Heavy fighting over several days has finally forced Russian troops to withdraw from Staromaiors'ke in western Donetsk. The 35th Ukrainian Separate Marine Brigade, with support from the 7th Separate Artillery Brigade, claimed official capture of the town on Jul 27, 2023.

While not a major breakthrough, the Ukrainians continue to grind forward into Russian held ground. Their operations are costly but effective. The situation will force the Russian military to pull troops from other front line units, spreading their defenses thin, or they will have to continue tapping into reserves of poorly trained and under equipped troops.

The Ukrainian counteroffensive has been perceived by many as less than desirable in its speed of progress. However, Ukrainian precision artillery and guided rockets have been dramatically reducing Russian logistics and fire support, which is a significant factor in the taking of Staromaiors'ke. With Russian supply chains continuously under fire, the possibility of a Ukrainian breakthrough or major collapse of a Russian front line section is still a very real possibility in the near future.

About the Author

Will Killmore

Will Killmore is a US Army combat infantry veteran and Purple Heart recipient. He has deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan with the 172nd Stryker Brigade and 173rd Airborne Brigade. Following his time in service, he successfully pursued a certificate of journalism and has been a blogger for Funker530 since 2014. Follow Will’s bad takes on Twitter