Ukraine Claims Major Battlefield Gains in ‘Operation Vivaldi’

Key Points:

• Ukraine has reclaimed over 100 square kilometers of territory, including three villages, near the key eastern city of Lyman in the Donetsk region within roughly two weeks, according to Brigadier General Andriy Biletskyi.
• The counteroffensive, known as Operation Vivaldi, has resulted in a total recapture of 277 square kilometers and 16 villages since its inception, forcing Russian forces to redeploy reinforcements and weakening their positions elsewhere.
• Lyman, initially captured by Russia in early 2022 and retaken by Ukraine later that year, remains a strategic location as Russian advances north of the city threatened key Ukrainian defensive lines toward Sloviansk and Kramatorsk.
• Western analysts and the Institute for the Study of War have accused Russia of exaggerating territorial gains in northern Ukraine, particularly in Sumy, to distract from Ukraine's recent successful operations near Lyman.
• Russia claims to have annexed several eastern Ukrainian regions, including Donetsk, but does not fully control these areas, and its annexations are not internationally recognized; Ukraine remains committed to reclaiming all Russian-held territories.