Russian army disaster as Ukraine kills top Putin commander in battlefield rout

Ukraine's army lured Russian troops into a deadly trap, killing a top Putin commander and wiping out a battalion in a battlefield rout. In recent weeks, Putin's army has launched a major offensive in Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region.

Initially, Russian units appeared to make rapid progress, encountering little resistance as they poured across the border. However, Ukrainian forces - many of them veterans from the Kursk operation - had effected a tactical withdrawal, repositioning to more defensible areas. They sought shelter in forests, as they bided their time until the right moment to strike.

Ukraine's military command anticipated that once Russian troops crossed into more open terrain, they would become extremely vulnerable to a counterattack.

As Putin's troops advanced ever further from their defensive lines and became exposed in the open, Ukraine's army moved into action.

Russian soldiers came under intense artillery and drone fire, as Ukrainian units carried out precision attacks.

They quickly overran Russian command posts, shattered frontline cohesion, and forced dozens of Putin's soldiers to surrender.

Geolocated images from the area show fields littered with Russian casualties in the aftermath of the fierce battle.

In a major blow for the Kremlin's generals, a senior Russian commander was reportedly killed as his post was stormed by Ukraine's army.

Andrey Vyacheslavovich Yartsev was the battalion commander for Russia’s 30th Motorised Rifle Regiment.

His death caused a sudden breakdown in Russian command coordination, leaving forward units scattered and exposed.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Ukraine's elite 225th Separate Assault Battalion launched a lightening counterattack of its own, and within hours had retaken the village of Andriivka.

Its capture disrupted Russian offensives aimed at Khotin and Pysarivka, as well as allowing drone teams to hunt down dispersed Russian soldiers during follow-up clearing operations.

Video images show 13 Russian soldiers surrendering to a reconnaissance drone, with their hands raised.

Ukraine's troops have since re-entered a number of contested villages and appear to have momentarily regained tactical control over the Sumy front.

Russia has reportedly lost one million personnel since the onset of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine's Ministry of Defence said.

It comes after Ukraine damaged around 10% of Russia's strategic bombers in June in an audacious operation codenamed Spiderweb.