Up to 200 Russian soldiers are blocked in Kupyansk, the elimination of the enemy “is proceeding cautiously” – Defense Forces

In Kupyansk, Kharkiv Oblast, actions to eliminate Russian forces in the city “are proceeding cautiously” in order to prevent civilian casualties and minimize losses among the military, Viktor Tregubov, head of the communications department of the Joint Forces Group, said.

“The situation is developing, because the Russians are now actually blocked in the city, and they are being gradually squeezed out. You could hear the local news from how it happens. In particular, about the release of civilian hostages whom the Russians used as human shields, including children. And that explains why it doesn’t happen instantly. It would be simple to strike only at those positions where the Russians were entrenched, but this could cause civilian casualties and unnecessary destruction, which we do not want to allow. On the other hand, we do not want to allow losses on the Ukrainian side in urban assaults. Now the actions to eliminate the Russians in the city are proceeding cautiously,” he said on the air of the telethon.

Tregubov noted that in Kup’yansk the Russian troops moved from the outskirts a little closer to the center.

“According to preliminary estimates of our intelligence, as of the end of last week, there were 40 active call signs on walkie-talkies. This means that 40 people are actively using the walkie-talkie, 40 unique walkie-talkie users. Usually, there is one walkie-talkie for three people, maybe four. According to this, we estimate that there are somewhere from 100 to 200,” the spokesman added.

The command of the National Guard Corps “Charter” reported on December 12 that the Defense Forces broke through to the Oskil River and completely blocked the supply routes to the Russian group in Kupyansk. During the operation, as noted, the villages of Kindrashivka, Radkivka and their surroundings were liberated, as well as a number of quarters in the north of Kupyansk.

On December 12, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi visited Kupyansk, Kharkiv region, where he recorded a video against the background of a broken stele at the entrance to the city.

Read also: The General Staff about the SZCH and the response of the military. Why did Zelensky go to Kupyansk?

On November 20, Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov reported to the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin about the occupation of Kupyansk by Russian troops. Not only the Ukrainian military denied this, even pro-war Russian bloggers were skeptical of this statement.

Kupyansk is of strategic importance for the defense of Donbass, and its loss could lead to the encirclement of Ukrainian troops on the left bank of the Oskol River, writes the Radio Liberty Donbass.Realii project. The threat to Kupyansk has been growing since the summer. Russian troops successfully used small group infiltration tactics.