The General Staff of the Ukrainian army acknowledged that Russian forces had had some success moving west from the outskirts of the city of Donetsk.
It said Russian forces continued to fire on several settlements to the west and southwest of Donetsk.
“The enemy was partially successful in Opytne’s direction,” it said. Opytne is located just north of Donetsk’s airport and has been a frontline since 2014, when the airport was destroyed in fighting between Ukrainian troops and pro-Russian separatists.
The General Staff also said that Russian forces had partially succeeded “in the direction of Novomykhailivka (south of Mariinka).”
On Tuesday, Valeriy Zaluzhny, commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, said Russian forces “continue to advance” in the Donbas but said the “tense” situation was “fully under control.”
Zaluzhny said: “The main efforts of the enemy are focused on driving our troops out of the Donetsk region. The most dire situation right now is on the Avdiivka-Pisky-Mariinka axis.”
That axis is a stretch about 25 km (15 mi) west of the city of Donetsk and includes front lines in the areas of both Opytne and Novomykhailivka.
During Wednesday’s press conference, the Russian Defense Ministry said it had inflicted heavy casualties on Ukrainian forces through artillery attacks near Mariinka. It also said Russian air strikes had inflicted losses on Ukrainian units further south around Vuhledar and Dobrovillia.
The Russians also appear to be launching new attacks in the Kharkiv region, striking westward against Ukraine’s defenses.
“The enemy tried to penetrate our defenses in the direction of the settlements of Lebiazhe and Bazaliivka, but was unsuccessful and had to retreat,” said the General Staff. It added that the Russians had also failed to advance north of Sloviansk.
The Ukrainians also said there were no changes to the front line around Bakhmut in Donetsk, which had been bombarded for weeks.
They said that “Ukrainian soldiers suppressed all attempts of the enemy to improve the tactical positions of their units” in the areas to the east and south of the town.
In recent days, Russian forces appear to have shifted the focus of their attacks to areas near the city of Donetsk and to parts of the Kharkiv region.
