War in Ukraine set to enter new phase, says UK military intelligence

Russian forces are almost certainly amassing in the south of Ukraine, the UK’s Ministry of Defence said on Twitter

Ukraine disconnected a generator at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant – Europe’s largest atomic power complex – after it was shelled on Friday

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A serviceman with a Russian flag on his uniform stands guard near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant outside the Russian-controlled city of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:23pm, 6 Aug 2022Updated: 10:38pm, 6 Aug 2022

Russia’s war in Ukraine is about to enter a new phase, with most fighting shifting to a nearly 350 (217 mile) front stretching southwest from near Zaporizhzhia to Kherson, parallel to the Dnieper River, British military intelligence said on Saturday.

Russian forces are almost certainly amassing in the south of Ukraine, anticipating a counter-offensive or in preparation for a possible assault, the UK’s Ministry of Defence said on Twitter.

Long convoys of Russian military trucks, tanks, towed artillery and other weapons continue to move away from Ukraine’s Donbas region and are headed southwest.

A Russian tank covered in green sheets outside the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. Photo: Reuters

Battalion tactical groups, which comprise 800-1,000 troops, have been deployed to Crimea and would almost certainly be used to support Russian troops in the Kherson region, the update said.

Ukraine’s forces are focusing their targeting on bridges, ammunition depots, rail links with growing frequency in its southern regions, including the strategically important railroad spur that links Kherson to Russian-occupied Crimea, it said.

Ukrainian military personnel are fortifying their positions around the eastern city of Sloviansk in expectation of a fresh Russian attempt to seize the strategic point in the fiercely fought-over Donetsk region.

A man pushes his bicycle past a destroyed building in Sloviansk on July 29. Photo: AFP

As heavy ground fighting continues on the front line only miles to the east, southeast and north of Sloviansk, members of the Dnipro-1 Regiment are digging in after a week of relative calm. The last Russian strike on the city occurred on July 30.