Russian troops trying to create buffer zone around Luhansk region - British intelligence

That’s according to the UK’s Ministry of Defense citing their defense intelligence report, Ukrinform saw.

The statement says that in recent days, there has been an increase in artillery fire along the north of the front line, in Luhansk and Kharkiv regions, which has likely been accompanied by some increase in Russian small-unit assaults.

The Ministry of Defense assumes that, despite the claims voiced by Russian propaganda, the occupying forces could achieve only minor gains on this part of the front. However, the resumption of their activity in the north highlights its importance for the Kremlin, when the Russian army is facing significant pressure in the south in the Zaporizhzhia sector.

"Russia’s Western Group of Forces is likely trying to advance back to the Oskil River in order to create a buffer zone around Luhansk Oblast, the possession of which Russia almost certainly considers one of its fundamental objectives of the war," the British Ministry of Defense said.

A previous report by the British Ministry of Defense said that in Russia the taboo on open criticism of the Putin regime has been significantly relaxed.