Ukraine will speed up advance on southern front: commander

ORIKHIV AREA, Ukraine, Aug 26 (Reuters) – Ukrainian forces believe they have broken through the most difficult line of Russian defenses in the south and will now be able to advance more quickly, a commander fighting in the south told Reuters.

Ukraine launched a counter-offensive in June, but well-prepared Russian defense lines reinforced with minefields have slowed their advance south towards the Azov Sea.

Ukrainian forces said on Wednesday they had increase the national flag in the Robotyne settlement in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, about 10 kilometers (six miles) south of the border town of Orikhiv.

“We’re not stopping here,” said a commander who led some troops to Robotyne and who uses the callsign “Skala,” the namesake of the battalion he leads.

“Next we have (the city of) Berdiansk, and then more. I made it clear to my fighters right away: our goal is not Robotyne, our goal is (the Sea of) Azov.”

Robotyne is about 100 km from Berdiansk, a port on the Azov Sea, and 85 km from the strategic city of Melitopol. Both are occupied by Russian forces after the full-scale invasion of Moscow in February last year.

Moscow has not confirmed that Ukraine has moved towards Robotyne.

A US official said last week that it seemed unlikely Ukrainian forces would be able to reach and retake Melitopol in their counteroffensive, aimed at splitting Russian forces in the south.

Defending Ukraine strategy President Volodymyr Zelenskiy this week dismissed suggestions that his country’s troops were too spread out and reiterated his belief that Kiev would retake all Ukrainian territory that had been captured by Moscow.

“We have passed the main roads that were mined. We are reaching those lines where we can advance. I am sure we will go faster from here,” Skala said.

He said that two houses were still under Russian control on Robotyne: “We are fighting for them and then we will have full control (of Robotyne).”

Skala said Ukrainian troops had now entered territories where there were only “Russian logistics” groups, and where he made it clear that he did not expect Russian defenses to be so difficult to break through.

“We are moving forward to liberate all our territories,” he said.

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