Russia's war on Ukraine. 27.03.25
Operational situation
On the Kursk direction, Russian forces advanced east of Oleshnia. The 34th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 49th Combined Arms Army and Airborne Forces units attempt to advance near Veselivka. The enemy attacked near Gogolevka, the "Sudzha" checkpoint, and Zhuravka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces struck the command post of the 1st Motorized Rifle Battalion of the 9th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 18th Motorized Rifle Division of the 11th Army Corps in the area of Viktorovka-Uspenovka, Kursk Oblast.
On the Belgorod direction, Russian forces attempted to advance on the northern outskirts of Demidovka, while fighting continues in Popovka.
On the Kharkiv direction, Russian forces continued unsuccessful offensive actions, failing in attacks towards Tykhe and near Vovchansk.
On the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces reached the outskirts of Mala Shapkivka and continued attacks along the Zakhidne-Kalynove line, near Dvorichna, Sahunivka, Holubivka, towards Kamyanka, and near Petropavlivka, Zahryzove, Kopanka, Nadiia, towards Olkhivka, Nove, and Katerynivka.
On the Lyman direction, Russian forces attempted to advance near Yampolivka and continued attacks near Kolodyazi, Torske, and Zarichne.
On the Siversk direction, Russian forces attacked near Bilohorivka, Verkhnyokamianske, and Ivano-Dariivka.
On the Kramatorsk direction, Russian forces advanced near Chasiv Yar, towards Predtechyne, and near Bila Hora, Stupochky, and Dyliivka.
On the Toretsk direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces advanced along Odeska and Dargomyzhsky streets in Toretsk. Russian forces advanced in the area of the "Toretska" mine, west along the O0524 highway northwest of Toretsk, and attempted to move west of New York, north of Toretsk, towards the "Avangard" stadium in central Toretsk, and near the "Fomikha" mine spoil tip. The 68th Tank Regiment of the 150th Motorized Rifle Division of the 8th Combined Arms Army is engaged in combat near Oleksandropil and Panteleymonivka. The enemy attacked near Dyliivka, Dachne, Krymske, and Sukha Balka.
On the Pokrovsk direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces advanced north of Uspenivka and counterattacked near Lysivka and Solone.
Russian forces advanced near Lysivka and on the northwestern outskirts of Kotlyne, attacking near Tarasivka, towards Malynivka, near Zelenyi Hai, Yelyzavetivka, Promin, Shevchenkove, Novopavlivka, Vidrodzhennya, Udachne, Preobrazhenka, Bohdanivka, Uspenivka, Novoukrainka, Kotlyarivka, Novoserhiyivka, Pishchane, and Novooleksandrivka.
On the Novopavlivka direction, Russian forces attempted to advance north of Andriivka and near Rozlyv, continuing attacks near Konstyantynopil.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Rozlyv.
On the Huliaypole direction, Russian forces advanced to the eastern outskirts of Vilne Pole and attacked near Dniproenerhiya, Veselivka, Skudne, Pryvilne, Novopil, and Novosilka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Vilne Pole.
On the Orikhiv direction, Russian forces advanced along the T0812 Vasylivka-Orikhiv highway on the western outskirts of Stepove. The 108th and 247th Air Assault Regiments of the 7th Air Assault Division are advancing north, west, and east of Lobkove and within the village. Russian forces attacked near Mala Tokmachka, Mali Shcherbaky, Shcherbaky, and Kamianske.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Stepove, Lobkove, and Shcherbaky.
General conclusion:
The intensity of combat operations continues to increase along the entire front line, particularly in the Pokrovsk direction. Meanwhile, combat intensity in the border area of Belgorod Oblast has decreased due to adverse weather conditions.
Russian forces on the Toretsk direction use rapid identification markings identical to those used by Ukrainian Defense Forces, which constitutes a violation of the laws of war.
Hostilities on the Novopavlivka direction have intensified, as capturing Konstyantynopil would allow Russian forces to increase pressure on Rozlyv from both the north and south.
Change in the line of contact (LoC):
There were 224 combat engagements on various fronts.
On the Kharkiv direction, the enemy attempted twice to breach Ukrainian defense lines towards Vovchansk.
On the Kupyansk direction, there were four enemy attacks near Holubivka and Zahryzove.
On the Lyman direction, the enemy launched 14 attacks, attempting to penetrate Ukrainian defenses near Kopanka, Yampolivka, Novoserhiyivka, towards Nove, Kolodyazi, and Novomykhailivka.
On the Siversk direction, 11 enemy attacks were successfully repelled near Bilohorivka, Verkhnyokamianske, and Ivano-Dariivka.
