Russian military officers have withdrawn from Kherson as Moscow prepares for a Ukrainian counteroffensive in the key industrial port, according to the Institute for the Study of War.
The military think tank indicated the officer corps moved across the Dnipro River while newly mobilized troops remained on the western bank.
“Using such inexperienced forces to conduct a delaying action could prompt a Russian rout if Ukrainian forces choose to press the attack,” the institute wrote on Sunday.
The movement marks the latest sign that Moscow and Kyiv are preparing for a fight over the namesake city of the Kherson Oblast, one of four regions Russia annexed earlier this month.
Russia has controlled the city for months, and it remains the only regional capital captured by Russian forces.
But with the Ukrainians making territorial gains and inching closer to retaking Kherson, Kyiv and international observers are raising concern that Russia is planning to blow up the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and dam, which would delay the offensive by potentially flooding Kherson and other nearby areas.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned European leaders last week that Russian President Vladimir Putin was planning to do so, citing evidence of mines at the plant.
The institute said an incident at the plant was “likely” but noted that Russian forces are likely attempting to moderate the resultant flooding.
“Russian forces are preparing a series of delaying actions with mixed efficacy,” it wrote.
As Ukrainians advance toward Kherson, the country has blocked out all media on its operations around the port, and experts suggest all signs point to a major offensive in the coming days.
