Ukraine’s 3rd Army Corps has completed the third phase of Operation Vivaldi in the Lyman direction of Donetsk region, liberating three settlements and restoring control over two more.

Corps commander Andrii Biletskyi said on September 28 that Ukrainian forces had taken Nove, Ridkodub and Katerynivka and restored full control over Karpivka and Novomykhailivka. The phase reclaimed 51 square kilometres, bringing the operation’s total since it began to 176 square kilometres.

Biletskyi claimed Russian forces suffered around 2,000 personnel losses and more than 250 Russian servicemen were taken prisoner, including officers, pilots and artillerymen. The figures have not been independently verified.

The operation used deception tactics: Russian forces expected Shandryholove to be the target, but Ukraine focused on Nove, a key Russian logistics hub. Converted Soviet BTR armoured carriers were used as ground-based kamikaze robotic systems to breach strongpoints.

The Institute for the Study of War has reported that Ukrainian counteroffensive operations northwest of Lyman have disrupted Russian efforts. The operation, made public on September 15, aims to eliminate a large Russian salient threatening Lyman and Sloviansk.