Ukrainian Troops Retreat From Russian Border, Leaving 100 Kilometers Open to Invasion -- Pierre Vaux, Daily Beast
Thousands of troops were surrounded by pro-Russian rebels and saved from death by Kiev, but now several border crossings are completely open to the Russian military.
For the last few days all media attention on the Ukrainian crisis has been focused on two topics: the advances made by Ukrainian forces around the city of Donetsk and, more worryingly, the threat of Russian invasion under the guise of “humanitarian intervention.” What has not been discussed anywhere near as much is that Ukraine has just abandoned control of over 100 kilometers of their border with Russia.
For 22 days, Ukrainian forces along the border with Russia, occupying an area of the Ukrainian ‘Anti-Terrorism Operation’ zone known as Sector D, had been completely encircled by hostile forces. From the west and north, in Ukrainian territory, they were relentlessly harassed and shelled by separatist fighters, while they were shelled with rockets, mortars and artillery from across the Russian border to their east and south. On August 6, Ukrainian forces broke out of their encirclement and linked up with advancing forces from the east near Saur-Mogila, a kurgan summit that has been a key battleground in recent weeks. Having finally re-joined the main body of the Ukrainian forces, the beleaguered defenders of Sector D were evacuated.
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My Comment: To early to know what impact this retreat will mean .... but it contradicts constant recent news reports on Ukraine military successes. As to this being the preferred invasion route for Russia .... who knows.
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