Battle of the Svatove–Kreminna line

The Battle of the Svatove–Kreminna line^[6][7][8] is an ongoing battle (as of 2023's third quarter) between Russia and Ukraine. It is being fought in Eastern Ukraine. It is along a frontline running from the city of Svatove to the city of Kreminna. The battle started on 2 October 2022. It started a day after the Ukrainian Army took back the nearby city of Lyman.

Battle of the Svatove-Kreminna line
Part of the Battle of Donbas of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Date 2 October 2022 – present (2 years, 1 month, 1 week and 3 days) Location Between Svatove and Kreminna along the P66 Highway, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine Status Ongoing
Belligerents
Russia  Luhansk PR	Ukraine
Commanders and leaders
Roman Berdnikov Aleksandr Lapin Valery Gerasimov	Oleksandr Syrskyi Valery Zaluzhnyi
Units involved
Russian Armed Forces 20th Guards Combined Arms Army 3rd Motor Rifle Division[1] 144th Guards Motor Rifle Division[2] 488th Motor Rifle Regiment[3] 1st Guards Tank Army 4th Guards Tank Division BARS-13 detachment[2] BARS-16 ("Kuban") detachment[1]	Ukrainian Armed Forces  Ukrainian Ground Forces 53rd Mechanized Brigade (Ukraine)
Strength
~15,300	~15,800
Casualties and losses
Ukrainian claim: 2,500+ killed, 300+ wounded (up to 16 November)[4] 21 captured (7 November only)[5]	Unknown, presumed heavy

Background

See the main article: First Battle of Kreminna

Kreminna was the first city to fall during the Donbas Offensive that was announced by Russia on April 18, 2022.^[9] Svatove fell on 6 March during Eastern Ukraine campaign.

Battle

On the night of 27–28 September, Ukrainian soldiers went across the Siverskyi Donets River in Dronivka. They took the Siverskyi Donets Forest Park and blocked the important Kreminna-Torske road.^[10] Russian soldiers retreating from Lyman after the second battle for the town went to fortify Kreminna.^[11]

On 2 October, Ukrainian soldiers began bombarding the Russians in Kreminna. The Ukrainians took land up to the R-66 highway. Russian soldiers put land mines on every road between Kreminna and Svatove to defeat Ukrainian attacks.^[12] Between 2 and 13 October, Ukrainian soldiers captured 14 towns and villages along the Kharkiv-Luhansk border. The largest of the towns captured is Borova. Ukrainian soldiers also went towards Chervonopopivka on the Svatove-Kreminna highway. However, they were pushed back from there by October 5.^{[13][14][15][16][17][18]} Two more villages were taken by Ukrainian soldiers on 24 October.^[19]

Neither side took much territory during November. Still, there were many battles going on every day.

On the night of 2 November, Ukrainian sources claimed to have destroyed a Russian battalion near the town of Makiivka, in Svatove Raion. According to a Russian survivor of the attack, out of the 570 soldiers in his unit, 29 survived, 12 were wounded, and the other 529 men had been killed.^[20][21]

By early December, Ukraine had moved forward to the hills west of Chervonopopivka.^[22] In early December, Ukrainian soldiers broke through Russian lines near Chervonopopivka. Fighting was mostly west of the R-66 highway between Kreminna and Svatove.^[22][23][24]

In December, many battles started along the line. Both Russian and Ukrainian soldiers made daily attacks.^[25] On 18 December, a video showed Ukrainian soldiers moving forward in the Serebryansky forest south of Kreminna.^[26] On 26 December, Luhansk Oblast governor Serhiy Haidai said that fighting was happening near Kreminna. The Russian command there moved to Rubizhne during the fighting.^[27]

Related pages

• Warfare in eastern Ukraine after Russia's 2022 invasion

References

1. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, October 7". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 7 October 2022.
2. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, October 3". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
3. "Almost 30 occupiers lay down their arms and leave their positions near Kreminna". Yahoo. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
4. Axe, David. "A Russian Regiment Reportedly Lost 2,500 Draftees In Just Two Weeks Of Fighting". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-12-28.
5. https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2022/11/14/starving-freezing-getting-shot-at-by-their-own-regiment-no-wonder-these-russian-draftees-surrendered/?sh=2d8b9e6e37f7
6. AFU Prepare Frontline Breakthrough Along Svatove-Kreminna Line
7. RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, DECEMBER 19
8. Main battles on Monday continue on Svatove-Kreminna line, near Bakhmut – ISW
9. "Russia's Donbas offensive advances with fall of Kreminna". France24. 19 April 2022. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2022.
10. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, September 30". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 30 September 2022.
11. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, October 3". Critical Threats. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
12. "Russians are mining roads leading to Svatove and Kreminna". yahoo.com. 18 October 2022.
13. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 3". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-03.
14. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 4". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
15. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 5". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-05.
16. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 10". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
17. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 9". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
18. Hird, Karolina; Stepanenko, Kateryna; Lawlor, Katherine; Kagan, Frederick W. (October 13, 2022). "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 13". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-14.
19. "RUSSIAN OFFENSIVE CAMPAIGN ASSESSMENT, OCTOBER 24". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2022-10-31.
20. "Battalion of Russian conscripts destroyed in Luhansk Oblast, hundreds killed". Ukrayinska Pravda. November 6, 2022. Retrieved December 22, 2022 – via Yahoo.
21. Battalion of Russian draftees reportedly wiped out near Ukraine’s Makiivka, survivor says hundreds killed
22. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, December 3". ISW. Retrieved 2022-12-03.
23. Axe, David. "A Russian Regiment Reportedly Lost 2,500 Draftees In Just Two Weeks Of Fighting". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-12-05.
24. Ilyushina, Mary; Timsit, Annabelle (November 27, 2022). "Russia's heavy casualties in Ukraine spark outcry and rare official response". Washington Post. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
25. CORRESPONDENT), María R. Sahuquillo (SPECIAL (2022-12-28). "'Slow, nasty, grueling': Ukrainian counter-offensive on Donbas front could hold key to course of winter war". EL PAÍS English Edition. Retrieved 2022-12-29. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
26. "Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, December 18". ISW. Retrieved 2022-12-18.
27. "Luhansk military administration reports ongoing fighting near Kreminna". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2022-12-29.