According to reports on social media, Russian troops tried to breach the border near Vovchansk in the Kharkiv region bordering Russia, but were repulsed and forced to retreat. The situation remains very tense and more attacks are expected, security expert Maria Avdeeva from Kharkiv, Ukraine, said on the social network.
“Vovchansk, northeast of Kharkiv, came under heavy Russian artillery fire last night and Russian reconnaissance units tried to cross the border but were defeated. The situation is tense. More fights are expected. Maybe the Russians are just testing the defense,” said a Swedish-Ukrainian group that reports on events in Ukraine.
Ukrainian police are now calling on civilians to leave the border town of Vovchansk or take shelter.
Ukrainian soldier Stanislav Osman of the Aidar battalion said Russian reconnaissance groups were working near the Kharkiv border near the town of Vovchansk. “During the night, the enemy made a strong artillery preparation, subversive reconnaissance groups tried to probe the border line and were hit. Main backups are expected to be deployed in the near future.”
“In the direction of Vovchansk in the Kharkiv region, the situation is now very difficult. It was a hard night,” said another fighter of the 24th separate nationalist offensive battalion Aidar. In the near future, according to him, it is expected to attract Russian main reserves.
The border town of Vovchansk is approximately 70 kilometers from Kharkiv.
Settlements in northeastern Ukraine in the Kharkiv region are subject to regular Russian attacks due to their proximity to the front line and the border with Russia.
Russia has recently stepped up attacks against Kharkiv, which had a population of 1.4 million in 2021, using rockets, cruise bombs and drones that destroy energy infrastructure and kill civilians.
In late March, Russia reportedly destroyed all electrical substations in Kharkiv, leaving Ukraine’s second-largest city without a stable electricity supply.
The mayor of Kharkiv, Ihor Terechov, said his city would be at risk of becoming a “second Aleppo” if left without Western help in procuring air defense systems.
After the fall of Avdijivka, when Ukraine announced on February 17 that it was withdrawing to positions west of the city, Ukrainian troops managed to repel a Russian attack on Kupjansk. Now the Russian troops focused on Kharkiv.
The advance of Russian forces comes at a time of a deep crisis in the supply of ammunition to the Ukrainian army.
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Ukraine (War in Ukraine)
Reports from the battlefield are difficult to verify in real time, regardless of whether they come from any side of the conflict. Both warring parties, for understandable reasons, may release completely or partially false (misleading) information.
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author: Natalia Brozovská
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