Victory Chronicles
-DAY 393

Above: The popular Prince of Wales surprised British and Polish troops with a secret trip to Rzeszow, Poland, on Wednesday.  William thanked the troops for defending freedom and “keeping an eye on what’s going on.” The prince will meet with the Polish president in Warsaw today.   (Reuters)

Above: President Zelensky showed true compassion and Ukrainian *backbone* of steel when he visited forward positions near Bakhmut and several cities currently under constant enemy fire on Wednesday. (Defense of Ukraine)

Above: Geolocated video shows Russia is moving WWII-era T-54/55 tanks from Primorsky Krai (the red-colored section on the map) to the west. It’s about a 7000 kilometers (4400 mile) train trip to Ukraine.  It is not clear what would be their potential use as they are highly unsuitable for war more than 60 years after their manufacture.  Some analysts guess they may be for scrap metal or spare parts? (Map: Wikimedia Commons)

Video: Transport of Russian T-55 tanks, March 2023

Hearing that Russia will soon have to use T-34s, this models plays dead to avoid being sent to Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/Ana93b8P1a

— Darth Putin (@DarthPutinKGB) March 22, 2023

Above: UK Ministry of Defence

• Moscow’s defense minister rattled his saber at Japan following the Japanese Prime Minister’s trip to Kyiv this week, warning Japan not to get any ideas about the Russian-occupied Japanese Kuril Islands while Mosocw is waging war in Europe.  He threatened Japan with Russia’s mighty Eastern Military District forces then announced the deployment of a battery of defense missile systems to Russian-occupied Paramushir Island. In fact, the Russian Eastern Military District is severely degraded, having taken significant losses in the Battle for Kyiv in March 2022 and recently in failed assaults on Vuhledar, Donetsk.
• St Petersburg authorities shut down two dozen bars on the pretense of clamping down on antisocial behavior among minors, when in fact, the move is part of a growing campaign to suppress speech in public social settings.

General Staff’s Daily Video Digest with English subtitles

Above: Workshop where mechanics repair captured enemy equipment. The workers, who came from all walks of life, told RFERL reporters that they download Russian manuals from the internet.

Ukrainian General Staff of the Armed Forces estimated enemy losses since February 24, 2022 (with daily additions)

• Liquidated personnel, 168,150 (+660)
• Tanks, 3,570 (+13)
• Armored personnel vehicles, 6,898 (+11)
• Artillery systems/MLRS, 2,608/511 (+19/2)
• Anti-aircraft warfare systems, 273 (+1)
• Aircraft/helicopters, 305/290 (0)
• UAV operational-tactical level, 2,203 (+20)
• Cruise missiles, 909 (0)
• Warships/boats, 18 (0)
• Vehicles and fuel tanks, 5,452 (+18)
• Special equipment, 273 (+3)

Above:  Zaporizhzhya city Wednesday. The direct hit on a residential highrise caused dozens of casualties including deaths. (AP)

Russians have just attacked a residential high-rise building in Zaporizhia. The number of victims is not yet known. pic.twitter.com/fPONJkh5u2

— Special Kherson Cat 🐈🇺🇦 (@bayraktar_1love) March 22, 2023

Glory to Ukraine!
The 393rd day of the Russian large-scale invasion has begun.

• The Russian aggressor continues to use his usual tactics of terrorizing the civilian population, shelling populated areas and critical infrastructure facilities.
• Over the past day, the enemy launched a missile attack on Zaporizhzhia. Russian rockets hit a residential high-rise building. There are dead and wounded among civilians.
• The enemy carried out 48 airstrikes, in particular, on civilian objects of critical infrastructure in Zhytomyr Region and Kyiv The invaders used 21 Shahed-136 drones fired from the Bryansk region of the Russian Federation, 16 of these drones were shot down. Civilians have been killed and wounded as a result of enemy UAV strikes. In addition, the invaders fired 75 rockets from multiple rocket launchers.
• The threat of further strikes by the enemy remains throughout the territory of Ukraine.
• On the Kupyansk and Lymansk directions, the enemy continues to try to break our defenses. He led unsuccessful offensive actions in the areas of Makiivka, Bilogorivka, and Verkhnyokamianske settlements. Conducted artillery shelling of Krokhmalne settlements in Kharkiv region; Novoselivske, Nevske, Bilogorivka – Luhansk, as well as Terna, Kolodyazi, Siversk, Verkhnokamianske and Spirne in Donetsk
• In the Bakhmut direction, the enemy continues to conduct offensive operations, losing a significant amount of manpower, weapons and military equipment. Our defenders repel numerous enemy attacks around the clock in the Bakhmut, Bohdanivka and Predtechyny areas. More than 15 settlements near the contact line came under enemy fire.
• On the Avdiivsk, Marinsk, and Shakhtarsk directions, the enemy carried out offensive actions in the areas of Novokalynov, Stepove, Berdychi, Avdiivka, Lastochkine, Severna, Vodyane, Pervomaiske, Marinka, and Pobieda settlements – without success. More than 20 districts of populated areas came under enemy fire.
• In the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson directions, the enemy is conducting defensive operations. Areas of more than 45 settlements near the contact line were shelled.

