Russia's war on Ukraine. 29.04.25
Operational situation
On the Kursk direction, Ukrainian Defense Forces attacked in the direction of Goptarovka, hold positions in Hornal, near Oleshnia, and in the direction of Basivka.
Russian troops advanced west of Loknia, southwest of Basivka, southeast of Zhuravka, attacked in small infantry groups on the international border near Basivka and Zhuravka. The 83rd Separate Air Assault Brigade is advancing north of Bilovody.
On the Kharkiv direction, Russian troops attacked near Vovchansk and Vovchanski Khutory.
On the Kupyansk direction, the 344th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 69th Motorized Rifle Division of the 6th Army captured the southern part of Kamyanka and advanced on the eastern outskirts of the village. Russian troops attempted to advance northwest of Stepova Novoselivka, attacked near Mala Shapkivka, Zapadne, Chervone Pershe, Petropavlivka, Zahryzove, Nova Kruhlyakivka, Nadiya, and Kopanky.
On the Lyman direction, Russian troops attacked near Ridkodub, Nove, Yampolivka, Katerynivka, Myrne, Kolodyazi, Novyi Myr, Torske, in the area of the Serebriansk Forest.
On the Siversk direction, Russian troops advanced on the eastern outskirts of Hryhorivka, attacked near Verkhnyokamianske.
On the Kramatorsk direction, the 1442nd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 6th Motorized Rifle Division of the 3rd Army Corps advanced southeast of Chasiv Yar and on the outskirts of Stupochky. Russian troops attacked near Mayske, Markove, Bila Hora, Kurdyumivka, and Ozaryanivka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Stupochky.
On the Toretsk direction, the 33rd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 20th Motorized Rifle Division of the 8th Army is fighting for Tarasivka, the 68th Tank Regiment of the 150th Motorized Rifle Division of the 8th Army is attempting to advance northwest of Sukha Balka. Russian troops advanced to the dam north of Toretsk, fought for Berezivka, attacked near Dyliivka, Dachne, Petrivka, Shcherbynivka, Yelyzavetivka, Oleksandropil, Stara Mykolaivka, in the direction of Nova Poltavka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces hold their positions east of Sukha Balka and between New York and Sukha Balka, counterattack the positions of the 255th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 20th Motorized Rifle Division of the 8th Army near Yelyzavetivka.
On the Pokrovsk direction, Russian troops continued fighting in Myroliubivka and Zvirove, advanced near Pokrovsk, Malynivka, Lysivka, Kotlyne, Udachne, Novoserhiyivka.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Pishchane and Novoserhiyivka.
On the Novopavlivka direction, Russian troops slightly advanced northeast and northwest of Nadiivka, Odradne, attempted to advance further northeast of Nadiivka, near Bahatyr, fought for Uspenivka, Novooleksandrivka, attacked in the direction of Novopavlivka, Kotlyarivka, Troitske, Sribne, Nadiivka, Bohdanivka, Andriivka, Oleksiivka, Konstyantynopil. Aviation of the 11th Air Force and Air Defense Army struck the bridge near Zelenyi Kut.
Ukrainian Defense Forces counterattacked near Bahatyr and Odradne.
On the Orikhiv direction, Russian troops attacked near Stepove, Shcherbaky, and Lobkove.
On the Prydniprovske direction, Russian troops fought for the islands between Krynky and Kozachi Laheri, landed on the western bank of the Dnipro south of Tyahinka, attacked near the Antonivskyi railway bridge.
General conclusion:
The situation on the Kharkiv direction is now more difficult than in February and March 2025. The enemy is concentrating efforts near Tykhe, carrying out fire strikes. I has increased the intensity of assaults, rotated forces, increased troop density, and brought in reserves.
The actions of enemy’s “Sever (North)” and “Zapad (West)” Operational Groupings near the state border in Kharkiv Oblast, at the junction of their operational zones, show signs of increasing coordination.
On the Lyman direction, Russian forces have created a manpower advantage of up to 10 to 1 in certain sectors.
Russian forces have intensified aerial bomb strikes using guided air bombs on Kostyantynivka, Druzhkivka, and Kramatorsk, aiming to destroy the logistics of the “Khortytsia” Operational Strategic Group (OSG ) and its artillery group’s firing positions.
On the Toretsk direction, the enemy is gradually increasing the number and strength of its grouping. They do not conduct large-scale offensive operations with heavy armored vehicles but carry out daily assaults with small infantry groups.
