March 17 | The Russian invasion has stalled

March 17 | The Russian invasion has stalled

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has “largely stalled on all fronts,” according to the United Kingdom Defense Ministry’s latest intelligence report. Moscow’s forces have made minimal progress on land, sea and air in recent days and continue to suffer heavy losses, said the report. “Ukrainian resistance remains staunch and well coordinated. The vast majority of Ukrainian territory, including all major cities, remains in Ukrainian hands.”

Russian troops failed to make any progress on any of their four fronts: the attempt to encircle the capital Kyiv, the assault on Kharkiv, the advance on Donetsk and the capture of Mariupol. There were also no significant gains in the push west from Kherson.

Active advance

Earlier advance

Russian control

Besieged city

City controlled by the Russians

Recent fighting

Recent

bombings

BELARUS

RUSSIA

Kursk

Chernihiv

Konotop

Sumy

POLAND

Lutsk

Irpin

Belgorod

Brovary

Yitomir

Yavoriv

Kyiv

Lviv

Kharkiv

UKRAINE

Ivano-Frankivsk

Lugansk

Dnipro

Donbas

Zaporizhzhia

Krivoi Rog

Donetsk

Nuclear power plant

Volnovaja

Mykolaiv

MOLD.

Melitopol

Odessa

Kherson

Mariupol

Berdiansk

ROMANIA

Sea of Azov

CRIMEA

Annexed by Russia

in 2014

250 km

Black Sea

Note: What does “control” mean? It requires exerting a physical influence over an area to prevent its use by the enemy. It could be achieved by occupying the area or by holding power over it with weapons. It does not imply any form of governance or legitimacy.

Sources: Institute for the Study of War and American Enterprise Institute’s Critical Threats Project (for advances and areas under control); UK intelligence (besieged cities); EL PAÍS and other sources (fighting and airstrikes).

Russian troops conducted several unsuccessful attacks northwest of Kyiv on Wednesday, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). There were no major ground operations in Chernihiv, Sumy or Kharkov, three cities that the Russian army is attempting to encircle.

In the meantime, Russian forces continued to pound civilian targets. According to Ukrainian authorities, a theater in Mariupol that was being used as a shelter was struck on Wednesday, and at least 10 people died while lining up for bread in Chernihiv. Before dawn on Thursday emergency services also reported an attack against a residential building in Kyiv.

The United States estimates that 7,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine in these past three weeks, according to information published by The New York Times. There could be an additional 14,000 to 21,000 injured out of a total of 150,000 troops, according to the Pentagon’s calculations. This casualty rate could make it difficult for combat units to carry out their tasks.

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