In the Zaporizhzhia direction, Russian troops launched a rearguard attack to cover their troop rotations, Defense Express military expert Ivan Kyrychevskyi said on Espreso TV.“I have questions for those who claim there have been no attacks in Zaporizhzhia for three years,” Kyrychevskyi said. “Media reports can give the false impression that the enemy only recently stepped up efforts. But before Ukraine’s 2023 counteroffensive, the Russians were already disrupting our preparations by sending infantry into minefields and shelling our positions. In other words, their large-scale counteroffensive in Zaporizhzhia began even before ours.”According to Kyrychevskyi, those who are now reacting loudly to events in the Zaporizhzhia direction, shouting that Russia is advancing, are actually playing into Russia’s hands. Russia has not given up on its information and psychological warfare; entire military units and supportive military bloggers work to spread their narratives."There is an objective component that the Russians have not abandoned the principle of ‘fixing realities on the ground’ — what they have taken is theirs. They continue to claim the entire Zaporizhzhia region but lack the forces to take it all. Their goal is to pin down Ukrainian troops and wear down our defenses,” Kyrychevskyi explained. “So, it’s wrong to say the Russians have done something unpredictable.”In Kyrychevskyi’s view, Russia might attempt something unpredictable in eastern Ukraine, given favorable conditions such as terrain and logistics. However, in the Zaporizhzhia region, there are both objective and subjective factors that limit Russian options.He explained, “The Russians launched a rearguard attack to cover their troop rotations. This shows our military has learned to catch the enemy during rotations, just as they used to catch us. So, it’s better to say, ‘How well we catch the Russians during their rotations,’ because they will have to expend their unlimited resources. However, it’s ‘the Russians are showing something we haven’t seen in three years’ narrative being spread instead”On July 7, the DeepState analytical project reported that Russian forces captured two more settlements: Lobkove in the Zaporizhzhia region and Piddubne in the Donetsk region.Additionally, the deputy commander of Ukraine’s 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade “Velykyi Luh,” known by the call sign Forest, described the intensity of Russian activity in the Zaporizhzhia direction as the highest seen in three years.