More than 420,000 Russian soldiers are deployed across occupied Ukrainian territories, Vadym Skibitsky, deputy head of Ukraine's military intelligence, said on Sept. 9.
Speaking at the annual Yalta European Strategy (YES) conference held in Kyiv, Skibitsky said that the estimate doesn't include Russia's National Guard, as well as some other structures – such as its security forces, in occupied Ukraine.
As of September, Russia still partially occupied Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk oblasts, including two regional capitals of the Donbas – Donetsk and Luhansk since 2014.
On Aug. 27, Ukrainian military spokesperson Illia Yevlash reported that Russia had accumulated around 100,000 troops in the Kupiansk and Lyman sectors of the northeastern front line, running roughly along the border of occupied Luhansk Oblast.
In an effort to take back previously liberated territory and tie down forces available for the Ukrainian counteroffensive, Russian forces have intensified their own offensive operations in the area, especially around Kupiansk, but have so far failed to make any significant advances.
Francis Farrell
