The flag is raised; They launched a major attack

Ukraine's 63rd Mechanized Brigade raised the Ukrainian flag on Friday or Saturday in New York City, 20 kilometers north of Avdiyivka in the Donetsk region.

The flag is a sign that Ukrainian troops have returned to the center of this city, just a month after the Russians took control of it.

This is not an isolated incident. Ukrainian troops are launching counterattacks on several sectors of the eastern front, interrupting the momentum of the Russian offensive in which the Russians made significant progress from the beginning at the end of last year after the capture of Avdiyivka, they moved on to Pokrovsk, in order to cut the supply lines there, which are crucial for Ukrainians.

This does not mean that the Russians are no longer advancing anywhere. This weekend they occupied parts of Hrodivka, a settlement 12 kilometers east of Pokrovsk.

However, scattered Ukrainian counterattacks complicate Russian planning and give Ukrainians new hope for the east after a difficult year.

Last month, the Russians occupied New York due to a severe shortage of Ukrainian troops.

The shortage is partly the result of a controversial decision by Ukrainian leaders to invade Russia's Kursk region.

Powerful units from about eight Ukrainian brigades were sent to that attack. The invasion undermined efforts to stabilize the front in the east.

"The number of units available for stabilization has been significantly reduced," explains the Ukrainian analytical group Front Intelligence Insight.

However, despite sending additional troops to Kursk, the Ukrainian command managed to muster a small reserve force of about five brigades, partly using the National Guard, which is responsible to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, not the Ministry of Defense.

Last year, the National Guard expanded and strengthened several of its brigades, merging them into the so-called "Offensive Guard" that includes the 12th Azov Brigade, as well as the Kara-Dag Brigade, which recently took up positions south of Pokrosvk and launched a counterattack.