Change in the line of contact (LoC):
There were 178 combat engagements on various fronts.
On the Kharkiv direction, the enemy attempted to breach Ukrainian defensive lines 9 times in the areas of Vovchansk, Vovchanski Khutory, Zapadne, and Mala Shapkivka.
On the Kupyansk direction, there were 7 Russian attacks. Assault actions by the enemy were repelled in the areas of Zahryzove, Kindrashivka, Petropavlivka, Hlushkivka, and Nova Kruhlyakivka.
On the Lyman direction, the enemy attacked 18 times, trying to penetrate Ukrainian defense in the areas of the settlements of Katerynivka, Nove, Kolodyazi, Yampolivka and in the directions of Lypove, Ridkodub, Zelena Dolyna, and Novyi Myr.
On the Siversk direction, 6 enemy attacks were successfully stopped near Ivano-Dariivka and in the direction of the settlements of Hryhorivka and Verkhnyokamianske.
On the Kramatorsk direction, the occupiers attacked 10 times in the direction of Markove and near Chasiv Yar and Bila Hora.
On the Toretsk direction, the enemy carried out 14 attacks in the areas of Toretsk, Druzhba, and in the direction of Dyliivka and Dachne.
On the Pokrovsk direction, 59 Russian assault actions were stopped in the areas of Sukha Balka, Yelyzavetivka, Sukhyi Yar, Malynivka, Lysivka, Kotlyne, Udachne, Novoserhiyivka, Novooleksandrivka, Nadiivka, Troitske, Kotlyarivka, Sribne, Andriivka and in the direction of Pokrovsk, Stara Mykolaivka, Oleksandropil, Novopavlivka, Bohdanivka.
On the Novopavlivka direction, the enemy carried out 23 attacks in the areas of Pryvilne, Konstyantynopil, Vilne Pole and in the direction of Odradne, Bahatyr, Shevchenko.
On the Orikhiv direction, the occupying forces stormed Defense Forces positions 5 times near Shcherbaky, Stepove, and Lobkove.
On the Prydniprovske direction, 5 enemy attacks were successfully repelled.
Ukrainian Defense Forces continue their operation in Kursk Oblast. There were 15 combat engagements, and the enemy carried out 17 airstrikes.
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; the total salvo is 6 cruise missiles.
Mediterranean Sea: 3 ships, including 1 cruise missile carrier; the total salvo is 8 cruise missiles.
Supporting operation:
Ukrainian Defense Forces carried out strikes on targets in Kursk, Oryol, Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Belgorod, Moscow, Kaluga, and Bryansk Oblasts.
In the village of Kirilovka near Novorossiysk in Krasnodar Krai, a fuel depot was hit.
Changes in the enemy disposition:
The 1427th Motorized Rifle Regiment operates in the area of Veselivka.
The 352nd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 18th Motorized Rifle Division of the 11th Army Corps, and the 272nd Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 47th Tank Division of the 1st Tank Army operate near Stepova Novoselivka.
The 16th Separate SOF Brigade operates near the Serebriansk Forest.
The 132nd Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade and the 109th Separate Rifle Regiment of the 1st Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 51st Army operate in the direction of Kostyantynivka.
The 4th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 3rd Army and the 80th Separate SOF Battalion “Sparta” of the 51st Army operate in the Toretsk direction. The 238th Artillery Brigade of the 8th Army operates near Shcherbynivka; elements of the 150th Motorized Rifle Division are active near Shcherbynivka and Stara Mykolaivka.
The 338th Rocket Artillery Brigade, the 200th Artillery Brigade, and the 36th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 29th Army operate near Bahatyr.
The 64th Separate Motorized Rifle Brigade of the 35th Army operates near Huliaypole.
The 291st Motorized Rifle Regiment of the 42nd Motorized Rifle Division of the 58th Army operates near Mala Tokmachka.
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. Russian forces may attempt to advance near Kupyansk, Lyman, Novopavlivka, or toward the city of Zaporizhzhia. The Pokrovsk direction is viewed by Ukraine’s military-political leadership as the absolute priority for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Additionally, Russian forces intend to create a buffer zone in the north of Sumy Oblast and pose a threat to the city of Sumy in the coming months.
