នៅ​ភាគ​ខាង​ត្បូង​អ៊ុយក្រែន កាំភ្លើង​ធំ​របស់​ក្រុង​កៀវ​បាន​ទម្លាក់​ស្ពាន និង​ឯកោ​កងទ័ព​រុស្ស៊ី​ទាំងមូល

The 49th Combined Arms Army is the main Russian force in southern Ukraine’s Kherson Oblast.

That makes it the Ukrainian army’s main គោលដៅ as the Ukrainians put more weight behind their counteroffensive in Kherson.

The Ukrainian army in recent days systematically has cut off the 49th CAA’s main supply lines. The Russians are adapting. But the tension, in the 49th CAA’s headquarters, must be palpable. And not just because the Ukrainian army has become fairly adept at blowing up those HQs.

The 49th CAA is one of a dozen field armies that oversee the bulk of the Russian army’s front-line forces. The Kremlin has committed 10 of these armies to Russia’s wider war in Ukraine.

The 49th CAA on paper is a powerful force. It draws its roughly 10 battalion tactical groups—each with several hundred soldiers and dozens of vehicles—from motorized, air assault and costal-defense regiments, brigades and divisions. In all, the 49th CAA might oversee 10,000 troops.

Those troops struggle with unfavorable geography. The port city of Kherson with its pre-war population of 300,000 is the center of gravity of the oblast the 49th CAA occupies. Holding Kherson is central to Russian war aims. រំដោះខ្លួន វាជាចំណុចកណ្តាល អ៊ុយក្រែន គោលបំណងនៃសង្គ្រាម។

ប៉ុន្តែ Kherson ត្រូវបានហ៊ុំព័ទ្ធដោយទឹក។ ទីក្រុងនេះស្ថិតនៅលើច្រាំងភាគពាយ័ព្យនៃទន្លេ Dnipro ដ៏ធំទូលាយ ដែលខ្យល់បក់ទៅភាគខាងត្បូងកាត់ប្រទេសអ៊ុយក្រែន មុនពេលហូរចូលទៅក្នុងសមុទ្រខ្មៅ។ ទន្លេ Inhulets ដែលជាដៃទន្លេនៃ Dnipro កាត់ភាគខាងត្បូងកាត់ Kherson Oblast ហើយបញ្ចូលជាមួយ Dnipro ខាងកើតកំពង់ផែ។

There are three main bridges that connect Kherson to territory south and east: the Antonovsky Bridge across the Dnipro on the southern edge of Kherson as well as a nearby rail bridge, plus the P47 highway bridge across the Inhulets just outside the city.

Ukrainian artillery—possibly 155-millimeter guns firing Excalibur GPS-guided shells—in the last week at least temporarily has knocked out all three bridges. ស្ពាន Antonovsky បានក្លាយទៅជាមិនអាចឆ្លងកាត់បានកាលពីថ្ងៃពុធ។

“Kherson city, the most politically significant population center occupied by Russia, is now virtually cut off from the other occupied territories,” the U.K. Defense Ministry រាយការណ៍កាលពីថ្ងៃព្រហស្បតិ៍.

“All of them will be rebuilt, but by us,” Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said of the bridges. “We are doing everything to ensure that the Russians do not have any logistical opportunities on our land.”

Russian engineers quickly erected pontoon bridges across the Dnipro adjacent to the Antonovsky Bridge as well as alongside the P47 bridge. Engineers recently dismantled the latter pontoons after repairing the P47 bridge. But the pontoon bridge next to the damaged Antonovsky span, along with a ferry in the same area, remains the only way for vehicles to cross the Dnipro into Kherson.

It should go without saying that pontoons and ferries are extremely vulnerable to Ukrainian artillery. The Dnipro pontoon bridge clearly is visible in satellite imagery.

Ukraine’s counterbridging operations have an explosive corollary. Dropping spans blocks នាពេលអនាគត supply. Meanwhile, blowing up supply dumps eliminates នា​ពេល​បច្ចុប្បន្ន supply. Ukrainian artillery and rockets in the past couple of weeks have struck several Russian supply dumps, with predictably fiery results.

The Ukrainians’ aim is obvious. To starve the 49th CAA and its 10 or so battalions so that, if and when Ukrainian brigades reach the outskirts of Kherson, the Russian units will be incapable of mounting a serious defense.

Whether, when and to what end that battle might take place is hard to predict. The Ukrainians for months slowly have been advancing south from free Mykolaiv, 40 miles northwest of Kherson, as well as south from their bridgeheads across the Inhulets.

It’s unclear just how close the Ukrainian formations are to Kherson. Close enough, obviously, to lob 155-millimeter shells at bridges south of the city. Fifteen miles? Twenty miles?

In any event—they’re not far. And as they close the distance, they’re tightening the logistical noose around the 49th CAA.