Russia and Ukraine prepare for a major battle in Kherson, US conducts military exercises near Ukraine

The Kherson Front continues to heat up

Both Russia and Ukraine show signs of preparing for a major battle in Kherson - the largest and first Ukrainian city captured by Russia in the "special military operation" in Ukraine.

Russian artillery fire. Photo: WarLeaks.

The city of Kherson (located in the south) is a target for Russia and Ukraine because it is a key industrial center, has a large river and port.

Ukraine has attacked supply lines along the Dnieper River while Russia has sent 2,000 conscripts to the region. Pro-Russian authorities in the region have also evacuated tens of thousands of residents.

Ukrainian forces launched an attack on a bridge over the Dnieper River on October 20, 2022. The bridge plays a vital role in crossing the river, providing fresh water and electricity. Russian officials said four people were killed and 13 others were injured when Ukraine attacked the bridge. However, Ukraine has denied Russian allegations that civilians were killed.

Earlier this week, Russian President Putin imposed martial law on four regions of Ukraine, including Kherson.

In a video address to the European Council, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia's continued attacks on energy infrastructure could force many Ukrainians to flee to other parts of Europe.

The Pentagon is looking to help Ukraine defend against Iranian UAVs deployed by Russia to attack Ukrainian infrastructure.

White House spokesman John Kirby said that Russia had received many UAVs from Iran and would receive more, but, he said, this would not change the military course in Ukraine.

Elite US troops conduct drills just miles from the Ukrainian border.

Specifically, the US Army's 101st Airborne Division has been deployed to Europe for the first time in nearly 80 years amid rising tensions between the US and the NATO military bloc.

This light infantry unit, nicknamed the "Screaming Eagles", is trained to deploy to any battlefield in the world within hours and be ready for combat.

CBS News reporters boarded a Back Hawk helicopter with the 101st Division's Deputy Commander, Brigadier General John Lubas, and Colonel Edwin Matthaidess, 2nd Brigade Combat Team Commander, to fly to the exercise area, just 5km from the border between Romania and Ukraine.

For more than seven months, Russian forces have been trying to advance along the Black Sea into the Kherson region, seizing the Ukrainian port cities of Mykolaiv and Odessa. Their goal is to cut off all of Ukraine from the sea, effectively locking the country and its military inland.

That challenge is so close to NATO territory in Romania that the US has sent one of its most elite airborne forces there along with some heavy equipment.

"We are ready to defend every inch of NATO land," Brigadier General Lubas told CBS News.

The helicopter glided north along the Black Sea coast in Romania and landed at a forward operating point where US and Romanian troops were attacking targets in a joint air-ground exercise.

The artillery and tank shells were real. The exercise was meant to replicate the battles the Ukrainian military engages in every day as it confronts Russian forces just across the border. Exercises like this are designed to send a clear message to Russia and America’s NATO allies about the U.S. Army’s presence there.

About 4,700 troops from the 101st Airborne Division's home base at Fort Campbell, Kentucky (USA) have been deployed to strengthen NATO's eastern flank.

Colonel Matthaidess said he and his men were the closest US forces to the fighting in Ukraine. From above, they “closely monitored” Russian forces, “built targets for practice,” and conducted exercises that “exactly simulated what was happening” in the military conflict in Ukraine.

Commanders of the "Screaming Eagles" Division told CBS News that they are "ready to fight tonight" and that while they are here to defend NATO territory, if hostilities escalate or there is an attack on NATO, they are fully prepared to cross the border into Ukraine.

Ukraine threatens to attack Belarus directly if it participates in "special operation"

In a related development, the Ukrainian military released a video aimed at Belarus and warned Belarus not to participate in Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine.

In this video, the Ukrainian military warns that it will retaliate against any attack from neighboring Belarus. In Kiev, there are concerns that Russia will launch another attack.

A four-minute clip posted on the Facebook page of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on October 21 said that Belarusian officials were preparing to join Russia in attacking Ukraine and had begun "secretly" recruiting troops for the mission.

In the clip, the Ukrainian military warns: "If the Belarusian army supports Russia's war, we will react as harshly as we react to all forces occupying Ukrainian territory, using our entire arsenal."

Addressed to the people of Belarus, the video asserts that retaliation will include "attacks on military facilities on your territory."

The video also urged "all citizens of Belarus not to obey the orders of the local leadership to join the military effort against Ukraine".

On October 20, the General Staff of the Ukrainian army announced that "the risk of the Russian army resuming its offensive on the northern border is increasing." Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital Kiev from Belarusian territory in late February 2022, when the military conflict between the two countries had just begun.

The General Staff of the Ukrainian army believes that this time, the focus of Russia's new attack may shift to the western region of the Ukraine-Belarus border to cut off foreign arms supply lines to the government of Ukrainian President Zelensky.

Russian troops began arriving in Belarus last week as part of a joint military force recently created by Moscow and Minsk. Belarusian officials said they had agreed to allow more Russian troops into their territory to counter growing challenges from Ukraine and Western countries.

On October 17, assistant to the Belarusian Defense Minister, Valery Revenko, said that according to plan, Russia will deploy 9,000 soldiers, about 170 tanks and up to 100 artillery pieces to Belarus./.