monstars.bsky.social @monstars.bsky.social · 08/09/2026The operation probably started around the same time as Novopavlivka, and I don't expect the mechanics to look much different. The real difference is that 3rd Army Corps had a much better starting position. 1270
monstars.bsky.social @monstars.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Almost a year ago I wrote that Lyman itself wasn't the real question — Russia needed the flanks secured, the Drobysheve-Yarova line taken, the supply routes cut, before its infiltrations inside the town could mean anything. 1280
monstars.bsky.social @monstars.bsky.social · 08/09/2026That outer ring never happened. AFU denied russia the Nitrius valley and the advance near Kopanky, and unable to secure the high ground there, russian forces got pushed onto the much less comfortable Ivanivka-Oleksandrivka axis instead. 1270
