@solonko1648, who's a serving Ukrainian soldier, has published an excellent pair of threads in Ukrainian describing how the Russian system of trenches and firing positions works. It's a very helpful insight into why they have been so difficult to overcome.
He focuses on a Russian fortified stronghold between the villages of Robotyne and Novoprokopivka, through which the road from one village to the other runs. Tokmak lies further along the same road, which is currently contested. The following thread translates his description:
By @solonko1648:
This, dear friends, is one of the most difficult strongholds located in the Robotyne-Novoprokopivka area. A complex system of trenches-tunnels, dugouts, firing positions, to which the Russian invaders cling with all their might... 🧵 /1
What we see first. A system of trenches and firing positions. From observation and tracking of the movements of the occupiers' equipment and personnel, we confirm movement and approach routes to the position. /2
In general, these routes should be obvious, but of course, all the data should be studied and the information verified. That's why this is a formal process. Next, we see from above how these positions are equipped. We see the overlapping of dugouts. /3
But that's not all. Some of the trenches are covered over for a long distance. They may not be tunnels in the classical sense, but technically they are. This is actually a trench-tunnel, designed to hide the number of personnel and their movements in the trenches. /4
With the help of aerial reconnaissance, we determine not only which route the occupiers take to enter/leave. We also identify the entrances/exits of this stronghold/trench system. /5
A little more about the "tunnels". According to the soldiers of the frontline units, there is a classic tunnel here. It's under the road that leads from Robotyne to Novoprokopivka. It connects both flanks of this system. /6
Moreover, we also know that dugouts have been dug here, which actually have a second underground floor, going deep into the ground. While we were waiting for the shells, the occupiers were digging. And they dug long and deep. /7
After fierce fighting and artillery shelling, our artillery "opened" the dugouts and covered trenches. After that, it became clearer how much more difficult the task was. 8/
Furthermore, in the area where the main entrance to these positions is located from the west, it is only after a dense artillery barrage that the untrained eye will become aware of how well some of the trench-tunnels on this side were camouflaged. /9
The occupiers successfully used the forest belt to prepare and camouflage these positions. Such positions require us to conduct very thorough and vigilant reconnaissance. The occupiers know what we are interested in and try prevent us from conducting it properly. /10
You can watch the process in this video. /11
Now I will talk about the eastern part of the fortification. /12
It is not so much a separate fortified point as part of an extensive system, overcoming which was an extremely difficult task, taking into account the features of the hostilities, the terrain and the ratio of forces and means that I talked about. /13
The two main parts of the fortifications are connected by an underground tunnel that runs under the road. This way, the road is controlled and still used for its intended purpose. /14
Note the shape of the trench in front of the forest plantation (except for the area near the road). We have already seen a similar structure on the defence line that stretched northwest of Verbove. /15
Also note another example of the use of terrain. The system of fortifications uses the plantation to cover the entrance and exit. There are also fortifications in the rear. A circular defence pattern is observed. /16
Here, too, the artillery of the Ukrainian Armed Forces performed the task of "opening" the trenches built in the style of tunnels. A similar picture could be seen in the western part of these fortifications on the other side of the road, which I analysed earlier. /17
Also note the layout of the trenches closer to the road. Imagine what it would be like to storm/clear them. Another sceptical remark to the adherents of "elastic defence". No one was going to leave here even to return. They clung to this stronghold with all their might. /18
And then there's the wormhole. Another reminder that some people like to call the Russian invaders worms. /19
1/ A senior Russian official has condemned Amazon's 'Fallout' TV series for rotting the brains of the Russian people. He calls for what amounts to an uplifting Russian version of 'Fallout' as a corrective. Russian commentators are scornful about what they call his "nonsense". ⬇️
2/ The Russian newspaper Vedemosti reports that Alexey Semenov, Deputy Head of the Presidential Directorate for Monitoring and Analysis of Social Processes, says Russia needs a "state order for a bright future".
3/ In an article, "The Architecture of the Future – Constructing Meanings," published in issue No. 5 of the journal "Gosudarstvo" ('State'), Semenov specifically calls out the US TV shows 'Fallout' and 'Paradise' for criticism.
1/ Since March 2026, Ukraine has been using AI-controlled Hornet kamikaze drones to attack Russian targets. They have excelled in action, causing carnage among the Russians. A crashed example permits a detailed look at how it works. ⬇️
2/ The Russian Telegram channel 'Hammer of the Witches', which focuses on UAVs, has taken a look at an example of a Hornet which crashed in a nearly intact condition. It calls the lightweight drone "the most dangerous threat to our rear logistics."
3/ The drone is made from foam and moulded plastic, with a wingspan of 2.2m and a length of 1.4m. It weighs about 5 kg without its payload and battery, and is propelled by a 300kv electric motor powered by a 10,000mAh battery. Its range is 60-70 km with a top speed of 120 km/h.
1/ Ukraine is systematically attacking Russian forces with AI-controlled kamikaze drones. Russian warbloggers are seriously worried, calling them a "scourge", and say it's no longer safe within 150 km (93 miles) of the front line. ⬇️
"All major roads within 150 km of the line of contact will be within the strike zone."
3/ "What we've seen over the past two months on the Pokrovsk and Kremensk sectors of the front, as well as in the Valuysk direction, were, as we expected, tests of new types of Hornet ("Martian") drones with an AI-based guidance system.
1/ Russian warbloggers are becoming increasingly open in expressing fears that Russia will lose the war unless various problems are resolved. 'Denazification UA' complains that Russia's failure to wean itself off imported Chinese drones and components will lead to defeat. ⬇️
2/ Over the past four years, Ukraine has undertaken a massive effort to scale up and indigenise its drone production. There are now over 40 drone component manufacturers in Ukraine, producing an increasing number of indigeneously-made drone parts.
3/ While both Ukraine and Russia still depend heavily on Chinese components, Russia is still stuck in Ukraine's former position of also having to import finished systems. Now, 99% of Ukraine's drones are assembled entirely in Ukraine, albeit with a lot of Chinese components.
1/ Moscow is being disrupted badly by a widespread shutdown of the Internet ahead of the May 9 Victory parade. A scathing Russian commentary complains that it is costing the economy trillions of rubles, sacrificing economic health for illusory security. ⬇️
2/ Russia's increasingly draconian Internet shutdowns have come as a huge shock to a country which had come to rely heavily on online services. Although the Russian government has whitelisted certain websites and services, the latest shutdown seems to have broken that, too.
3/ 'Political Report' complains:
"Russian citizens today experienced the full impact of the government's "concern" for their own security: authorities shut down mobile communications in most regions of the country,…
1/ The world is very rapidly running out of refined fuel due to the Strait of Hormuz blockade, according to a new Goldman Sachs report, with only 45 days' worth of stockpiles of jet fuel, naphtha, and LPG remaining. Rationing, surcharges, and mass cancellations are forecast. ⬇️
2/ A research note authored by Goldman Sachs strategists Yulia Zhestkova Grigsby and Daan Struyven has examined the impact of Middle East disruptions on refined product markets, finding that jet fuel and diesel are being hit far harder than crude oil.
3/ The analysts estimate that about 101 days' worth of usable global oil stocks remain in stockpiles. (While more oil than that is stockpiled, it can't all be used, as the JP Morgan report summarised below explains.)