KHERSON REGION, UKRAINE - JULY 22, 2022: A serviceman of the Odessa Brigade is seen at a combat position. The Russian Armed Forces are carrying out a special military operation in Ukraine in response to requests from the leaders of the Donetsk People s Republic and Lugansk People s Republic for help. Sergei Bobylev/TASS PUBLICATIONxINxGERxAUTxONLY TS13B401

According to British secret services, Ukraine is currently forcing a broad advance on three axes west of the Dnipro River in its counter-offensive in the Cherson region in the south of the country. Although this offensive only had limited immediate targets, it probably surprised the Russians tactically, according to a short report by the Ministry of Defense in London on Saturday.

This would expose logistical shortcomings and weaknesses in the leadership of the Russian offensive. Russian commanders would now have to decide which region to focus on for supplies and reserve troops. Especially since the Ukrainian army appears to have been quite successful in shelling the Russian supply routes in the Cherson region.

For weeks, the defenders have been attacking the three connecting bridges across the southern part of the Dnipro. According to Ukraine, the Antonivka Bridge near the regional capital of Cherson has been unusable for some time. On Saturday, Twitter users shared satellite images of the bridge over the Novaya Kakhovka dam. It is said to have partially collapsed.

If the bridges can no longer be used, the Russian troops will have to find new ways across the Dnipro – for example with makeshift bridges or ferries across the wide river