Russia is fortifying its 600-mile front line with anti-tank ditches, mazes of trenches, 'dragon's teeth' barricades, and minefields, reports say

• Satellite images show the scale of Russia's new defenses as Ukraine preps for a counteroffensive.
• Russia has constructed miles of trenches, rows of concrete "dragon's teeth," and minefields.

Satellite images show Russian efforts to heavily fortify positions along its front lines in Ukraine, as it prepares for an expected Ukrainian counteroffensive.

These include miles of trenches, minefields, anti-tank ditches and "dragon's teeth," — spiky pieces of concrete to stop tanks and other military vehicles — along the front, which stretches across the south and east of Ukraine.

The BBC analyzed hundreds of satellite images of Russia's front lines, and military experts also analyzed images of the 600-mile front for the Financial Times and The Washington Post.

Those images reveal extensive efforts to defend key locations and routes.

Military analysts told the Financial Times that Russia's defenses won't be enough to stop Ukraine moving forward, but will likely slow down its efforts. They said the defenses were likely designed to force Ukraine's army to come under intense fire.

Available images show new Russian defenses along the west coast of the Crimea region, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, the reports said.

Crimea holds huge logistical and symbolic significance to both countries, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly said that Ukraine will not rest until it retakes the peninsula.

Ian Matveev, a Russian military analyst, told the Washington Post that Russia's defenses there show that its military understands that Crimea "will have to be defended in the near future."

Russia is using razor wire, minefields, and a zigzag network of trenches along its front line in Zaporizhzhia, which Ukraine would likely have to break through to get to Crimea, reports said.

Satellite images of the town of Medvedivka, which is along one of the roads that connects the peninsula, also show long trenches and rows of "dragon's teeth," the Post reported. Other images show similar fortifications in place in other parts of the peninsula.

Images show that some of the defenses in Crimea were built in a matter of days, the Post reported.

The Financial Times reported that northern Crimea had been "heavily fortified with a combination of trenches and tank traps," including in areas that are key to connecting it to the mainland.

Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed governor of Crimea, said last month that Russia was building defensive structures in and around Crimea.

The BBC also reported new Russian fortifications near Mariupol, the southeastern city that Russia seized in May 2022. These include circular trenches that allow soldiers to use weapons that can fire from multiple angles while still being protected.

One expert told the BBC that these kinds of defenses could be really obvious to Ukraine through drone and satellite imagery, which means they could be part of a trap.

Russia has also put up defenses near the eastern cities of Severodonetsk, Lysychansk and Popasna, which Ukraine faces "significant challenges" to retake, the Financial Times reported.

And it has also done so along the northern border of Luhansk province in eastern Ukraine, the Financial Times said.

The BBC also identified anti-tank ditches and trenches along 22 miles of the E105 highway, near the southeastern city of Tokmak, as well as trenches and other fortifications north of the city itself.

The UK Ministry of Defence said in April that Russia had moved to a more defensive position in preparation for "anticipated Ukrainian offensive operations."

The timing of any Ukrainian counteroffensive is unclear.

Ukraine's expected offensive would come after Russia managed to capture only a tiny amount of Ukrainian territory since it launched its own offensive operations in February.