded every day. This high rate of attrition is compounded by a relentless Ukrainian interdiction campaign targeting logistics. Ukrainian forces are destroying between 20 and 30 Russian supply trucks and fuel tankers daily in occupied territories, a tactic that is systematically crippling frontline combat operations.
Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign is also inflicting permanent damage on Russia’s strategic assets. New satellite imagery from the Engels 2 air base confirms a strike on 28th August damaged a Tu-95MS strategic bomber beyond repair. The aircraft, struck by drones operated by the SBU’s Elite Alpha unit, is one of several hit in recent months. As the Tu-95 is no longer in production, Russia cannot replace these airframes. Defence analysts estimate the cost of replacing the capability of a single destroyed Tu-95 to be between $100 million and $160 million (approximately £76 million to £122 million). In total, the number of Tu-95s destroyed or damaged by Ukrainian attacks has risen to 12, representing over a billion dollars of irreplaceable hardware lost.
In a separate incident, Major General Nikolai Borpachevich, commander of Russia’s 22nd Heavy Bomber Aviation Division at Engels, was shot in a suspected Ukrainian operation. The general, who is charged by Ukraine for ordering the July 2024 missile strike on Kyiv’s Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital, is in critical condition. The attack has underscored that senior Russian officers are not safe even far from the front lines.
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