A regional official reported on Tuesday that Ukrainian forces based on the western bank of the Dnieper River are frequently conducting assaults on the eastern bank near the city of Kherson in an effort to dislodge Russian troops.

Since retreating from the southern city of Kherson in November after months of occupation, Russian forces have held the eastern bank of the Dnipro near Kherson, but Ukraine is anticipated to launch an offensive in the spring to recapture more territory.

Deputy head of the Kherson regional administration, Yuriy Sobolevskiy, stated that the attacks were intended to reduce the combat capability of Russian troops who have been shelling the city of Kherson since being forced to retreat.

"Our military conducts frequent assaults on the left (eastern) bank. According to Sobolevskiy's statement on Ukrainian television, the Ukrainian armed forces are functioning and doing so very effectively.

"The results will be similar to those on the right bank of the Kherson region, where a complex and lengthy operation liberated our territory with minimal military casualties. The situation is identical on the left bank."

Russia annexed the Kherson region immediately following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine fourteen months ago and has maintained control of the region's territory east of the Dnieper since then.

Analysts predict that Ukraine will shortly launch a counteroffensive, with one of the primary objectives being to break through a southern land corridor between Russia and Russia-annexed Crimea. Recapturing the entirety of the Kherson region would be a crucial step toward accomplishing this objective.

The Institute for the Study of War in the United States reported last week that geolocated footage posted by Russian military bloggers confirms that Ukrainian troops have established a foothold on the eastern bank of the Dnipro.

Sobolevskiy stated that a military operation necessitates "informational silence" but provided no further details.