Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
Editorials & Other Articles
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Russian "Victory Parade" Assault Turns Into A Brutal Defeat - RFU News
Today, there is interesting news from the Toretsk direction.
Here, the Russian command was forced to achieve a victory to inspire its troops, so they decided to gamble on another suicidal mission. In a bizarre idea, Russians rode across the fields with soviet flags, while Ukrainians used them simply as target practice.
In and around the war-torn Toretsk, the Russian military continues to face stiff resistance and heavy losses. Months of attritional warfare have left much of the city in ruins, turning it into a grey zone, an area where neither side can maintain stable control. Amid these conditions, Russian forces have increasingly shifted their focus to bypassing Toretsk by advancing through surrounding settlements such as Shcherbynivka and its adjoining agglomerations. The Russian objective, to flank the town and force a collapse from the sides, after failing to take it head-on over the past year.
This change in approach follows repeated tactical failures, most notably in Shcherbynivka itself. In earlier offensives, Russian infantry attempted to seize the area, but units from Ukraine’s Azov Corps decisively cleared them out. For the Russians, gaining control here is not optional. Without it, they cannot hope to isolate Ukrainian forces inside Toretsk or protect themselves from raids and fire missions that continue to harass them from the outskirts.
On Toretsk’s northern flank, earlier Russian motorcycle assaults failed miserably, as you might remember from a previous report. Ukrainians responded by recalibrating minefields and integrating more layered defenses, effectively neutralizing the threat. Learning little from these failures, Russian commanders turned their attention to the south, hoping this area, not yet targeted with motorcycles, might offer an opportunity for more success. But this time, they wanted something more than a breakthrough and started a spectacular assault.
What followed was an attempt at psychological warfare, designed to boost the morale of Russian troops before the launch of their summer offensive. Russian soldiers mounted motorcycles, each flying big Russian and Soviet flags as they charged forward. The move was pure symbolism, an apparent effort to film a triumphant advance through a contested sector to boost morale and deliver some “good news” to the Russian information space. But in practice, these flags served only one real purpose: making the assault troops bigger and more visible targets.
Geolocated footage shows the assault force initially advancing along a single road before splitting into two columns. This maneuver aimed to reduce vulnerability to a single ambush, hoping that at least one group would make it through to their objective. But Ukrainian drone operators were already watching. Alert and experienced, they quickly detected the attackers, and the Ukrainians executed a multi-layered defense with brutal efficiency.
Ukrainian artillery opened fire first, followed by FPV drone strikes that chased the motorcycles across the terrain. Other drones hovered above, dropping grenades on the soldiers with pinpoint accuracy. Riders were knocked off their bikes one by one, their flags falling beside them into the dust.
Despite the initial barrage, a handful of motorcyclists did manage to escape the first engagement, crawling into the ruins of nearby buildings with the hope of finding cover. Ukrainian forces responded with cluster munitions, saturating the hiding spots with shrapnel. Simultaneously, more drones were deployed, systematically eliminating the surviving Russians. By the end, the only remnants of the attack were burning motorcycles and shredded Russian flags around them.
This failed assault, rather than delivering a morale-boosting spectacle for the Russian soldiers preparing for their renewed offensive effort, became a visual demonstration of Ukrainian dominance on the battlefield. Instead of planting flags on Ukrainian positions, the attackers left behind nothing but charred wreckage and more proof of Russia’s inability to make meaningful progress and move away from suicidal tactics.
Overall, the operation underscores the desperation within the Russian command. With no territorial success to show, they gambled on an information victory, trying to craft a narrative of momentum with flags and theatrics. But what they received was a disaster captured in real-time: a symbolic assault turned symbolic defeat. With Russian commanders failing to achieve their victory, Russian soldiers and survivors of the previous failed assaults now stand to launch a massive summer offensive with their hopes even further in the gutter.
4 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
