Military analysts say that Russian commanders have been using a tactic known as “elastic defense” to prevent Ukraine from holding villages and other positions as staging grounds for future attacks.
source https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/03/world/europe/russia-ukraine-elastic-defense-counteroffensive.html
source https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/03/world/europe/russia-ukraine-elastic-defense-counteroffensive.html