CDS Daily brief (16.09.22) | CDS comments on key events

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Humanitarian aspect:

At night, the enemy shelled the Slobidsky and Kyivsky districts of Kharkiv. Four people were injured.

The Russian military continues to shell the liberated areas of the Kharkiv Oblast. During the day, 12 people were injured. According to the Center for Emergency Medical Aid, ten people were wounded in the Kupyansk district due to Russian shelling, including children aged 12 and 13.

The Russians almost completely destroyed Izuym. There is hardly a house in the city that Russians did not damage. A consolidated rescue team clears mines and rubble damaged by the Russians, looking for unexploded shells or mines. Under the rubble, the bodies and remains of Izyum civilians killed in the bombings in March are being searched.

More than 400 graves have been found at the site in Izyum, but the number of victims is not yet known. “We have a terrible picture of what the occupiers did, particularly in the Kharkiv region,” said Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin. “In fact, now such cities as Balaklia, Izyum are standing in the same row as Bucha, Borodianka, Irpin,” he added.

The UN human rights office will send monitors to Izyum. “They (monitors) are aiming to go there to try to establish a bit more about what may have happened,” said the Spokesperson and media officer at UN Human Rights Office.

Of the 450 bodies found, 99% with signs of violent death – exhumation began today in the Izyum Forest. Following the results of the first day of exhumation of mass graves, 22 bodies of civilians were examined, 11 of them women.

10 torture chambers of the Russian army were discovered in the liberated cities of the Kharkiv Oblast.

In Kupyansk, the SBU is investigating how the occupiers illegally detained citizens. The Russians set up a prison in the district police department. In these premises, the Russians detained and abused local residents who refused to cooperate. “Few people among the residents of Kupyansk wanted to help the enemy, so the “prison” was three times overcrowded: in cells designed for 140 people, the occupiers held more than 400 simultaneously. Illegally imprisoned citizens were forced to sleep standing up.” According to international conventions, such treatment is considered torture and cruel, inhumane treatment and punishment.

In the afternoon of September 16, Ukrainian air defense forces shot down an enemy missile over Uman, Cherkasy Oblast (central part of Ukraine). As a result, there is damage to non-

residential facilities and power outages. Fortunately, no one was hurt, the head of the Cherkasy Military Administration, Ihor Taburets, reported.

At night, the occupiers shelled Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. In Nikopol, one wounded civilian reported; 11 high-rise and private buildings, a lyceum, a kindergarten, a social service center, several businesses, gas pipelines and power lines were damaged.

According to the Head of Dnipropetrovsk Military Administration, Valentyn Reznichenko, on the afternoon of September 16, the Russian shelled the Zelenodolsk community with heavy artillery, killing two men and injuring one.

The Russians again hit the critical infrastructure of Kryvyi Rih (3rd day in a row). Valentyn Reznichenko reported severe destruction of hydraulic structures.

The water in the Ingulets River turned red after a Russian strike on the dam. Industrial enterprises have provided over 50 large dump trucks with debris, loam and crushed stone for backfilling the locks. Head of the Military Administration of Kryvyi Rih Oleksandr Vilkul reports that the city’s water supply has been stabilized. Elimination of the consequences of enemy shelling on hydraulic structures continues.

In Donetsk Oblast at night, the Russians shelled Pokrovsk and Bakhmut districts on the front line. In Selydovo – 1 dead and 5 injured. In addition, 32 five-story buildings, a school, a gymnasium and a kindergarten were damaged.

In Sumy Oblast, 4 enemy mines hit the territory of the Krasnopillia community in the morning from the Russian side of the border. No victims and destruction were reported.

During the past day, 23 civil infrastructure objects were damaged by the Russian shelling of Zaporizhzhya Oblasts.

During September 15-16, the Russians shelled the Bashtan district of Mykolayiv Oblast. As a result, a farm warehouse was partially destroyed, and one house was damaged.

Operational situation

It is the 205th day of the strategic air-ground offensive operation of the Russian Armed Forces against Ukraine (in the official terminology of the Russian Federation – “operation to protect Donbas”). The enemy continues to focus its efforts on disrupting the active actions of Ukrainian troops in specific directions, maintaining the temporarily captured territories and establishing full control over the territory of Donetsk Oblast.

