Ukraine, Kupiansk crucial junction for Russians: here’s why

Captured by the Russians a week after the February 24 invasion, Kupiansk, in Kharkiv oblast, had become an important logistical hub for Kremlin forces. The announced liberation of the city of about 33,000 inhabitants, if confirmed and consolidated, appears as the most significant victory for the Ukrainians after the withdrawal of the Russians from the Kiev region, notes the BBC. For Russia, on the other hand, it is a humiliating defeat. Kupiansk is located along what used to be the front line between the Russians and the Ukrainians. According to the American think tank Institute for the Study of War, the city was “a key logistical hub” for the supplies of the Russian forces. A map shared on Twitter by Finnish services analyst Veli-Pekka Kivimaki highlights how many railway lines in northeastern Ukraine pass through Kupiansk. which is added to the one south towards Kherson.