In Sumy Oblast, key enemy objectives that could provide stability to a buffer zone may include the heights between Yunakivka and Khrapivshchyna, the wooded area to the northeast of Sumy from Radkivka to Mohrytsya, and the Psel River. Based on this, the enemy’s operational tasks in this direction may include taking control of the area of Bilovody – Loknia – Yunakivka – Yablunivka, seizing at least the eastern part of the wooded area west of Mohrytsya, and reaching the line of Velyka Rybytsya – Myropillya along the Psel River. The enemy may also attempt to break through from the border toward Vorozhba and Bilopillya and cut off the operational lateral route between Sumy and Novhorod-Siverskyi. The implementation of such a plan would require the enemy command to covertly deploy a strike force in the area of Tiotkino.
A replacement of the airborne forces and naval infantry units with troops of the 14th and 44th Army Corps is expected soon. The highly mobile component of the Russian Armed Forces will be redeployed to Donbas or to Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
On the Kupyansk direction, the command of the enemy's "Zapad (West)" Operational Grouping will abandon active operations on its flanks and resume the offensive along the Svatove–Kupyansk road in the offensive zone of the 47th Tank Division of the 1st Tank Army. To this end, it is concentrating forces in the area of Kyslivka – Zatyshne – Nova Tarasivka – Tabaiivka and has already redeployed one motorized rifle regiment each from the 2nd Motorized Rifle Division and the 4th Tank Division of the 1st Tank Army to the Lyman direction. The enemy will demonstrate readiness to launch a frontal push against the "Khortytsia" OSG, thereby attempting to mislead the command of "Khortytsia" OSG regarding the true intent of its actions, aiming to complicate the maneuvering of OSG reserves simultaneously across two operational zones — in front of both the 6th Combined Arms Army and the 1st Tank Army of the enemy.
On the Lyman direction, the command of the enemy’s "Zapad (West)" Operational Grouping will exert efforts to collapse the defense of "Khortytsia" OSG in front of the 3rd Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Combined Arms Army. To achieve this, the 144th Motorized Rifle Division of the 20th Combined Arms Army will attempt at any cost to break through in a northwesterly direction from its bridgehead on the Chornyi Zherebets River to link up with the 4th Tank Division of the 1st Tank Army. The enemy will attempt to advance toward Karlivka from Nove and toward Drobysheve from Kolodyazi, seeking to reach and entrench along the Karlivka – Shandryholove – Drobysheve line, while simultaneously intensifying its offensive near Torske and advancing on Lyman from the east. The forward elements of the 25th Combined Arms Army will, in the near future, attempt to simultaneously force the Chornyi Zherebets River as close as possible to Zarichne and break through to its eastern part on the opposite bank of the river. The enemy command’s operational intent includes using the Oskil River as a flank cover for a further advance on Lyman and Sloviansk, as evidenced by intensive attacks from the bridgehead on the Chornyi Zherebets River in a northwesterly direction toward Borova and the shift of the main strike axis of the 20th Combined Arms Army from Lyman to Borova.
The command of the enemy’s 3rd Combined Arms Army on the Siversk direction will create favorable conditions for the further seizure of the Sloviansk–Kramatorsk agglomeration during the summer campaign. For this, its forces will attempt to break through to the northern bank of the Siverskyi Donets River between Yampil and Hryhorivka, and from the southeast direction—toward Siversk.
On the Kramatorsk direction, the command of the enemy’s “Yug (South)” Operational Grouping and the 3rd Army, in particular, may soon change the direction of their main strike and shift it to the north of Chasiv Yar, launching an offensive on both sides of the Bakhmut–Sloviansk road along the Orikhovo-Vasylivka–Minkivka and Blahodatne–Pryvillya directions, which would allow them to break through to the forward approaches of Sloviansk directly from the southeast and create a real threat to the “Siversk” Operational Tactical Grouping (OTG) of Ukrainian Defense Forces by executing a deep flanking maneuver on its right flank. If the enemy manages to achieve operational surprise in these directions and advance to tactical depth, the situation in the Kolodyazi–Hryhorivka sector on the Lyman direction could radically deteriorate for the “Khortytsia” OSG.
