Ukraine War 5/1: Russia fires artillery, prepares to attack in Avdiivka

The Russia-Ukraine war is about to enter its third year (Illustration: Skynews).

Russia breaks through Ukrainian defenses in Liman

Rybar channel reported that in the Liman direction, Moscow forces continued to break through enemy defenses east of Makiivka as well as the Serebryansky forestry district.

In the Kupyansk region, Ukraine attempted to counterattack the Sinkovka region but failed, while Russian forces are responding in Petropavlovka.

In addition, the video released by Ukraine indirectly acknowledges Russia's advance towards Terny and Yampolovka. Accordingly, Moscow's forces still have about 3km to reach the outskirts of neighboring settlements surrounded by forests.

The Geroman Channel also confirmed that, in the direction of Krasnolimansk, Moscow's armed forces advanced 2km towards Terny north of the Kruglaya ravine.

Map of the Ukrainian war in the Krasnolimansk direction as of January 4. In which, Russia controls the pink area, the red arrows show the direction of their attack and the dark pink area is where Moscow forces have recently gained control (Photo: Sofa General Staff).

Russia advances slowly in Bakhmut - Chasov Yar

Rybar channel reported that in the direction of Soledar, battles for positions are taking place in the Bogdanovka, Kleshchiivka and Kurdyumovka areas. Russia is trying to advance from Bakhmut to Chasov Yar along the highway from Khromovo. In addition, they have captured a number of strong Ukrainian positions in the forested areas near the highway southeast of Bogdanovka.

Russia launches heavy fire attack, prepares to attack in Avdiivka

According to Rybar channel, in the fortified area of ​​Avdiivka, Russia is making a local advance in the Krasnogorovka area and is heavily shelling Pervomayskoe on the threshold of a possible new offensive to gain control of the settlement.

Suriyakmaps channel reported that north of Avdivka, Russian troops advanced 1.5km west of the railway towards the northeast of Berdychi.

Map of the Ukrainian war in northern Avdiivka as of January 4. Russia controls the brown area, the orange arrows show the direction of their attack, and the area surrounded by the orange dash is where Moscow's forces have recently gained control (Photo: Suriyakmaps).

Ukraine retreats northwest of Donetsk city

In the northwest of Donetsk, Russian troops advanced from the northern shore of Lake Izmailivsky and are trying to separate Kiev forces in the southern dachas from the rest of the town of Pervomaiske, Suriyakmaps reported. After a battle, some Ukrainian troops began to withdraw from the area.

Map of the Ukrainian war in the northwest of Donetsk city as of January 4. In which, Russia controls the brown area and the orange arrow shows the direction of their attack, the blue dashed arrows are the direction of Kiev forces' retreat (Photo: Suriyakmaps).

Russia gradually regains what it lost in Zaporizhia

According to Rybar, in the Zaporizhia direction, fighting for positions continues in the Verbovoe and Rabotino areas. Covered by aircraft, small Russian assault groups are trying to advance to regain control of positions previously lost during the Ukrainian summer counteroffensive.

Readovka channel reported that in the Orekhov region, Moscow forces advanced from Novoprokopovka. Meanwhile, fierce fighting took place in Rabotino and Verbovoy. Moscow forces recaptured some positions southeast of Rabotino (in the direction of Tokmak) that Kiev had captured during the counteroffensive last year.

Map of the Ukrainian war in the Rabotino region as of January 3. Russia controls the pink area, the red arrows indicate the direction of their attack, and the light pink areas are where Moscow forces have recently gained control. The red dashed lines are the dragon's tooth fence (Photo: Telegram).

Kiev increases troops to hold bridgehead in Kherson

Rybar channel reported that in the Kherson direction, the situation has not changed significantly. Russia is conducting a counter-battery attack, destroying enemy artillery and other equipment.

A few days ago, two launchers of the Ukrainian IRIS-T missile system were damaged or destroyed by attacks from the Lancet UAV.

Ukraine attacks Russian command post in Crimea

The Kyiv Independent reported that the Ukrainian military's Strategic Communications Directorate said its forces attacked a Russian military command post near Sevastopol in Crimea at around 3 p.m. on January 4, but did not provide further details about the targeted facility or the aftermath of the attack.

Several explosions were heard in Sevastopol and “a very powerful explosion” occurred in Yevpatoriia on the afternoon of January 4, Suspilne news agency reported, citing Crimean residents.

Mikhail Razvozhaev, the Moscow-appointed head of Sevastopol, called the attack "the largest in recent times".

In recent months, Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Crimea in an attempt to disrupt Russian logistics and disrupt its southern defenses.

Before the Ukrainian military confirmed it, the pro-Ukrainian Telegram channel Crimean Wind , citing local residents, said one of the missiles hit a Russian command post in Sevastopol and another military facility near Yevpatoriia.

Late on the night of January 4, several other explosions were heard in several cities in Crimea as well as in the Russian Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk Krym.

