The 388th day of the Russia-Ukraine War: official operational information by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on 18.03.2023.
The Russian Federation’s main focus is the offensive operations on Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, Marinka, and Shakhtarske directions. Bakhmut remains the epicenter of the fighting.
Failing to achieve the desired result on the battlefield, the Russian Federation uses terror tactics against civilians. Russian troops are shelling towns and villages, as well as critical infrastructure, in violation of International Humanitarian Law.
During the day of March 18, the Russian army launched 5x missile attacks, 4x of which targeted civilian infrastructure facility in Zaporizhzhia. Russian military also launched 16x air strikes and more than 20x MLRS attacks.
The probability of Russian missile attacks across Ukraine remains high.
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- Volyn, Polissya, Sivershchyna, and Slobozhanshchyna directions: the operational situation is stable. Russian units remain stationed near the state border of Ukraine, but no formation of offensive groups was found. The training of units of the territorial troops of the Russian Armed Forces continues at the training grounds of the Republic of Belarus. During the day of March 18, Russian soldiers shelled the vicinities of settlements of Oleksandrivka (Chernihiv oblast), Kharkivka, Starikove (Sumy oblast), Chervona Zorya, Veterynarne, Strilecha, Starytsya, Vovchansk, and Velykyi Burluk (Kharkiv oblast).
- Kupyansk and Lyman directions: the Russian army continues its attempts to break through the defense of Ukrainian troops. Russian troops conducted unsuccessful offensive operations in the vicinities of settlements of Dibrova, Verkhnokamyanske, and Spirne. Russian military fired artillery at the vicinities of settlements of Putnykove, Krasne Pershe, Dvorichna, Hryanykivka, Kupyansk, Krokhmalne, Berestove (Kharkiv oblast), Novoselivske, Nevske, Bilohorivka (Luhansk oblast), Spirne, and Fedorivka (Donetsk oblast).
- Bakhmut direction: the Russian army continues attempts to capture the city of Bakhmut. Ukrainian troops repelled Russian attacks in the vicinities of settlements of Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Hryhorivka, and in the northern part of Bakhmut. Vasyukivka, Zaliznyanske, Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Hryhorivka, Bakhmut, Ivanivske, Chasiv Yar, Kurdyumivka, Ozarianivka, and Pivnichne (Donetsk oblast) came under Russian fire.
- Avdiivka, Marinka, Shakhtarske directions: the Russian army conducted unsuccessful offensive operations towards the settlements of Kamyanka, Sjeverne, Pervomaiske, and Marinka. Kamyanka, Lastochkyne, Avdiivka, Tonenke, Heorhiivka, Nevelske, Marinka, Vuhledar, and Velyka Novosilka (Donetsk oblast) came under Russian fire.
- Zaporizhzhia and Kherson axes: the Russian army is defending. In particular, Olhivske, Chervone, Hulyaipole, Mala Tokmachka, Novodanylivka, Novoandriivka, and Kamyanka (Zaporizhzhia oblast) came under fire. The city of Kherson was shelled yet again.
Russian soldiers continue to use civilian institutions in the temporarily occupied territory of Zaporizhzhia oblast for their own needs. In particular, the Russian army is using a school building in one of the settlements of Polohivsky district as a field hospital with 50 beds. In this way, Russian troops attempt to reduce the time for their sanitary losses personnel to return to active duty.
In Rubizhne (Luhansk oblast), the local so-called “authorities” put in office by Russian troops are forcing the residents to receive Russian citizenship. Ukrainian passports are not yet being taken away from people, however, a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation is required for employment.
During the day of March 18, the Ukrainian Air Force launched 6x air strikes on the concentrations of Russian soldiers.
During the day of March 18 also, Ukrainian military shot down 1x Russian Shahed-136 UAV, and missile and artillery units hit 7x concentrations of Russian personnel and military equipment.
Source: The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
See also: Ukrainian air defense destroyed 11 out of 16 Russian drones
