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the village isn’t as “strategically important” as kiev officials say it is......

The Rabotino 'meat grinder': Why are Russia and Ukraine fighting so fiercely over a tiny village on the southern front?

What’s going on in the small hamlet in Zaporozhye Region which Kiev claims to have captured?

Since mid-August, the tiny village of Rabotino – located in Zaporozhye Region between the Ukrainian-controlled city of Orekhov and Russian-controlled Tokmak – has been the site of fierce battles. 

 

By Vladislav Ugolny

 

For Kiev, this rural locality has become a disappointing and unexpected yardstick for measuring its counteroffensive. At the end of August, Ukrainian media cited the Defense Ministry as reporting that it had established full control over the hamlet. During a visit to France, Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba talked about the “heroic capture” of this “strategically important settlement” and asserted that establishing control over its flanks would open the way for Ukrainian troops to reach “Melitopol and the border with Crimea.” 

Kiev’s declaration of triumph, however, was premature – throughout this time, the Russian Defense Ministry denied reports of the loss of the settlement, where the battle continues. The ferocity of the fighting has forced both sides to transfer elite airborne units to Rabotino, such as the 82nd Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and the 76th Division of the Russian Armed Forces.

The village is in a ‘gray zone,’ with Russian and Ukrainian forces positioned on its southern and northern outskirts, respectively.

 The location of Rabotino 

Rabotino is 12km (7.5 miles) from Orekhov, which acts as a base for Kiev's forces. In the spring of 2022, the AFU managed to stabilize the front there and started accumulating forces for its counteroffensive, which began in June of this year.

The city of Tokmak, which, in turn, is a base for the Russian army, is 22km (13.6 miles) from Rabotino. This seemingly short distance is complicated for an army to cover: two lines of defense, minefields, prepared artillery positions, and other means of protection separate Tokmak from the current site of battles. Moreover, Tokmak has been turned into a fortress capable of all-around security if the enemy breaks through other lines.

The significance of Rabotino 

Rabotino is the first settlement in the direction of Ukraine’s planned offensive on Tokmak and precedes Russia’s first line of defense. Theoretically, if the Ukrainian army had acted more successfully, it could have quickly captured Rabotino, and Russian troops would have focused on protecting the first line of defense.

However, the Ukrainian counteroffensive got stuck in this area, and the AFU even tried to shift its main effort  in the direction of the Vremevsky sector (the junction of Zaporozhye Region and the Donetsk People’s Republic). Rabotino became the site of prolonged battles where both sides suffered casualties, and Kiev lost a lot of Western equipment. As a result, the village – home to just 480 people when the last census was held in 2001 – received significant media coverage. People following the war in Ukraine now know about the existence of Rabotino.

 Ukrainian losses 

According to a statement by Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu on September 5, Ukraine has lost an estimated 66,000 soldiers since the start of the counteroffensive. In just one day, 170 were reportedly killed near Rabotino. Casualties are mounting by the day. According to a report from Moscow on September 7, within just 24 hours, the Russian army repulsed 14 breakthrough attempts by the AFU in Rabotino, as a result of which Kiev lost 110 fighters.

While the loss of personnel and the ratio of wounded to deceased casualties cannot be visually confirmed, destroyed equipment is much easier to count. In Rabotino, the AFU used new equipment received from NATO countries (except for US M1 Abrams tanks that have not yet been delivered) and have lost a great deal of it. 

According to the Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) community Lostarmour, the AFU has already lost nine German Leopard 2 tanks, 38 US M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, and four Stryker armored fighting vehicles. The latest in this list was a UK-made Challenger 2 – one of the world’s most modern tanks. It has been in service with the British Army since 1994 and has earned a reputation as an “invincible” tank. Until now, none had been lost in combat due to enemy fire – the only destroyed Challenger 2 tank was hit by “friendly fire” in Iraq in 2003. According to the Telegram channel ‘Russian Spring War Correspondents’, the supposedly indestructible British tank was directly hit by a Russian Kornet anti-tank guided missile, which exploded under its gun turret.

The above figures are based on visual confirmation and do not take into account the armored vehicles destroyed by aviation. Therefore, this data should be considered a ‘reliable minimum.’

 Race for reinforcements  

As the fighting in Rabotino has dragged on, both sides have needed to transfer reserves and pull them into battle urgently. The Ukrainians, who started with several brigades, gradually introduced the 116th, 117th, and 118th mechanized brigades and then, in mid-August, played their trump card: the 82nd Air Assault Brigade. Initially, this group was supposed to go into battle only after breaking through Russia’s first line of defense.

