ISW: Ukrainian Forces Resolutely Break Through Robotyne-Verbove Line

Ukrainian troops with armoured vehicles stormed the Russian positions.

On September 27, Ukrainian troops entered a trench line west of Verbove (16km southeast of Orikhiv) and made a breakthrough in this sector of the Russian defence.

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), geolocation footage released on September 26 shows a Russian drone striking Ukrainian infantry in a trench west of Verbove. The Russians' use of UAVs indicates that Russian forces have been driven out of their trenches approximately one kilometer long west of Verbove.

The Gauleiter of the Zaporizhzhia region, Vladimir Rogov, said on September 26 that at least four Ukrainian companies with a significant number of armoured vehicles broke into the Russian positions on the Robotyne-Verbove line after a massive artillery shelling.

A Russian milblogger who avidly supports Russian Airborne Forces (VDV) Commander Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky by criticizing the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) responded to Rogov, stating that Ukrainian forces have already passed the minefields and “dragon’s teeth” anti-tank fortifications on the Robotyne-Verbove line and that Ukrainian forces would have conducted such attacks sooner or later.

Analysts note that Another Russian milblogger claimed on September 26 that there is intense mutual shelling that is making it dangerous to operate. Another occupier reportedly affiliated with the VDV Forces responded to this claim, stating that a personal source from the Russian 108th VDV Regiment (7th VDV Division) reported that there was intense Ukrainian shelling in the area. He added that their source provided unclear information about whether the regiment was moving towards Verbove or retreating from Verbove.

The Russian military command in Moscow cancelled plans to redeploy the Russian 106th Airborne Division to the Robotyne area to reinforce units of the 7th and 76th divisions.

As ISW notes, the situation near Verbove remains unclear, since well-known Russian military bloggers have become noticeably smaller and report less detail on Russian activity on this front line and do not report news about Russian failures.