Ukraine Summer Offensive Update for August 1: ‘A Very Unpleasant Situation’

Snapshot

Second consecutive night of drones drilling Moscow. Key bridge in occupied Crimea looks blown. Ukrainian forces conducted offensive operations on three sectors of the front on July 31, according to ISW.

Analysis

Retired Australian General and military strategy expert Mick Ryan speaks to CNN about the significance of drone attacks on Moscow:

Operational Aspects in Russia, Crimea and other areas

Drones appeared to again strike Moscow, including an office tower in the ‘Moscow City’ precinct, according to Russian media outlets.

Local outlets reported traffic chaos in the vicinity of the apparent drone strikes: “Moscow taxi drivers are seeing a surge in orders from Moscow City and the western part of the city in general after the UAV attack,” ASTRA reported.

A leading pro-Russian milblogger complained about the social and military impact of Ukrainian missile and drone strikes on his Telegram channel: “Calling people and ‘guaranteeing their protection’ in the reach of strike UAVs, PrSM and Storm Shadow missiles, it's just too much!!! We in Moscow cancel many events because we cannot be sure about safety… The only place where you can conditionally provide people with security in Zaporozhzhia is a well-buried nuclear bunker, but not a military training ground.”

Imagery posted on July 30 and 31 visually confirms damage to the Chonhar Bridge following a Ukrainian strike on July 29, ISW stated.

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The official said that Ukraine will hold Kursk territory for as long as “militarily appropriate.”

About the Chonhar Bridge, a leading pro-Russian milblogger said: “Such attacks are aimed at cutting off the supply of the Russian Armed Forces from Crimea against the backdrop of the Ukrainian offensive in Zaporozhzhia and preparations for a landing in the Kherson region.”

An evacuation was announced at the railway station near the Kerch Bridge, according to a Russian Telegram channel. “Vehicle traffic on the Crimean Bridge is temporarily blocked. Those who are on the bridge and in the observation area are asked to remain calm and follow the instructions of the traffic safety officers,” the message read.

Kharkiv was hit by Russian forces with a Shahed drone strike on two civilian buildings, injuring one person, according to local officials.

According to a leading pro-Russian milblogger, Ukrainian forces are regularly conducting raids and assaults along the Dnipro River and its islands around Kherson. “A very unpleasant situation is developing near the Antonivsky bridge, where Ukrainian formations not only hold a bridgehead, but also try to move deep into the territory on the left bank of the Dnipro,” Rybar said on Telegram. “The problem of the presence of the enemy on the left bank of the Dnipro has not gone away: the attacks do not seem to pose a serious threat, but because of their systematic nature, they are dangerous in the future.”

A pro-Russian source said that “in the Luhansk direction, Russian troops have again become more active in the area of Bilohorivka. With the support of artillery, they tried to break through the defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) from the southeast.”

General Developments

Russian sources claimed that Ukrainian forces continued attacking northwest and southwest of Bakhmut, in the western Donetsk–eastern Zaporizhzhia regional border area, and in the western Zaporizhzhia region.

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said more than 170 firefights had taken place in the last week.

Over the past 24 hours, Russian forces launched 9 missile attacks, 57 air strikes, and 61 attacks from MLRS systems on Ukrainian settlements and positions; Ukraine undertook seven airstrikes on Russian positions, according to the morning update of the General Staff of the AFU.

Russian forces shelled or mortared some 110 Ukrainian settlements along the front line, according to the General Staff.

Malyar also reported that, over the past week, Ukrainian forces liberated an additional 2 square kilometers of territory around Bakhmut and 12.6 square kilometers in the western Donetsk–eastern Zaporizhzhia regional border area (aka, “Melitopol axis”) and the western Zaporizhzhia region (aka, “Berdyansk axis”).

A video appeared online depicting a Ukrainian column of Swedish CV90s and Strv 122s that also included a pair of Polish-made Rosomak Wolverines. If confirmed, this is the first appearance of a Wolverine in Ukraine, three months after the Polish government announced it would provide the Ukrainian government with 200 of the 25-ton, eight-wheel infantry fighting vehicles.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and the Turkish company Baykar Makina agreed on the construction of a service center for the repair and maintenance of unmanned aerial vehicles in Ukraine, UkrInform reported.

Operational Aspects in Bakhmut

Ukrainian servicemen continue to advance toward even though the Russians have an advantage in artillery and aviation, according to the former spokesperson of the General Staff of the AFU, Vladyslav Seleznyov. He says that the situation has stabilized in the northern part of Bakhmut, and fighting continues in the Klishchiivka and Andriivka areas.

