Ukrainians Covered 15 Kilometers Underground into the Russian Rear. What is Known About Operation Veles?

Russian servicemen have repeatedly used underground communications to bypass Ukrainian defenses. This happened near Avdiivka and in the Kursk region. Russians also employed similar tactics near Kupyansk in Kharkiv Oblast, where a main gas pipeline runs under the Oskil River.

Since the summer of 2025, Russian servicemen have used the gas pipeline running under the Oskil River to cross to its right bank. They would exit the pipe north of Kupyansk, gather forces in the surrounding forests, and then try to infiltrate the city.

Ukrainian forces struck the gas pipeline and took its exits under fire control. However, completely depriving the Russians of the ability to use the underground route was difficult. Eventually, the Ukrainians themselves began to advance along the pipeline to push the enemy out.

Thus began Operation Veles, carried out by a group under the command of the 2nd Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine "Khartia". The operation was named after Veles, the god of the underworld in Slavic mythology, who was also associated with wisdom and cunning.

Battles in the Kupyansk Gas Pipeline

As "Ukrainska Pravda" writes, Ukrainian servicemen descended into a main gas pipeline, about 1.2 meters in diameter, and began to push out the Russians. In some sections, close-quarters combat had to be waged directly underground. According to the publication's source, the Ukrainians advanced several kilometers with fighting.

Volodymyr Dehtiarov, a representative of "Khartia", stated that the operation has been ongoing for about half a year. Moreover, the servicemen are not just moving through the pipes but are also conducting full-fledged battles there using heavy weapons and robots.

This required special training. In the "Khartia" training center, a simulator was even built that mimics an underground tunnel. On it, fighters learned to operate and fight in confined spaces. Underground, there is no satellite navigation or stable radio communication, and providing supplies to personnel requires complex engineering solutions.

The operation is not limited to underground actions. They are coordinated with surface attacks and drone strikes. In addition to the "Khartia" brigade, participants include the "R.U.G." assault regiment, the "Lava" unmanned systems regiment, units of Ukrainian military intelligence, including the "Freedom of Russia" Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps, as well as the "Achilles" unmanned systems brigade.

The Russians managed to equip underground warehouses, dugouts, and resting places. According to Russian prisoners, water, food, and other supplies were delivered to positions on small carts. In some sections of the gas pipeline, even electric scooters were used.

During the offensive, the Ukrainians managed to block one of the Russian groups in the gas pipeline. Its members were cut off from the main forces, and Ukrainian drone strikes complicated attempts to establish supplies.

As "Suspilne Kharkiv" reports, some of the captured Russians stated that they had spent about a month and a half under blockade. Their food supplies ran out, and they had to collect water from puddles in the pipe, filter it, and boil it. When ammunition also began to run low, the group agreed to surrender.

Павялічыць

First Results of Operation Veles

According to "Khartia" representatives, the operation allowed depriving Russian forces of the underground route they had used for over a year to penetrate the right bank of the Oskil. Combat operations continue, and Ukrainian servicemen must also consider the existence of other underground communications in the Kupyansk area.

On October 27, the Commander-in-Chief of the AFU Mykhailo Drapatyi, "Khartia" Commander Ihor Abolenskyi, and Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Pavlo Palisa reported on the course and initial results of the operation to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

According to the announced data, Ukrainian servicemen advanced more than 15 kilometers underground, destroyed over 100 Russian soldiers, and captured another 30.

In his evening address on October 27, Zelenskyy called "Veles" the third significant operation of Ukrainian forces in 2026. The first was the offensive of the airborne assault troops, during which, according to him, more than 800 square kilometers of territory in the Zaporizhzhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions were liberated. The second was Operation "Vivaldi" in Donetsk Oblast, where the Ukrainian command regained control of more than 200 square kilometers.

According to Zelenskyy, "Veles" strengthens Ukrainian positions and shows that the Russian army has not yet achieved its set goals near Kupyansk.

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