Russia's war on Ukraine. 21.08.25
Operational situation
On the Northern Slobozhansky direction, combat operations continued in the area of Novyi Put. Russian troops captured Bezsalivka, advanced to the center of Oleksiivka, tried to advance southeast of Andriivka, west of Varachyne, and attacked near Ryzhivka, Kindrativka, and Yunakivka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces launched a strike on the concentration area of the BARS "Kursk" detachment in the Oboyanskyi district of Kursk Oblast, and counterattacked near Kindrativka, Varachyne, and Sadky.
On the Southern Slobozhansky direction, Russian troops advanced near Tykhe, attacked near Vovchansk, Synelnykove, on the southern bank of the Vovcha River, near Ambarne, and in the direction of Katerynivka, but without success.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Synelnykove.
On the Kupyansk direction, Russian troops attacked near Kupyansk, Sobolivka, Myrove, Kindrashivka, Synkivka, Fiholivka, Kamyanka, Stepova Novoselivka, Zahryzove, Hlushchenkove, and in the direction of Olkhivka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattack in Kupyansk, and near Synkivka and Petropavlivka.
On the Lyman direction, Russian troops advanced to the southern outskirts of Zarichne, attacked near Shandryholove, Serednie, Karpivka, Zelena Dolyna, Ridkodub, Kolodyazi, Myrne, Torske, Zarichne, in the direction of Yampil, and in the Serebriansk Forest area.
On the Siversk direction, Russian troops advanced northeast of Siversk and south of Novoselivka, and attacked near Serebrianka, in the Kremyanskiy Forest, near Hryhorivka, Verkhnyokamianske, Novoselivka, Vyimka, Pereyizne, and Fedorivka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Serebrianka.
On the Kramatorsk direction, Russian troops try to break through to the eastern outskirts of Kostyantynivka, and attacked near Stupochky and Predtechyne.
On the Toretsk direction, Russian troops advanced south of Oleksandro-Shultyne, and attacked near Toretsk, Dyliivka, Bila Hora, Shcherbynivka, Kleban-Byk, Katerynivka, Pleshchiivka, Yablunivka, Rusyn Yar, Poltavka, and Stepanivka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Shcherbynivka.
On the Pokrovsk direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces liberated Petrivka, counterattacked northeast of Dobropillya, near Rubizhne, Zolotyi Kolodyaz, and Zapovidne, broke through to Mayak, and engaged in combat in the village.
Russian troops fight for Pankivka, try to advance north of Poltavka, in Volodymyrivka, east of Shakhove, in the direction of Sofiivka, north of Kucheriv Yar, attacked near Pokrovsk, Rodynske, Krasnyi Lyman, Shakhove, Zapovidne, Novoekonomichne, Fedorivka, Mayak, Sofiivka, Zolotyi Kolodyaz, Vesele, Kucheriv Yar, Zatyshok, Volodymyrivka, Promin, Hrodivka, Myroliubivka, Lysivka, Novoukrainka, Chunyshyne, Zvirove, Kotlyne, Udachne, in the direction of Myrnohrad, and hold several positions along the railway west of Sukhetske. The 1st Motorized Rifle Battalion of the 77th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 7th Military Base of the 49th Combined Arms Army and the 39th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 68th Army Corps attack Ukrainian positions east of Zapovidne, captured a forest belt north of Zatyshok. The 137th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 41st Combined Arms Army and the 72nd Separate SOF Brigade of the 3rd Army Corps attack in the direction of Hrodivka and Myrnohrad, advanced 1 km to Promin. The 15th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 2nd Combined Arms Army unsuccessfully attacks near Udachne. The 1437th Motorized Rifle Regiment operates in Zvirove.
On the Novopavlivka direction, Russian troops attacked in the direction of Novopavlivka, near Novomykolayivka, Horikhove, Novoukrainka, Zirka, Hrushivka, Dachne, Filiya, Hrushivske, Tovste, Zelenyi Hai, Oleksandrohrad, Shevchenkove, and Zaporizke.
The 57th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 5th Combined Arms Army captured Novoheorhiivka. The 37th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 36th Combined Arms Army and the 336th Separate Marines Brigade broke through to Voskresenka and Sichneve. The enemy fought for Vorone and advanced to Komyshuvakha.
On the Huliaypole direction, Russian troops advanced on both sides of the O080619 Velyka Novosilka – Huliaypole road, in the direction of Novopil – Novoivanivka, captured Temyrivka, advanced north and south to Novomykolayivka, and attacked near Obratne, Zelene Pole, and in the direction of Novohryhorivka.
