[imagesource: Reuters / Gleb Garanich]

The people of Ukraine have shown incredible resilience during more than six months of being under siege.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has refused to bow down in the face of the strength of Vladimir Putin’s Russian army, and his citizens have vowed to fight until the death.

Little by little over the past six months, Russian troops have advanced and taken control of major Ukrainian cities, including Kharkiv.

Last week, however, an incredible and remarkable counter-offensive saw Ukrainian troops take back control of Kharkiv through a combination of speed, aggression, and adept improvisation.

While Washington and London were deeply involved in assessing and advising on Ukrainian military manoeuvres, the troops on the ground deserve the majority of the credit.

Now, as Ukrainian forces continue to consolidate their control of newly liberated areas of Kharkiv, we are getting a look at some of the frontline battles.

Over to The Telegraph:

“Ammo!” screamed the man on top of the vehicle as it charged headlong across the east Ukrainian plain. “Give me ammo!”

Without time to argue the gunner took it, fired it at his target, and repeated his demand for more 50 calibre rounds – only to be handed another rocket.

The episode, captured on the English-speaking gunner’s body camera, provided a comic, frightening, and as yet rare glimpse of the fast-moving battle for the Kharkiv region last week.

There’s still something surreal about watching footage one might expect to see in a war epic movie or series.

While the plans regarding the offensive were far from polished, it was judged that time was of the essence and the attack was launched:

…it was a bold move, possibly launched with vehicles lighter than Kyiv would have wished, rather than in a few months’ time with sturdier kit.

Like the machine gunner handed a bazooka, they decided to forge ahead with what they had.

They also threw orthodoxy to the wind – ripping up both Western and Soviet military rule books to produce something most generals would have dismissed as insanely risky.

Light vehicles like the Humvee and Australian Bushmaster, as well as civilian trucks such as Toyota Land Cruisers, were used.

This gave ground forces speed once initial Russian defences had been breached and it wasn’t long before Russian discipline collapsed and a retreat followed.

This footage, shared yesterday, shows what’s left of Balakliya, a city in Kharkiv Oblast:

One problem faced by Russian troops, at least according to Andrei Zagorodnyuk, a former Ukrainian defence minister, is slow decision-making due to fear:

“The Russians’ greatest weakness is their centralised decision making,” he told The Telegraph as the offensive unfolded. “No one wants to make a decision because no one wants to take the blame. So they have to send things all the way up to Moscow and back.”

In military jargon, that means Kyiv’s forces had got inside Russia’s “decision-action cycle”: any troops trying to defend in the face of such rapid assaults would be operating on out-of-date and irrelevant information.

As of this morning, Russian forces have largely withdrawn from the area west of the Oskil River and expensive equipment lies abandoned.

Zelenskyy was also involved in a car accident, although he escaped without injury. He was travelling in a motorcade through Kyiv when a motorist collided with his vehicle.

[source:tele]