On the Kramatorsk direction, the occupiers attacked four times near Chasiv Yar, Predtechyne, and Bila Hora.
On the Toretsk direction, the enemy carried out 20 attacks near Toretsk, Dachne, Krymske, and towards Dyliivka.
On the Pokrovsk direction, 88 enemy assault actions were repelled near Oleksandropil, Tarasivka, Yelyzavetivka, Lysivka, Novoukrainka, Kotlyne, Uspenivka, Novooleksandrivka, and towards Preobrazhenka, Pokrovsk, Promin, Vidrodzhennya, and Novoserhiyivka.
On the Novopavlivka direction, the enemy launched 25 attacks towards Rozlyv, Vesele, near Konstyantynopil, and Skudne.
On the Huliaypole direction, 16 Russian attacks were stopped near Rivnopil, Novosilka, Pryvilne, Vilne Pole, and Novopil.
On the Orikhiv direction, occupation forces stormed Ukrainian Defense Forces positions nine times near Maly Shcherbaky, Lobkove, Shcherbaky, and towards Stepove.
On the Prydniprovskyi direction, two enemy attacks were successfully repelled.
Ukrainian Defense Forces continue operations in Kursk Oblast. The enemy carried out 19 airstrikes and conducted 25 assault actions.
In the Black Sea-Azov naval operational area, the enemy naval group on combat duty consists of:
Black Sea: 1 ship, including 1 cruise missile carrier, with a total salvo of 4 missiles.
Mediterranean Sea: 4 ships, including 3 cruise missile carriers; the total salvo is 26 cruise missiles.
Supporting operation:
There were no strikes.
Changes in the enemy disposition:
The 177th Separate Marines Regiment of the Caspian Fleet, a battalion of the 40th Separate Marines Brigade of the Pacific Fleet, and the 22nd and 30th Motorized Rifle Regiments of the 72nd Motorized Rifle Division of the 44th Army Corps operate near Guevo. The 83rd Separate Air Assault Brigade is positioned near Zhuravka.
The 128th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 44th Army Corps operates near Popovka.
The 1198th Motorized Rifle Regiment and the 64th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 35th Combined Arms Army are advancing in the direction of Polohy.
The 70th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division of the 58th Combined Arms Army is engaged near Mala Tokmachka. The 37th BARS "Sarmat" Detachment (currently being reorganized into the "BARS-Sarmat" Special Purpose Unmanned Systems Center) is deployed in Kamianske.
Possible operation situation developments:
The plan for the enemy's spring-summer offensive campaign in the Southwestern Theater of Operations may be as follows: a simultaneous breakthrough towards Kostyantynivka and Druzhkivka from the south and southeast (from the direction of Toretsk and Vozdvyzhenka), as well as from the northeast (from the direction of Chasiv Yar), followed by an advance towards Kramatorsk from the south while simultaneously advancing towards Slovyansk with the forces of the 20th and 25th Combined Arms Armies of the "Zapad (West)" Operational Grouping through Lyman.
The enemy cannot establish a full-fledged buffer zone on the border of Kursk and Sumy Oblasts, so the simplest option may be an invasion of Sumy Oblast by a grouping of 22,000–27,000 military personnel along the Sumy–Sudzha highway within a 35–40 km-wide zone (stretching from Zhuravka to Myropillya). This territory has already been turned into a buffer zone by Ukrainian Defense Forces, which will greatly complicate enemy actions.
Ukrainian Defense Forces may launch an offensive in the direction of Lyman Pershyi – Horobivka – Tavilzhanka, which, if successful, will lead to either the enemy's rapid retreat from the Dvorichna bridgehead or its encirclement there. Such a development would result in the loss of combat capability of the entire enemy's 6th Combined Arms Army.
On the Kramatorsk direction, the envelopment of Chasiv Yar from the south by advancing toward Stupochky will be a priority for the command of the 3rd Combined Arms Army and the 98th Airborne Division of the enemy.
The operational plan of the 8th Combined Arms Army on the Kostyantynivka direction is to envelop the tactical group of the "Khortytsia" OSG, which is defending south of Kostyantynivka between Oleksandropil and Tarasivka from the flanks. The enemy aims to encircle and destroy this group or, if unable to do so, force it to withdraw from the area south of Kostyantynivka in a northwestern direction under the threat of encirclement. The ultimate goal of these actions is a two-pronged breakthrough from the southwest and southeast toward the area of Stepanivka – Berestok – Pleshchiivka – Yablunivka, followed by a simultaneous assault on Kostyantynivka from this area and from the direction of Chasiv Yar. After the reaching the Poltavka–Pleshchiivka line, the enemy’s 3rd Combined Arms Army, reinforced by an airborne forces group, will attempt a rapid breakthrough from the bridgehead on the Siverskyi Donets–Donbas canal in the Chasiv Yar area, advancing from the northeast toward Kostyantynivka.
