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| Version 5 | Version 6 |
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| Retaking Villages Leaves Ukrainian Troops Exposed and Diving for Cover | Retaking Villages Leaves Ukrainian Troops Exposed and Diving for Cover |
| (about 20 hours later) | |
| At the first whistle of an incoming shell, the soldiers in a newly liberated but desolate Ukrainian village dived into the weeds on a roadside on Thursday and lay face down as explosions erupted. | At the first whistle of an incoming shell, the soldiers in a newly liberated but desolate Ukrainian village dived into the weeds on a roadside on Thursday and lay face down as explosions erupted. |
| “Is everybody alive?” one yelled when it was over. They were. The soldiers sprang back up and kept running, passing the wafting smoke from explosions. | “Is everybody alive?” one yelled when it was over. They were. The soldiers sprang back up and kept running, passing the wafting smoke from explosions. |
| After months of preparation and bolstered by hundreds of Western-donated tanks, armored vehicles and howitzers, Kyiv has notched small successes in the first week and a half of a counteroffensive to drive Russian forces from southern Ukraine. In fierce fighting on the plains, the military said it had broken through a first line of Russian defenses and reclaimed seven villages. | After months of preparation and bolstered by hundreds of Western-donated tanks, armored vehicles and howitzers, Kyiv has notched small successes in the first week and a half of a counteroffensive to drive Russian forces from southern Ukraine. In fierce fighting on the plains, the military said it had broken through a first line of Russian defenses and reclaimed seven villages. |
| The fruits of their labor could be seen on a visit with the Ukrainian military to one of those villages, Blahodatne, on Thursday — as well as the daunting challenges that lie ahead. | The fruits of their labor could be seen on a visit with the Ukrainian military to one of those villages, Blahodatne, on Thursday — as well as the daunting challenges that lie ahead. |
| Ukraine has yet to commit the bulk of its reserves, including troops trained in Europe over the winter and spring, and equipped with weaponry from NATO countries, meaning it can bring still more force to bear. But with each step forward, its soldiers become more vulnerable — removed from the safety of their own trenches, closer to Russian artillery, maneuvering through minefields and unprotected from airstrikes. | |
| Ukraine is engaged in two main thrusts southward, where it has broken through most deeply in the string of small villages that includes Blahodatne, where the soldiers were diving for cover on Thursday. |