A Whole Russian Field Army Relies On This Southeastern Road. Cutting The Road May Be The Reason For Ukraine's Counteroffensive.
The argument for the Velyka Novosilka-Huliaipole Road as the locus of the fighting in the southeast.
A contested road threading the 27 miles from Velyka Novosilka to Huliaipole in southeastern Ukraine may explain why, in early February, Ukrainian forces went on the offensive in the area despite being outnumbered and outgunned.
The Velyka Novosilka-Huliaipole Road carries supplies to the Russian 5th Combined Army, which has been chipping away at dense Ukrainian fortifications just west of Huliaipole, a key logistics node the Russians captured in late December.
The Russians aim to breach the fortress around Verkhnia in order to clear a path toward Orikhiv, itself a major obstacle to a march on Zaporizhzhia City, 50 miles west of the current line of contact in the southeast.
The 5th CAA will only be as successful as its supplies are reliable. And that may be why, a month ago, Ukrainian forces seized on a rare opportunity to go on the attack north of Huliaipole.