According to the Guardian, the Russian Defense Ministry announced on January 4 that it had prevented an attack on facilities in Crimea and destroyed 10 enemy missiles on the peninsula.

Russia creates smoke screen to protect Crimea bridge (Photo: Telegram).

Russia doubles attacks in southeastern Ukraine

Kyiv Independent reported that the commander of the Tavria (Eastern) group of forces of Ukraine, Brigadier General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, said that Russia has doubled the number of attacks in the southeastern region in the past day.

General Tarnavskyi said that over the past day, Moscow forces in the area conducted nearly 900 artillery strikes, 25 air strikes and dozens of attacks on Ukrainian positions. As a result of the clashes, the enemy suffered heavy losses, including 423 personnel and 72 pieces of military equipment.

Moscow stepped up its assault on Avdiivka in early October, reportedly suffering heavy losses in its attempt to encircle the frontline town just a few kilometers from the city of Donetsk.

Kiev forces continued to defend Avdiivka and prevented the enemy from making significant advances.

Avdiivka remains the main target of Moscow’s attacks in the region, Tarnavskyi asserted. However, the enemy forces appear to want to avoid entering the city center and engaging in the kind of fierce street fighting that took place during the Battle of Bakhmut.

Russian forces finally captured the city of Bakhmut in Donetsk after months of bloody urban fighting in May 2023, causing tens of thousands of casualties in the process. However, fighting around Bakhmut continues.

ISW: Russia is looking for foreign sources of ballistic missiles

Russia is stepping up efforts to source ballistic missiles from abroad to attack targets in Ukraine, the US-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported, Ukrainska Pravda reported.

Military analysts note that Russian forces frequently use short-range ballistic missiles to attack Ukrainian targets closer to the front line, and these missiles are more effective at penetrating or bypassing Ukrainian air defense systems.

Ukrainian air defenses have intercepted 149 of the 166 Russian cruise missiles believed to have been launched since December 29, 2023, but have only intercepted a handful of ballistic missiles that Russia has launched at Ukraine during the same period.

Russia has modified its S-300 and S-400 missiles to attack ground targets in Ukraine, and Kiev officials admit that their air defenses are struggling to stop these unconventional missile attacks.

The relative success of the Russian military in attacking targets in Ukraine with ballistic missiles combined with cruise missiles and UAVs may prompt Moscow to step up efforts to source ballistic missiles from abroad. Russia can produce about 42 Iskander missiles and four Kinzhal missiles per month, although it is unclear how many S-300/S-400 missiles it can produce.

In addition, their defense industrial base cannot produce at the scale needed for a long-term offensive campaign against Ukraine that would rely on the regular use of large numbers of ballistic missiles, and Russia would likely be forced to source ballistic missiles from abroad if it wanted to continue conducting large-scale missile attacks on Ukraine.

Moscow has not commented on the ISW information.

Russian S-400 air defense system in Crimea (Photo: Sputnik).

US State Department: Putin will not be able to achieve his goals in Ukraine

Voice of America (VOA) reported that US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that Congress must act urgently to ensure that Washington can continue to provide military support to Kiev.

“We really need Congress to act,” Miller said. “We know we need to continue to support Ukraine. They (the Ukrainians) rely on this help to continue to fight back against the Russian attack that is happening every day. So it is important that Congress act, to continue to fund a democracy that continues to defend itself.”

"It is clear that Russia has failed. Our assessment: they (the Russians) cannot take Kiev. He (Putin) has not achieved and will not be able to achieve his ultimate goal of conquering all of Ukraine. We see a Ukraine that has been able to stand on its own two feet, is developing its economy, developing its military. The situation on the battlefield will be very difficult without additional support from the United States," Mr. Miller commented.

US plans to complete F-16 training for Ukraine by the end of 2024

European Pravda reported that Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said that Ukrainian pilots in the US who are being trained on F-16 fighter jets are expected to complete their training by the end of 2024.

A representative of the US Department of Defense said that as of now, a group of Ukrainian pilots is continuing flight training at an air base in Arizona.

“As you know, depending on the skill level of the pilot, the process (of training) can take anywhere from five to eight months. So I would expect these pilots to complete their training somewhere before the end of the year, but I can’t give a more specific time frame,” Ryder added.

Previously, a small group of Ukrainian pilots who arrived in the US in September underwent language training at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas.

Additionally, when asked to comment on Newsweek 's report that the US planned to destroy long-range ATACMS missiles and why they were not returned to Ukraine, General Ryder said: "We have verified these reports and they are not true."

However, Mr. Ryder did not specify whether the US planned to transfer these missiles to Kiev.

A day earlier, Newsweek published information stating that the US has "hundreds" of these long-range missiles that are nearing the end of their useful life and will therefore be phased out.

According to Guardian, Newsweek, VOA, Kyiv Independent, Ukrainska Pravda, European Pravda, Rybar, Geroman

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/chien-su-ukraine-51-nga-don-dap-na-phao-chuan-bi-xung-phong-o-avdiivka-20240105100403144.htm