On Tuesday, May 21, Russian forces advanced into the center of Vovchansk, a town in northeastern Ukraine that they have been attacking for the past 10 days as part of a new offensive in the region.
Russian army can open a new front in Vovchansk
According to an article in The New York Times, the deputy head of Kharkiv regional military administration, Roman Semenukha, said that Ukrainian troops have lost about 40% of the city, and Russian troops are advancing from the north.
Open-source maps of the battlefield compiled by independent groups also show that Russia now controls the northern part of the city, which had a pre-war population of 17,000.
Vovchansk, located only five miles from the Russian border, became the main target of Moscow's new offensive. Both US officials and Russian President Vladimir Putin said the offensive was part of efforts to create a buffer zone. The intention, analysts and the military say, is to push Ukrainian forces away from the border to prevent them from shelling Russian military facilities with artillery.
Kremlin forces will try to make further gains in the coming weeks and try to create a buffer zone along the Ukrainian border, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Monday during a meeting with Western allies.
Russian forces also advanced west of Vovchansk, advancing about five miles into Ukrainian territory north of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city. They now control over 70 square miles of Ukrainian land in the region and have made their biggest territorial gains since late 2022.
What is known about the situation in the Kharkiv region
As officially confirmed by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), the number of clashes in the Kharkiv direction has almost halved compared to the previous day.
The Russian invaders tried several times to break through the defenses of the Ukrainian defenders in the districts of Starytsa, Lyptsi and Vovchansk. Fighting is still going on in three locations. The situation remains under the control of the AFU.
In the Kupyansk direction, the number of attempts by the occupiers to advance has increased to 13. Fighting continues in the areas of the villages of Synkivka and Stelmakhivka. No losses of positions or territories were allowed during the fighting. Three attacks by invaders were repulsed in the Siversk direction. Another battle is ongoing in the region of Bilohorivka, the General Staff adds.