In reality, things didn’t go as planned, and paratroopers from the 82nd stormed Rabotino. The presence of this “elite” (as the media called it) outfit on the battlefield allowed Russian troops to destroy more expensive Western equipment.

As for Russia, it transferred the seventh and 76th Air Assault Division to Rabotino to relieve the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division that fought there earlier. These units are currently the backbone of its defense.

Who controls Rabotino now?

For the most part, Rabotino is in the ‘gray zone.’ Ukrainian troops are positioned on the northern and northeastern outskirts of the settlement. At the same time, the Russians are keeping their main forces west and south of the village, maintaining control over the southern outskirts.

Occasionally, both sides are trying to push the enemy out of the village. The AFU intends to fully capture the settlement and use it as a springboard for an offensive in the southern direction. Russian troops sometimes conduct clearing operations in the central part of Rabotino to prevent the Ukrainians from settling there and then withdraw to their high-ground positions.

Rabotino – a new meat grinder?

The fact that Kiev continues to fight for Rabotino is highly convenient for Moscow's forces. Thanks to the heavy concentration of Ukrainians there, the Russian operational command does not expect the enemy to make unpredictable decisions and will probably focus on defending this area.

At the same time, even if the Ukrainians managed to take control of the settlement, this would not change the situation at the front since the village isn’t as “strategically important” as Kiev officials say it is.

Rabotino and the fields to the east of it, where the Ukrainians were able to advance to the outskirts of the Russian primary defenses and reach the first line of defense in the area of Verbovoye, are located in tactically inconvenient lowlands. By controlling the high ground, where the first line has been constructed, the Russians can easily oversee the territory – occasionally allowing the AFU to progress deeper, stretching their supply and evacuation routes – and then launch a counterattack.

In general, when it comes to the battle for Rabotino, control over this tiny settlement is less important than the balance of the losses between the two parties; the issue of introducing and transferring reserves; and the remaining offensive potential of the Ukrainian army. 

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/582588-ukraine-west-military-equipment/

 

 

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blinken blabber.....

As US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced over $1 billion in aid for Ukraine during a surprise visit to the country’s capital, he said Washington had noticed "good progress" in Kiev’s counteroffensive, despite all facts pointing to the opposite.

The United States is blatantly lying about the botched Ukrainian counteroffensive, former CIA analyst Larry Johnson said in an interview with Judge Andrew Napolitano on his Judging Freedom podcast.

“Tony, look at a map,” and just look at the progress that “has not been made by Ukraine,” said the retired CIA intelligence officer and State Department official, as he commented on recent remarks made by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Kiev.

During his unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital, Blinken, standing alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, touted that the Ukrainian military had made “real progress” in its counteroffensive in the “last few weeks.” The Ukrainian president’s assessment of the battlefront developments “matches our own,” continued Blinken, who went over to Kiev to pledge a new aid package for Ukraine worth over $1 billion.

In fact, “Russia has been steadily pushing to the [west],” Johnson said, pointing out that the battle of Artemovsk was the “last big conflict” on the battlefront that Ukraine’s military was engaged in.

 

 

“They [the US] don’t understand Russian defensive tactics,” Johnson emphasized.

 

In May 2023, the Russian military liberated Artemovsk (also known as Bakhmut), a Donbass city reduced to ruins in over eight months of brutal house-to-house fighting. The Artemovsk operation destroyed tens of thousands of Ukrainian troops and foreign mercenaries, while Russia built up its reserves and prepared defenses in Donbass, Zaporozhye, and Kherson for Kiev’s much-heralded summer offensive.

 

READ MORE:

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230909/us-lies-about-ukraines-failed-counteroffensive---ex-cia-analyst-1113233650.html

 

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landslide victory....

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's ruling United Russia party scored a landslide victory in local elections in the Lugansk People's Republic (LPR), the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, election commissions said on Sunday after counting all ballots.

In the Kherson region, the party won 74.86% of the vote, an equivalent of 28 seats in the local legislative assembly, with the voter turnout at 65.36%, head of the regional election commission, Marina Zakharova, said. The commission received no election complaints, she added.

As many as 74.63% of voters cast their ballots for United Russia in the LPR, according to the Russian Central Election Commission.

The party received 83.01% of the vote in the local election in the Zaporozhye Region, the regional election commission's data shows.

In the Donetsk People's Republic, United Russia received 78.04% of the vote, according to provisional results with nearly 90% of the ballots counted.