On the Orikhiv direction, Russian troops tried to advance near Plavni, south of Stepnohirsk, and attacked near Mala Tokmachka, Nesteryanka, Shcherbaky, and in the direction of Prymorske.
Ukrainian Defense Forces launched a missile strike on the enemy's command post in Myrne and elements of the air defense system north of Oleksiivka.
General conclusion:
In Sumy Oblast, Russian troops suffer losses, gradually withdraw in several districts of the Oblast, and hold only two small defense areas.
On the Lyman direction, Russian troops storm Ukrainian positions in small groups, attacking from several directions simultaneously and constantly introducing reserves of up to 10 assault groups in one wave. The terrain, including the Chornyi Zherebets River, prevents the enemy from using armored vehicles. The enemy deploys UAV units as close as possible to the line of contact to strike Ukrainian Defense Forces' logistics routes.
The enemy's penetration near Dobropillya remains a dynamic section on the front line where neither side can seize the initiative. Russian troops hold positions in Zolotyi Kolodyaz despite Ukrainian counterattacks and entrench themselves in Rodynske.
On the Pokrovsk direction, Russian troops deploy mobile EW systems on the front line to increase the depth of their counteraction against Ukrainian UAVs. Such EW systems are often moved directly within combat formations on motorcycles and scooters.
Change in the line of contact (LoC):
There were 167 combat engagements on various fronts.
On the Northern Slobozhansky and Kursk directions, 4 combat engagements occurred.
On the Southern Slobozhansky direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces repelled 9 enemy attacks in the areas of Vovchansk, Ambarne, Fiholivka, and in the directions of Khatnie and Katerynivka.
On the Kupyansk direction, 2 attacks by the occupiers occurred. The Defense Forces repelled the enemy's assault actions in the areas of Holubivka and toward Kupyansk.
On the Lyman direction, the enemy attacked 33 times, trying to advance in the areas of Karpivka, Ridkodub, Kolodyazi, Myrne, Torske, and toward Olhivka, Shandryholove, Yampil, Dronivka, and Hryhorivka.
On the Siversk direction, 5 assaults by the occupation forces were repelled near Hryhorivka, Pereyizne, and toward Vyimka and Fedorivka.
On the Kramatorsk direction, a combat engagement was recorded in the area of Stupochky.
On the Toretsk direction, the enemy carried out 11 attacks in the areas of Toretsk, Yablunivka, Shcherbynivka, and in the direction of Stepanivka, Poltavka, and Popiv Yar.
On the Pokrovsk direction, 53 combat engagements occurred in the areas of Volodymyrivka, Nykanorivka, Fedorivka, Kucheriv Yar, Novoekonomichne, Myroliubivka, Promin, Lysivka, Zvirove, Kotlyne, Udachne, Horikhove, Novoukrainka, Dachne, and toward Pokrovsk, Bilytske, Rodynske, Myrnohrad, and Novopavlivka.
On the Novopavlivka direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces stopped 28 attempts by the enemy to break through the defense lines in the areas of Tolstoy, Shevchenko, Vilne Pole, Voskresenka, Zelene Pole, and toward Filiya, Iskra, Komyshuvakha, Sichneve, and Novohryhorivka.
On the Orikhiv direction, an enemy attack in the direction of Prymorske was repelled.
On the Prydniprovske direction, enemy units tried to advance 3 times and were repelled.
Supporting operation:
Ukrainian Defense Forces launched a UAV strike on the "Novoshakhtinsk Oil Refinery" in Rostov Oblast, hit the "Zhuravka" railway traction substation in Voronezh Oblast.
Power unit No. 7 of the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant is temporarily disconnected from the grid.
Changes in the enemy disposition:
The 40th Separate Marines Brigade operates near Kindrativka; the 1434th Motorized Rifle Regiment, assault units of the 22nd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 72nd Motorized Rifle Division of the 44th Army Corps, and the 83rd Separate Air Assault Brigade are engaged near Varachyne.
The 27th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 1st Tank Army strikes Ukrainian positions near Kupyansk.
The 144th Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Combined Arms Army and the 1st and 15th Motorized Rifle Regiments of the 2nd Motorized Rifle Division of the 1st Tank Army advance in the direction of the western bank of the Chornyi Zherebets River and Drobysheve. The rest of the units of the 2nd Motorized Rifle Division fight south of Karpivka. The 3rd Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Combined Arms Army is nearby. The 16th BARS "Kuban" detachment strikes Ukrainian positions west of Novoselivka.
