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According to the Ukrainian newspaper Kyiv Post on the 17th, Ukrainian soldiers have withdrawn from an important bridgehead on the left bank (south bank) of the Dnieper River. The report said that this was a tactical failure of the Ukrainian army when it tried to control and hold this strategically important location in the southern region.

Screenshot of a report from Ukraine's Kyiv Post

It is reported that in mid-October 2023, in a fierce river crossing operation, Ukrainian amphibious forces occupied the village of Krynky on the opposite bank of the city of Kherson for the first time. According to the military information platform "DeepState", after more than seven months of stationing there, the Ukrainian army has evacuated from the village in the past week. Other news sources said that Ukrainian soldiers crossed the river in small boats to withdraw to the right bank (north bank) of the Dnipro controlled by the Ukrainian army and evacuated to friendly positions near the city of Kherson. There is no news that the Russian side has substantially intervened in the Ukrainian army's evacuation.

The Kyiv Post mentioned that Ukrainian media had previously reported that in the village of Klinki and its surrounding swamps and wetlands, facing the Russian army with large numbers of troops and firepower advantages, the elite troops of the Ukrainian Marine Corps, with the support of drones, fought a fierce but successful defensive battle for several months.

The report pointed out that the official statement released by the Ukrainian military on the 16th did not directly mention the withdrawal from the village of Klinki. However, a report by the Ukrainian Public Broadcasting Company (Suspilne) confirmed that the village was abandoned "a few weeks ago." The Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian Army said in a report on the 17th that Ukrainian soldiers are still stationed in the village of Kozachi Laheri on the left bank of the Dnieper River, which is a village adjacent to Klinki. The report also stated that the Russian army attempted to launch an attack on the village of Kozachi Laheri on the 16th, but failed. The last time the Ukrainian army reported ground fighting in the village of Klinki was on July 11.

The Kyiv Post said that Ukrainian soldiers described the fighting in the village of Klinki in recent months, saying that there were less than 200 fighters left there. Since March this year, Ukrainian marines and a small number of soldiers from the Homeland Defense Force have been holding on to Klinki. For several months, Ukrainian soldiers there could only obtain food and ammunition and evacuate the wounded by boat.

The report said that the Ukrainian army's withdrawal from the village of Klinki marked the end of its attempts to control and expand its bridgehead in the southern region over the past few months. Although the Ukrainian army has tactical bridge-building equipment, including NATO-standard bridge-building vehicles provided by Germany, the Ukrainian commanders never tried to build a bridge over the Dnieper River during the more than six months of controlling the village of Klinki. Military analysts pointed out that such a bridge would be destroyed by Russian bombers.