The Russian military is shelling the positions of the Ukrainian Defense Forces along the contact line. The enemy is trying to regroup its troops in separate directions and conducts aerial reconnaissance. The threat of air and missile strikes throughout the territory of Ukraine persists.

The enemy shelled residential areas and civilian infrastructure objects, violating the norms of International Humanitarian Law, laws and customs of war. The enemy launched 11 missile strikes, 15 air strikes and carried out 96 attacks from rocket artillery systems on objects on the territory of Ukraine, in particular in the areas of Kostyantynivka, Druzhkivka, Kupyansk, Siversk, New York, Maryinka, Hulyaipole, Myrne and Velyky Artakiv.

During the past 24 hours, to support the actions of ground groupings, the Ukrainian Air Force carried out 18 strikes on places of concentration of enemy manpower and equipment. As a result, it was confirmed that 13 enemy strongholds, areas of concentration of weapons and military equipment, and five positions of enemy air defense complexes were hit.

Air defense units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine destroyed two UAVs of the occupiers in different directions.

Ukrainian missile troops and artillery units inflicted fire on three areas of the enemy’s manpower and military equipment concentration, including enemy logistics hubs and pontoon crossings.

The morale of the personnel of the invasion forces remains low.

Kharkiv direction

• Zolochiv-Balakleya section: approximate length of combat line – 147 km, number of BTGs of the RF Armed Forces – 10-12, the average width of the combat area of one BTG – 13.3 km;
• Deployed enemy BTGs: 26th, 153rd and 197th tank regiments, 245th motorized rifle regiment of the 47th tank division, 6th and 239th tank regiments, 228th motorized rifle regiment of the 90th tank division, 1st motorized rifle regiment, 1st tank regiment of the 2nd motorized rifle division, 25th and 138th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 6th Combined Arms Army, 27th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 1st Tank Army, 275th and 280th motorized rifle regiments, 11th tank regiment of the 18th motorized rifle division of the 11 Army Corps, 7th motorized rifle regiment of the 11th Army Corps, 80th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 14th Army Corps, 2nd and 45th separate SOF brigades of the Airborne Forces, 1st Army Corps of so-called DPR, PMCs.

The enemy command is trying at any cost to hold the line Lyman – Yampil, and the Lozove area, including the village of Rubtsi, for as long as possible. The enemy shelled, in particular, from the Russian Federation’s territory, the Hoptivka, Kozacha Lopan, Mala Vovcha, Zybyne and Strilecha.

Kramatorsk direction

• Balakleya – Siversk section: approximate length of the combat line – 184 km, the number of BTGs of the RF Armed Forces – 17-20, the average width of the combat area of one BTG – 9.6 km;

• 252nd and 752nd motorized rifle regiments of the 3rd motorized rifle division, 1st, 13th and 12th tank regiments, 423rd motorized rifle regiment of the 4th tank division, 201st military base, 15th, 21st, 30th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 2nd Combined Arms Army, 35th, 55th and 74th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 41st Combined Arms Army, 3rd and 14th separate SOF brigades, 2nd and 4th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 2nd Army Corps, 7th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 1st Army Corps, PMCs.

2nd Army Corps’ units and the remnants of two enemy BTGs of the 150th motorized rifle division did not manage to break through to the south of Siversk in the direction of Verkhnyokamyanske and along the Siversk Donets. They mostly lost their combat capability.

The remnants of RF Armed Forces tactical grouping, which was on the defensive of Izyum, are now completing their concentration in the area of Nyzhnya Duvanka – Kuzemivka – Svatove – Mistky. Most likely, these are the remains of two or three BTGs from the 423rd motorized rifle regiment of the 2nd motorized rifle division and/or the 237th tank regiment of the 3rd motorized rifle division. This grouping could be reinforced by one or two BTGs of the 41st Combined Arms Army units and the consolidated BTG of the 106th airborne division.

