March 12, the Russian Offensive

Sourced from reputed pro-Russian site

SF: On March 12, the Russian Armed Forces and units of the people’s militias of Donbas continued their offensive operations against Kyiv’s forces. As in the previous days, the most active military actions are ongoing in the southern and eastern parts of Ukraine.

In the region of Donbas, units of the People’s Militia of the Donetsk Republic, with the fire support of the Russian Armed Forces, took control of Valerianovka, Zeleny Gai and blocked Novoandreevka from the south and east.

Forces of the Lugansk People’s Republic took control of Surovtsevka, Schedrischevo, Zhitlovka and blocked Rubezhnoe.

As to the actions of the Armed Forces of Russia, the defense ministry reported that they reached Novodonetskoe, Novomayorskoe and Pavlovka.

At the same time, pro-Kyiv forces reported the intensification of strikes in the area of the city of Mykolaiv in the southern sector of the operations. Over the past days, Russian forces have worked to block the city and as of March 12 the operation to do this is its active phase. Currently, the city is fully blocked from the south, southeast and southwest and Russian units actively operation north and east of the city.

Taking into account the recent loss of Volnovakha by pro-Kyiv forces and the advances in Mariupol, the general situation for the Kyiv government and its forces in the southern part of the country looks like almost total collapse of the organized defense. The remaining pro-Kyiv forces act as separate units that try to keep control over important points without any chances for gaining initiative or organizing large counter-attack.

The video of the helicopter landing operation of Russian forces released by the Russian side. The video likely shows operation to take control the Hostomel airfield near Kyiv:

A forward unit of Russian forces operates in Chernihiv region:

A strike on a BMP armoured vehicle of Kyiv’s forces:

On top of this, in the morning of March 12, the Russian Armed Forces carried out another strike with high-precision long-range weapons on the military infrastructure of Ukraine. The Russian side reported that the strike disabled the military airfield in Vasylkov and the Main Centre of Radio and Radio-Intelligence of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Brovory.

During the past day, Russian operational-tactical and army aviation hit 145 military assets of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. 3 anti-aircraft missile systems, 8 command posts and communication centers, 5 ammunition and fuel depots, 78 areas of military equipment concentration were among the targets.

Russian aviation and military air defense forces shot down 5 unmanned aerial vehicles, including 2 Bayraktar TB-2 UAVs and 1 Tochka-U tactical missile.

According to the Russian side, since the start of the operation, Russian forces have disabled 3,491 objects of the military infrastructure of Ukraine. The following military equipment of Kyiv’s forces were destroyed: 123 unmanned aerial vehicles, 1,127 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 115 multiple launch rocket systems, 423 field artillery guns and mortars, 934 units of special military vehicles.

A fresh video showing the work of Ka-52 attack helicopters:

The recent actions of the Kyiv government in the international sphere as well as on the ground (especially actions to sabotage evacuation of civilians from the combat zone) demonstrate that the Ukrainian leadership is not interested in a diplomatic solution of the conflict at the current stage. This posture creates condition for the resumption of the active offensive operations of the Russian Armed Forces across Ukraine. It seems that some kind of ‘diplomatic understanding’ between Moscow and Kyiv could get at least some prospects only after the full collapse of the defense of Kyiv’s forces in Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Mariupol cities.

Delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in Ukraine:

A map summary of the military situation in Ukraine as of March 11: