UKRAINE, KHARKIV OBLAST, Mar. 2 —  Recently, Russian forces have been attacking Ukrainian positions east of Vovchansk, and north of the village of Hrafske, said Bohdan Petrenko, a press officer of the 48th artillery brigade, to Gwara Media. 

Petrenko said that Moscow searches for weak points in Ukraine’s defence north of the Kharkiv region, adding that Russian troops attempted to expand their foothold near the village of Kruhle, about one kilometer (~0.6 miles) from the border with Russia, but their efforts were unsuccessful.

On Dec. 31, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian forces to expand the “buffer zone” ( actual occupation —ed.) in the Kharkiv and Sumy regions, in response to an attack on his residence in Valdai. On Jan 1, the US intelligence said that Ukraine didn’t target Putin’s residence. 

“If the Russians infiltrate somewhere and plant a flag, it does not mean that they control that territory,” Petrenko stressed, responding to recent claims of advances north of Kharkiv from pro-Russian channels.

According to Petrenko, there has been a significant increase in the “gray zone” in the Vovchansk direction, as the Russians are trying to enter the territory but are unable to establish a foothold there.

Read more

  • In February, Russia occupied 50% less territories of Ukraine than over January, though conducted nearly as much assaults

⚡ The fifth year of the Russian full-scale invasion started, so it’s been four years since most of us here at our Kharkiv-based newsroom became war reporters. Please consider supporting our journalism via a one-time donation — or join our community.