The enemy fired at the positions of the Ukrainian Defense Forces in the areas of Dvorichna, Horokhovatka, Pryshyb, Tetyanivka, Kryva Luka, Ozerne, Pyskunivka, Raihorodok, Starodubivka, Bilohorivka, Siversk, Rozdolivka, and Spirne.

Donetsk direction

• Siversk – Maryinka section: approximate length of the combat line – 235 km, the number of BTGs of the RF Armed Forces – 13-15, the average width of the combat area of one BTG – 17 km;
• Deployed BTGs: 68th and 163rd tank regiments, 102nd and 103rd motorized rifle regiments of the 150 motorized rifle division, 80th tank regiment of the 90th tank division, 35th, 55th and 74th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 41st Combined Arms Army, 31st separate airborne assault brigade, 61st separate marines brigade of the Joint Strategic Command “Northern Fleet”, 336th separate marines brigade, 24th separate SOF brigade, 1st, 3rd, 5th, 15th, and 100th separate motorized rifle brigades, 9th and 11th separate motorized rifle regiment of the 1st Army Corps of the so-called DPR, 6th motorized rifle regiment of the 2nd Army Corps of the so-called LPR, PMCs.

The enemy fired at the positions of the Ukrainian Defense Forces near New York, Lyman, Mykolaivka Druga, Zaytseve, Odradivka, Soledar, Bakhmut, Bakhmutske, Yakovlivka, Vesele, Maryinka, Krasnohorivka, Pervomaiske, Avdiivka and Vodyane.

Ukrainian Defense forces successfully repelled enemy attacks in the areas of Odradivka, Zaitseve, Bakhmut, Vesela Dolyna, Avdiivka and Novomykhailivka.

The 3rd separate motorized rifle brigade of the 1st Army Corps attacked the Ukrainian Defense Forces in the direction of Vershyna, Odradivka; PMC “Wagner” in Kodema, Odradivka; and

Kodema, Zaitseve; the 2634th rifle battalion of the mobilization reserve – in Pokrovske and Bakhmut; fighting continues.

In the direction of Klynove, Vesela Dolyna, mercenaries from the “Wagner” PMC were defeated and retreated.

The 1st separate motorized rifle brigade of the 1st Army Corps advanced in the direction of Spartak and Avdiivka, and the 39th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 68th Army Corps – in the direction of Solodke and Novomykhailivka, both failed and retreated to their original position.

Zaporizhzhya direction

• Maryinka – Vasylivka section: approximate length of the line of combat – 200 km, the number of BTGs of the RF Armed Forces – 17, the average width of the combat area of one BTG – 11.7 km;
• Deployed BTGs: 36th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 29th Combined Arms Army, 38th and 64th separate motorized rifle brigades, 69th separate cover brigade of the 35th Combined Arms Army, 5th separate tank brigade, 37 separate motorized rifle brigade of the 36th Combined Arms Army, 135th, 429th, 503rd and 693rd motorized rifle regiments of the 19th motorized rifle division of the 58th Combined Arms Army, 70th, 71st and 291st motorized rifle regiments of the 42nd motorized rifle division of the 58th Combined Arms Army, 136th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 58 Combined Arms Army, 46th and 49th machine gun artillery regiments of the 18th machine gun artillery division of the 68th Army Corps, 39th separate motorized rifle brigade of the 68th Army Corps, 83th separate airborne assault brigade, 40th and 155th separate marines brigades, 22nd separate SOF brigade, 1st Army Corps of the so-called DPR, and 2nd Army Corps of the so-called LPR, PMCs.

The enemy took no active action but shelled along the entire line of contact.

Kherson direction

• Vasylivka–Nova Zburyivka and Stanislav section: approximate length of the battle line – 252 km, the number of BTGs of the RF Armed Forces – 27, the average width of the combat area of one BTG – 9.3 km;
• Deployed BTGs: 114th, 143rd and 394th motorized rifle regiments, 218th tank regiment of the 127th motorized rifle division of the 5th Combined Arms Army, 57th and 60th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 5th Combined Arms Army, 135th, 503rd and 693rd motorized rifle regiments of the 19th motorized rifle division, 70th, 71st and 291st motorized rifle regiments of the 42nd motorized rifle division, 51st and 137th parachute airborne regiments of the 106th parachute airborne division, 7th military base of the 49th Combined Arms Army, 16th and 346th separate SOF brigades.

