Summary of the Events of the Day
Russian forces inched forward along the front, but with heavy losses. Russian forces take Tavriyske in the Kherson region threatening to cut off Ukrainian forces that have moved up to the border of Kherson. Ukrainian forces pushed Russian forces farther back from Kharkiv.
Battle for the Donbas (Donetsk, Luhansk, Mariupol)
Russian forces continue to inch closer and closer to their goal of taking Slovyansk, Kramatorsk, and Severodonetsk. Russian forces have been pushed out of Rubizhne taking some pressure off of Severodonetsk. Russian forces have also been pushed out of Popasna. But Russian forces have taken the village of Spivakivka widening the hole that has been punched through at Izyum and Zavody. Ukraine is blowing up the bridges over the Severny Donets River to slow down Russian advances.
Russia has moved airborne units into Izyum and is attacking towards Sulyhivka, Nova Dmytrivka, and Velyka Komyshuvakha.
Russian forces are strengthening their positions on the Donetsk Contact Line in preparation for an assault on Lyman.
Russian forces are attempting to gain a foothold in Orikhove as the next step on their march to take Severodonetsk.
From Donetsk, Russian forces are concentrating on retaking Marinka and taking Ocheretyne.
Russia shelled Popasna and Lysychansk each ten times destroying 23 houses and killing four civilians.
Ukrainian troops continue to hold onto the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol despite continuing shelling and the use of chemical weapons.
Battle for Southern Ukraine (Kherson, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhia, and Odesa)
Russian forces have taken Tavriyske and are attacking Oleksandrivka to the south and Nova Zorya to the north. Ukraine still controls the main highway between Mykolaiv and Kherson.
Ukraine fired two Tochka-U surface-to-surface missiles against the TV tower in Kherson temporarily cutting off Russian propaganda to the Russian-occupied city. Russia vowed that they will never give up Kherson and that it was now permanently in Russia.
Ukrainian forces shot down a surveillance drone and three missiles over Odesa.
Battle for Kharkiv
Ukrainian forces liberated Kutuzivka pushing Russian forces farther away from Kharkiv.
Russian forces fired artillery on the city of Kharkiv eleven times killing one civilian.
Other Regions
Russia fired five missiles on residential areas of Kyiv, the first such attack in two weeks, while UN Secretary Guterres was visiting Kyiv on a state visit.
Russia fired missiles on two homes in Zaporizhia killing three people, one of whom was a child.
Other News
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) conducted a successful sting operation to capture Russian agents who were passing intelligence on defensive lines of Ukrainian troops and the deployment of Air Force aircraft. A Ukrainian defense official from Zhytomyr was arrested for gathering information about Ukrainian fighter jets and air force infrastructure. In Dnipropetrovsk two agents were arrested who had tried to infiltrate territorial defense units in the Donbas. A mayor of a community near Mykolaiv was arrested who was passing information about the Ukrainian Armed Forces to Russian forces. And a woman in Khmelnitsky was arrested for passing information to Russians on the coordinates of Ukrainian military objects. A truck was also seized in Cherkassy transporting military components to Russian forces.
The European Union warned Russia that they will not bend to “blackmail” after Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland because the refuse to pay with rubles. The EU has already stepped in and provided both countries with alternative sources. Russia also threatened Western nations who are supplying weapons to Ukraine that they will face a “lightning-fast” military response if they continue.
According to a report in The Hill, a US government official reported that there is growing evidence that Russia is executing Ukrainian soldiers who surrender rather than placing them in a POW camp.
International Support
UN Secretary Antonio Guterres met with President Zelensky after meeting with President Putin the day before. He is attempting to open green corridors so that Ukrainian civilians can evacuate Eastern Ukraine. Guterres visited the town of Borodyanka where great atrocities had been committed by Russian forces and described what they did as “evil”.
The United States lifted some restrictions of providing intelligence information to Ukraine.
The Canadian Parliament adopted a motion accusing Russia of “acts of genocide” against the Ukrainian people and registering evidence of “war crimes” committed by Russia.
The German Parliament approved supplying Ukraine with heavy weapons opening the way for pledged anti-aircraft tanks to be sent to Ukraine.