Support the Armed Forces! United we will win! Glory to Ukraine!

Above:  The Guardian published a story on the “Kharkiv cemetery” – a huge field of enemy explosive and rocket debris collected in the Kharkiv region by Ukraine’s war crimes prosecution team.  Concerning criminal attacks on civilians, “By analysing the types of devices fired, their flight paths and the GPS locations of where they landed, prosecutors in Kharkiv have placed dozens of Russian soldiers and officials under investigation.” 

Above:  Ukrainians test-fire a T-64 tank, manufactured in Kharkiv in the 1960s.  Upgraded versions of the T-64 have been called the “workhorse of the Ukrainian tank fleet.” Ukraine likes them because personnel know them well.  One mechanic said, “a T-64 can be fixed quickly with *bleep* on a stick.” (Washington Post)

Zelenskyy made unannounced visit to Kharkiv

He awarded soldiers who distinguished in defense of oblast from the occupiers
"Thanks to residents of this beautiful city, Kharkiv defends our independence shoulder-to-shoulder with other cities in our country" https://t.co/OfpiGSXIRg pic.twitter.com/JBbfkLlL7O

— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) March 22, 2023

• Russian forces conducted limited ground attacks along the Svatove-Kreminna line on March 22. Russian forces conducted unsuccessful ground attacks near Makiivka (21km northwest of Kreminna), Kreminna, Dibrova (5km southwest of Kreminna), Bilohorivka (11km south of Kreminna), and Vesele (14km southeast of Siversk).

Above:  Train station in Kramatorsk. By holding Bakhmut, Ukraine is preventing the enemy from attacking a crucial line of cities comprising the remainder of Donetsk Oblast.  The center of the line is Kramatorsk, which became the administrative center of Donetsk Oblast in 2014 after the occupation of Donetsk city.  Before the current invasion, Kramatorsk was the Donbas hub for both regional military operations and for international humanitarian aid projects.  (New Voice of Ukraine)

President Zelensky in #Bakhmut today

Bakhmut is Ukraine🇺🇦
Slava Ukraini👊🏻✊🏻🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/xvWLSPGvv9

— АЗОВ South (@Azovsouth) March 22, 2023

Zelensky and his team photographed while visiting a gas station in Kostiantynivka today.

It is the city closest to Bakhmut.

The employees of the gas station didn’t miss the opportunity to take a group photo with the President. pic.twitter.com/8jAzhWSwoW

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) March 22, 2023

President Zelensky also visited the military hospital today in #Kramatorsk🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/Ms2jn26SuQ

— АЗОВ South (@Azovsouth) March 22, 2023

• Russian forces continued to conduct offensive operations in Bakhmut and its environs on March 22. Ukrainian forces repelled Russian assaults in southern and northern Bakhmut; within 14km northwest of Bakhmut in Bohdanivka, Hryvorivka, and Orikhovo-Vasylivka; and within 21km southwest of Bakhmut in Predtechyne, Ivanivske, Klishchiivka, and Mayorsk.
• Ukrainian forces are conducting tactical counter attacks on Bakhmut’s northwestern and southwestern outskirts. The UK Ministry of Defense stated that Ukrainian forces initiated a counterattack west of Bakhmut to relieve pressure on the T0504 highway to Bakhmut. Geolocated footage published on March 21 showed Ukrainian counterattacks south of Ivanivske and southeast of Bohdanivka.
• Russian forces are intensifying offensive operations around Avdiivka. Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attacks north of Avdiivka in Novokalynove, Novobakhmutivka, Krasnohorivka, Stepove, Lastochkyne, and Berdychi; west of Sieverne, Vodyane, Pervomaiske; and Avdiivka.
• Russian forces are launching assault operations west of Donetsk City but have not resumed offensives near Vuhledar as of this publication. Russian forces unsuccessfully attacked Marinka and Pobieda, 22km and 25km southwest of Donetsk City, respectively.

Above: War Mapper’s approximate situation around the city of Bakhmut.

Map via ISW

Above: Ukrainian sappers received two Croatian mechanized remote-control mine clearing machines capable of clearing up to 4,000-5,000 square meters of territory per day.  The vehicles have the effect of clearing and plowing a field. (Special Kherson Cat)

Video: Ukraine has already put its new Croatian MV-4 and MV-10 mine clearing systems to work clearing the Kherson region.  

• Ukrainian forces are clearing a 20- to 30-km strip on the east bank of the Dnipro River to protect the population on the west bank from constant Russian shelling. Ukrainian forces destroyed a Russian ammunition depot on the Kinburn Spit, preventing Russian forces from shelling from the area for an unspecified period of time.
• Enemy occupational forces have not been able to restore power lines to the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Station. Since a Russian strike on March 9, the plant has relied on a single backup power line that remains “disconnected and under repair”. The plant’s lack of access to the grid and necessary repair work on its last emergency power line could cause a complete loss of power, making it reliant on diesel generators for the seventh time since Russia captured it a year ago.