Russian forces offensive stalled, but Russia keeps bombing – General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

SVITLANA KIZILOVA — WEDNESDAY, 9 MARCH 2022, 01:14

On Tuesday, 8 March, the Russian aggressors continued to launch missile strikes on Ukrainian cities, while military equipment and manpower almost stopped the offensive. However, the enemy continues to make plans to capture Ukraine.

Source: Operational information of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of 24:00

Details: During the day, the enemy reduced the pace of the offensive operation, using mainly missile and bomb strikes on civilian infrastructure.

The Russian military continues to focus its main efforts on:

• encirclement and capture of Kyiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Mariupol, Mykolayiv, Chernihiv;
• creation of a land corridor between the Temporary Occupied Territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the mainland of the Russian Federation;
• advance toward the administrative borders of Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

Quote: "According to available information, the Russian aggressors are considering supplying their troops with fuel using the existing network of petrol stations and oil depots. Also, the enemy plans to create a network of field pipelines in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine, with a possibility of connecting them to the central oil pipeline and the supply of fuel from the territory of the Republic of Belarus."

Details: On the Polissya front, the Russian forces continue to hold the previously captured frontiers and municipalities, including Borodyanka, Kopyliv, Bucha, and Demydiv.

On the Babyntsi front, the Russian forces led an offensive, using up to five battalion tactical groups (BTGs), but were stopped and moved to defence in the area of Bucha.

Around the town of Buzov, with forces up to four BTGs from the 36th general army, despite suffering numerous losses, the Russian forces advanced toward the town of Yasnogorodka.

On the Siversk front, the aggressors continue their efforts to capture the city of Chernihiv.

From the Glukhiv area, Russian forces have tried to penetrate the defence operation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine but were stopped. To support the offensive towards the town of Kozelets, the aggressors are trying to set up and hold a pontoon-bridge crossing.

On the Slobozhansk front, the Russian forces keep trying to block Kharkiv from the north, but without much success. Simultaneously, they are launching missile and bomb strikes on civilian infrastructure in order to intimidate the civilian population.

The battle for Izium continues. The aggressor is setting up pontoon-bridge crossings over the Siverskyy Donets and Bereka rivers.

On the Donetsk front, the Russian forces continue offensive operations in the directions of Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia in order to reach the administrative borders of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. After  an unsuccessful offensive in the Troitske district, they are trying to resume the offensive in the direction of Zaporizhzhia and capture the city of Mariupol.

In the Tavriya and Southern directions, the Russian forces, employing up to seventeen BTGs, are holding Kherson, Enerhodar, and Vasylivka, and are regrouping for a further offensive in the direction of Zaporizhzhia. They have occupied the town of Polohy.

In the Black Sea and Azov operational zones, cruise missiles strikes, launched by the ships of the Russian Black Sea fleet and the Caspian flotilla, are expected against civilian and military targets.