 Russian Storm-Z threat looms over recently liberated region. The new Russian offensive in northeastern Ukraine is causing concern among military officials in Kiev as Moscow's forces look to spoil the ongoing Ukrainian counter-offensive still raging in the south and east of the country. Former prisoners in Storm-Z units are said to be part of the Kremlin's push according to Newsweek. Colonel General Oleg Sander-Syrsky, the commander of Ukraine's ground forces, told Ukraine's Gupravda on Wednesday that the Russian push in the direction of the Kupian region at the border of mostly liberated Kharkiv Oblast and mostly occupied Luhansk Oblast has produced a difficult and fluid battlefield. The Russian goal, the commander said, is to break through the defense of our troops and go directly to Kupiansk. The city was among those liberated in Ukraine's September 2022 counter-offensive, a surprise operation that collapsed Russian lines in Kharkiv Oblast and liberated nearly 1,000 square miles of territory. Fighting is now extremely intense, Syrsky said. Separate positions these days passed from hand to hand several times. Among those settlements reportedly lost in recent fighting is the town of Novoselovskoye, which Russian state media said was captured by Moscow's forces last week. Russian troops are now looking to drive further west from here, though Syrsky said they have so far been unsuccessful. Our fighters courageously hold the defense, repelling all the enemy's attempts to move forward, he said. Among the attacking forces, Syrsky said our eight StormZ assault units, which are made up of former prisoners and are often used in Moscow's high-risk offensive operations.