Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin
[ColonelCassad] 1. Balakleya is partially controlled by the enemy. The forces of the RF Armed Forces were still fighting in the eastern part of the city in the evening. The situation east of Balakleya itself is not clear. The enemy tried to completely cut it off from the main forces. Bayrak is completely under the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as is Verbovka.
2. The enemy controls Volokhov Yar and the Volokhov Yar-Balakleya road, including Yakimenkovo. The settlements to the west of Shevchenkovo ​​are either occupied by the enemy or will be occupied by him in the coming days. It is obvious that troops were withdrawn from the Chkalovsky area in order to avoid encirclement.
3. Relying on Volokhov Yar, the enemy, on the one hand, supports the movement on Shevchenkovo, on the other, is trying to move southeast to the Izyum highway. They are holding him there for now.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine have not yet presented evidence of control of Shevchenkove, except for a photo at the entrance to the village near the sign. However, the appearance of the enemy DRG a few kilometers from Kupyansk and the threat of an attack on the city indicate that the enemy has either taken Shevchenkovo ​​or bypassed and is trying to break through to Kupyansk, which is preparing for defense.
4. In the current realities, the main tasks of the RF Armed Forces at the moment are to keep Kupyansk and ensure the safety of the Kupyansk-Izyum highway, taking into account incl. the possibility of an auxiliary offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Izyum direction in order to pin down the forces of the RF Armed Forces. Auxiliary actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the direction of Krasny Liman through the gray zone on the northern bank of the Seversky Donets are also possible.
5. Tonight and tomorrow during the day, we can expect enemy attempts to reach the outskirts of Kupyansk, as well as attempts to cut the Kupyansk-Izyum road.