Ukrainian defenders are fighting off Russian forces in the Lyptsi and Vovchansk directions in the north of Kharkiv Oblast as Moscow deploys infantry and heavy equipment, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on May 10.
Ukraine's Defense Ministry reported earlier in the day that Russian forces launched an attempt to break through in Kharkiv Oblast. President Volodymyr Zelensky later confirmed that Russia was carrying out new offensive operations in the area.
There are ongoing battles for "gray zone" border settlements of Strilecha, Pylne, and Borysivka, as well as in the sectors of Oliinykove and Ohirtseve, the General Staff said. The aforementioned settlements lie along Kharkiv Oblast's border with Russia.
Ukrainska Pravda reported earlier the same day that, according to unnamed military sources, Russian forces seized Strilecha, Pylne, Krasne, and Borysivka. Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov said at the time that battles in border areas were ongoing but that no territory was lost.
"Ukrainian forces are fighting on prepared defensive lines," the General Staff reported, adding that Ukrainian fire aims to "disrupt the enemy offensive."
Ukrainska Pravda also wrote that Russian troops were storming the outskirts of the border village of Pletenivka and that Kyiv's soldiers were blocking the advance of Russian forces near the village of Hatyshche.
When asked by the Kyiv Independent about the situation near these settlements, Nazar Voloshyn, the spokesperson of the Khortytsia group of forces, said he could not confirm or deny the reports.
While the full scope of the new Russian offensive remains unclear, several Ukrainian officials pointed out that the operation appears limited and may be an attempt to draw Ukrainian forces from critical areas in the east.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine would send additional forces to reinforce the Kharkiv sector and Chasiv Yar in Donetsk Oblast as fighting rages along the front.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
(Updated: )