Elections are being held in most regions of Russia from September 8-10. The voting is designed to elect top officials in 21 subjects of the country and members of the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, for four vacant places in single-member constituencies.

The Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, together with the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics, became Russian regions in September 2022 through a referendum.

 

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230910/united-russia-party-wins-local-elections-in-lpr-kherson-zaporozhye-regions-1113263594.html

 

 

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remembering the donbass....

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDFrZ84_tfkPutin's address on occasion of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Donbass. Russia, Ukraine

There was no force in the world that could stop the Russian fighters! Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Donbass in the Great Patriotic War. Russia Ukraine.

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Two foreign aid volunteers have been killed and two others injured in a Russian missile attack in eastern Ukraine, Kyiv has said.

Emma Igual, the Spanish director of Road to Relief, and Anthony Ihnat, a Canadian colleague, died on Saturday as their vehicle drove towards Bakhmut.

The NGO said that German volunteer Ruben Mawick and Johan Mathias Thyr, a Swede, were badly injured by shrapnel.

The group said the vehicle suffered a "direct hit", flipped and caught fire.

The aid workers had left from Slovyansk and were headed to the Bakhmut area to assess the needs of civilians "caught in crossfire" in the town of Ivanivske, the statement said. 

Madrid confirmed that a Spanish national had died in the attack.

 

Road to Relief was registered in Ukraine last year to help evacuate civilians from the frontline. 

It said that the team was preparing to assess the needs of Ivanivske when they were attacked by Russian forces.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-66768351

 

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The Russian Ministry of Defenses has provided a detailed summary of Ukrainian losses during week thirteen of the so-called spring counteroffensive.

According to the ministry, the Russian military carried out six group strikes with high-precision long-range sea and air-launched weapons against Ukrainian signal reconnaissance facilities, port infrastructure, naval drone production facilities, Western-made weapons, ammunition and fuel depots as well as training bases for sabotage groups of Kiev forces and the so-called “Russian Volunteer Corps” between September 2 and 9.

“As a result of aviation strikes, the work of strategic radio-technical reconnaissance systems, as well as the logistical support of AFU [Armed Forces of Ukraine] troop groups operating in Kherson and Zaporozhye was disrupted,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry also provided details about the combat situation in different directions within the special military operation zone over the past week.

In the Zaporozhye direction, Kiev forces continued unsuccessful attempts to break through the defenses of Russian forces close to Rabotino and Verbovoye.

Ukraine’s 46th aeromobile, 47th mechanized, 82nd air assault brigades as well as the 15th Brigade of Ukrainian National Guard made 39 attempts to break through Russian positions in this direction.

“To support the offensive actions of its units in this direction, the AFU deployed a group of up to 360 artillery pieces, of which more than 160 are Western-made pieces of 15 5mm caliber,” the ministry said.

According to the ministry, all attacks were repelled by Russian forces who neutralized 845 Ukrainian troops, 27 tanks and armored fighting vehicles, including one British-made Challenger 2, tank and 25 other vehicles. At least 63 Ukraine field artillery guns were also destroyed in counter-battery fire.

“The 82nd Air Assault Brigade of the AFU alone has lost up to 500 troops, who were killed or wounded over the past week,” the ministry said.

In the South Donetsk direction, Russian forces repelled four attacks and launched several strikes against Ukrainian gatherings.

The ministry said that Ukrainian losses in this direction amounted to 1,230 troops, 24 armored fighting vehicles, 37 motor vehicles and 17 field artillery guns over the past week.

And in the Donetsk direction, the Russian Yug Group of Forces repelled 56 attacks by Kiev forces over the past week. During the fighting, 2,100 Ukrainian troops, 23 tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, 45 vehicles and 30 field artillery pieces were neutralized.

In the Kupyansk direction, the Russian Zapad Group of Forces continued to improve the tactical situation in their areas of responsibility by conducting active operations.

Over the past week, the group repelled 22 attacks in this direction. Kiev forces lost up to 425 troops, eight armored fighting vehicles, 18 cars and pickup trucks and 15 artillery pieces, according to the ministry.

Meanwhile in the Krasny Liman direction, 12 enemy attacks were repelled by the Russian Tsentr Group of Forces. Ukrainian losses amounted to 450 servicemen, 13 armored fighting vehicles, 15 motor vehicles and seven guns.

In the Kherson direction, the main efforts of Russian forces were concentrated on defeating Ukrainian troops, preventing landings on islands in the Dnieper River bed and counter-battery warfare, the ministry said.

