• March 30, 2023
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Russo-Ukrainian War. Day 389: Russia targets Ukraine with 16 Shahed drones

Russo-Ukrainian War. Day 389: Russia targets Ukraine with 16 Shahed drones


Russian forces targeted Ukraine with 16 Shahed-136 drones overnight on March 17-18. Ukraine conducts a missile strike almost 100 km deep in Russia’s defense, destroying a Russian base. Russian military sends reinforcement to Vuhledar in Donetsk Oblast.

Daily overview — Summary report, March 19

The General Staff’s operational update regarding the Russian invasion as of 18.00 pm, March 19, 2023 is in the dropdown menu below:

Situation in Ukraine. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW. ~

Situation in Ukraine. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW.

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Day 389 of the russian full-scale invasion has begun.

Despite the loss of human life, the russian federation continues to wage its war of aggression. The adversary is focusing its main efforts on attempts to completely seize Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. To achieve its goals, the invaders continue offensive operations on Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Mar’inka, and Shakhtars’k axes. During the day of March 18, Ukrainian defenders repelled 83x attacks in this area of the frontline. Bakhmut remains the epicenter of the fighting.

During the day of March 18, the russian federation continued to use terror tactics against the civilians in Ukraine. By shelling settlements and critical infrastructure, the adversary completely ignores the laws and customs of war.

During the day of March 18, the enemy launched 11x missile attacks, 4x of which targeted civilian infrastructure in Zaporizhzhia. In addition, 16x air strikes and 99x MLRS attacks by the occupiers were reported.

The likelihood of further missile attacks across Ukraine remains high.

Kharkiv Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW. ~

Kharkiv Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW.

Volyn, Polissya, Sivershchyna, and Slobozhanshchyna axes: the operational situation remains stable. During the day of March 19, the enemy shelled the vicinities of settlements of Oleksandrivka, Klyusy (Chernihiv oblast), Kharkivka, Starykove, Volfyne (Sumy oblast), Chervona Zorya, Veterynarne, Strilecha, Starytsya, Vovchans’k, and Velykyi Burluk (Kharkiv oblast).

Donetsk Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW. ~

Donetsk Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW.

Kup’yans’k and Lyman axes: the adversary continues its attempts to break through the defense of Ukrainian troops. The enemy conducted unsuccessful offensive operations in the vicinities of settlements of Kreminna, Dibrova, Verkhn’okam’yans’ke, and Spirne. The invaders fired artillery at the vicinities of settlements of Putnykove, Krasne Pershe, Dvorichna, Hryanykivka, Kup’yans’k, Krokhmal’ne, Berestove (Kharkiv oblast), Novoselivs’ke, Nevs’ke, Bilohorivka (Luhansk oblast), Spirne, and Fedorivka (Donetsk oblast).

Bakhmut Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW. ~

Bakhmut Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW.

Bakhmut axis: Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled numerous enemy attacks in the northern part of Bakhmut, as well as in the vicinities of Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Hryhorivka, and Bohdanivka. Vasyukivka, Zaliznyans’ke, Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Hryhorivka, Bohdanivka, Bakhmut, Ivanivske, Chasiv Yar, Kurdyumivka, Ozarianivka, and Pivnichne (Donetsk oblast) came under enemy fire.

Avdiivka, Mar’inka, Shakhtars’ke axes: the adversary conducted unsuccessful offensive operations towards the settlements of Krasnohorivka, Kam’yanka, Avdiivka, Vodyane, Pervomais’ke, and Mar’inka, which the occupiers attacked 15x times. Kam’yanka, Lastochkyne, Avdiivka, Tonen’ke, Heorhiivka, Nevel’s’ke, Mar’inka, Vuhledar, and Velyka Novosilka (Donetsk oblast), among others, came under enemy fire.

Zaporizhzhia Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW. ~

Zaporizhzhia Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW.

Zaporizhzhia and Kherson axes: the adversary is defending. In particular, Ol’hivs’ke, Chervone, Hulyaipole, Mala Tokmachka, Novodanylivka, Novoandriivka, and Kam’yans’ke (Zaporizhzhia oblast) came under fire. The city of Kherson and Antonivka were shelled again.

Kherson-Mykolaiv Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW. ~

Kherson-Mykolaiv Battle Map. March 18, 2023. Source: ISW.

Given the situation near Vuhledar, the russian military leadership is in a hurry to send reinforcements. Since March 13, the 37th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 36th army of the Eastern Military District of the russian Armed Forces has been undergoing combat coordination of the Storm unit. It is being prepared for deployment to Ukraine on March 24. The brigade is significantly undermanned, so unit commanders are recalling subordinates from treatment and rehabilitation. The servicemen complain about the low level of supplies. The level of motivation among the personnel is reported as very low with a large number of attempts to evade being sent to the combat zone.

Over the day of March 18, the Ukrainian Air Force carried out 10x air strikes on the concentrations of the occupiers. At the same time, 1x Shahed-136 UAV was shot down, while our missile and artillery troops hit 7x concentrations of personnel and military equipment of the adversary.

Military Updates

Shelling by Russian Troops. Icelandic Data Analyst. ~

Shelling by Russian Troops. Icelandic Data Analyst.

Ukraine reportedly conducted a missile strike almost 100 km deep in Russia’s defense, destroying a Russian base. Ukraine’s representative of the Kherson Oblast council Serhiy Khlan said on the TV air that Ukraine conducted a missile strike at a village in the Novotroitske district near Henichesk, located almost 100 kilometers behind the frontline. He claimed that the Russian base in a farm, equipment, and almost 90 troops were destroyed, referring to the reports from locals. So far, there have been no video or photo confirmations of the strike. Yet, if true, this would be the first Ukrainian strike reported almost 100 kilometers deep in the Russian defense.

Russian troops are pressing in an effort to encircle small Ukrainian city Avdiyivka.Avdiyivka, with a pre-war population of 30,000, is another small Ukrainian city Russian forces are trying to encircle along with Bakhmut. Ukraine’s press officer Oleksiy Dmytrashkivskyi said in the TV air Russians attacked the city 21 times yesterday and lost up to 200 troops. However, they also received reinforcement from the Russian 98 air assault brigade.

Fighting continues on the three sides of Bakhmut — General Syrskyi. Fighting continues on the three sides of Bakhmut. Russians are also trying to break through the Ukrainian defense near Bilohorivka and Kreminna, 50 km north of Bakhmut, but without success, Ukraine’s General Syrskyi, who is responsible for the direction, said. He also said Ukrainian defenders in Bakhmut have much smaller losses than the enemy.

Ukraine shoots down 11 of 16 Shahed drones in Russia’s last night’s attack. At around 21:00 on 17 March, Russian troops launched a coordinated attack of the Shahed-136/131 kamikaze drones on Ukraine from two directions – the eastern coast of the Azov Sea and Russia’s Bryansk Oblast, the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported. The air defenses of the air commands Center, East, and West destroyed 11 Shaheds of 16 launched by Russia.

According to British Defence Intelligence, (last 48 hours): 

  • On 3 March 2023, authorities in the Russian-controlled part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast published a decree that declared occupied Melitopol as the oblast capital. The Russian-installed head of the oblast, Evgeniy Balitskiy, said that this was a temporary measure until the city of Zaporizhzhia was controlled by Russia.
  • Zaporizhzhia is one of the four oblasts President Putin claimed to have annexed as part of the Russian Federation on 30 September 2022. Russia has never occupied Zaporizhzhia city, a major industrial centre of 700,000 people, which is approximately 35km from the current front line.
  • The quiet declaration of an alternative capital is likely tacit acknowledgement within the Russian system that its forces are highly unlikely to seize previously planned major objectives in the near future.

Losses of the Russian army 

Humanitarian 

One of paintings stolen by Russians from Ukraine’s Kherson ended up in occupied Crimea — Suspilne. A painting by an unknown artist, “Seascape near the coast of Greece,” painted in 1907, was one of the artworks stolen by Russian occupiers from Ukraine’s Kherson museum. The painting was taken to Russia-occupied Crimea, museum workers identified by a photo, where the painting fragment is visible, told Supilne head of the information department of the Kherson regional art museum named after O. Shovkunenko, Larisa Zharkyh. At the beginning of November, the Russian occupiers stole the painting together with more than 10,000 museum exhibits from Kherson. 

Two killed, 14 civilians injured by Russian artillery shelling of central square and park in Ukraine’s cities in Donbas. At least two people died & eight were injured as a result of the Russian shelling of Ukraine’s city of Kramatorsk in Donetsk Oblast. Russians used cluster munitions targeting the city’s park, Oblast head Pavlo Kyrylenko said.Also, the shelling of Kostiantynivka by MLRS wounded six civilians. The Russians shelled the central market without military facilities, Kyrylenko said.