In the near future, the enemy command may shift the main attack direction of the 90th Tank Division toward the Andriivka area (part of the 428th Motorized Rifle Regiment, as well as the 67th and 87th Rifle Regiments). The reinforcement of division units with elements of the 239th or 6th Tank Regiments cannot be ruled out. To regain the pace of the offensive, the enemy command will likely attempt one of two obvious decisions: shifting its main efforts from the operational zone of the 5th Combined Arms Army to the zone of the 36th Combined Arms Army (along the eastern bank of the Mokri Yaly River) or deploying the reserves of "Vostok (East)" Operational Grouping in the operational zone of the 5th Combined Arms Army. The reserves of "Vostok (East)" Operational Grouping (likely elements of the 60th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade and the 5th Tank Brigade) have limited combat capability, with only one reinforced battalion in each brigade ready for action within 24 hours.
Russian operational losses from 23.02.22 to 27.03.25
Personnel - almost 908,890 (+1,670);
Tanks – 10,438 (+8);
Armored combat vehicles – 21,701 (+16);
Artillery systems – 25,265 (+58);
Multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) – 1,343 (+2);
Anti-aircraft warfare systems – 1,118 (+1);
Vehicles and fuel tanks – 42,070 (+169);
Aircraft - 370 (0);
Helicopters – 335 (0);
UAV operational and tactical level – 30,926 (+108);
Intercepted cruise missiles – 3,121 (0)
Boats/ships – 29 (0).
Humanitarian + general:
During the night of March 27, 2025 (beginning at 20:00 on March 26), the enemy launched an attack on Ukraine using an Iskander-M ballistic missile, 86 Shahed-type attack drones, and multiple types of decoy drones. By 09:00, 42 attack drones had been confirmed shot down, while 26 enemy decoy drones were lost from radar tracking without causing any negative consequences. The Russian assault impacted the Kharkiv, Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk, and Chernihiv Oblasts.
On the night of March 27, a repeated Russian drone strike hit the location in Konotop, Sumy Oblast, where rescuers were working to eliminate the consequences of a previous attack. One person was injured in the first strike.
Late in the evening of March 26, the Russian army attacked Dnipro with drones, carrying out one of the largest bombardments of the city in three years of war. Fires raged across the city. Three people were injured, and more than 10 apartment buildings, businesses, an educational institution, and dozens of cars were damaged.
As a result of a massive Russian drone strike on Kharkiv in the evening of March 26, 13 people were injured, including two children.
A Russian airstrike on the village of Krasnopillya in Sumy Oblast on the morning of March 27 destroyed a private house, and the homeowner was injured.
Around 08:30 in Kherson, an 82-year-old woman was injured by a Russian drone strike. Later in the morning of March 27, another elderly woman in Kherson was attacked by a Russian strike drone and suffered injuries incompatible with life.
On March 27, Russian troops shelled the center of Kherson with artillery, killing two people and injuring six others. The shelling lasted over an hour and a half. Among the wounded was an ambulance crew evacuating a wounded person during a repeated attack by the occupiers. The city also experienced partial power outages, temporarily halting trolleybus services.
In the village of Svitlychne, Kharkiv region, Russians targeted a civilian car with a drone, injuring two men with varying degrees of severity.
Russian forces shelled the Chervonohryhorivka community in the Nikopol district of the Dnipropetrovsk region with artillery, damaging a gas station and injuring a 30-year-old woman.
On the afternoon of March 27, Russian forces struck the Kherson railway station and surrounding infrastructure. The shelling damaged a carriage of train No. 110 Kherson–Lviv, causing a delay. There were no casualties, as staff and passengers were in shelter. The station building was damaged, along with electrical and water supply cables.
Ukraine has recovered three more children from occupied territories: the son of a Ukrainian serviceman, a teenager, and a young girl. One of them, five-year-old Ivan, the son of a Ukrainian soldier, was so traumatized by a search and armed threats from Russian troops that he stopped speaking for an entire year. The children are now safe. In total, Ukraine has successfully returned 1,247 children illegally taken to Russia.
In 2024, more than 35,000 square kilometers of land in Ukraine were demined, making these areas safe for economic activity.
As of the second half of March 2025, 69% of Ukrainians trust President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, according to a poll conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology. Zelenskyi is not trusted by 28%. The trust-distrust balance stands at +41%.