Russo-Ukraine War - 08 March 2023 - Day 378

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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 4 March 2023, the Russian Ministry of Defence released a video of a rare visit to Ukraine by Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu. There is a realistic possibility that this was partially in response to recent footage of the owner of Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, visiting his fighters on the front line. Wagner is in a high-profile dispute with the Russian Ministry of Defence and Shoigu is likely sensitive to being compared to Prigozhin.

The only deployed Russian field commander shown in the video was Colonel General Rustam Muradov. It is notable that Muradov is responsible for the Vuhledar sector of Donetsk Oblast, where several assaults have failed in the last three months.

Until recently, the Russian command likely saw a breakthrough at Vuhledar as a key way to achieve an operationally significant breakthrough in Ukraine's lines. Russian planners are likely facing the dilemma of attempting another Vuhledar assault or supporting intense fighting further north near Bakhmut and Kremina.

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that the Russian Federation has not abandoned its intentions to occupy Ukraine and continues its full-scale armed aggression.

The Russian invaders' main focus is the offensive operations on Kup'yans'k, Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, and Shakhtars'ke axes.

Russia continues to violate the rules of International Humanitarian Law, striking and shelling with artillery the civilian facilities and homes.

During the day of March 8, Russian forces launched 22 air strikes, and 29x MLRS attacks. In particular, Russian forces used 1x Shahed-136 UAV. The drone was destroyed.

The threat of missile strikes across Ukraine remains.

Volyn, Polissya, Sivershchyna, and Slobozhanshchyna axes: no significant changes. No formation of offensive groups were found. During the day of March 8, Russian forces shelled the vicinities of settlements of Sen'kivka (Chernihiv oblast), Kharkivka, Atyns'ke (Sumy oblast), Strilecha, Ternova, Vil'cha, Kam'yanka, Dvorichna, and Holubivka (Kharkiv oblast).
Kup'yans'k and Lyman axes: Russia continues its attempts to break through the defence of Ukrainian troops. Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensives towards Hryanykivka, Spirne, and Bilohorivka. The Russian invaders fired artillery at a number of settlements. Among them are Vil'shana, Kup'yans'k, Kyslivka, and Pershotravneve (Kharkiv oblast), Stel'makhivka, Nevs'ke, Chervonopopivka (Luhansk oblast), Novoselivka, Kolodyazi, Dibrova, and Berestove (Donetsk oblast).
Bakhmut axis: Russia continues to advance. The assault on the city of Bakhmut does not cease. Ukrainian defenders repelled attacks in the vicinities of Orikhovo-Vasylivka, Dubovo-Vasylivka, Bakhmut, and Ivanivske. Zaliznyans'ke, Hryhorivka, Bohdanivka, Bakhmut, Kostyantynivka, Kurdyumivka, Ozaryanivka, Dyliivka, Druzhba, and New York (Donetsk oblast) came under Russian fire.
Avdiivka and Shakhtars'ke axes: Russia conducted unsuccessful offensive operations towards Kam'yanka, Sjeverne, Pervomais'ke, Nevel's'ke, and Novomykhailivka (Donetsk oblast). Russian forces shelled more than 15x settlements, including Oleksandropil', Lastochkyne, Avdiivka, Vodyane, Pervomais'ke, Karlivka, Heorhiivka, Vuhledar, Zolota Nyva, and Velyka Novosilka (Donetsk oblast).
Zaporizhzhia and Kherson axes: Russia is defending. Over 30x settlements near the line of contact came under fire. These include Vremivka, Novosilka, Novopil' (Donetsk oblast), Hulyaipole, Zaliznychne, Bilohir'ya, Mala Tokmachka, Orikhiv, Novoandriivka, Kam'yans'ke (Zaporizhzhia oblast), Zmiivka, Vesele, Mykolaivka, Ol'hivka, L'vove, Ponyativka, Mykil's'ke, Antonivka, Zelenivka, and Dniprovs'ke (Kherson oblast).
In Kreminna (Luhansk oblast), there has been a spike in the number of cases of eviction of local residents from their private homes by representatives of the so-called local "authorities" established by the occupation regime. The evictions were backed by the invading military to provide additional accommodation for newly arrived representatives of the Russian armed forces.

The level of dissatisfaction with the commanders' actions has been reported spiking among those mobilized to the armed forces of the Russian Federation. The main reason for the dissatisfaction is the increasing number of cases of using as assault troops those occupants who were previously trained to serve in the ranks of support units and have no combat experience. This causes a drastic increase in the number of casualties, and the "base area soldiers" do not agree to go to their deaths.

The Ukrainian Air Force launched 11x air strikes on the concentrations of the occupiers and 1x air strike on the position of the Russian forces' anti-aircraft missile system.

During the day of March 8, units of Ukrainian missile troops and artillery hit 1x Russian command post.

The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported tha, over the past day, Russian troops have attacked 87 artillery positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (APU) and 207 areas of concentration of manpower and equipment. The 36D6 radar station was destroyed in Novoaleksandrivka, and the headquarters of the 59th brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was destroyed in Memrik. Four shells from the HIMARS rocket system and five drones were intercepted.

At the same time, in addition to delivering strikes on enemy positions, the activities of ten sabotage groups were suppressed in the Kupyansk direction. In total, up to 60 Ukrainian soldiers, two armored vehicles and three cars, as well as an Akatsiya self-propelled gun, were liquidated here.

Meanwhile, in the Kherson direction, as a result of artillery fire, more than 50 soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, two cars and a D-30 howitzer were destroyed in a day.

Today, the enemy attacked the power line in Energodar using a drone. Part of the wires are out of order, a fire broke out in a nearby field.

The situation in the Donbass

In the Liman direction, units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were hit in the areas of the settlements of Nevskoye, Novolyubovka, Chervonopopovka, Chervonaya Dibrova and Grigorovka. Their total losses amounted to 130 military personnel, two infantry fighting vehicles, three armored cars, three cars and a Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer.

In the Donetsk direction, as a result of hostilities, up to 180 Ukrainian soldiers, two tanks, three infantry fighting vehicles, five vehicles, an Akatsiya and a Gvozdika self-propelled gun were liquidated.

At the same time, to the south, the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were defeated in the areas of Ugledar, Pavlovka, Novoselka and Novodanilovka. During the day, up to 65 enemy servicemen, one tank, two armored combat vehicles, three pickup trucks, and a Msta-B howitzer were liquidated here.

Units of PMC "Wagner" completed the cleaning of the eastern districts of Bakhmut (Artemovsk): Dacha, Industrial Zone, Meat Processing Plant, Zabakhmutka. At the same time, Ilyinovka and Stupki were liberated to the west of the Bakhmutka River. The most active battles are observed in Budenovka and Sobachevka. Also in the evening, the "Wagnerites" entered Dubovo-Vasilyevka, which is north of the strategic city.

Meanwhile, a new field hospital was set up in the war zone for the Wagnerites, with all the necessary equipment for emergency care and surgical intervention.