Day 84 of Putin’s War. Army repulses 12 enemy attacks in the east, Russia launches missile strike on Dnipro
Demining work continues in Borodyanka, Kyiv Oblast. (Photo:REUTERS/Carlos Barria)
Today, May 18, is the 84th day of Ukraine's defense against a full-scale Russian invasion.
Ukraine's attention is now focused on the evacuation of the defenders of Mariupol, which began on May 16-17: several hundred Ukrainian servicemen were taken from Azovstal to Russian-occupied territories in Donetsk Oblast, hoping to be exchanged for Russian prisoners of war later.
In the evening of May 17, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the evacuation of the Ukrainian troops from the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol was underway, led by the Ukrainian military and intelligence agencies.
"The most influential international mediators have been involved (in the evacuation)," the president added.
Military situation in Ukraine, May 18
7.55 p.m. Invading Russian forces are continuing their attempts to attack the Donbas, but without success, says Ukraine’s General Staff. Here is the General Staff’s update of the situation in Ukraine as of 6 p.m. on May 18, on the 84th day since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion:
·
the
Russian invaders are continuing their offensive in the east, shelling along the
entire front line and deep into the defenses of Ukrainian forces in the Donetsk
operational area and in the area of Slavyansk, trying to strengthen their
offensive;
·
the second
stage of a combat readiness test is underway in the Belarusian army, lasting until
May 21. The military is working on crossing water obstacles and testing air
defense forces and equipment. The threat of missile strikes from Belarus
remains;
·
in the
northern area, the enemy fired artillery and mortars at Yanzhulivka, Chernihiv
Oblast, and Progress, Sumy Oblast;
·
the
Russians are equipping additional firing positions and defensive structures in
the border areas of the Bryansk and Kursk oblasts. According to the General
Staff, enemy units there are replenishing their supplies;
·
in the
Slobozhansky area in the border areas of Belgorod and Voronezh oblasts, the
Russian military is keeping the air force units ready;
·
in the
Kharkiv area, the enemy is trying to hold the occupied area and shelling the
positions of Ukrainian troops, and conducting counterattacks to try to restore
the lost positions;
·
as a
result of an offensive, the Armed Forces of Ukraine liberated the settlement of
Dementiivka in Kharkiv Oblast, while fighting continues in Ternova district, where
the invaders are conducting an offensive;
·
in the Slavyansk
area, the enemy fought unsuccessfully in the area of Dovgenky with the
support of artillery, and suffered casualties;
·
in the
Lyman area, the enemy is trying to gain a foothold, using artillery to strike
at civilian targets in the areas of Toshkivka, Zoloty, Avdiivka, Volodymyrivka
and Vodyany;
·
in the
Severodonetsk area, the enemy assaulted Nizhny district without success. In the
Bakhmut area, the invaders are conducting an offensive, trying to improve their
tactical situation. The enmy also stormed the area of Katerynivka without
success;
·
in the
Avdiyivka area, the invaders attacked near Novoselivka, suffered losses, and
retreated. The enemy also assaulted Novobahmutivka and Vesely, but without
success;
·
in the Novopavlovsk
and Zaporizhzhya areas, the Russians fired on residential buildings and
infrastructure in the Novoandriyivka, Kamyansky, Orikhiv, Olhovsky, and
Poltavka areas;
·
Lupareve,
Posad-Pokrovske, Vysunsk, Osokorivka and Novovorontsovka came under enemy fire
in the South Bug river area;
· According to the General Staff, in the temporarily occupied areas of Luhansk Oblast on May 16-17, there were spontaneous protests by relatives of those forcibly mobilized into the ranks of the Russian invading forces.
6.45 p.m. The
Ukrainian army has liberated the village of Dementiivka in Kharkiv Oblast from
Russian occupation, the General Staff said. The village is directly north of
the city of Kharkiv, about 8 kilometers from the Ukrainian-Russian border. However,
the enemy is advancing in the area of the settlement of Ternova, about 38 kilometers to the north-east of Kharkiv, and fighting there continues.
6.21 p.m. Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelensky has proposed that Ukraine’s parliament extend
martial law and mobilization for another three months The decree submitted by the
president proposes to extend martial law and mobilization for 90 days from May
25, 2022.
