Ukrainian Border Guard Drones Blast Russian Howitzers and Dugouts in Bakhmut Sector

The State Border Service reported on Telegram the destruction of two Russian howitzers, dugouts, and the elimination of Russian personnel in the Bakhmut sector using drones.

“With FPV drones, the fighters of the Pomsta brigade ‘dismantled’ two enemy howitzers D-30 and D-20 in the Bakhmut sector,” the report said.

The border guards also destroyed Russian dugouts and personnel using drops from Mavic drones and strike drones.

The footage began with Ukrainian border guards equipping improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and kamikaze drones. First-person view (FPV) drone cameras captured the Russian positions that were struck. As a result of the attack, the border guards hit the Russian D-30 and D-20 long-range howitzers.

Kyiv Post was unable to independently verify the time and location of the video. However, upon review of the recorded footage there is a high degree of probability it matches Border Service reports of the Russian howitzer sites, although their exact models are difficult to determine due to the low resolution of the recording.

Video footage also showcased the operation of multi-copter drones dropping explosive devices and hand grenades on Russian positions. After the explosions, the still bodies of Russian soldiers were visible, indicating successful hits.

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In a comment to Kyiv Post, a Ukrainian military officer said: “The video demonstrates competently constructed fortifications of the enemy, which minimize the risks of damage to personnel from a direct hit.”

“Our defenders have to knock out the enemy literally meter by meter from our land,” he added.

Russia announced on May 22 that its forces had retaken Klishchiivka, a village in eastern Ukraine that Kyiv had recaptured during its 2023 counteroffensive. Klishchiivka, located south of the key frontline city of Bakhmut, had a pre-war population of about 500 people.

The Ukrainian military is currently under heavy pressure, grappling with a fresh Russian offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region and facing severe ammunition shortages across the front lines.

Russian troops initially captured Klishchiivka in January 2023, but Ukraine reclaimed it in September during a largely unsuccessful counteroffensive.

Ukrainian officials have not confirmed this information. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reported that on May 29, Russian troops “unsuccessfully carried out assault actions in the areas of Ivanivske and Klishchiivka.”