The fire impact of enemy artillery was recorded along the entire line of contact. In addition, the Russian forces conducted aerial reconnaissance by UAVs and carried out 34 sorties of operational-tactical aviation.

The enemy is trying to hide massive losses after the fire damage inflicted by the Ukrainian Defense Forces on the places of Russian troops’ concentration. The bodies of Russian soldiers were taken away in packed trucks due to UAF high-precision strikes in the areas of Kherson, Vasylivka, Perevalsk and other towns and villages.

Russian forces deployed elements of the “Pole-21” radio suppression system in the areas of Kamyshany and Chaplynka to protect their objects from Ukrainian Defense Forces’ missile strikes and UAVs.

The enemy uses for uninterrupted logistical support of the troop grouping:

• ferry crossings across the Dnipro River between Podstepne and Sadove, Nova Kakhovka and Kozatske;
• pontoon-bridge crossing over the Ingulets River in the Darivka area;
• Antoniv railway bridge – for fuel supply through three pipelines (previously only one was used, fuel is delivered by fuel transport and pumped by pumping stations).

In addition, the Russian forces continued work in the area of the Kakhovka HPP to fill the lock chamber with crushed stone and metal structures to create a continuous passage (probably at the final stage, at least 30 trucks were delivered on September 14).

Kherson-Berislav bridgehead

• Velyka Lepetikha – Oleksandrivka section: approximate length of the battle line – 250 km, the number of BTGs of the RF Armed Forces – 22, the average width of the combat area of one BTG – 11.8 km;
• Deployed BTGs: 108th Air assault regiment, 171st separate airborne assault brigade of the 7th Air assault division, 4th military base of the 58th Combined Arms Army, 429th motorized rifle regiment of the 19th motorized rifle division, 33rd and 255th motorized rifle regiments of the 20th motorized rifle division, 34th and 205th separate motorized rifle brigades of the 49th Combined Arms Army, 224th, 237th and 239th Air assault regiments of the 76th Air assault division, 217th and 331 Air assault regiments of the 98th Air assault division, 126th separate coastal defense brigade, 127th separate ranger brigade, 11th separate airborne assault brigade, 10th separate SOF brigade, PMC.

The operational situation is unchanged.

Azov-Black Sea Maritime Operational Area:

The forces of the Russian Black Sea Fleet continue to project force on the coast and the continental part of Ukraine and control the northwestern part of the Black Sea. The ultimate goal is to deprive Ukraine of access to the sea and connect unrecognized Transnistria with the Russian Federation by land through the coast of the Black and Azov seas.

Along the southern coast of Crimea, there are four enemy cruise missile carriers (including a submarine). Up to 28 enemy Kalibr missiles are ready for a salvo.

Additionally, 13 other enemy warships and vessels of the auxiliary fleet of the Russian Black Sea Fleet and the Caspian Flotilla are at sea, providing reconnaissance and blockade of navigation in the Azov-Black Sea waters.

A group of 5 large amphibious ships conduct training near the southern coast of Crimea, ensuring the combat coordination of the BTG of the reinforced 382nd separate battalion of the Russian marines (based in the city of Temryuk, Krasnodar Krai, Russia). The rest of the amphibious ships are in the ports of Novorossiysk and Sevastopol for restocking and planned repairs. There are no signs of the direct formation of an amphibious landing force to land on the southern coast of Ukraine.

Three enemy submarines of project 636.3 are in the port of Novorossiysk.

Russian aviation continues to fly from the Crimean airfields of Belbek and Hvardiyske over the northwestern part of the Black Sea. Over the past day, 9 Su-27, Su-30 and Su-24 aircraft from Belbek and Saki airfields were involved.

