Recently, there have been new updates in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. The Russian Ministry of Defense issued a notice on June 8 local time, saying that the 90th Tank Division troops under the Russian "central" combat cluster had arrived at the western border of the Donetsk region and continued to go westward to advance in Dnepropetrovsk Oblast. As soon as the news came out, it immediately attracted attention from all parties, because this was Russia's first advance into the Dnepropetrovsk region in eastern Ukraine in three years of offensive.
At the same time, Russian air defense forces weave fire nets in the night sky of Voronezh and Belgorod. 24 Ukrainian drones turned into burning meteors, 17 of which disintegrated over Voronezh. This single-night air defense battle set a recent interception record, but it cannot cover up a more severe reality: when the Russian tank column advances westward, Ukraine's tactics to use drones to harass Russia's rear are accelerating failure.
Another set of data disclosed by the Russian Satellite News Agency made the West frown. Russia claims to have destroyed 26 US-made M1 Abrams tanks, which means that only 5 of the 31 top tanks assisted by the United States will survive. The steel giant once regarded as a "battlefield changer", in front of the "vortex" missile launched by the Russian military Ka-52 helicopter, the body of the vehicle was burned to the point of the frame. A front-line Russian soldier kicked Abrams' wreckage in a video uploaded on social media and mocked him: "Welcome to the real battlefield, American friend."
Analysts pointed out that the Russian army's infiltration into Dnepropetrovsk Oblast is strategically penetrating. "This is only more than 100 kilometers away from the Dnieper River. Once the state is controlled, the supply of Zaporoze-Ukraine army can be cut off to the east, and the Odessa estuary can be threatened to the west." What is more worthy of attention is the movements of the 90th Tank Division, the powerful brigade of the Russian army. As the ace armored unit of the Russian army, its T-90M tank group appeared in the central battlefield, implying that the Russian army is transforming the tactical advantages gained by the Kharkov direction into assault depth.
Kiev has not yet made a formal response to the Russian advancement, but the Ukrainian General Staff’s daily war report mentioned the defensive deployment of Dnepropetrovsk Oblast for the first time. Andre, a Ukrainian veteran who had fought in Donbas, privately revealed: "The central defense line mainly relies on national defense forces to guard it. They lack anti-tank missile systems, and it is difficult to block the impact of the established armored divisions."
The dilemma of Western military aid is fully exposed at this moment. The latest Pentagon report shows that the Ukrainian army consumes one-third of the Russian army every day, and the loss rate of Abrams tanks is as high as 84%. Differences began to arise within NATO, Germany was swaying on providing the Taurus missile, while France delayed the delivery schedule of the Mirage 2000 fighter jet.
When the reconnaissance unit of the 90th Tank Division appeared in the fields of Dnepropetrovsk Oblast, the battlefield balance was tilting at a speed. This black soil witnessed the glory of the Dnieper Hydropower Station in the Soviet era, but now it may become a strategic corridor that determines the lifeline of the east and west of Ukraine. The deep ruts left by the steel tracks are oozing out of the heavy smell of gunpowder.
