The Russian army continues to advance in the Donetsk region, trying to fulfill Vladimir Putin's order to capture all of Donbas.

Apart from the city of Bakhmut, which the occupiers have been storming for many months, Avdiivka is called the place of the most intense fighting.

Russian troops and mercenaries of the "Wagner" PMC have suffered heavy losses in frontal attacks, and are now trying to surround the defenders of Bakhmut and Avdiyivka, cutting off the supply routes.

In addition to traditional "meat assaults", the enemy actively uses artillery and aviation.

What is happening today in the hottest points of the front in Donbas - TSN.ua has collected details, comments of the military command and experts.

The occupiers near Bakhmut are "exhaling"

According to

, the Russian army continues to conduct offensive operations in the Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiiv, Marin, and Shakhtar areas, and is defensive in the rest.

The commander of the Ground Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Colonel-General

, said that the battles for Bakhmut involved mostly mercenaries of the "Wagner" PMK, who were "losing significant strength and expiring."

"Very soon we will take advantage of this opportunity, as we once did near Kyiv, Kharkiv, Balaklia and Kupyansk," Sirsky emphasized.

According to

, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are conducting successful counterattacks in the direction of Bakhmut.

The Russian offensive is losing its former momentum, but the threat of encircling the city from the north and south still remains.

It is emphasized that a few days ago, the Armed Forces conducted a local counterattack, which should reduce the pressure of the occupiers on the supply route along the H32 highway.

Meanwhile, fighting around the city center continues.

Photo: Deepstatemap

On March 22, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, visited the Bakhmut area, thanked the soldiers for their bravery and presented state awards.

He promised the occupiers a response to every attack on Ukrainian cities.

Meanwhile, the owner of "Wagner" PVK,

, warned the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, 

, that the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation were preparing a large-scale offensive in the Bakhmut region at the end of March and declared the threat of encircling their mercenaries.

Storms of Avdiyivka

Around Avdiivka is now as hot as in Bakhmut.

The Ukrainian military says there is an increase in shelling and pressure on Avdiivka, particularly from the northeast and south.

Fierce infantry confrontations break out daily on the outskirts, and the city itself is shelled by the occupiers with artillery and aircraft.

However, as TSN.ua was told by special forces from the "Omega" unit, there is currently no reason to talk about Avdiyivka's encirclement.

Enemy bombers are afraid to fly close and work from a distance - "that's why they end up with dilapidated kindergartens, schools, just residential buildings, streets, shops," said a serviceman of the OZSP "Omega" "Bismarck

.

, the head of the Avdiyiv city military administration

, said that "about 80% of the city has already been destroyed", there are almost no buildings left.

Barabash said that the Russians cannot take the city in frontal attacks, the Avdiiv industrial zone is an impregnable fortress for them.

Therefore, they began to try to surround Avdiivka from the north and "slowly threw bodies".

The head of the military administration also said that the evacuation of people from Avdiyivka continues, but the section of the road where people are being evacuated is controlled by Russian troops, who "immediately open fire."

a spokesman for the joint press center of the Defense Forces of the Tavria direction

, says that Avdiyivka is turning into a "new Bakhmut".

The invaders are trying to surround the city, suffering heavy losses and using the last reserves.

"The attacks are all of the same type, the enemy attacks from the same landing, very predictably, and that is why our military manages to defend its positions," Dmytrashkivskyi explained.

Analysts of the American

came to the conclusion that the offensive on Avdiivka was a mistaken attempt by the Russian command to distract Ukrainian forces from other areas of the front.

The ISW does not observe the concentration of large forces of the Russian Federation in this direction and believes that the occupiers will not be able to withstand this increased pace for a long time.

According to American experts, the spring offensive of the Russian Federation is approaching its climax, so the occupiers are intensifying their efforts to achieve even minor successes before they lose the initiative.

What is the difference between the situation in Bakhmut and Avdiivka

The Russians are trying to repeat the same scenario in Avdiivka as in Bakhmut.

However, they do not take into account that the situation in the two cities is different, military expert, reserve colonel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

told Channel 24.

According to the expert, the Russians have set themselves the task of conducting offensive actions with all forces and means in at least two or three points.

For this, they can transfer part of the military from other fronts to the Bakhmut and Avdiiv directions.

"

must either take it or die under it. Therefore, they will not leave there.

," Svitan explained.

According to him, the occupiers are trying to take Avdiivka with almost the same operational and tactical actions, and Bakhmut - with a wide scope, since it is a large settlement.

"That's why the Russians can't do anything in Avdiivka. The narrow width of the front and the small groups with which they try to capture the city are broken by our flank strikes. It's very easy to do," Svitan emphasized.

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