The first attempts of the Russian army to advance from Velyka Novosilka towards Hulyaipole were back in 2024.
At that time, the Ukrainian military explained that instead of frontal attacks on the fortified Orikhiv, it was more profitable for the Russians to bypass positions through the outskirts of Hulyaipole. This is an open steppe area with a minimal number of settlements, which opens the way to Zaporizhzhia and Dnipro. In the summer of 2025, the Russians began to operate according to this tactic.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi last visited the Zaporizhzhia direction on July 29, 2025. Then he noted that "there are relatively fewer combat clashes there than in other areas".
Already in early September, Oleksandr Syrskyi clarified that in August the Russians were preparing a major offensive in the Zaporizhzhia direction. Ukrainian forces thwarted their plans, and according to him, in the Hulyaipole direction they managed not to lose territory. At the same time, combat map data show that it was from August that Russian troops began to gradually advance in this sector.
Since then, they have advanced approximately 20 kilometers.
«Babel'»
The situation has escalated — Russian and Ukrainian positions in this area are now very close to each other. On November 14, Russian troops broke through Ukrainian positions and shot Ukrainian prisoners of war.
Military analyst Andrew Tanner says that the Ukrainian command is paying insufficient attention to the Zaporizhzhia direction. Another military analyst Michael Coffman noted that the Ukrainian defense around Hulyaipole looks increasingly uncoordinated. Some analysts suggest that Russia is trying to force Ukraine to deploy forces in the Zaporizhzhia region, drawing them away from Pokrovsk.
If the offensive continues at this pace, the Russians could be close to Zaporizhzhia in three to four months. At the same time, they are massively shelling the city and the region: in just one day, almost 700 strikes were recorded on more than 20 settlements.
Hulyaipole direction
The Ukrainian troops chose the Yanchur River line — north of Hulyaipole — for defense. There are few shelters in this sector — isolated villages and narrow streams with sparse vegetation between Velyka Novosilka and Yanchur.
The Russians have advanced about 20 km there in a few months, but now they are having difficulty supplying their positions due to the open flat terrain and limited supplies of armored vehicles for the winter.
«Babel'»
However, the Russian position itself is quite advantageous. After the breakthrough in the Hulyaipole direction, they have about 10 km left to the last line of defense, which covers the entire Zaporizhzhia region from the east. If the Russians cross the Haichur River, where this last line of defense is located, all the fortifications in the south of the Zaporizhzhia region can be bypassed from the east.
The key defense node on this section remains the village of Rivnopillia. Thanks to the heights, Ukrainian troops can control the approaches to Hulyaipole. According to the latest data, Russian units have already entered Rivnopillia and are trying to gain a foothold there.
At the same time, on November 8, the head of the Assault Forces of the Armed Forces wrote that Ukrainian assault forces “have already cleared Rivnopillia and moved on”.
Ukrainian positions in Zelenyi Hai are also under strong pressure. In addition, enemy sabotage and reconnaissance groups regularly try to infiltrate closer to Hulyaipole itself. Russian military sources report that their troops have already approached the eastern outskirts of Zatyshshya — this is the last settlement before Hulyaipole on the O-080618 highway. If Zatyshshya falls, there will be literally a few kilometers left to the city on a straight road.
The Russians are continuing their offensive perpendicular to the Pokrovsk-Hulyaipole highway (T-0401), an important transport corridor between the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions. The highway itself is being operated by drones on fiber optics, making it almost unusable.
Orikhiv direction
On November 13, President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the Zaporizhzhia direction. He visited the command post of the 65th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade "Velykyi Luh", which is holding defenses in the Orikhiv direction. The president also met with soldiers of the 128th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade, which is defending positions in the Stepnohirsk area.
In this direction, the Russians are trying to cut the supply route between Komyshuvakha and Orikhiv (T-0803). They are also pulling more forces towards Stepnohirsk — from there the road goes straight to Zaporizhzhia (E-105).
«Babel'»
Combat operations in this area are needed not only to put pressure on Ukrainian positions, but also to protect the important “Rostov-Crimea” railway line that runs through Pryazovia. Orikhiv is located only 40 km from this branch — it is within the reach of strike drones.
Now it is much easier to destroy a railway with drones than to conduct a major ground operation. When drones with a range of more than 100 km learn to automatically recognize targets, they will be able to find and hit locomotives and cars themselves — they have a noticeable thermal signature (they are clearly visible through thermal imagers) and stand out on cameras. In a zone of up to 100 km, such a railway will simply become inoperable. And Zaporizhzhia is only 80 km from this highway.