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Russo-Ukraine War - 22 February 2023 - Day 364

Su	M	Tu	W	Th	F	Sa
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19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28

A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While GlobalSecurity.org takes utmost care to accurately report this news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

On 24 February 2022, Ukraine was suddenly and deliberately attacked by land, naval and air forces of Russia, igniting the largest European war since the Great Patriotic War. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" (SVO - spetsialnaya voennaya operatsiya) in Ukraine in response to the appeal of the leaders of the "Donbass republics" for help. That attack is a blatant violation of the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine. Putin stressed that Moscow's goal is the demilitarization and denazification of the country. The military buildup in preceeding months makes it obvious that the unprovoked and dastardly Russian attack was deliberately planned long in advance. During the intervening time, the Russian government had deliberately sought to deceive the world by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.

"To initiate a war of aggression... is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole." [Judgment of the International Military Tribunal]

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The UK Ministry of Defence reported that on 21 February 2023, President Putin made his first State of the Nation speech since 2021. He made it clear that he intends to continue with the 'special military operation' in Ukraine. He characterised Western elites as having "become a symbol of total unprincipled lies" and suspended Russia from the New START treaty.

Putin continued the bellicose tone he has adopted in speeches over the last six months but did not reveal any practical measures which might relieve Russia's current deadlock on the battlefield.

Putin continues to present a contradictory narrative of existential struggle, while insisting everything in Russia is fine and going to plan. This renders both messages ineffective.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that during the day of February 22, Russia launched 9x missile strikes, 4x of them – on the city of Kharkiv, and 10x air strikes. Russian invaders launched more than 20x MLRS attacks. The threat of missile strikes across Ukraine remains high.

Volyn, Polissya, Sivershchyna, and Slobozhanshchyna axes: no significant changes. Russia continues to maintain military presence near the state border of Ukraine. However, no signs of the formation of Russian offensive groups were found.
Russian forces fired mortars and artillery at the settlements of Mykhal'chyna Sloboda (Chernihiv oblast), Koren'ok, Boyaro-Lezhachi, Ryzhivka, and Basivka (Sumy oblast), as well as vicinities of 15x settlements in Kharkiv oblast. Among them are Tymofiivka, Starytsya, Vovchans'k, Budarky, Ambarne, and Bolohivka.
A Russian sabotage and reconnaissance group was detected in the vicinity of Bolohivka. The Ukrainian Defense Forces fired for effect, forcing them to retreat to the territory of the Russian Federation.
Russian forces conducted several unsuccessful offensives on Kup'yans'k and Lyman axes. The Russian invaders also attempted to infiltrate a sabotage and reconnaissance group in the vicinity of Fyholivka. Russian forces fired artillery at the vicinities of settlements of Kam'yanka, Hryanikivka, Kotlyarivka, Berestove (Kharkiv oblast), Nevs'ke, Kreminna, Kuz'myne, Dibrova, Bilohorivka (Luhansk oblast), Ivanivka, and Yampolivka (Donetsk oblast).
Bakhmut axis: Russia continues to attack the positions of Ukrainian troops near the settlements of Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Dubovo-Vasylivka, Berkhivka, Yahidne, and Bakhmut. Russia is active in aerial reconnaissance to spot for artillery fire. Vicinities of 18x settlements were shelled. Among them are Spirne, Vesele, Dubovo-Vasylivka, Berkhivka, Yahidne, Bakhmut, and Ozaryanivka.
Avdiivka and Shakhtars'ke axes: Russian forces launched an unsuccessful offensive near Novobakhmutivka, Vodyane, Nevel's'ke, Mar'inka, and Prechystivka. Russian forces fired artillery at the vicinities of about 20x settlements. In particular, these are Novobakhmutivka, Avdiivka, Pervomais'ke, Vodyane, Nevel's'ke, Krasnohorivka, Mar'inka, Paraskoviivka, Novomykhailivka, Vuhledar, and Velyka Novosilka (Donetsk oblast).
Zaporizhzhia axis: the vicinities of Vremivka, Novosilka, Novopil' (Donetsk oblast), and Malynivka, Hulyaipole, Zaliznychne, Novodanylivka, Kam'yans'ke (Zaporizhzhia oblast), and Vyshchetarasivka (Dnipropetrovsk oblast) were shelled.
Kherson axis: Russian occupation forces' artillery fire hit the settlements of Kherson oblast located on the right bank of the Dnipro River. In particular, Novotyahynka, Antonivka, and Chornobaivka.

