24 Jan: Turn the tables. Ukrainians successfully push back. - Reporting from Ukraine

[TexasTowelie]

Day 335: January 24

Today there is a lot of news from the south. Here, the Ukrainians managed to break the momentum of Russian advance around Orikhiv and even launch a series of successful counterattacks. The Ukrainians not only reestablished control over some lost positions but also pushed the Russians further than where they had started. In an attempt to save the situation, the Russians sent a lot of reconnaissance groups along the entire front line to find at least some weak spots, but so far, there is no indication that they were successful.

In the Orikhiv direction, the Ukrainians managed to not only stabilize the front line, but also expand the area under their control. Last time I told you that the Russians failed to attack the central part of the Orikhiv defense line and completely changed their plan. Their main focus quickly became the least protected areas, such as Kamianske. The reason why Kamianske is easier to attack lies in the geography of the region. First of all, it is located in the corner between the bay and the river. And secondly, it is located in the lowlands. In order to exploit their tactical advantage to the fullest, one Russian group fired at the Ukrainians from the opposite side of the bay while another group tried to attack it from the flank. Unfortunately for the Russians, there is a small river that stretches east from the bay and creates a natural obstacle. The Ukrainians leveraged this barrier and successfully repelled the Russian flank attack. The Russians stepped back and engaged their artillery in an attempt to undermine Ukrainian defense along this small river and try to breach it next time.

When it comes to Novoandriivka and Novodanylivka, yesterday I told you that after the Russians failed to take them by storm, they switched to lighter engagement with the purpose of gathering reconnaissance. Today, the Russians once again attempted to storm these two villages, but were brutally defeated. Even Russian sources reported that the Russians had zero success here.

When it comes to the eastern part of this region, the Ukrainians took the initiative and conducted a successful counterattack. As mentioned previously, Mala Tokmachka is a very powerful Ukrainian fortification, so the Ukrainians were able to quickly create an attack fist and attack Russian positions while they were still regrouping. As a result, the Ukrainians established full control over Bilohorka and pushed the Russians out of Pokrovka, meaning that they not just got closer to the Russians but also created an additional buffer. This will significantly impede any further Russian actions.

The lack of progress in the Orikhiv direction forced the Russians to rapidly search for possible weak spots in the Huliaipole direction because today, the Russians conducted a series of small attacks here.

Overall, the Russians are desperate to make the Zaporizhzhia offensive operation work because once the Ukrainians receive western tanks, it may be too late. Tanks are indispensable for an offensive operation and no number of armored vehicles can substitute them. Right now, the Ukrainians do not have enough machinery to conduct large-scale offensive actions because it can severely compromise all other fronts. But they are expected to receive enough of them in the near future, which for the Russians potentially means the complete loss of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions. All the Ukrainians need to do is to penetrate Russian defense by 60 km again and cut the Russian group in half. So far, the Ukrainians are successfully holding the line, which preserves the opportunity to realize this plan in the future.