“There are difficult weather conditions there now... The soil becomes soggy in such conditions; it is extremely difficult to advance on tracked armored vehicles. However, even in such conditions, the Ukrainian army continues to move forward, albeit not hastily,” said the commentator.

Operational Aspects on Boundary of the Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions and in Western Zaporizhzhia

Malyar reported that Ukrainian forces made unspecified advances in the Mala Tokmachka (6 kilometers southeast of Orikhiv) and Robotyne (10 kilometers south of Orikhiv) directions, ISW reported.

Pro-Russian milbloggers claimed Russian forces repelled a limited mechanized Ukrainian attack near Robotyne and a smaller ground attack on the Pyatykhatky-Zherebyanky line (23–26 kilometers southwest of Orikhiv).

Operational Aspects in Crimea, Russia and other areas

Drones appeared to again strike Moscow, including an office tower in the ‘Moscow City’ precinct, according to Russian media outlets.

Local outlets reported traffic chaos in the vicinity of the apparent drone strikes: “Moscow taxi drivers are seeing a surge in orders from Moscow City and the western part of the city in general after the UAV attack,” ASTRA reported.

A leading pro-Russian milblogger complained about the social and military impact of Ukrainian missile and drone strikes on his Telegram channel: “Calling people and ‘guaranteeing their protection’ in the reach of strike UAVs, PrSM and Storm Shadow missiles, it's just too much!!! We in Moscow cancel many events because we cannot be sure about safety… The only place where you can conditionally provide people with security in Zaporozhzhia is a well-buried nuclear bunker, but not a military training ground.”

Imagery posted on July 30 and 31 visually confirms damage to the Chonhar Bridge following a Ukrainian strike on July 29, ISW stated.

About the Chonhar Bridge, a leading pro-Russian milblogger said: “Such attacks are aimed at cutting off the supply of the Russian Armed Forces from Crimea against the backdrop of the Ukrainian offensive in Zaporozhzhia and preparations for a landing in the Kherson region.”

An evacuation was announced at the railway station near the Kerch Bridge, according to a Russian Telegram channel. "Vehicle traffic on the Crimean Bridge is temporarily blocked. Those who are on the bridge and in the observation area are asked to remain calm and follow the instructions of the traffic safety officers," the message read.

Kharkiv was hit by Russian forces with a Shahed drone strike on two civilian buildings, injuring one person, according to local officials.

According to a leading pro-Russian milblogger, Ukrainian forces are regularly conducting raids and assaults along the Dnipro River and its islands around Kherson. “A very unpleasant situation is developing near the Antonivsky bridge, where Ukrainian formations not only hold a bridgehead, but also try to move deep into the territory on the left bank of the Dnipro,” Rybar said on Telegram. “The problem of the presence of the enemy on the left bank of the Dnipro has not gone away: the attacks do not seem to pose a serious threat, but because of their systematic nature, they are dangerous in the future.”

 A pro-Russian source said that “in the Luhansk direction, Russian troops have again become more active in the area of ​​Belohorivka. With the support of artillery, they tried to break through the defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the southeast.”

General Developments

Russian sources claimed that Ukrainian forces continued attacking northwest and southwest of Bakhmut, in the western Donetsk–eastern Zaporizhzhia regional border area, and in western Zaporizhzhia region.

Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said more than 170 firefights had taken place in the last week.

Malyar also reported that, over the past week, Ukrainian forces liberated an additional 2 square kilometers of territory around Bakhmut and 12.6 square kilometers in the western Donetsk–eastern Zaporizhzhia regional border area (aka, “Melitopol direction”) and the western Zaporizhzhia region (aka, “Berdyansk direction”).

A video appeared online depicting a Ukrainian column of Swedish CV90s and Strv 122s that also included a pair of Polish-made Rosomak Wolverines. If confirmed, this is the first appearance of a Wolverine in Ukraine, three months after the Polish government announced it would provide the Ukrainian government with 200 of the 25-ton, eight-wheel infantry fighting vehicles.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and the Turkish company Baykar Makina agreed on the construction of a service center for the repair and maintenance of unmanned aerial vehicles in Ukraine, UkrInform reported.

Operational Aspects in Bakhmut

Ukrainian servicemen continue to advance toward despite the fact that the Russians have an advantage in artillery and aviation, according to the former spokesperson of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Vladyslav Seleznyov. He says that the situation has stabilized in the northern part of Bakhmut, and fighting continues in the Klishchiivka and Andriivka areas. "There are difficult weather conditions there now... The soil becomes soggy in such conditions; it is extremely difficult to advance on tracked armored vehicles. However, even in such conditions, the Ukrainian army continues to move forward, albeit not hastily," said the commentator.

Operational Aspects on Boundary of Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions and in Western Zaporizhzhia