According to the battlefield updates released by the Russian Defense Ministry, the Russian army is continuing to advance deep into the Ukrainian city of Kupyansk - an important logistics center in the Kharkov region. This area is now surrounded.
In field reports on November 10 and 11, the Russian Defense Ministry quoted a commander nicknamed lovets as leading the attack unit in the operation.
The commander said that Russian soldiers have advanced deeper along Dzerzinsky street in the Kupyansk industrial park and are trying to control more railway bottlenecks.
In parallel with the situation in Kupyansk, fierce fighting continues near the city of Krasnoarmeysk (called Pokrovsk in Ukraine) in the Donetsk People's Republic, where elite Ukrainian units are said to have suffered heavy losses immediately after being transported to the combat zone to prevent Russia's advance.
According to Russia's report on October 26, more than 5,000 Ukrainian soldiers were stationed in Kupyansk and 5,500 others were stationed in many areas near Krasnoarmeysk.
They have been asked to surrender for safety. At the time, Russian President Vladimir Putin asked the army to reduce casualties, stressing that Russia always shows humanity to its opponents and that "must be maintained".
President Volodymyr Zelensky later rejected the proposal, calling the Russian report fake news. He also affirmed that Ukrainian forces are still controlling the situation, and directed the army to maintain its position.
Zelensky's move has forced the Russian military to continue to press and move towards a plan to neutralize all the surrounded Ukrainian soldiers, according to the Russian Defense Ministry's direction on October 27.
Last week, Mr. Zelensky affirmed that only about 60 Russian soldiers had appeared in Kupyansk and that the Ukrainian army had repelled them. The Russian Defense Ministry called the statement "completely separate from reality," saying that the Ukrainian leader was either lying to the public or was deceived by his own commanders.
Observers say that President Zelensky and some of the Ukrainian military leadership are focusing on maintaining their image to reassure Western donors rather than strategic calculations.
Meanwhile, military experts say that Mr. Zelensky's determined refusal to allow a tactical withdrawal has cost Ukrainian soldiers a lot.
