The war seems to have returned to battles in the east as it had been since 2014. Therefore, I will begin making reports less often unless the situation changes again. My reports will be posted on Ukrainian mornings each Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Summary of the Events
Ukraine is wrapping up the Battle for Kharkiv and has begun the counteroffensive to retake Izyum. Ukrainian forces have held the line in the Battle for the Donbas. Russia, once the second most powerful army in the world, is now reduced to only the second most powerful army within Ukraine.
Battle for the Donbas (Donetsk, Luhansk, Mariupol)
Siversky Donets – With the Battle for Kharkiv coming to an end, Ukraine has begun a counteroffensive to retake Izyum from the north coming down from Chuhuiv.
Luhansk – Ukrainian forces again delivered a heavy blow to Russian forces that attempted to cross the Siversky Donetsk River on pontoon bridges in a bid to storm Severodonetsk. Aerial images show dozens of destroyed armored vehicles on the banks of the river and wreckage of pontoon bridges.
The only progress Russian troops have made in the Luhansk region is moving another half mile past Popasna to the outskirts of Oleksandropillia.
Lysychansk and Severodonetsk were heavily shelled with fifty homes being destroyed. There were no casualties.
Donetsk – After eighty days of fighting, Russian forces finally breached the first line of defense in the vicinity of Avdiivka forcing Ukrainian troops to move closer to the city. Electricity was knocked out in Avdiivka. Other attempts to capture Marinka and Novomykhailivka failed.
Mariupol – Negotiations have begun to evacuate the last remaining troops from the Azovstal steel mill to a mediating country. The troops have made it clear that they do not desire to become martyrs and hope to live out their lives in peace with their families.
Battle for Kherson
British intelligence reported that the Russian-imposed government over the Kherson region will soon formally request a referendum over the Kherson Region joining the Russian Federation. The problem is that although Russia had expected the residents to welcome Russian “liberation” of their region, the opposite has occurred, and civilians continue to protest in their communities against Russian occupation. They only way they will get a majority vote is to just lie.
There was no change on the ground in the Kherson region with Russian forces shelling heavily up north in Osokorivka on the banks of the Kakhovka Reservoir and against Oleksandrivka and Tavriyske in the south towards Mykolaiv.
Battle for Kharkiv
The Battle for Kharkiv seems to be coming to an end as Russian soldiers are retreating out of the region north of Ukraine’s second largest city and are no longer within artillery range. Even aerial bombardment of the city has stopped, at least for now. Russia continues to fire on Ukrainian troops to slow their advance as they retreat. And Ukrainian forces begin to assemble in Chuhuiv to the south of Kharkiv to begin a counterattack south along the M-03 to Izyum 45 miles away where the bulk of the Russian troops are based.
Other Regions
Black Sea – After having their navy pummeled in the western Black Sea, Russia has moved its fleet back to the Crimean coast leaving only two patrol ships in the western Black Sea.
Chernihiv – Russian forces fired eight mortars against Ukrainian forces near the border town of Bleshnya. There were no casualties or loss of equipment.
Dnepropetrovsk – Russia fired a missile during the night against Shirokiv. There were no casualties, but several homes nearby lost their windows.
Mykolaiv – A Russian MLRS launched an attack on Mykolaiv setting a warehouse and nearby forest on fire.
Sumy – A fire broke out along the Ukraine/Russian border near the village of Shostka. Upon examination was found the fragments of five unguided missiles that Russia had fired upon the region. There were no casualties or damage done to any structures.
Zaporizhia – Russian forces continue to shell Ukrainian forces along the Zaporizhian Defense Line heavily hitting troops defending at Orikhiv and Hulyaipole. Ukrainian forces held the line.
Other News
Finland’s and Sweden’s plans to join NATO are now in limbo as NATO member Turkey has announced that they will not support their accession to the treaty. All NATO member nations must approve the addition of any other countries to the alliance. The U.S. is mediating a meeting between the three countries to work out a deal.
The Arch of Friendship of Peoples, installed in Kyiv by the Soviet Union in 1982 on the 1500th anniversary of Kyiv and the 60th anniversary of the Soviet Union to commemorate the union between the people of Ukraine and Russia, has officially been renamed the Arch of Freedom of the Ukrainian People. The statue below the arch had already been removed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed into law a ban on all political parties that justify and/or support the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I do not support this move as it is an attack on free speech. Let the people ban these parties by withdrawing their votes. Ukraine is mostly united against Russia and any party with these views will be marginalized anyway without this law.
Ukraine won the Eurovision Song Contest with a great performance by the Kalush Orchestra. The song was written about front man Oleh Psiuk’s mother Stefania before the escalation of the war began, but it has become a rallying song for Mother Ukraine. The band are refugees as Kalush has been under Russian control since 2014. Oleh sings of his desire to be able to return home and hear the comfort of his mother’s lullaby one more time. You can listen to the song here. You can turn on the subtitles by clicking on the CC (closed caption) button at the bottom of the video.
International Support
Katalina Nowak, the newly elected President of Hungary, has come out and condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and announced her support of Ukraine joining the EU. This puts her in direct opposition to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban who is Russia’s biggest friend in NATO and the EU.