Photo: oleg.ukr.kh.gmail.com
Russian forces cannot hold positions in Huliaipole, so they are trying to isolate the city through constant assaults, massive airstrikes, and widespread mining. This was stated by the spokesperson for Ukraine’s Southern Defense Forces, Vladyslav Voloshyn.
“Huliaipole is essentially a large gray zone. There are positions of Ukraine’s Defense Forces on various outskirts, but neither the enemy nor we can firmly establish control inside the city,” Voloshyn said. According to him, intense fighting between assault groups continues in the city center on a постоянній basis. He stressed that because Russian troops cannot capture the city, they resort to heavy mining.
“The enemy cannot push us out and entrench itself in Huliaipole, so its engineering units have received large numbers of both anti-personnel and anti-tank TM-72 mines to mine all roads, streets, and yards,” Voloshyn said, adding that the mining is carried out both manually and remotely using drones.
He noted that the situation around Huliaipole has remained extremely tense for several weeks. Dozens of clashes occur daily both in the city itself and in nearby settlements.
Over the past day, a record number of airstrikes — 14 — were recorded in this sector, including the use of 106 guided aerial bombs. The settlement of Zaliznychne suffered heavy destruction and is “virtually being leveled to the ground.”
Drones are also being actively used. Over the past day, 1,752 kamikaze drones were recorded, at least 1,200 of them over Huliaipole alone.
On December 27, 2025, Ukraine’s General Staff denied Russian claims about capturing Huliaipole, Myrnohrad, and Pokrovsk, stating that the occupiers had failed to implement their plans to seize the Pokrovsk–Myrnohrad agglomeration.
On December 28, the Southern Defense Forces reported that Huliaipole and Stepnohirsk were partially under Russian control and that the situation remained difficult, with fighting ongoing. The head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation, Andriy Kovalenko, said Russian claims about controlling these cities were disinformation aimed at Western audiences.
On December 31, the Southern Defense Forces stated that despite constant attacks, Russian troops had failed to establish full control over Huliaipole in the Zaporizhzhia region, and Ukrainian forces continue to detect and destroy Russian assault groups.