5.36 p.m. Adviser to the Head of the President's Office Mykhailo Podoliak has told Radio NV that the evacuation of defenders from the Azovstal plant in Mariupol is continuing, but that the process is difficult, and therefore called for people to be “careful” when discussing this topic.
4.46 p.m. All life in the Sea of Azov could be completely wiped out as a consequence of the bombing of the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol by Russia, Mariupol City Council has warned. The council said a technical facility in Azovstal that holds tens of thousands of tons of concentrated sulfuric acid may have been damaged as a result of bombing of the plant by Russian troops. If the acid were to be discharged into the sea, all life would be wiped out, the council said.
4.23 p.m. Ukraine’s
army destroyed a command post of a Russian marines brigade, killing three
officers and wounding 18 others, the Department of Strategic Communications of
the Armed Forces of Ukraine said. It said the Ukrainian military destroyed a
command post of the 810th Separate Marine Brigade (unit 13140, Sevastopol) of
the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
4.21 p.m. Sanctions imposed by the West on Russia because
of its invasion of Ukraine are ending imports of equipment and chemicals for
sewage treatment plants, which could lead to Russia drowning in effluent in the
literal and figurative sense in the near future, international commentator Ivan
Yakovyna said on Radio NV. He also said that Ukraine has “awakened the West,” saving
the whole of Western civilization from decline, and now united countries
together will be able to isolate China and curb its appetites for world
domination.
3.52 p.m. Luhansk Oblast has
been left completely without power, with invading Russian forces having shut
down the last large substation in the region, reported Serhiy Haidai, the head
of the Luhansk Regional State Administration. "About an hour ago, power
disappeared in those houses in the region where it still remained,” Haidai said.
“There is active fighting near Lysychansk, there was a hit on a 220 kV power
line." Haidai said the damage is very serious, and repairs will be
impossible until the cessation of hostilities.
3.43 p.m. The European
Commission will provide new macro-financial assistance to Ukraine worth up to EUR
9 billion. According to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen,
these funds will be allocated in the short term for "current needs to
support the government, the state budget."
3.21 p.m. Russian soldier
Vadim Shishimarin has pleaded guilty to killing a 62-year-old Ukrainian civilian in
Sumy Oblast. He is the first Russian soldier to plead guilty to war crimes
committed in Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
2.44 p.m. Invading Russian
troops fired Grad rockets at a column of cars in Kherson Oblast, killing
three civilians and wounding six, Ukraine’s Prosecutor General's Office
reports. It said the incident took place near the village of Davydiv Brid. The
civilians were attempting to drive to the Beryslav district of Kherson Oblast, prosecutors said.
2.41 p.m. Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelensky has addressed Ukrainians on the Day of Remembrance
of the victims of the genocide of the Crimean Tatar people. In his address, the
president of Ukraine drew parallels with 1944, when Crimean Tatars survived
deportation and the same crimes that invading Russian troops are committing now
– the abduction and deportation of Ukrainians.
2.16 p.m. In Melitopol
Ukrainian partisans blew up a Russian army armored train, according to adviser
to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko. An explosive
charge was detonated under a car with personnel, and the railway line was
damaged, Gerashchenko said. The number of killed and wounded is being verified,
he said.
1.11 p.m. A Ukrainian
army counteroffensive may start in Luhansk Oblast in the summer, Serhiy Haidai,
head of the Luhansk Regional State Administration, has said. "According to
our information, the Russians are digging in the area of Svatovo and
Starobilsk, building fortifications, digging in tanks, digging lines of
defense,” Haidai said. “They also understand perfectly well that a
counterattack by the Ukrainian military is possible in a month or two.”
1.08 p.m. The death
toll from yesterday’s Russian missile strikes on the village of Desna in
Chernihiv Oblast has risen to 11, the regional branch of the State Emergencies Service
reported. Another 14 more people were injured, the service said. Earlier, eight
people were reported killed and 11 injured.
12.08 p.m. Pentagon on the situation in Mariupol: The resistance of the Ukrainian military was admirable. “I think we certainly would defer to them, the Ukrainians, to define what's going on there,” Pentagon Spokesman John Kirby said at a briefing on May 17. “And look, no question that the civilians that were stuck there at the plant, who have finally been able to get out and the soldiers that continued to resist there, did so bravely and skillfully. And it's quite admirable to think how long they were able to hold out. And (Ukrainian) President (Volodymyr) Zelensky referred to them as heroes. I think we would all agree with that.”
