War Fog Covers Zaporizhzhia: Russian Army Seizes 3 Towns Amidst "Fierce Battles" Fought by Ukrainians

The Ukrainian military has acknowledged the advance of Russian forces in the south of the country. General Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, announced that the Russian army had managed to seize three towns in the southern Zaporizhzhia region. This development is part of Moscow's expansion of its military operations aimed at capturing more Ukrainian territory, as the war enters its fourth year.

According to the Associated Press, General Syrskyi explained that the weather conditions played an unexpected role in facilitating the Russian assault. He pointed out that thick fog provided Russian forces an opportunity to infiltrate Ukrainian defensive positions in Zaporizhzhia. Syrskyi confirmed that Ukrainian units are currently engaged in "fierce battles" in an attempt to repel this attack and reclaim lost positions.

Pokrovsk: The Fiercest Front, and Upcoming US Sanctions

The intensity of fighting remains high in other sectors of the front. The Ukrainian Commander noted that the most intense clashes continue to be concentrated around the besieged city of "Pokrovsk," located in the eastern Donetsk region. Reports indicate that nearly half of all engagements across the entire front line in the last twenty-four hours occurred in this hot spot.

The cities of "Kupiansk" and "Lyman" in the Kharkiv region of northeastern Ukraine have also recently seen an escalation in the pace of fighting, underscoring Moscow's pressure on multiple axes in an attempt to breach Ukrainian lines.

These field developments come at a time when Russia currently controls approximately one-fifth of Ukrainian territory, nearly four years after the start of Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. In an effort to impose economic pressure on Moscow to counter its military gains, a new package of US sanctions is scheduled to take effect on November 21. These sanctions specifically target the Russian oil sector, the core pillar of Moscow's economy, in an attempt to force Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire and a settlement.