Victory Chronicles-DAY 1185

Ukraine’s military confirmed it carried out a strike on a major Russian defense facility overnight on May 23, targeting the “Energia” plant in Yelets, a city in Russia’s Lipetsk region about 250 miles south of Moscow.

The Energia plant is one of Russia’s largest producers of chemical power sources and the only manufacturer of batteries used in guidance modules for aerial bombs, according to Ukrainian military officials. It also supplies batteries for Iskander-M ballistic missiles, sea-launched cruise missiles, and specialized military power systems.

The factory’s operations also supply critical power systems that enhance the functionality and precision of military equipment. 

According to Ukraine’s General Staff, the attack, coordinated by Special Operations Forces and other Defense Forces units, triggered a series of explosions and a large fire at the site. Preliminary assessments suggest the target was hit, though the full extent of the damage is still being evaluated.

Ukraine’s transport losses hit $36 billion, recovery requires over $77 billion. Ukraine’s transport infrastructure has suffered over $36 billion in war damage, and recovery needs now exceed $77 billion, officials told the International Transport Forum in Leipzig, according to the Kyiv-based Center for Strategic Transportation. Deputy Minister Serhii Derkach stressed that even in the fourth year of full-scale war, Ukraine is planning not just to survive but to rebuild and grow. More than 30 countries and international groups joined ministerial talks on future projects and a special fund to support reconstruction. Ukraine already has two projects in motion, with more in the pipeline.

Russian strikes kill 3 civilians, wound 4 in Donetsk region. Russian forces shelled 15 towns and villages across Ukraine’s easternmost Donetsk region in the past day, killing three civilians and injuring four others, according to the National Police of Ukraine.

The attacks damaged 47 civilian sites, including 19 residential buildings. Among the hardest hit was the strategic city of Kostiantynivka, which endured five separate strikes. One person was killed and two others were injured there.

In the village of Raihorodok, a Russian Lancet drone—a loitering munition resembling a small aircraft—killed one civilian and wounded another. Another fatality and injury were reported in the city of Pokrovsk.

Ukrainian drones destroy Russian artillery system and armored vehicle in Donetsk region. Ukrainian drone operators have destroyed a Russian self-propelled artillery system and an MT-LB armored vehicle in the Pokrovsk sector, according to the 38th Marine Brigade.

The strikes were carried out by the “Korsar” battalion, which specializes in strike drone operations. Operators tracked enemy equipment and executed precise drone attacks. Multiple hits destroyed a self-propelled artillery unit that had been concealed in a shelter. An MT-LB armored transport vehicle was also struck and completely burned out. Footage released by the brigade shows both vehicles engulfed in flames.

Key Takeaways:

• Kremlin ruler Vladimir Putin is fostering the formation of an informal state ideology based on Russian nationalism that positions Russia in opposition to the West as part of ongoing efforts to militarize and unify Russian society.
• Russian Investigative Committee Head Alexander Bastrykin — one of the most outspoken Russian ultranationalists in Putin’s inner circle — expressed support for the incorporation of an informal state ideology based on Russian nationalism in the Russian Constitution.
• Russian authorities are renewing their years-long narrative rejecting the legality of the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, possibly to deny Ukrainian and Belarusian sovereignty and independence in the future.
• Russian authorities and state media continue to publicly question the legitimacy of the Ukrainian negotiating team and the Ukrainian government, likely to further efforts to reject and delay negotiations and to set conditions to renege on any future peace agreement with Ukraine.
• Recent Western reporting provided additional details in a case in which Russian forces executed Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) in November 2024, supporting ISW’s assessment that high-level Russian military commanders are likely involved in these executions.
• Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov confirmed on May 22 Col. Gen. Andrei Mordvichev’s appointment as Russian Ground Forces Commander.
• Ukrainian forces recently advanced near Toretsk, and Russian forces recently advanced near Vovchansk, Toretsk, and Velyka Novosilka.

In memoriam: Ukrainian soldier Mykhailo Zaichenko, a hero of Ukraine’s defense forces
Pvt. Mykhailo Zaichenko, known by the call sign “Zaiats” (Rabbit), was killed in action on Jan. 8, 2025, in the city of Kherson. He died from fatal injuries caused by an enemy drone strike while carrying out a combat mission. He was 31 years old.

Zaichenko was born in the village of Liubymivka in Kherson region. He graduated from the Kakhovka Vocational Electrotechnical Lyceum and worked at the Kakhovka pumping station. In his free time, he enjoyed fishing and raised pigeons and ornamental chickens.

Zaichenko had previously defended Ukraine’s sovereignty during the Anti-Terrorist Operation in 2014 during Russia’s initial invasion of Ukraine. When Russia launched its all-out war, he once again joined the Armed Forces. He served in the 124th Territorial Defense Brigade as an external drone pilot in the strike unit of the 196th Battalion.

For his service, he was awarded the Presidential Honor “For the Defense of Ukraine.”

“Mykhailo was a golden-hearted man — someone you could always rely on,” said his widowed wife, Alina. “He did everything he could to bring victory closer. I’m proud of my husband, who will always be a bright ray of sunshine for our family.” Zaichenko was laid to rest at the Alley of Glory in Mykolaiv. He is survived by his mother, brother, wife and daughter.

*Zaichenko’s story on the Heroes Memorial – a platform for stories about the fallen defenders of Ukraine.

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