11.37 a.m. The Baltic
states and Poland have asked NATO to increase its military presence in their
territories due to the threat from Russia, U.S. newspaper the Washington Post
reports. "Russia's direct military aggression against NATO allies cannot
be ruled out," the Washington Post wrote, quoting a confidential joint
proposal from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
10.53 a.m. Three
people were injured as a result of this morning’s missile attack by Russia on the eastern-central city of Dnipro, reported head of the Dnipropetrovsk
military administration Valentyn Reznichenko. He said that the casualties – two
women and one man – had already been taken to hospital.
10.11 a.m. The
situation in the Luhansk region is getting worse: the invaders are preparing
for an offensive and massing equipment, said Serhiy Haidai, the head of the
Luhansk Regional State Administration. "The Rashists (Russian fascists)
continue to collect weapons and equipment from Russia,” Haidai said in a post
on the Telegram messenger service. “They are advancing in the Severodonetsk
direction, they were trying to get closer to the regional center (Severodonetsk)
through Borovenky.”
10.01 a.m. In Sumy Oblast
an attack by the enemy from the territory of the Russian Federation was
repulsed, said Dmytro Zhyvytskyi, head of the Sumy Regional State
Administration. He said that artillery and mortar shelling from Russia into Sumy
Oblast began last night. The attack was repulsed, and no one was injured. At
half past five in the morning, the Russians fired on the village of Dmytrivka
in Okhtyrka district. No one was injured, but a private house was damaged, Zhyvytskyi
said.
10.00 a.m. The Russian
military launched a missile strike on Odesa Oblast from the Black Sea, the
Ukrainian military reported. There was no significant damage or casualties from
the attack. The military did not specify where the missile hit.
9.55 a.m. Russia carried
out a missile strike on Mykolaiv: an apartment house caught fire, and one
person was wounded. According to the State Emergency Service, the victim had
shrapnel wounds.
9.45 a.m. Total combat
losses of Russia since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. According
to the Ukrainian General Staff, the enemy suffered its greatest recent losses
in the Slovyansk, Kryvyi Rih and Zaporizhzhya areas. The cumulative totals of
losses are as follows (change in last day in parentheses:
·
Personnel –
28,300 (+400)
·
Tanks – 1,235
(+16)
·
Armored
fighting vehicles – 3,009 (+34)
·
Artillery
systems – 586 (+8)
·
Multiple
rocket launcher systems – 199 (+1)
·
Air
defense systems – 91 (+1)
·
Aircraft –
202 (+1)
·
Helicopters
– 167 (+0)
·
UAV drones
of operational and tactical level – 441 (+5)
·
Cruise
missiles – 102 (+5)
·
Ships /
boats – 13 (+0)
·
Vehicles
and tanker trucks – 2,137 (+28)
· Special equipment – 43 (+0).
9.23 a.m. The UK
Ministry of Defense noted the importance of the defense of Mariupol for
Ukraine, and the involvement of Chechen force in capturing the city. The UK
ministry noted that the ten-week defense of Mariupol by Ukrainian soldiers had frustrated
Russia’s attempts to capture a key Ukrainian city early in the invasion, and “inflicted
costly personnel losses amongst Russian forces.” The ministry added that the
use of “disparate” resources by the Russian army, such as units from Chechnya, was
“likely contributing to a disunited command which continues to hamper Russia’s
operations.”
9.13 a.m. Sweden and
Finland have simultaneously officially applied for NATO membership: Sweden's
Ambassador to NATO Axel Wernhoff and his Finnish counterpart Klaus Korhonen have
handed over the application documents to NATO at the alliance’s headquarters in
Brussels, Belgium. The application documents were signed by their countries’ foreign
ministers on May 17.
9.01 a.m. Invading
Russian forces are preparing an offensive in Zaporizhzhya Obast, Ukraine’s
General Staff said. It said that in the Novopavlovsk and Zaporizhzhya areas, Russian
forces are strengthening groups of troops to conduct an offensive on Polohi and
Orikhiv.
8.38 a.m. In total,
more than 653 children have been injured in Ukraine as a result of full-scale
armed aggression by the Russian Federation, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's
Office said. A total of 424 children have been injured by Russian attacks.