The 123rd Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 3rd Combined Arms Army operates near Vyimka.
The 77th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 7th Military Base of the 49th Combined Arms Army strikes Ukrainian positions in the direction of Kostyantynivka. The 299th Airborne Regiment of the 98th Airborne Division operates near Chasiv Yar.
The 4th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 3rd Combined Arms Army operates near Oleksandro-Shultyne.
The "Rubicon" Center for Advanced Drone Technologies strikes Ukrainian positions near Myrnohrad and Novopavlivka.
The 656th Motorized Rifle Regiment and the 657th Anti-Tank Battalion of the 29th Combined Arms Army strike Ukrainian positions near Filiya.
The 1198th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 35th Combined Arms Army strikes Ukrainian positions near Huliaypole.
A unit of the "Rubicon" Center for Advanced Drone Technologies and the naval detachment of the 88th "Espanyola" Volunteer Brigade strike Ukrainian troops near the coast of Crimea.
Possible operation situation developments:
According to the assessment of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, the enemy will not be able to achieve the goal of the so-called special military operation to capture the entire Donetsk Oblast by the end of 2025. Provided current dynamics of combat operations are maintained, the enemy will be able to capture Pokrovsk by autumn, Kostyantynivka and Kupyansk by the end of the year, and reach the close approaches to Zaporizhzhia and the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk agglomeration by early winter.
The command of the enemy's “Sever (North)” Operational Grouping, in cooperation with the right flank of the “Zapad (West)” Operational Grouping, will expand its bridgehead northeast of Velykyi Burluk in the Southern Slobozhansky direction and will try to capture Khatnie.
On the Kupyansk direction, the command of the enemy's “Zapad (West)” Operational Grouping will try to envelop the entire Kupyansk defense area of the “Khortytsia” OSG as deeply as possible from the north. The enemy will consolidate on the northern outskirts of Kupyansk and will try to paralyze the logistics support of Ukrainian Defense Forces' units defending in the city itself and east of it. The enemy will break through from the north and northeast to the R-07 Kharkiv–Chuhuiv–Kupyansk highway, attacking in the directions of Radkivka–Kovalivka and Radkivka–Myrne.
On the Lyman direction, the 25th Combined Arms Army will try to completely eliminate the bridgehead of Ukrainian Defense Forces on the northern bank of the Siverskyi Donets river in the area of the Serebriansk Forest. The troops of the 3rd Army Corps of Ukrainian Defense Forces will soon be forced to leave their positions in the Serebriansk Forest and withdraw behind the Chornyi Zherebets river. Ukrainian units will withdraw towards Yampil and will try to stop the enemy along the Chornyi Zherebets river.
On the Siversk direction, the command of the enemy's "Yug (South)" Operational Grouping will attempt to eliminate the Siversk salient held by "Khortytsia" OSG and break through towards the Sloviansk – Kramatorsk agglomeration. The 3rd Combined Arms Army will try to break through to the northern bank of the Siverskyi Donets River between Yampil and Hryhorivka, and from the southeast – toward Siversk. In the near future, the enemy will try to capture Pereyizne and attack Zvanivka along the eastern bank of the Bakhmutka River, trying to break through to Siversk from the south.
On the Toretsk direction, the troops of the 19th Army Corps of Ukrainian Defense Forces will have to leave the Shcherbynivka-Novospaske-Katerynivka-Kleban Byk area, retreat south of the Kleban Byk reservoir, and try to stop the advance of the enemy's 3rd and 8th Combined Arms Armies on the Pleshchiivka – Oleksandro-Shultyne line and go on the defensive in the area of Dovha Balka – Illinivka – Berestok – Stepanivka.
Russian forces will attack in the direction of Oleksiyevo-Druzhkivka and Druzhkivka to cut the Н20 Kostyantynivka-Sloviansk highway and complicate the logistics of Ukrainian Defense Forces in Kostyantynivka, thereby facilitating the capture of the "fortress belt". Russian forces may also try to advance northwest of Chasiv Yar in the direction of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, transferring part of the troops to attack along the E40 Bakhmut – Sloviansk highway for this purpose, thereby creating conditions for an assault on the "fortress belt" from the northeast.