The command of the enemy’s “Yug (South)” Operational Grouping will continue its offensive on the Toretsk direction with two tactical groups — one in the Toretsk area (main group), and another in the Vozdvyzhenka area (group on a secondary direction). The first group will attempt a breakthrough toward Pleshchiivka, bypassing the Kleban-Byk reservoir from the east; the second will push toward the Novoolenivka area, bypassing the reservoir from the west along the Pokrovsk–Bakhmut highway. The enemy will attempt to outflank the prepared “Khortytsia” OSG defenses from the east, along lines based on a cascade of small reservoirs and ponds along the Bychok River, generally in the Toretsk–Kostyantynivka direction, aiming to reach the intermediate line Pleshchiivka–Bila Hora. Its forward units will attempt to advance through Shcherbynivka toward Pleshchiivka and along the Dachne–Dyliivka railway. In the near future, the enemy will focus on seizing Shcherbynivka and Novospaske. If unsuccessful, the main axis of the attack may shift to the zone of the 20th Motorized Rifle Division near Vozdvyzhenka, or the enemy may focus on dismantling the “Khortytsia” OSG’s defenses along the Siverskyi Donets–Donbas canal, advancing from south to north.
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.
Russian operational losses from 23.02.22 to 29.04.25
Personnel - almost 950,860 (+1,060);
Tanks – 10,728 (+5);
Armored combat vehicles – 22,325 (+14);
Artillery systems – 27,080 (+42);
Multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) – 1,373 (0);
Anti-aircraft warfare systems – 1,146 (+1);
Vehicles and fuel tanks – 46,432 (+140);
Aircraft - 370 (0);
Helicopters – 335 (0);
UAV operational and tactical level – 34,177 (+94);
Intercepted cruise missiles – 3,196 (0)
Boats/ships – 29 (0).
Humanitarian + general:
The international human rights organization Amnesty International published its 2024 report. Amnesty International stated that civilian casualties were higher than in 2023 and often occurred far from the front line of active hostilities. "Civilian casualties increased, including among children and the elderly, as Russian forces used prohibited weapons, disabled critical civilian infrastructure, and, according to available data, deliberately targeted civilians," the organization’s experts noted. In Russian-occupied territories, repression continued due to non-Russian identity, along with executions, torture, and other cruel treatment of civilian detainees and prisoners of war.
On the evening of April 28, Russian occupiers attacked Ukraine with a hundred strike UAVs and drones imitating other types. As of 08:30, 37 strike UAVs had been confirmed shot down. Forty-seven enemy imitation drones were lost from radar (without negative consequences). As a result of the enemy attack, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kyiv Oblasts were affected.
On the night of April 29, Kyiv and its surroundings were attacked by 11 enemy drones, 9 of which were destroyed by air defense, and 2 were lost geographically. The drone attack caused destruction and a fire. There was no damage to critical infrastructure. Three people sought medical assistance.
One child was killed and four other people were injured as a result of a Russian drone attack in the Hubynska hromada of Samarskyi Raion, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. The enemy UAV struck a residential building.
In Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, the occupiers struck rescuers twice while they were extinguishing a fire caused by a previous Russian shelling. As a result of the repeated strikes, two fire engines were damaged.
According to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, the body identified by forensic examination as that of journalist Viktoriia Roshchyna, who died in Russian captivity, bears numerous signs of torture and post-mortem dissection; it also lacks several internal organs, including the brain, eyeballs, and part of the trachea. An international forensic pathologist who spoke with journalists believes the absence of these organs may indicate that the Russians attempted to hide that the cause of death was suffocation.
According to the Center of Near Eastern Studies (a Ukrainian NGO that has been working in Kherson Oblast since 2014 – editor), in the occupied part of Kherson Oblast, the occupation authorities have begun a mass replacement of locks in apartments and houses belonging to owners who left the area or to residents who live there but do not have Ukrainian documents for the property. According to conversations with representatives of the occupation "authorities," the premises will soon be used to resettle Russians under various “state programs” that provide free housing.
According to Ukraine's Defense Intelligence, the Kremlin has appointed new representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church tasked with promoting the ideas of the "Russian world" under the guise of a religious mission. The list of new curators for Ukraine includes:
Metropolitan Antonii (Anton Sevryuk) – Head of the Department for External Church Relations of the ROC, known for his contacts in international religious circles and for actively promoting Kremlin interests through church diplomacy.
Metropolitan Dionisii (Petro Porubai) – Metropolitan of Omsk and Tavria, a propagandist of the "Russian world" among religious communities.
Metropolitan Pavlo (Heorhii Ponomariov) – Patriarchal Exarch of the Moscow Metropolis, responsible for coordinating the ROC’s work in the "near abroad."
Metropolitan Varsonofii (Anatolii Sudakov) – Head of the St. Petersburg Metropolis, connected with Russian security structures and known for participating in information and propaganda operations.