8.01 a.m. In the
Donetsk area, invading Russian forces are continuing their offensive in the
Lyman, Severodonetsk, Bakhmut, Avdiyivka and Kurakhiv areas, Ukraine’s General
Staff said. In particular, in the Bakhmut and Severodonetsk areas, the Russian invading
army has concentrated up to fifteen helicopters to support the offensive in Luhansk
Oblast.
7.50 a.m. Russia carried
out a missile strike on the eastern-central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, said the
head of Dnipropetrovsk regional military administration. Valentyn Reznichenko. "It’s
been an anxious night and a restless morning,” Reznichenko wrote on Telegram in
the morning of May 18. “There was an enemy attack on Dnipro. One missile was
shot down by our air defenses. The wreckage fell into a private yard. A woman
was injured, and two houses were damaged. Another missile hit some transport infrastructure.
It was destroyed."
7.20 a.m. In Donetsk
and Luhansk areas over the last day the Ukrainian army repulsed 12 enemy
attacks, Ukraine’s General Staff said in an update. Three tanks, three
artillery systems, six units of armored combat vehicles and seven enemy
vehicles were destroyed. The occupiers are advancing in the Izyum area, where
they have deployed jet and artillery units, the General Staff said.
6.18 a.m. Ukrainian partisans
in Russian-occupied Melitopol have killed a high-ranking Russian officer,
Zaporizhzhya Oblast Administration said. It noted that on May 17, the Russian
military intensified inspections of private vehicles – probably in search of
guerrillas.
5.45 a.m. Invading Russian
forces have introduced a procedure of "filtration" in each occupied
city, Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Liudmyla Denisova said. According to
her, for "especially dangerous" in the ideological sense and
"unreliable" Ukrainians, "filtration" is becoming a continual
process – people are forced to go through it every three days. Citizens of
Ukraine are also interrogated, carefully examined, and held in inhumane conditions,
humiliated and tortured.
4:53 a.m. The Russian
military has brought into the temporarily occupied Ukrainian city of Melitopol in
Zaporizhzhya Oblast "whisperers," who seed fake narratives in support
of the invading Russian forces, Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Administration
said in a post in the Telegram messenger service.
4.46 a.m. The Ministry
of Digital Transformation of Ukraine has opened a Diya.Biznes Action Center in
Warsaw. This is due to the fact that a large number of Ukrainians have sought
refuge in Poland due to the full-scale invasion of Russia.
3.43 a.m. Ukraine’s armed
forces destroyed 15 enemy air targets on May 17, the General Staff reported. The
Air Force's strike aircraft struck at the company's tactical company groups,
equipment, manpower, and enemy ammunition depots, the General Staff said.
3.13 a.m. Ukraine’s
General Staff reported that Ukrainian artillery of its assault and ground forces
had destroyed an enemy battery of Buk anti-aircraft missile systems.
3.03 a.m. The United
States and its European allies are setting up routes to export Ukrainian wheat
and corn, U.S. cable television news channel CNN reported. The task will be the
focus of U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken at a meeting at the UN, CNN
said.
3:03 a.m. Russia has
taken hostage 280 Ukrainians in Zaporizhzhya Oblast, the regional administration
reported. So far, 163 of them have been released, and 117 are still being held
captive by the invaders.
2.29 a.m. The United
States plans to deprive Russia of the ability to pay back debts on its
government bonds. This will lead to an inevitable default in Russia, writes
news agency Bloomberg, citing its sources.
2.00 a.m. Ukraine must
decide for itself how to end the war waged by Russia against it, the U.S. State
Department said in a statement. The United States is doing everything to ensure
that Ukrainians successfully achieve their goals, the State Department said.
1.58 a.m. Adviser to
the head of the President's Office Oleksiy Arestovich said that as of May 17 in
Russia's war against Ukraine, Ukraine’s military had liberated one-and-a-half
times more territory than had been occupied by Russian occupation forces since
the full-scale invasion began on Feb. 24. He said that the largest
concentration of Russian troops is concentrated in the occupied territories in
eastern Ukraine, as well as in places where they are trying to attack.
12.10 a.m. In his nightly
video address, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the mission to evacuate Ukraine’s
soldiers from the Azovstal plant in Mariupol was underway, led by the Ukrainian
military and intelligence agencies. The head of state said that he had
discussed the issue during a conversation with his French counterpart Emmanuel
Macron.
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