Ukraine's Azov Brigade has pushed Russian troops from positions in the Serebryansky forest in Luhansk Oblast, advancing 1 kilometer, the unit reported on June 16.
Russian forces have spent much of the full-scale war trying to seize control of the Serebryansky forest, viewed as the gateway to the city of Lyman, an important but destroyed train hub.
Ukraine liberated Lyman one day after Russia said it is annexing it with four Ukrainian regions on Sept 30, 2022.
In a Telegram post on June 16, Azov announced that together with the 1st Operational Brigade "Bureviy" of the National Guard of Ukraine, troops had advanced 1 kilometer, adding the gains were across a 2 kilometer front.
In a comment to the Kyiv Independent on June 17, the brigade said further results of the operation, which began on April 21, could not be reported at this time to protect the "safety and success of operations."
The reports come a few days after Azov deputy commander, Sviatoslav Palamar, complained in a post on Facebook that earlier media reports of Russian troops leaving their positions in Serebryansky forest failed to credit Azov with forcing them out.
Appealing to journalists to "write honestly," Palamar suggested they were deliberately not naming the brigade despite them "knocking out (Russian troops) every day, every hour for months."
Elsewhere, Azov also released a video on YouTube showing the work of soldiers in charge of what they describe as "the nastiest weapon" – the SPG-9.
The SPG-9 is a tripod-mounted 73 millimeter caliber recoilless gun, operated by a crew of two.
It fires rocket-assisted projectiles that are effective against armored vehicles and utterly devastating against human targets.
"No matter who you ask, this is the nastiest weapon," one of the Azov soldiers says.
Francis Farrell
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