The Ukrainian army’s general staff acknowledged that Russian forces had some success advancing westward from the outskirts of the city of Donetsk. It said Russian forces continued to shell several settlements west and southwest of Donetsk. “The enemy has partial success in the direction of Opytni,” he reported. Opytne is just north of Donetsk city’s airport and has been a front line since 2014, when the airport was destroyed in fighting between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian separatists. The general staff also said that Russian forces had partial success “in the direction of Novomykhailivka (south of Mariinka).” On Tuesday, Valery Zaluzny, the commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said Russian forces were “continuing to advance” in Donbas, but said the “intense” situation was “fully under control”. “The enemy’s main efforts are focused on pushing our troops out of the Donetsk region. The most intense situation is now in the Avdiivka-Pisky-Mariinka axis,” Zaluzhny said. This axis is an area about 25 kilometers (15 mi) west of the city of Donetsk and includes front lines in the Opytne and Novomykhailivka regions. In its briefing on Wednesday, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had inflicted heavy casualties on Ukrainian forces through artillery strikes near Mariinka. It also reported that Russian air strikes inflicted casualties on Ukrainian units further south around Vuhledar and Dobrovillia. The Russians also appear to be launching new attacks in the Kharkiv region, striking westward into Ukrainian defenses. “The enemy tried to break through the defense of our troops in the direction of Lebiazhe and Bazaliivka settlements, but was unsuccessful and retreated,” the General Staff said. He added that the Russians had also failed to advance north of Sloviansk. The Ukrainians also said there had been no change in the front line around Bakhmut in Donetsk, which has been under shelling for weeks. They said that “Ukrainian soldiers suppressed all enemy attempts to improve the tactical position of units” in areas to the east and south of the city. In recent days, Russian forces appear to have shifted the focus of their attacks to areas near the city of Donetsk and parts of the Kharkiv region.
