Serhiy Zgurets, Ukrainian military expert and CEO of the media and consulting company Defense Express, shared his opinions on Espreso TV.“Regarding the Kupiansk direction, everyone is discussing Operation Truba (Pipe), where Russian forces reached the western outskirts of Kupiansk via gas pipelines. The enemy has held positions on the western bank of the Oskil River, just north of Kupiansk, for a year. Why is Kupiansk important? The city’s western and eastern parts are divided by the Oskil, and the eastern part supplies all Ukrainian units stationed on the river’s eastern bank. Russian troops aim to push Ukrainian units out of this large area. Their hope is to capture the western part of the city, disrupting logistics for Ukraine’s entire group,” Zgurets explained.According to Serhiy Zgurets, Russian forces have maintained a bridgehead north of Kupiansk for a year, where they have amassed some troops. Now, they are advancing from the north into the western outskirts of the town, posing a serious threat to Kupiansk itself, although Ukrainian spokespeople have confirmed that there are no Russian forces in the town center.“Nonetheless, the threat to the town exists: if the enemy is advancing in groups from the north and holds positions on the western outskirts of Kupiansk, the danger is real. Regarding the operation to transfer enemy forces, we are talking about four gas pipelines running under the Oskil River. The Russians attempted to move through a 10-kilometer pipeline over about four days. This tactic had been anticipated, and today, September 19, the command of the 10th Corps reported that the pipelines have been destroyed and flooded. The enemy did manage to advance through the pipes to the village of Radkivka, north of Kupiansk and in front of Ukrainian positions, but there was no penetration into our rear,” Zgurets explained.In Zgurets’ view, although Russian forces have managed to concentrate in the area, the outcome will ultimately depend on the actions of the Ukrainian side.“The enemy is becoming more active, largely because Ukrainian units were occasionally withdrawn from this direction to reinforce other areas, such as Pokrovsk. The Russians have taken advantage of these temporary weaknesses, using certain tactics that have affected the course of the defense. The command, particularly the 10th Corps, asserts that all necessary measures are being taken to hold Kupiansk. Nevertheless, the logistics situation within the town remains extremely difficult, and the enemy continues to try to create conditions to push our troops out, which would pose a threat to the Ukrainian group stationed on the left bank of the Oskil River,” Zgurets concluded.Earlier reports on September 12 from the DeepState analytical project claimed that Russian troops had entered Kupiansk via the gas network, a tactic previously used in Avdiivka and Sudzha. However, the head of the Kupiansk military administration, Andriy Besedin, and Ukraine’s General Staff refuted these claims, stating that the town remains under Ukrainian control despite ongoing fighting in its outskirts.On September 15, Yuriy Fedorenko, commander of Ukraine's 429th “Achilles” Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment, confirmed that the Ukrainian Defense Forces had damaged and flooded an underground pipe in the Kupiansk area, which Russian troops were reportedly using to move around.On September 19, Ukraine’s North Operational Command confirmed that the Ukrainian military has damaged and flooded a gas pipeline that Russian units were using to attempt entry into Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region.