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Ukraine says more than 250 Russian troops surrendered during a counteroffensive in the eastern region of Donbas, after Ukrainian forces used ground robots and armoured personnel carriers packed with explosives.
The operation, named Vivaldi, has helped Ukrainian forces regain territory, according to CNN. A video shared this week by Ukraine’s Third Army Corps shows captured Russian soldiers walking through a forest under guard and gathering for a roll call.
Some men in the footage say they surrendered because they “didn’t want to die in vain”. They also describe eating bark and grass and drinking from puddles after their basic supplies ran out. CNN said it could not independently verify the video or Ukraine’s claims.
How Ukraine says the operation worked
Andriy Biletskyi, commander of the Third Army Corps, said Ukrainian forces dropped robotic systems equipped with heavy guns more than 10km behind Russian lines during one assault. The remotely controlled vehicles were operated from command centres in Ukrainian-held territory and attacked Russian troops from an unexpected direction.
Ukraine’s corps also converted Soviet-era armoured personnel carriers into unmanned vehicles loaded with explosives and sent them towards Russian fortifications. The military has referred to them as “Trojan” tanks.
Ukrainian forces have increasingly used ground robots alongside aerial drones. The article noted that ground systems can be harder to detect than larger vehicles, operate in a range of weather conditions and carry heavier payloads. Vivaldi is described as the first known operation in which such vehicles were smuggled behind Russian defensive lines.
Territorial gains and Russian response
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a US-based conflict monitor, estimated that Russian forces captured about 175 sq km in September while losing 256 sq km elsewhere. It attributed nearly 150 sq km of Ukrainian recaptured territory to Operation Vivaldi.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky put the recaptured area at 176 sq km and said 5,000 Russian troops had been wounded or killed since the operation began.
Russian military blogger Rybar has complained on Telegram about a “deteriorating” situation, saying Russian troops would have to reorganise their logistics and adjust the pace of their advance towards Slovyansk and Kramatorsk.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the Valdai Club on Thursday that Moscow could take the rest of Donetsk in less than the 18 to 24 months that he said Ukraine and Europe believed Kyiv could withstand Russian advances. Vivaldi’s gains have raised hopes in Kyiv that Russia will not capture the rest of Donbas quickly.
Western intelligence services estimate that Russia is losing about 40,000 troops a month. The ISW has calculated that, at the current pace, Russian forces would not take the rest of Donbas until 2032, if they are able to seize it at all.
