Russian Defense Breakthrough: AFU Create New Offensive Area In Luhansk Oblast

Combat maps as of November 18.

The Ukrainian military is advancing in Luhansk Oblast, having intensified a new section of the counteroffensive. At the same time, occupants continue to unsuccessfully storm Bakhmut.

This is reported by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Counteroffensive in the west of Luhansk Oblast

Ukrainian forces continued their counteroffensive in the directions of Svatovo and Kremenna. The Russian Defense Ministry states that Russian air and artillery strikes prevented an attack by Ukrainian forces in the direction of Novoselovske and Kolomychikha, near Makiivka, Ploshchanka and Chervonopopovka.

The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Ukrainian forces also repelled attacks by Russian forces 16 km northwest of Svatovo near Stelmakhivka and south of Kremenna near Bilohorivka. Ukrainian forces attempted to attack Russian defenses near Svatovo and conducted offensive operations near Kuzemivka.

Ukrainian forces "broke" the Russian defenses near Kremenna. Their operations south of Kremenna created another active sector of the counteroffensive in Luhansk Oblast.

Fighting in the Donbas

Russian forces prioritized offensive operations in Donetsk Oblast on Nov. 17. Ukrainian Deputy Chief of the Main Operational Directorate Brigadier General Oleksiy Hromov said that the most difficult situation was in eastern Ukraine, where Russian troops were trying to cross the administrative border of Donetsk Oblast. Hromov stated that over the past week alone there have been 500 military clashes between Ukrainian and Russian troops in Donetsk Oblast.

ISW previously reported that the Russian military was likely trying to use mobilized personnel and troops previously stationed on the western bank of Kherson Oblast to intensify the offensive against Donetsk, but probably still failed with major operational successes.

Russian forces continue offensive operations near Bakhmut. The Ukrainian General Staff report that the AFU repulsed attacks by Russian forces 34 km northeast of Bakhmut near Verkhnokamenske and Soledar.

Russian troops continue offensive operations in the Avdiivka-Donetsk area and in the west of Donetsk Oblast. The Ukrainian General Staff reports that Ukrainian forces repulsed attacks by Russian forces 28 km southwest of Avdiivka near Nevelsky, Maryinka and Pervomaysky. It also reports that Russian forces relocated 400 men from the Rosgvardiya special quick reaction units to Mariupol, Donetsk Oblast.

The South

Russian forces continued to conduct defensive operations on the eastern bank of Kherson Oblast. Ukraine's Southern Operational Command reports that Russian forces were trying to secure supply routes on the eastern shore and retreating further to the rear of Kherson Oblast to avoid damage from Ukrainian fire.

Brigadier General Oleksiy Hromov, deputy head of the Main Operational Directorate of the Ukrainian General Staff, notes that Ukraine's control of the western bank of the Dnipro River allows Ukrainian forces to control territory near the occupied Crimean peninsula, presumably by fire, as Ukrainian forces are not yet operating on the eastern bank of the river. Ukrainian forces continue to attack Russian positions on the eastern bank from maximum range.

Satellite images from November 15 show that Russian forces have built additional defensive positions at Chkalov, a settlement about 55 km south of the current front line on the Dnipro River.

On November 17, Ukrainian forces continue strikes against Russian military facilities and staging areas on the eastern bank of Kherson Oblast and in the rear of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. According to reports on social media, Ukrainian strikes targeted Chaplynka (50 km south of Dnipro) and Kalanchak (58 km south of Dnipro). Footage published by Ukrainian military sources shows Ukrainian troops striking a Russian armored personnel carrier in Oleshki, south of Kherson. Russian media additionally reported Ukrainian strikes on an administrative building in Nova Kakhovka. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that a Ukrainian strike destroyed a Russian headquarters in Melitopol, Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

Russian forces launched a missile strike against areas in Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk and Odessa Oblasts. Ukraine's Southern Operational Command reports that Russian forces launched in the morning of November 17 air and sea-based missile strikes on infrastructure facilities in Odessa Oblast. In addition, Russian missiles struck critical infrastructure in the city of Dnipro, which the Russian Defense Ministry claims is a defense facility.

Russian and Ukrainian sources additionally reported a Russian missile strike on infrastructure in the city of Zaporizhia and the Vilnyansk district of Zaporizhia Oblast and Ochakov of Mykolayiv Oblast.

The General Staff of Ukraine reports that Russian occupation authorities and forces are stepping up filtering measures in Rubizhne, Luhansk Oblast, as well as in the Kakhovka district of Kherson Oblast. The Ukrainian General Staff also reported that Russian troops imposed restrictions on movement in Rubizhne on the side of Kremenna and Varvarivka of Luhansk Oblast. Gauleiter Volodymyr Saldo signed a decree establishing a new network of checkpoints in the Russian-occupied Kherson region to prevent the "export" of special vehicles and trucks from the region.

Russian occupation authorities continued to coerce residents of the occupied areas of Ukraine to support Russia's military actions. On November 17, the occupation head of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Yevhen Balitsky, stated that residents of the occupied districts receive a full range of social support measures for blood donations.