The Russian occupiers are using the local infrastructure in the temporarily occupied part of Zaporizhzhia oblast for their own purposes, in particular, for their own enrichment. For example, the Russian invaders use one of the vehicle service stations in Tokmak not only to maintain their military equipment, but also to disassemble cars stolen from the local residents for parts to be further sold.

During the day of February 22, Ukrainian Air Force launched 10x air strikes on the concentrations of Russian personnel and military equipment. In the meantime, missile and artillery units hit 2x concentrations of Russian manpower.

Statements of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported that units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Kupyansky, Limansky, South-Donetsk and Donetsk directions were hit during the day. Ukrainian armed formations lost about 450 servicemen and a large amount of equipment. In the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), an enemy ammunition depot was destroyed.

In the Kherson direction, during the counter-battery fight, 2 D-30 howitzers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as 2 ammunition depots of the territorial defense, were destroyed.

Rocket troops and artillery hit 84 artillery units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, manpower and equipment in 113 districts. In the DPR, the command post of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the point of temporary deployment of foreign mercenaries were defeated.

The Aerospace Forces of the Russian Federation in the city of Sumy hit the workshop for the production and repair of large-caliber mortars and ammunition for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Air defense systems shot down 9 shells of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system, destroyed 10 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in the DPR, Lugansk People's Republic (LPR), Kherson and Kharkov regions.
Zaporozhye region

From February 7 to February 18, the UN Department disrupted the rotation of specialists from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at the Zaporozhye NPP three times, the Russian Foreign Ministry reports. Russia will consider this an attempt to obstruct the work of the agency at the station if the rotation does not take place after February 25th.

Acting Governor of the Zaporizhia region Yevgeny Balitsky said that the Sudoplatov battalion is replenished with 150 people every month. The first company is already participating in battles on the front line, the official said. Now the total number of formation is about 600 people.

Balitsky also said that the Russian Federation is ready for a counteroffensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Zaporozhye region and the protection of Energodar by all means. Shelves in the region are 100% complete, he stressed.

A cache with weapons and ammunition was found in Energodar. The cache contained about 20 boxes of ammunition and several dozen machine guns.

DPR

During the day, Ukrainian troops opened fire on Donetsk, as well as the settlements of Gorlovka, Makeevka, Aleksandrovka, Mineralnoye, Yakovlevka and Debaltseve. As a result of the attacks, a civilian was killed in Aleksandrovka, a direct hit on a dispensary was recorded in Makiivka, a palace of culture and a sports complex were damaged in Debaltseve, and the infrastructure of the Michurin penal colony was damaged in Gorlovka. Residential damage has also been reported.

Detachments of PMC "Wagner" control most of Berkhovka near Bakhmut, war correspondent Alexander Simonov said. There are also heavy fighting going on in Yagodnoe. In the city of Bakhmut, the "musicians" occupied a line of five-story buildings along Vatutin Lane and went out onto Shchedraya Street in Zabakhmutka, in Sobachevka they occupied two blocks north of 2nd Gogol Lane, in the Meat Processing Plant area, the "Wagnerites" aligned the front line along Zarechnaya Street.

Acting head of the DPR Denis Pushilin announced a possible increase in shelling of the territories of the republic by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on holidays. He noted that the artillery units of the allied forces are actively engaged in battery and counter-battery combat, and air defense is operating in an enhanced mode. However, the authorities are asking residents not to move through the streets unless absolutely necessary.

Pushilin's adviser, military-political expert Yan Gagin, said that if the West supplies Kyiv with JDAM-ER kits for aiming bombs in the Donbass, there will be practically no safe places left. The possible transfer of such ammunition to the Armed Forces of Ukraine became known in the morning.

LC

Acting head of the LPR Leonid Pasechnik said that the situation near Kremennaya remains difficult. Earlier in the morning, retired Lieutenant Colonel of the People's Militia of the Republic Andrei Marochko reported that Kyiv continues to transfer reinforcements to the area.

Employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the LPR and the Russian Guard found a cache of ammunition in an uninhabited building in the Novopskovskiy district. The cache contained five MON-100 anti-personnel mines, an RGD-5 grenade with a UZRGM fuse, and 2,980 rounds of 7.62 mm caliber.

A number of departments in Luhansk have transferred employees to remote work due to possible attacks by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on administrative buildings. At the same time, some departments will not work from Monday.

Vadim Onopriyenko, deputy director of the DPR Trauma Center, said that the supply of Western weapons to Ukraine, in particular 155 mm artillery shells, led to a sharp increase in the number of patients with severe injuries. He noted that the fighting has become more aggressive, and therefore the injuries from the category of "outpatient" have moved into the category of "hospital".