An attempt to land troops in the area of Tendrovskaya Spit Island was prevented and five Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups were destroyed.

According to the ministry, 355 Ukrainian troops, one tank, 32 vehicles and 12 field artillery guns were neutralized in this direction over the past week.

The Russian MoD also provided the following details in its statement on last week operations:

Ships of the Black Sea Fleet during combat duty in the southern part of the Kerch Strait have detected and destroyed three Ukrainian unmanned semi-submersible boats attempting to attack the Crimean bridge.

In addition, four high-speed boats with landing groups of the AFU special operations forces, totalling up to 50 Ukrainian servicemen, were eliminated by Naval Aviation aircraft in the waters of the Black Sea west of the Crimean peninsula.

Operational-Tactical Aviation of the Russian Aerospace Forces, and air defense systems shot down one MiG-29 aircraft and one Mi-8 helicopter of the Ukrainian Air Force during the week, as well as destroyed launchers of the S-300ps anti-aircraft missile system near the village of Lyubimovka (Zaporozhye region).

Russian air defense and electronic warfare systems destroyed and suppressed 247 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles, including 23 in the western regions of the Russian Federation during the week.

In addition, 49 HIMARS MLRS projectiles, three JDAM guided aerial bombs, and one HARM anti-radiation missile were intercepted.

In total, 467 airplanes, 248 helicopters, 6,540 unmanned aerial vehicles, 436 air defense missile systems, 11,742 tanks and other armored fighting vehicles, 1,149 fighting vehicles equipped with MLRS, 6,306 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 12,840 special military motor vehicles have been destroyed during the special military operation.

In addition to the information provided by the ministry, lostarmour.info, a website that tracks military losses, documented 21 strikes with Lancet loitering munitions and 141 strikes with FPV suicide drones against Kiev forces between September 2 and 9.

Kiev forces sustained heavy losses and failed to break through Russian defenses in any direction during the thirteenth week of the counteroffensive. Despite this failure, the Kiev regime appears to be determined to go on with the counteroffensive.

 

https://southfront.press/ukraines-counteroffensive-completes-another-bad-week/

 

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NO NATO IN "UKRAINE" (WHAT'S LEFT OF IT)

THE DONBASS REPUBLICS ARE NOW BACK IN THE RUSSIAN FOLD — AS THEY USED TO BE PRIOR 1922. THE RUSSIANS WON'T ABANDON THESE AGAIN.

CRIMEA IS RUSSIAN — AS IT USED TO BE PRIOR 1954

A MEMORANDUM OF NON-AGGRESSION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE USA.

 

EASY.

 

THE WEST KNOWS IT.

 

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surrendering.....

Large numbers of Ukrainian troops have surrendered to the Russian military in recent weeks, using a special radio frequency designed for fighters willing to lay down arms, TASS reported on Wednesday. 

The frequency, 149.200 call sign ‘Volga’, was set up by the Russian military during the summer. Thus far, it has been used by more than 10,000 Ukrainian servicemen who were subsequently taken into Russian custody, according to a source with knowledge of the situation cited by TASS. The person added that the radio frequency is active along the entire front line. 

“More than 10,0000 Ukrainian soldiers have chosen life and used the 149.200 ‘Volga’ frequency to surrender. The prisoners are well-fed and are provided with all the necessary medical care,” the source stated.

The process has seemingly accelerated recently as Ukrainian troops have surrendered in groups rather than individually, particularly around Rabotino, according to the TASS source. The village in Zaporozhye Region has become the scene of intense fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces in recent weeks.

Rabotino remains one of the major flashpoints of the conflict, with the area repeatedly subjected to attacks during the long-heralded Ukrainian counteroffensive launched in early June. The push has thus far failed to yield any tangible results, while reports have indicated that Ukrainian forces are sustaining heavy personnel and materiel losses in the process. 

According to Moscow’s latest estimates, Kiev has lost more than 17,000 servicemen this month alone. The total number of Ukrainian troops killed since the counteroffensive began has now surpassed 83,000, with over 10,000 pieces of heavy military hardware also destroyed, according to the Russian military.

 

https://www.rt.com/russia/583643-ukrainian-troops-surrender-figures/

 

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MAKE A DEAL PRONTO BEFORE THE SHIT HITS THE FAN:

 

 

NO NATO IN "UKRAINE" (WHAT'S LEFT OF IT)

THE DONBASS REPUBLICS ARE NOW BACK IN THE RUSSIAN FOLD — AS THEY USED TO BE PRIOR 1922. THE RUSSIANS WON'T ABANDON THESE AGAIN.

