Russian military bloggers fear that Ukraine may cross Dnipro – ISW

Russian pro-war bloggers have expressed concern that Ukrainian forces may be able to cross the Dnipro River in Kherson Oblast, according to the daily report from the Institute for the Study of War.

Source: ISW 

Quote: "Russian milbloggers have seized on recent Ukrainian activity on the east (left) bank of Kherson Oblast to call for an increased presence of small river vessels and equipment in the Dnipro River to prevent further Ukrainian advances.

Russian milbloggers appealed on 2 July to the heads of the Dagestan and Tatarstan republics, Astrakhan Oblast, Krasnodar Krai, and Primorsky Krai to send boats confiscated from poachers to the Kherson Oblast frontline, specifying that 10 regiments and brigades of the Southern Military District’s ‘Dnepr’ (the Russian word for Dnipro) Grouping of Forces sorely need the vessels. Dagestan Republic Head Sergey Melikov responded to the milblogger appeal on 3 July and ordered Dagestan to solve the issue of transferring confiscated poaching boats to Russian forces.

One Russian milblogger called for the resurrection of the ‘Dnepr’ flotilla, a special military river unit that was active in the 1735-1739 and 1787-1792 Russo-Turkish wars, the Russian Civil War, and World War II. The milblogger claimed that a resurrected ‘Dnepr’ flotilla could significantly ameliorate the position of Russian troops in the Kherson direction and that this grouping could be reinforced with simple, civilian-use boats.

The overall anxious milblogger response to recent Ukrainian activity across the Dnipro River suggests that many Russian milbloggers fear Ukraine’s ability to cross the river and believe that the current command of the ‘Dnepr’ grouping has not sufficiently prepared its troops for that potentiality."

Details: It is noted that the ISW previously reported on 2 July that Russian milbloggers had accused the Russian Defence Ministry of failing to provide Russian troops on the east coast with the necessary boats and other equipment and has now redirected their requests for additional logistical support to Russian regional leaders.

Earlier: On 1 July, UK Defence Intelligence said that the Ukrainian military had crossed the Dnipro River near the Antonivka Bridge near Kherson and were trying to gain a foothold on the left bank.

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