Russia's Dnieper Problems Just Got Worse

Ukrainian forces launched a missile attack on the headquarters of the Russian Dnieper military group in the partially occupied southern Kherson region on Wednesday, a U.S.-based think tank said.

The Institute for the Study of War's (ISW) latest analysis of the conflict in Ukraine on Thursday commented on the development, which was reported by multiple Telegram channels, including the Ukraine military-linked Operativno ZSU. The Dnieper is called the Dnipro in Ukrainian.

"The Russian commanders from the Dnipro Group of Forces were not very lucky today," Operativno ZSU said on Wednesday, reporting that the Armed Forces of Ukraine launched a missile attack on the headquarters and that "something flew (several times)."

Russia announced in September 2022 that it was annexing Kherson and the southern Zaporizhzhia region, along with the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk areas. However, the regions aren't fully controlled by Moscow's forces, and an ongoing counteroffensive effort by Kyiv is focusing on reclaiming the territories.

British intelligence officials assessed in April that the Dnipro Group of Forces was likely deployed to defend the Kherson region.

Last week, battlefield reports suggested that Kyiv's troops are retaining their positions on the Russian-controlled east bank of the Dnieper river.

The ISW said on Thursday that Russian opposition media outlet Astrahadreported that four Ukrainian missiles struck the "Aura" recreation center near Strilkove, which served as the headquarters for the Russian Dnipro Group of Forces.

Astra reported that at around 12 p.m. on Wednesday a missile attack on the base killed at least two Russian troops and wounded three others.

The publication noted that the group of forces was recently led by Colonel General Mikhail Teplinsky, and that it's unknown whether Teplinsky was injured in the attack.

The incident was also reported by the VChK-OGPU outlet, which purports to have inside information from Russian security forces, and the Moscow Laundry Telegram channel.

Ukrainian and Russian officials have yet to comment on the reports.

Newsweek contacted the Russian and Ukrainian authorities via email for comment.

Teplinksy, the commander of Russia's airborne forces, was named as commander of the Dnipro military group this week, state-run news agency Tass reported, citing an unnamed source.

Russian newspaper Izvestia separately reported that he had replaced Colonel General Oleg Makarevich.

The Telegram account Romanov Light said that Makarevich had been removed because of "the discrepancy between the real situation [in Kherson] and his reports." It added that Teplinsky's appointment was "good news for us and bad for our opponents," as he is a favorite among Russian milbloggers.

The ISW said on Thursday that Ukrainian forces had reportedly maintained their positions and were continuing offensive operations on the east (left) bank of the Kherson Oblast.

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Update 11/03/2023 11:11 a.m. ET: This article's headline was updated.

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