CRIMEA IS RUSSIAN — AS IT USED TO BE PRIOR 1954

A MEMORANDUM OF NON-AGGRESSION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE USA.

 

EASY.

 

THE WEST KNOWS IT.

 

FREE JULIAN ASSANGE NOW....

 

 

8 out of ten....

The Russian Defense Ministry has reported that the 47th Mechanized Brigade had to be withdrawn from the Rabotino area of the Zaporozhye region by the Ukrainian command due to the soldiers' reluctance to carry out combat missions in the face of mounting casualties.

According to information shared on the Telegram channel of the Russian Defense Ministry, the Ukrainian command is currently carrying out the withdrawal of the 47th Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF) from the Rabotino area of the Zaporozhye region as soldiers are reluctant to take on combat orders after the losses they suffered.

The Russian Armed Forces are heavily engaged in the defense of the Zaporozhye direction. Last week, Russian military units successfully repelled eight attacks from enemy assault groups from the 65th Mechanized and 71st Jaeger Brigades in the Verbovoye and Rabotino areas.

 

https://sputnikglobe.com/20230929/ukrainian-troops-reportedly-refuse-battle-orders-in-rabotino-due-to-heavy-losses-1113803090.html

 

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ACCORDING TO SOME REPORTS THE UKRAINE ARMY IS LOSING UP TO 9 OUT OF TEN SOLDIERS IN RABOTINO....

 

MAKE A DEAL PRONTO BEFORE THE SHIT HITS THE FAN:

 

 

NO NATO IN "UKRAINE" (WHAT'S LEFT OF IT)

THE DONBASS REPUBLICS ARE NOW BACK IN THE RUSSIAN FOLD — AS THEY USED TO BE PRIOR 1922. THE RUSSIANS WON'T ABANDON THESE AGAIN.

CRIMEA IS RUSSIAN — AS IT USED TO BE PRIOR 1954

A MEMORANDUM OF NON-AGGRESSION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE USA.

 

EASY.

 

THE WEST KNOWS IT.

 

FREE JULIAN ASSANGE NOW....

futile zelensky's....

by top-war

The Ukrainian army suffered heavy losses during the counter-offensive, and although this was not recognized in Kiev, this was not the first time that some brigades of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were withdrawn from the front to the rear for restore their combat effectiveness. For example, the 47th mechanized brigade, participating in the offensive in the Orekhovsky sector, was sent back for the third time “in refueling».

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was forced to withdraw the 47th Mechanized Infantry Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the front line and move it to the rear. And for the third time. The reason is the huge losses and the unwillingness of the personnel to fight. In recent weeks, the brigade has been actively used by the command of the Tavria group on the Robotyne-Verbove line.

As the TG “Rybar” channel notes, it is not surprising that the 47th mechanized brigade will be reorganized for the third time, since the tactics “assault meat grinder» of the command of the Ukrainian armed forces are the only ones to produce at least some results. At present, almost all Ukrainian brigades sent to the offensive in the direction of Zaporizhia have already been withdrawn to the rear for replenishment. We are talking about the 82nd Air Assault, the 46th Airmobile and even the 71st Jaeger, which entered the battle a few weeks ago.

At the same time, it should be noted that the withdrawal of the 47th mechanized infantry brigade from the front line will not affect combat operations in any way; significant forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the National Guard were concentrated in this area. In addition, five more fresh brigades are on the way, some of which will obviously be sent in that direction.

source: top-war

 

READ FROM TOP.

 

ACCORDING TO SOME REPORTS THE UKRAINE ARMY IS LOSING UP TO 9 OUT OF TEN SOLDIERS IN RABOTINO....

 

MAKE A DEAL PRONTO BEFORE THE SHIT HITS THE FAN:

 

 

NO NATO IN "UKRAINE" (WHAT'S LEFT OF IT)

THE DONBASS REPUBLICS ARE NOW BACK IN THE RUSSIAN FOLD — AS THEY USED TO BE PRIOR 1922. THE RUSSIANS WON'T ABANDON THESE AGAIN.

CRIMEA IS RUSSIAN — AS IT USED TO BE PRIOR 1954

A MEMORANDUM OF NON-AGGRESSION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND THE USA.

 

EASY.

 

THE WEST KNOWS IT.

 

FREE JULIAN ASSANGE NOW....