A caravan of four ships left today from the ports of the Odesa region. It was led by the bulk carrier BREEZE, which left the port of Odesa, and

CS CIHAN, also from Odesa, ANNABELLA from the port of Chornomorsk and NAVIN VULTURE from Pivdenny port were next. During the operation of the grain corridor, 149 ships loaded with Ukrainian agro-industrial products – about 3 million 400 thousand tons – left the ports of Great Odesa. Eight ships are approaching the Odessa coast today.

The crew of a sea merchant vessel caught in the Black Sea and handed to the border guards of Ukraine a life raft for 20 people from the sunken Russian ship “Moskva”. The lifeboat was kept afloat only by being attached to several life jackets. A broken paddle damaged by corrosion and cylinders for pumping air were on the raft. There was also a waterproof bag with Russian coins and elements of the military uniform of sailors and marines. This discovery proved the carelessness of the Russian military leadership – the raft was most likely defective.

Russian operational losses from 24.02 to 16.09

Personnel – almost 54,050 people (+200);

Tanks – 2,199 (+6);

Armored combat vehicles – 4,690 (+8);

Artillery systems – 1,302 (+7);

Multiple rocket launchers (MLRS) – 312 (+1); Anti-aircraft warfare systems – 168 (+1); Vehicles and fuel tanks – 3,550 (+28); Aircraft – 250 (0);

Helicopters – 215 (0);

UAV operational and tactical level – 908 (0); Intercepted cruise missiles – 233 (0);

Boats / ships – 15 (0).

Ukraine, general news

Energoatom, the Ukrainian operator of the ZNPP, informed that it has delivered to the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear power plant 25 tracks of spear parts to repair damage caused by the Russian illegal activities at the station. The load also includes chemical reagents required for the operation of the ZNPP and, most importantly, additional fuel supplies to ensure the operation of diesel generators in the event of another blackout.

Prime Minister Denys Shmygal, at a meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers, stated that the readiness of Ukraine for the heating season is more than 80%:

• significant coal resources have been accumulated;
• the process of pumping gas into storage facilities is underway;
• additional gas supplies from Western partners are being discussed;
• One and a half billion hryvnias have been allocated to prepare for emergencies;
• one and a half thousand mobile generators and dozens of backup boilers were purchased.

Real estate prices have risen in Ukraine: rent and purchase growth in different regions ranges from 19% to 78%. According to “Economy Now Ua”, last month, rental prices increased in all Oblasts of Ukraine, except for the Kirovohrad Oblast, where they fell by 20%. Rent prices rose the most in Kyiv and Cherkasy Oblasts (40%). Real estate prices increase on the secondary market was recorded in Kirovohrad, Sumy, Kyiv and Zaporizhzhya Oblasts. Ukrainians most often looked for apartments in the Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast, as well as in Poltava, Zaporizhzhya, Dnipropetrovsk, and Odesa Oblasts.

Oleg Horohovskyi, the co-owner of one of the largest online banking in Ukraine, “Monobank”, reported a powerful DDoS attack on the bank.

“The most powerful DDoS attack. We have passed, we are going up. Everything is normal now,” Horokhovsky wrote on social networks. He did not give details.

International diplomatic aspect

The US announced a new defence assistance package worth $600 million. It will include arms, munitions, and equipment from US Department of Defence inventories. The Pentagon expects that two batteries of the NASAMS air defence system will be delivered to Ukraine within two months. With the recent drawdown, the total amount of assistance the Biden Administration has provided Ukraine reached $15.8 billion.

Germany and Greece have finally agreed on a swap deal to deliver 40 BMP-1 tanks to Ukraine, while Germany will replenish them with 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles. Meanwhile, Poland and South Korea sealed a $3 billion deal to procure 48 Korean FA-50 fighter planes.

Russia, relevant news

From September 19, the Latvian authorities will impose restrictions on crossing the Latvian border for Russian holders of Schengen visas.

Estonia breaks customs cooperation with Russia. The draft decree submitted by Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu to terminate the agreement between Estonia and Russia on cooperation and mutual assistance in customs matters has already been approved by the government, ERR reports. This agreement may be terminated by written notice from one of the parties. After that, it will continue to operate for six months.

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