On the Pokrovsk direction, the enemy will develop its success in the area northeast of the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad agglomeration in the operational zone of the 51st Combined Arms Army. Russian forces will advance from the southwest and northeast in an effort to envelop Pokrovsk and disrupt the logistical routes of the 9th Army Corps of the Ukrainian Defense Forces. The 51st Combined Arms Army will continue to bypass the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad agglomeration from the north and northeast and will try to advance as deeply as possible to Dobropillya, which will sharply worsen the prospects for the defense of not only Dobropillya and Pokrovsk, but also Druzhkivka and Kostyantynivka. The 2nd Combined Arms Army will then proceed to assault Pokrovsk from the south and southwest.
On the Novopavlivka direction, the command of the enemy's “Vostok (East)” Operational Grouping in the operational zones of the 36th and 29th Combined Arms Armies will try to capture the area between the Vovcha and Mokri Yaly rivers and Vorona and Vovcha rivers and reach the borders of the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in the Ivanivka-Temyrivka section.
Russian operational losses from 23.02.22 to 21.08.25
Personnel - almost 1,073 530 (+830);
Tanks – 11,120 (+1);
Armored combat vehicles ‒ 23,157 (+5);
Artillery systems – 31,789 (+41);
Multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) – 1,471 (+1);
Anti-aircraft warfare systems – 1,209 (+1);
Vehicles and fuel tanks – 59,316 (+114);
Aircraft - 422 (0);
Helicopters – 340 (0);
UAV operational and tactical level – 52,469 (+315);
Intercepted cruise and other missiles – 3,565 (0);
Boats/ships – 29 (0).
Humanitarian + general:
On the night of August 21, Russia attacked Ukraine with 614 aerial assault assets, of which anti-aircraft defense forces destroyed or suppressed 577. The enemy used 574 Shahed strike drones and decoy drones, four "Kinzhal" missiles, two Iskander-M/KN-23 ballistic missiles, 19 Kh-101 cruise missiles, 14 "Kalibr" missiles, and one more missile of an unidentified type. Anti-aircraft defense forces shot down 546 Shahed and decoy drones, one "Kinzhal" missile, 18 Kh-101 missiles, and 12 "Kalibr" missiles. Enemy missiles and drones hit 11 locations, and the fall of debris was recorded in three more places.
On the night of August 21, Russian forces launched a missile strike on an American civilian enterprise in Mukachevo in Zakarpattia Oblast, destroying warehouses and starting a large-scale fire of about 7,000 square meters. 23 people were injured, 12 of whom were hospitalized; all are in stable condition. This was the second attack on Zakarpattia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, with the previous one occurring in the spring of 2022. The Oblast Military Administration later clarified that the target was the Flex factory. According to preliminary estimates, the company's workshops are beyond repair.
On the night of August 21, Russian forces launched a missile and drone strike on Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. In the Yuriv community of the Pavlohrad district, fires broke out, a 48-year-old man was injured, and infrastructure was damaged. The enemy also attacked the Nikopol district, where residential buildings, outbuildings, cars, a gas pipeline, and power lines were damaged. In the Synelnykivskyi district, drones hit enterprises and a gas pipeline, and a house was damaged in the Tsarychanska community. Anti-aircraft defense forces shot down 18 UAVs and 2 missiles over the Oblast.
On the night of August 21, Russian troops struck Zaporizhzhia twice, damaging industrial infrastructure and residential buildings. According to preliminary data, there were no casualties.
In Lutsk, during the morning attack, a 48-year-old woman, the mother of a rescuer who was on duty at the time, was wounded by glass. She received injuries to her arm, leg, and back. She was the only casualty of the morning attack on Volyn.
On the night of August 21, Russian troops launched a combined strike on Lviv, using kamikaze drones and cruise missiles. As a result of the attack, one person was killed and three more were injured. The attack damaged at least 26 residential buildings, a kindergarten, administrative buildings, and vehicles, and fires were reported in the city.
On the morning of August 21, Russian forces launched three airstrikes on a village in the Polohy district of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. An 85-year-old woman was injured, diagnosed with fractures, lacerations, and a concussion.
In the Koriukivka community in Chernihiv Oblast, a Russian drone hit the yard of a house, wounding two women. A 66-year-old local resident and her 46-year-old guest received numerous injuries and were hospitalized. One is in a stable condition, while the other is in intensive care.
On the morning of August 21, Russian artillery shelled a residential area in the Dniprovskyi district of Kherson. A 61-year-old man was killed and seven people were injured. In a second shelling later in the afternoon, two women were also injured.
On the night of August 20-21, one of Ukraine's gas transmission system facilities was damaged during a Russian air attack. The Ministry of Energy reported that the strike location was localized, and a damage assessment is ongoing.