Ukraine's National Guard says its assault units have cleared four square kilometers of ground near Kupiansk. According to the military, fighters of the 23rd R.U.G. Assault Regiment of the Khartiia corps have pushed Russian forces out of territory between the settlements of Dvorichna and Zapadne, working with the 35th Separate Marine Brigade on one stretch.

Russia wants Kupiansk as a logistics node and a springboard for pushing deeper into Kharkiv Oblast. Just outside the city sits the Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi station, a key rail hub whose capture would let Russian forces move supplies and equipment far more easily.

“Overall, another 4 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory have been liberated. As long as the enemy remains on our land, the work continues,” the National Guard said.

A city fought over from both banks

The clearing north of the city is only one part of a contested picture. Kupiansk straddles the Oskil River: Ukraine holds the left, eastern bank, while Russian forces have pushed onto the right, western bank closer to Ukraine's rear.

On 2 September, Viktor Tregubov, head of communications for Ukraine's Joint Forces Group, said Russian troops had infiltrated part of northern Kupiansk on that right bank.

"On the right bank, the Russians are trying to hold the northern parts of the city, where they've already infiltrated some of their fighters," he told Suspilne, adding that Ukrainian forces are making trouble for them there.

The infiltrators are trying to reach the city through the village of Holubivka, he said.

On the left bank, Russian units are trying to reach the railway station.

"The Russians are pushing very hard toward it. They want to narrow our bridgehead," Tregubov reported.

No confirmed Russian advance

Back in July, Trehubov mentioned the Russian forces’ logistical problems in this direction, according to ArmyInform.

He explained that logistics for Russian forces in the area had been effectively paralyzed by a fuel shortage, with even water being delivered exclusively by drones.

Ukraine is retiring a Soviet chemical-scout vehicle in favor of one it built itself. Ukraine's National Guard has received the first Ukrainian radiation and chemical reconnaissance vehicles on the armored Tisa chassis, replacing the outdated Soviet UAZ-469RKh, National Guard commander Oleksandr Pivnenko announced.

The vehicle is a step in Ukraine's shift from Soviet legacy equipment to its own modern designs. Developed to National Guard specifications for current battlefield conditions, the armored scout allows crews to survey and monitor contaminated zones without leaving the protected vehicle.

What the vehicle does

The vehicle carries radiation and chemical reconnaissance instruments, an automated system for collecting and processing information, a weather station, modern communications, and satellite navigation, all of which enable real-time data collection and transmission to assess a situation and make decisions faster.

The mission is early warning of invisible threats. The task of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) units is to detect radiation, chemical, and biological threats in time, determine the extent of contamination, and quickly pass the information to command.

"The safety of soldiers, the completion of combat tasks, and the protection of the civilian population depend on the speed and accuracy of this work," Pivnenko said.

The armored base is the upgrade

The Tisa chassis is what sets the new vehicle apart from its Soviet predecessor. The light-armored Tisa is built on the Toyota Land Cruiser 79 platform and meets the NATO STANAG 4569 protection standard, providing ballistic and mine protection that the open-topped UAZ never offered.

The vehicle is equipped for hard conditions. It carries night-vision systems and air ventilation and filtration systems, letting the crew work in contaminated or dangerous environments while staying protected. The filtration matters especially for a CBRN vehicle: it lets the crew operate inside a sealed, over-pressured cabin in exactly the toxic zones the vehicle is sent to scout.