Russian forces did not manage to gain a foothold in the front-line village of Robotyne in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine's Southern Forces said on April 10, denying earlier claims by a regional official.
The village of Robotyne, which lies some 15 kilometers (9 miles) south of Orikhiv and 70 kilometers (43.5 miles) southeast of Zaporizhzhia, was liberated by Ukraine during its counteroffensive in the summer of 2023 and has been on the front line since.
Recent weeks saw an escalation of hostilities in the sector, with the Ukrainian military saying that the situation was "in flux" but not critical.
Serhii Lyshenko, a member of the Zaporizhzhia oblast council, said on air on Espresso TV on April 9 that Russian forces managed to break into Robotyne and that fighting continues within the village itself. The Ukrainian Telegram monitoring channel DeepState also claimed that Russian troops gained a foothold in the settlement.
"In the area held by the 65th Mechanized Brigade, which defends Robotyne, there are indeed regular clashes with enemy sabotage groups," the military reported on Telegram.
Russian units reportedly entered the village and tried to gain a foothold there "but had no success," the Southern Forces stressed.
"Our forces repel enemy attacks with artillery on the approach toward Robotyne, and soldiers of the 65th Brigade and adjacent units destroy scattered enemy groups with drones and mortars," the statement read.
"Today, the settlement is held by Ukrainian defense forces."
Robotyne sits by the main road toward Russian-occupied Tokmak and further to occupied Melitopol, one of the key logistic hubs for Russian forces in southern Ukraine.
Moscow has been intensifying offensive operations along the front in the past months as Ukraine faces ammunition shortages, compounded by the delays in U.S. aid.
Rachel Amran
