US officials have painted a gloomy picture of the counteroffensive and expressed pessimism that Kyiv will be able to recapture significant territory before wet autumn weather hinders the ability of its forces to manoeuvre, or they run out of combat power.
That has given the village of Robotyne a significance beyond its size, as capture of the settlement potentially opens the way for Ukraine to break through the Russian defences and advance on strategic towns further south, such as logistics hub Tokmak.
According to Ukraine’s military and open source intelligence reports, Ukrainian forces have penetrated the first line of Russian defences beyond Robotyne and are within striking distance of the next defensive layer.