Russia had planned to capture Ukraine in three days, and now it is only dreaming of taking Donetsk and Luhansk regions by the end of March. These hopes of the enemy are vain. Currently, the hottest spots on the frontline are Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka. The most fierce fighting continues in the Bakhmut direction, where the enemy is attacking the city from three sides. The Russians are now in the eastern neighborhoods of the city in front of the Bakhmutka River, which divides the city almost in half. The Russian troops also continue to attempt to push through our defense from the north and south of Bakhmut. Russian troops are now trying to advance along the road in the direction of Sloviansk. The enemy is constantly attacking Zaliznyanske and Bohdanivka. In the northern part of Bakhmut, fighting continues in the industrial part of the non-ferrous metal processing plant. From the southern part of Bakhmut, the enemy is trying to advance towards the city center. The Russians are also trying to reach the road between Ivanivske and Bakhmut. However, there is information that Ukrainian units are also advancing in the south of the city.
The situation in the area of Avdiivka and Marinka is no less complicated. In this area, Russians are trying to use their numerical superiority to attack our positions.
Ukrainian Armed Forces Lieutenant Colonel Yaroslav Chepurnyi provided more detailed information on the fighting near Marinka. According to him, Russian troops are constantly storming Ukrainian positions near the town. During the day, March 13, the Russians made 10 assault attacks on Ukrainian positions. Russian troops are actively using cannon artillery and mortars. Chepurnyi also emphasized that Russian troops are using attack aircraft to conduct attacks on Ukrainian army positions. However, Russian military aviation is trying to avoid flying into the area of Ukrainian air defense systems.
Fighting near Marinka as of March 13
Ukrainian Armed Forces Lieutenant Colonel Yaroslav Chepurnyi said that Russian troops are using armored vehicles for assault operations. The number of armored vehicles varies from attack to attack. Using tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, the Russian occupying forces are trying to cover the actions of their infantry. However, according to the lieutenant colonel, this does not help the Russian army much. The Ukrainian military is armed with modern anti-tank weapons, and all Russian attacks always end in failure and burned armored vehicles. Also, if we observe the dynamics of the use of artillery by the Russian troops, the occupiers actively used artillery systems at the beginning of winter. Later, the dynamics of artillery shelling of Ukrainian positions decreased. However, as Chepurnyi noted, the Russians are now actively shelling the positions of the Ukrainian army again.
The editor-in-chief of the BlackSeaNews portal, Andriy Klymenko, is convinced that international sanctions do have an impact on the Russian Federation. According to available information, Russia already has problems with Western components used in its weapons systems. Now, in European political circles, there are statements that the threshold for sanctions against Russia has been reached. According to Klymenko, this is not the case at all. The study shows that the West underestimates the scale of the Russian defense sector.
Exports of components to Russia since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine
According to Klymenko, it should be taken into account that Russia did not stand still during the year of war either. In particular, Russia has found a way to hide companies that work for the military defense sector and how to circumvent Western sanctions. Also, many companies that used to supply parts and components to Russia are afraid of secondary sanctions. In general, the entire sanctions list of companies working for the Russian defense sector is compiled by the United States. Other countries impose sanctions in accordance with this list. That is why large defense companies that are not located in Russia try not to cooperate with Russia in order not to be left without the opportunity to work with the US dollar. Often, such companies are liquidated after being added to the sanctions list. Then, another company appears at the same address, and is not subject to sanctions. That's why, according to Klymenko, it's worth closely monitoring the activities of certain companies that work with the Russian defense sector.
The United States is already responding to Russia's sanctions circumvention. In particular, to the fact that some countries have increased the supply of components to Russia. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been on a major international tour over the past month. Among the countries visited by Blinken were Turkey and Central Asian states. In addition, despite its peculiar relations with China, the United States is in talks with Beijing. That is why, according to Klymenko, companies that provide military assistance to Russia will sooner or later become sanctioned entities.