After Vivaldi Russian 144th Division Effectively Ceased to Exist as Organized Force

The 144th Motorized Rifle Division of the Russian 20th Combined Arms Army effectively ceased to operate as an organized military force following Operation Vivaldi.

Andriy Biletskyi made this assessment during a meeting dedicated to the results of the 3rd Army Corps’ operation.

The 144th Division was part of a Russian force operating from a bridgehead on the Chornyi Zherebets River.

According to Biletskyi, the Russian plan called for an advance through Svyatogorsk toward Barvinkove. Together with an offensive through Dobropillia, this was intended to create conditions for encircling the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk metropolitan area and Ukrainian forces in the north of Donetsk region.

During Operation Vivaldi, Ukrainian troops eliminated the bridgehead and inflicted significant losses on the Russian offensive group.

“In effect, the 144th Division of the 20th Army has ceased to exist as an organized military force,” Biletskyi stated.

In his assessment, the division’s current actions resemble an attempt to establish a defensive position rather than organized, systematic operations by the unit.

Biletskyi also stated that the rout of the group forced the Russian command to temporarily abandon its attempt to bypass Sloviansk and Kramatorsk from the north.