Five days of war, hundreds of thousands of displaced persons and a constantly changing front in the north, east and south of the country. The war in Ukraine, which started on the night of February 23 to 24, continues as Russian conquests and Ukrainian responses continue. To follow the evolution of the conflict, franceinfo draws up a map of the demarcation lines, estimated by various observers, including the Institute for the Study of War, an American think-tank specializing in the subject. This map shows the situation on the ground on Sunday evening February 27.
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The front line spans a multitude of areas from northern Kiev to Odessa in the south of the country. Russian troops advance, but the Ukrainian army resists, especially in Kiev and Kharkiv.
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On the ground, to the east, Russian armor has been trying to enter Kharkiv since the start of the offensive. It is the second largest city in the country, and it is located only about thirty kilometers from the border, where the Russian army had been collecting equipment for several months. IUkrainian forces said they regained control of the area after the arrival of Russian armor on Sunday at dawn. VSn Monday morning, strong explosions occurred at various points, notably in a residential area in the north of the city. These bombings killed at least 11 people, announced the regional governor.
In Kiev too, the Ukrainian army claimed to have repelled several assault attempts by Russian forces coming from the northwest. The situation in the capital, targeted overnight by three Russian missile launches, one of which was destroyed, is “under control”, the Ukrainian authorities announced on Monday. At the same time, the Russian army assured Monday that civilians could leave “freely” Kiev, while accusing the Ukrainian authorities of using them as “human shields”. Large Russian military convoys were seen heading towards Kiev over the weekend.
The port city of Mariupol surrounded
To the east, Russian troops have advanced beyond the front line that has cut off the Donbass region since 2014. But they are coming up against Ukrainian positions that have been there for several years. These troops are trying to advance to the port of Mariupol, which they have surrounded, and where intense fighting is taking place.
In the south of the country, Russian soldiers advanced from Crimea, a territory annexed by Moscow since 2014. They joined the Dnieper, a river that crosses Ukraine from north to south, and surrounded the city of Kherson, not far from the mouth of the Dnieper at the Black Sea, according to the Institute for the Study of War. The Russian army is also advancing further north-east of Crimea, towards the city of Zaporizhia, and it has assured that it has control “entirely the area surrounding the nuclear power plant” from the city. After conquering the city of Melitopol on Saturday, it could take the Ukrainian positions in a pincer movement, between its troops coming from the south and those from Donbass.