Chortkivsky offensive

The Chortkiv Offensive ( Ukrainian: Chortkivsk Offensive, Chortkiv Offensive ) is a swift offensive of the Ukrainian Galician Army in the vicinity of the city of Chortkiv (now Ternopil Oblast ) during the war between Poland and the ZUNR . Prepared by the former chief of staff, Colonel Mishkovsky, the operation was carried out under the command of General Grekov .

By the beginning of June 1919, as a result of attacks by Polish troops, the remnants of the Ukrainian Galician Army were forced to retreat into the so-called " triangle of death " - a space bounded on three sides by the Zbruch , Dniester rivers and the Gusyatin - Chortkov railway. The perimeter of the "triangle" was 90 kilometers. On all sides, he was surrounded by opponents of the UGA - Polish and Romanian troops, the Red Army, individual White Guard units. However, over time, the situation began to improve, as the Polish command, underestimating the combat effectiveness of the Ukrainian army, transferred the best units to the Polish-German and Polish-Czechoslovak border.

After a week of reorganization and rest, the leadership of the CAA pulled all efforts to Chortkov . The First and Third Corps were re-restored. Evgeny Petrushevich replaced the commander of the CAA: now, instead of Omelyanovich-Pavlenko, he became Alexander Grekov . Grekov convinced the leadership of ZUNR and UGA that a successful attack on Lviv was still possible. On June 7, preparations for the operation were completed, and on June 8 the UGA went on the offensive.

Already on June 9, UGA units broke through the front line, on the same day Terebovlya and Buchach were taken. The Poles tried to stop the advance of Ukrainians deep into Galicia by counterattacks of certain groups, but this did not bring any result.

On June 14, Ukrainian troops reached Tarnopol (Ternopol). The UGA strike group, led by Tarnavsky, and the 1st brigade of Ukrainian Sich Riflemen entered the city on June 15 . Subsequently, UGA units advanced in the direction of Zolochev, Brod, Zborov and Berezhan , and the Second Corps - to Lviv. On June 17, the UGA entered Berezhany, on June 22 took Brody and Zolochev. The Polish command realized that if they did not show proper resistance in time, the third assault on Lviv would begin. Therefore, Jozef Pilsudski personally arrived in Lviv and took command of the troops of the Vostok group.

On June 25, the Polish army launched a counterattack, crossing the Svirzh River , and on June 28 the offensive began on the entire front. On June 29, the First and Second Corps of the UGA were thrown back, and the Polish units entered Zolochev, capturing two thousand prisoners.

Meanwhile, the UGA commander, General Grekov, ordered the Third Corps to launch an attack on Lviv. At the same time, the 4th Polish Division, returning from Bender, came to the rear to the Third Corps. The Ukrainian command could not foresee such a sharp turn of events. The third corps was squeezed on both sides by the Polish cavalry, but continued to resist.

On July 4, the First and Second Corps of the UGA, after a long retreat, reached Zbruch. From July 5 to 7, positional battles continued, until July 8, the Polish army continued the offensive. UGA was again driven into the "triangle of death", and its parts were already preparing for evacuation from the territory of ZUNR. The first attempt to force the Zbruch ended in failure: on the other side of the UGA collided with parts of the Red Army and was forced to return to their original positions. The second attempt took place on the night of July 16-17, this time the entire CAA was evacuated from Galicia to the territory of the UPR . The Polish-Ukrainian war ended with the complete defeat of the ZUNR troops.