Russia deploys some of its last reserves as Kyiv's offensive gains momentum

Russia is deploying some of its last remaining reserves to Zaporizhzhia Oblast in order to halt the growing Ukrainian advances in the area that are threatening a breakthrough. 

Forbes reported that reinforcements are coming from Russia’s vaunted 76th Guards Air Assault Division, one of the last remaining good formation of reserves the country has left. 

Foreign Policy Research Institute analyst Rob Lee commented on Twitter that the “76th is arguably Russia’s best division and is relatively fresh,” so it could be an issue for Kyiv. 

The 76th Guards Air recently was used in a series of attacks earlier this year around the area of Kreminna according to Forbes, an area that is still facing a Russian offensive. 

Russia allegedly redeployed a portion of this formation of soldiers away from Kreminna when the Ukrainians launched their long-awaited summer counter-offensive along several areas of the front. 

Recent developments have seen major progress along one of Moscow’s most important defense lines on the southern front with Kyiv’s capture of both Urozhaine and Robotyne. 

These two settlements are 60 miles away according to Forbes but the development has brought Ukraine's armed forces within reach of its overall objective of freeing the south. 

“Ukraine's capturing of Robotyne is one of its most significant achievements since its counteroffensive began over two months ago,” noted Business Insider’s Alia Shoaib. 

Forbes journalist David Axe wrote that “the Ukrainians aim to free the cities of Melitopol and Mariupol from their Russian occupiers” but added that Moscow wanted to halt the plan. 

“The Russians aim to maintain their hold on the cities in order to safeguard overland supply routes into Russian-occupied Crimea,” Axe explained. 

Axe went on to state that the outcome of the battle for the south of the country might be determined by how each side uses the reserves they have yet to commit to the battle. 

Ukraine has sent in the 82nd Air Assault Brigade in order to break through at Robotyne and Russia is sending its 76th Air Guards in order to stop any Ukrainian momentum.  

Alia Shoaib noted Russia’s 76th Air Guards one of its most elite paratrooper formations but said a report by the Institute for the Study of War indicated the move was revealing. 

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) noted if the redeployment is true, it may mean Russia lacks the “sizable operational reserves” needed to meet the challenges of Kyiv’s offensive—which, in turn, would mean more troop redeployments would be necessary. 

On August 26th, the head of Ukraine's Military Intelligence Directorate Kyrylo Budanov sat down for an interview with Radio Free Europe and said Russia had no resources left to fight a protracted war except for its human capital. 

"He [Putin] does not have resources. Apart from human resource, he no longer has any resources: there is no economy, there is also no military industry resource, and the military reserves have already been exhausted,” Budanov said based on a Ukraniform translation. 

“There is a human [resource], those who say that they have many fallen, they do not think that they have a lot of human material. But this is the only thing they have in sufficient quantity,” Budanev added. 

Whether or not Russia’s last remaining human resources will be enough to starve off a breakthrough along the southern front has yet to be seen. But if the reports from Forbes are to be believed then