summary:

• Zelensky estimates that the enemy has fewer missiles than last year, and that Ukrainian air defenses have improved
• Three people were killed and several others were injured in a bombing on the city of Kherson
• Small Russian gains north of Avdiivka were confirmed
• AFU gains along the Donetsk-Zaporizhia border
• UK says Moscow would suffer heavy losses in any attack on Avdiivka factory
• The US Treasury imposes new sanctions on Russian oil shipping companies and politicians in the Balkans
• The European Union appears ready to ban sales of precision machinery to Russia

Artillery from the left bank of the Dnipro River kills and wounds more civilians, and cuts off electricity

A day after four people were killed in Russian raids in the southern regions, three more civilians were killed in Kherson on Thursday after the city was subjected to Russian bombing from the left bank of the Dnipro River.

Regional Governor Oleksandr Prokudin said mortar shells hit civilian targets on Thursday morning, including at least one residential building in Kherson, killing a 68-year-old man and a 75-year-old woman.

Later in the afternoon, Russian artillery rained down on the town BelozerkaAbout eight kilometers west of Kherson, killing one person and wounding many others, six of whom were taken to hospital, including a teenager. The area also lost power as a result.

“We are better than we were last year” on air defenses, the president told reporters

In a meeting with the press on Thursday, President Volodymyr Zelensky warned that Russia was stockpiling missiles intended for winter infrastructure strikes, but that Ukraine was better equipped than it was last year to counter the expected attack.

“My assessment is that it is accumulating [missiles]But they don’t have as many missiles compared to what they had before. France Press agency The president was quoted as saying.

After air strikes last winter on the country’s power grid, which left millions without power or heat, Kiev intensified its campaign to acquire more surface-to-air missiles and other defense systems to intercept incoming missiles and drones.

“In terms of air defence, we are better than we were last winter,” Zelensky said, adding that there was now increased preparedness on the ground for power outages, with more shelters and charging stations for those experiencing power outages at home. “The winter will be difficult, but no worse than last year.”

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The president admitted that there were still gaps in Ukrainian air defenses, especially around the heavily bombed areas of Kharkiv. Donetsk and Zaporizhya regions, France Press agency mentioned.

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Operations: Avdiivka

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russian forces continued their offensive operations near Avdiivka and made verified gains, although the exact date of this advance is unclear. The geolocation footage was posted on Thursday It indicates that Moscow forces advanced marginally north of the famous Avdiivka Coke plant northwest of the city.

Russian bloggers claimed that Russian forces had seized several sites near the Avdiivka plant and the nearby Terekon slag heap and that Stepov (8 km/5 miles northwest of Avdiivka) is now a disputed “gray area”.

Other Kremlin bloggers claimed on Thursday that Russian forces had also made advances in the country’s northwest Krasnohorivka (5 km / 3 miles north of Avdiivka) in the direction of Berdych (5 kilometers / 3 miles northwest of Avdiivka).

Operations: Donetsk-Zaporizhia border

ISW also reported that Ukrainian forces launched attacks along the Donetsk-Zaporizhia regional border on Thursday and made confirmed advances, but again, the exact timing of these gains is unclear.

Geolocated footage released on Thursday shows Ukrainian forces fending off Russian attacks to the west Novodontsky (12 kilometers / 8 miles southeast Velika Novoselka) and confirmation that Kiev forces regained some local sites.

The British Ministry of Defense expects heavy Russian losses

A Twitter update from the British Ministry of Defense predicted that Russian forces would suffer “significant” losses in a battle over Avdiivka’s coke and chemical plant.

The city’s factory and slag heap have been the focus of intense fighting for months as Russian forces attempt to encircle the important strategic stronghold located 12 kilometers (8 miles) from the occupied city of Kosovo. Donetsk.

The British Ministry described the Russian tactical maneuvers to surround the city as an indication of a “pincer movement.” The ministry said Russian forces had already made advances in the northern suburbs in recent days, but bypassing the coke plant would be very difficult.

“The industrial facility provides Ukraine with a local defensive advantage and Russian forces would likely suffer significant personnel losses if they attempted to attack the facility,” the statement read.

The United States hits oil price cap evaders and Russia-backed activists in Europe with sanctions

The U.S. Treasury Department cracked down Thursday on groups violating price caps for Russian transported oil, and on Kremlin-backed street vendors in the Balkans, the Associated Press reported.

The department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed sanctions on three companies based in the United Arab Emirates, as well as eight individuals and six entities in several Balkan countries.

Oil shipping companies have been using American service providers to deliver Russian crude at a price higher than the global price of $60 per barrel, which is intended to limit Moscow’s revenues to finance its invasion of Ukraine.

The group of individuals in the Balkans – from North Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and other countries – were punished for corruption and trying to prevent governments there from joining Western organisations.

They were described as local politicians and mafia leaders, funded by Moscow, who would “leverage key judicial powers to facilitate [Russia’s] “Aggressive, destabilizing activities.”

The European Union is likely to block shipments of machinery used to make weapons to Russia

Bloomberg News reported this week that the European Union appears ready to ban the export of precision machinery and parts that Russia is said to use in manufacturing weapons and ammunition. They are also allegedly used in drone engines, among other dual-use products.

If the measure is passed, it would mark the twelfth round of sanctions imposed by the European Union aimed at stifling Russian military supplies.