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Fighting in eastern and southern Ukraine is still heavy. The Russian Army is advancing slowly, while the AFU are being strengthened by European arms deliveries. The conflict is escalating into prolonged positional battles, where the sides wait for each other’s mistakes.
In the Severnaya Saltovka area in northeastern Kharkiv, the AFU continues to reinforce its defense in the civilian areas. The Russian military is regrouping in eastern Ukraine and plans to move towards Kharkiv. This was reported by Kirill Budanov, head of military intelligence of Ukraine.
In the Izyum direction, the Russian Armed Forces are advancing and destroying incoming AFU reinforcements and continue to form a strike force to develop an offensive on Slovyansk. Near Izyum, Russian forces are attempting to expand the bridgehead on the southern bank of the Severskiy Donets River.
Heavy fighting continues in Popasna and Mariinka.
110th tank repair plant in Kharkiv. 10 tanks loaded onto railway platforms:
Reinforcements in the Kharkiv region
In the Zaporizhzhya and Huliaypole regions, the front lines remain unchanged. Russian forces are expected to offence in this area after taking full control over the city Mariupol. To the east of Huliaypole, separate clashes for some small settlements continue, but no important movement of the Russian troops is expected before their reinforcement.
There is also fighting in Severodonetsk and Lysychansk, where there are heavy fires after shelling. After a massive artillery shelling of Severodonetsk, LPR forces reportedly attempted to storm the city. The AFU units repelled the attack.
Footage from the 29th checkpoint, after it was stormed by the LPR army (21+):
The Ukrainian Armed Forces shelled residential areas of Rubizhne and Donetsk with heavy artillery. A cistern with nitric acid reportedly exploded for the second time in Rubizhne.
On Tuesday, militants blew up a tank containing hydrochloric acid. A poisonous cloud hung over the city for several hours. LINK
On Saturday evening, the provocation reportedly repeated. In Rubezhnoye, the Armed Forces of Ukraine blew up a tank with nitric acid.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces are trying to move forces to the east to reinforce the AFU groupings deployed in the Donbass region.
Slovyansk has been turned into a fortress city where 30,000 AFU soldiers and 200 MLRS systems are deployed. All-new weapons from the US, UK, France, and Germany are sent to the eastern front, 24 thousand weapons are already in service with the AFU.
Russian tanks are firing at the Ukrainian military in the Slovyansk direction. The artillery of the Russian Armed Forces is shelling the AFU near the village of Dolhonkoye. It is near the border of the Kharkiv and Donetsk regions, in the direction of Slovyansk.
Now there is a build-up of Russian forces at the bridgehead on the southern bank of the Donets River for upcoming operations to take control over the Slovyansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration and Barvenkovo.
After the bloody attack on the train station in the town of Kramatorsk on April 8, which left at least 57 civilians dead, new evidences confirmed the guilt of the AFU. The fact that the Tochka-U missile was a Ukrainian one was revealed thanks to Italian journalists who showed its series number. LINK
In Kostyantynivka, Kramatorsk District of the DPR, the AFU equipped firing positions and deployed heavy weapons in the buildings of local schools No. 2 and No. 15, the city hospital, and residential buildings located on Yemelyanov Street.
In the city of Mariupol, the AFU units, including nationalist fighters, are trapped in the Azovmash facilities. The area is still being mopped up by Russian and DPR troops. Ukrainian troops left Azovmash B, with Russian units advancing from the north, west and east joining in near the second bridge. The intensity of local fighting is lower than the fighting for Azovstal.
The asphalt concrete plant which is part of a large industrial zone in the north of Mariupol and is adjacent directly to the territory of the Ilyich plant, was taken under the control of the DPR.
In the Primorsky district in the right-bank part of the city, intense fighting continues. Fighting for the 7th micro district has ended. Fierce clashes continue in the seaport area. The AFU remain in control over the administrative buildings in the Primorsky district and high-rise buildings along the Lenin Street.
Fighting continues in the left-bank part of the city. The bridge from the right bank to Azovstal was undermined.
One can note the positional nature of the clashes and emphasize the importance of airstrikes on the enemy positions by each side.
At the same time, the Kiev regime continues its bloody offensive in the media. Such provocations as the missile attack in Kramatorsk are being spread into the information field and become the object of media discussions to blame one of the parties to the conflict. Meanwhile, other bloody provocations remain silenced. This was the case of the bloody attack on civilians in the center of the city of Donetsk.
It is difficult to predict how events will develop further, since on the one hand there are successes of the Russian army in the south and southeast of Ukraine, and on the other hand Ukraine is constantly receiving military assistance from the EU, the UK and the USA. In the short term, the balance of power is unlikely to change; Russia’s advantage lies in its strategic positions, while Ukraine’s advantage lies in material assistance from the West.
