March 8-15 live war map: Ukrainian forces withdraw from Kursk region, but Russia's offensive fails everywhere

Kursk operation is over. What's next?

The Kursk operation is nearing its end after seven months of Ukrainian military presence in Russia. Ukrainian forces avoid encirclement, retreat with minimal losses, fight rear-guard battles, and block Russian advance into Sumy, where defenses are ready.

However, the Russians, who have gathered over 60,000 troops, not including North Koreans, may attempt to attack not only along the route from Sudzha but also on other sections of the border. They have currently captured the village of Novenke and are attacking Basivka, but may soon open a new front toward Bilopillia or Hlukhiv.

Ukraine Russia war live map, March 8-15, Photo: Espreso

Summing up the Kursk operation, it is important to highlight not only its uniqueness but also its success. The Ukrainian Armed Forces demonstrated that in the case of maneuver warfare, they are far superior and more motivated than the Russians. The Kursk operation helped protect Sumy from an offensive for an extended period, prevented the transfer of new Russian reserves to other more critical fronts, and allowed the defense of Chasiv Yar, Toretsk, and Pokrovsk. Equally important is that the mass capture of Russian conscripts led to the release of Ukrainian Azov fighters from captivity.

Although the final push to wind down the Kursk operation was likely driven by negotiations with the U.S., since December, the Defense Forces of Ukraine had shifted from maneuver warfare to a defensive operation, which could not last for long.

Ukraine Russia war live map, March 8-15, Photo: Espreso

Ukrainian army counterattacks in Kupyansk district

It seems that by crossing to the right bank of the Oskil River north of Kupyansk, the occupying Russian forces have fallen into a trap. They cannot build on their success, nor can they deploy armored vehicles to help their storm troopers. Therefore, the Ukrainian military is gradually grinding down those who were preparing to expand the bridgehead towards the Russian border and Kupyansk. For more than a month now, the Russian forces have been unable to fully capture Dvorichna and Zakhidne, where the Ukrainian Defense Forces are fighting back. As a result, for the second week in a row, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have made territorial gains. This week, they managed to completely liberate Fyholivka, which will block the Russian offensive north along the right bank of the Oskil, and to gain a foothold in the vicinity of Synkivka, on the opposite bank of the river. Here, the advance of Ukrainian troops north of Kupyansk amounted to more than 3.5 kilometers.  

Ukraine Russia war live map, March 8-15, Photo: Espreso

Siversk front

For the second week in a row, the Russian troops have been advancing in Bilohorivka, a Luhansk village where the frontline has been unchanged for several years. Here, the Ukrainian Defense Forces occupied favorable heights, which allowed them to hold back the Russian forces. Currently, Ukrainian troops are still holding the defense of two spoil heaps to the south and north of the village, but Bilohorivka itself is gradually falling into Russian hands, which could have negative consequences for the entire Siversk salient.

Ukraine Russia war live map, March 8-15, Photo: Espreso

Russian offensive on Pokrovsk resumes

After almost a month of decreased enemy activity in the Pokrovsk direction, in the second week of March, the Russian troops again significantly increased the number of attacks on the city's defenders. However, the lack of storm troops and their quality are showing — the Russians were unable to achieve any territorial gains, while the Ukrainian Armed Forces managed to not only consolidate their previously won positions in Uspenivka, Udachne, Kotlyne and Pishchane, but also build on their success in Shevchenko village. Now the entire settlement has become an uncontrolled combat zone, while there is evidence of the presence of the Ukrainian Defense Forces south of Shevchenko, indicating that we are expanding our control zone and trying to gain a foothold on the banks of the Solonenka River. 

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are probably planning to push the Russian forces off the Shevchenko-Novotroyitske road beyond the Solonenka River and build a new front line along the river. In this case, the entire enemy-occupied ledge north of the river near the village of Vovkove will be cut off from logistics. The Russian troops will have to retreat. For this reason, the road from Selydove, which stretches 7-10 kilometers from the front line, has long been turned into a “kill zone.” Logistics for the Russians on this road of death is extremely difficult, and this gives Ukraine a great chance to continue the campaign to drive the occupying Russian forces away from the right flank of the Pokrovsk encirclement.   

Ukraine Russia war live map, March 8-15, Photo: Espreso

Russian forces slow down while advancing on Dnipropetrovsk region

In the Novopavlivka direction, the occupying Russian forces slowed down considerably, despite numerous attempts to break into the Dnipropetrovsk region at least in some areas. The attack on the Udachne-Uspenivka section was repelled by the Ukrainian Defense Forces with the use of armored vehicles. The defense in Preobrazhenka, which was surrounded two weeks ago, is holding up as well. However, the Russian offensive was stopped on the border of Nadiivka and Zaporizhzhia villages.

Near Kostiantynopil, the Russian troops seized the rest of the village of Ulakly and expanded their control over the area. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are still fighting in Andriivka and Kostiantynopill itself, despite the fact that Russian propaganda has repeatedly announced the occupation of these villages. Moreover, the occupiers' attempts to attack Rozlyv or Bahatyr to cut off the retreat route for our defenders have now failed completely.

Ukraine Russia war live map, March 8-15, Photo: Espreso

Therefore, the Russian forces relied on advancing along the Mokri Yaly river from Velyka Novosilka to the village of Komar, which is also located on the Kurakhove-Zaporizhzhia highway. A few weeks ago, the Russian troops managed to occupy the villages of Novosilka, Pryvilne, Burlatske, and launched an offensive on Skudne and Dniproenerhia. However, having hit Ukrainian defensive lines, the occupying Russian army was unable to move further, and the offensive almost completely stopped due to the depletion of human resources. This is despite the fact that two combined arms armies of the Russian Federation are operating here. This week, the Ukrainian Armed Forces conducted a series of counterattacks and drove the Russians back from Novosilka and Burlatske, while a large part of Pryvilne remained in the gray zone of the fighting. Heavy clashes continue in Skudne, and the occupiers still cannot capture half of the village. Instead, they advanced along the left bank of the Mokri Yaly and captured the territory between Skudne and Rozdolne. The Russian attempt to gain a foothold in Dniproenerhia, where Ukraine's main defense lines are located, looks threatening.

The situation in Kursk region and other frontline sectors clearly demonstrates that Russia does not have enough resources not only to break through the front, but also to simultaneously attack in several areas. As soon as all the resources were focused on Kursk, the Pokrovsk and Novopavlivka directions came to a standstill. 

Therefore, the question remains: where will the Russian army direct the resources freed up in Kursk: to Sumy, Pokrovsk, or Kostiantynopil?

The maps were created using data from the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and other verified open sources. They are approximate and only represent general trends in the combat zone.