Capturing Kupiansk is Russia's 'strategic goal' in Kharkiv Oblast, military spokesperson says
Capturing the city of Kupiansk serves as Russia's main goal in Kharkiv Oblast, operational-strategic command "Dnipro" spokesperson Oleksiy Belsky said on Sept. 15, amid Russia's attempted infiltrations into the key Ukrainian stronghold.
"The strategic goal of the Russians as of now is to retake Kupiansk," Belsky told public broadcaster Suspilne, adding that Russian troops continue to amass on the northern outskirts of the city.
The comments come days after crowd-sourced monitoring website Deep State reported on Sept. 12 that Russian troops have infiltrated the town of Kupiansk by entering a gas pipeline from an occupied Ukrainian village.
They managed to reach the nearby village of Radkivka, on Kupiansk’s outskirts, "without serious losses" before moving south to a forest and dispersing into Kupiansk, according to Deep State.
Ukrainian troops have taken control of the pipeline's exit, which does not lead directly into Kupiansk, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces wrote on Facebook on Sept. 13.
Belsky said Russian forces are continuing to infiltrate the city through sabotage groups, disguising themselves as residents of the city, despite that being a violation of the laws of war.
"Unfortunately, many locals did not want to leave, they are sitting there under bombardments. Those occupiers who infiltrated are carrying out a counter-sabotage operation, combing the districts of Kupiansk, working on the outskirts, but it is very difficult to track them," Belsky added.
Ukrainian forces have repelled multiple attempts for Russia to break through into the strategic city, widely seen as a strategic and symbolic springboard toward the city of Kharkiv.
Kupiansk lies 104 kilometers (65 miles) east of Kharkiv, the regional capital. Fighting is fierce around the town, which was occupied at the start of the full-scale invasion before being liberated in September 2022.
The town comes under relentless Russian attacks including guided bombs, artillery, multiple-launch rocket systems, and FPV drones. Kupiansk is largely without electricity, gas, and running water, although around 1,800 civilians still live there, as of last month.
