UKRAINE: THE SITUATION 352 - FEBRUARY 8, 2023

The Russian armed forces have once again taken the initiative in Ukraine and launched their next major offensive in the Luhansk region.

The pace of Russian operations along the Swatove-Kreminna line in the western Luhansk region has significantly increased over the past week, and Russian sources widely report that conventional Russian troops are attacking Ukrainian defense lines and making minor progress along the border between Kharkiv and the Luhansk region, particularly northwest of Swatove near Kupjansk and west of Kreminna.

Geolocated combat footage confirms Russian advances in the Dvorichne area northwest of Svatove. Moreover, the Russian military leadership appears to have deployed elements of several conventional divisions fully for decisive offensive operations along the Svatove-Kreminna line, as previously reported by ISW. Elements of several regiments from the 144th and 3rd Motor Rifle Divisions (20th Combined Arms Army, Western Military District) and a regiment of the 90th Tank Division (Central Military District), supported by elements of the 76th Airborne Division and unspecified elements from the Southern Military District, are conducting offensive operations along the entire Svatove-Kreminna line, reportedly advancing against Ukrainian defenses.

The full Russian Offensive Update 351 is available directly from UNDERSTANDING WAR.

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