Environmental

“Grain agreement” on the export of Ukraine’s food by sea was extended for another 120 days. Black Sea Grain agreement was extended for 120 days, Ukraine’s Minister of Infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov informed. The agreement of Ukraine with the UN allows Ukraine’s food export by sea while Russia can inspect ships.

Ukraine to produce nuclear fuel that will replace Russian fuel on European market. Ukraine’s Energy Minister Halushchenko visited the plant that will produce nuclear fuel for domestic nuclear power units and later for export to other countries. Today, 17 VVER-440 units are operating in Europe; for them, there is currently no alternative to Russian fuel. Ukraine, for its part, has already started production of components for VVER-1000 fuel units and will subsequently start production of fuel for VVER-440 units. The project is implemented by Energoatom in cooperation with the American company Westinghouse.

Legal 

Putin, Lvova-Belova responsible for deportation of “at least hundreds” of Ukrainian children to Russia – Hague Prosecutor Khan. The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, stated that “there are reasonable grounds to believe that President Putin and Ms Lvova-Belova bear criminal responsibility for the unlawful deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation on the basis of evidence collected and analysed by his Office.” He told about “the deportation of at least hundreds of children taken from orphanages and children’s care homes.”

Support

Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs urged allies to accelerate the supply of artillery ammunition. Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba urged allies to accelerate the artillery ammunition supply. In his interview for BBC, he said about this, adding that “if one delivery is postponed for one day, it means that someone is going to die on the frontline.” The shortage of artillery ammunition is especially visible in the eastern city of Bakhmut, where the fierce battles continue.

Ukraine, US top officials held talks about further military aid and the situation on the battlefield. Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Gen. Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak, and Minister of Defence Oleksii Reznikov spoke with the US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley. They “discussed steadfast US support for Ukraine’s armed forces as they defend themselves against Russia’s brutal invasion” via a video link, the White House press service reported, adding that president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined the call at the conclusion.

New Developments

Ukraine’s Education Minister accused of plagiarism to resign; educator with military background among replacement candidates. Ukrainian media wrote that Ukraine’s Minister of Education, Serhiy Shkarlet, will be dismissed from his office, referring to the information they received from Ukraine’s Cabinet. Shkarlet was among the most criticized minister in the 2020 government appointed by Zelenskyy’s party, given that he was accused of plagiarism while preparing his thesis. Ukrainian students held numerous demonstrations for his resignation before the full-scale war started.

Ukraine’s new ministers of Education and Strategic Industries named: manager of Minor Academy of Sciences and Head of Railways — PM. Oksen Lisovyi, manager of Ukraine’s Minor Academy of Sciences (for high school pupils), who voluntarily joined Ukraine’s military during the war, will become new Ukraine’s Minister of Education, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said. He will replace current minister Serhiy Shkarlet, against whom Ukrainian students protested before the war. Shkarlet was accused of plagiarism and links to former Ukrainian president Yanukovych. Also, the head of Ukrzaliznytsia, Ukraine’s State Railway Company, Oleksandr Kamyshin, will become the new Minister of Strategic Industries, Prime Minister Shmyhal said. He added that these changes were already agreed upon with the parliament and are expected to be officially adopted next week.

US govt sources confirm use of Chinese ammunition in Ukraine – Kyodo News. The United States has confirmed that rounds of Chinese ammunition have been used in battlefields in Ukraine and suspects they were fired by Russian forces, government sources said on 17 March, Kyodo News reports. According to Kyodo News, the US administration sources said:

  • It remains unclear whether China supplied the ammunition.
  • Washington is poised to take action if it is verified Beijing made the shipments.
  • After analyzing its composition and other factors, the US government has determined that the ammunition found in Ukraine was produced in China.
  • Sources did not disclose what kind of ammunition was found.

Media unveil strategy of Putin’s fifth reelection campaign. The Russian Presidential Administration’s political bloc has reportedly formulated preliminary “ideological guidelines” for the upcoming 2024 presidential campaign in Russia. The Kremlin plans to promote an “ideology of conservatism” and position Vladimir Putin as the “guardian of traditional values” in the election. According to Meduza, who talked with a source close to the Kremlin, the Kremlin’s ideologists will rely on the rhetoric of Russia’s “moral superiority” over other countries and present Russia as a “state within itself,” preserving traditions and interacting relatively little with the outside world. The “Russian world” theme is to become part of the “state-in-itself” concept.





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