News
In this week’s summary:
- In Russia’s western Kursk Region, only two settlements — border towns Oleshnya and Gornal — remain under the control of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).
- In the Kupiansk sector, Russian forces are attempting to ferry armored vehicles across the Oskil River to the right bank.
- Fighters from the Russian Espanola brigade released a video showing its drone operators in a residential skyscraper in Moscow City — the Russian capital’s central business district — striking targets in Chasiv Yar.
- Russian troops have increased pressure on the “pocket” west of Toretsk in apparent preparation for a future advance on Kostyantynivka.
- In the Pokrovsk direction, Russian forces launched what they called “motocross season” — nearly 100 motorcycle-borne troops simultaneously taking part in one assault.
- Since Donald Trump’s inauguration, missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian territory have intensified significantly.
- The updated verified Russian military death toll, compiled by BBC News Russian and the independent exiled publication Mediazona, has reached 103,275.
- A new report by the Open Source Centre think tank showed that supplies from North Korea now fulfill up to half of the Russian army’s munitions needs in certain categories.
Situation at the front
In Russia’s western Kursk Region, AFU-controlled territory has diminished even further: fighting has begun near the outskirts of Oleshnya and Gornal, the last settlements held by Ukrainian troops in the area. Pro-Russian Telegram channels have also reported control over the Gornal Monastery, although these claims appear premature.
The recently seized settlement of Guyevo, now under Russian control, was struck by HIMARS, with reports indicating that the forward command post of the 30th Motor Rifle Regiment was hit. A small Russian column was also reportedly destroyed in the vicinity of the village.
Russian forces are also attempting to advance into Ukraine's northeast Sumy Region; however, Ukrainian military analyst Kostiantyn Mashovets wrote that due to the redeployment of Russian units from the Kursk axis, the process of establishing a “buffer zone” has been “delayed.” The AFU reportedly managed to push back Russian forces near the village of Belovody and block its further advance toward Yunakivka. Mashovets speculates that in the future, Russian Airborne and Marine units may be redeployed to other Ukrainian theaters of operation, leaving motor rifle units of the 14th and 44th Army Corps in the border region.
In the Kupiansk direction, Ukraine’s 77th Airmobile Brigade claimed to have repelled a major Russian mechanized assault involving five improvised T-62-based “barn tanks” — modified to carry troops in place of their removed turrets. The same brigade later repelled a Russian motorized assault, claiming the destruction of seven motorcycles. A Russian attempt to ferry infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) across the Oskil River in an effort to establish a bridgehead on the right bank also proved unsuccessful (1, 2).
A large-scale Russian mechanized assault was also repelled south of Chasiv Yar. Meanwhile, ultranationalist fighters from the pro-Russian “Espanola” brigade released footage of drone operators targeting positions in Chasiv Yar from a residential skyscraper in Moscow City — the Russian capital’s central business district. Overall, Russian forces in this area have utilized fiber-optic-controlled UAVs to ramp up drone-based attacks on Ukrainian logistics.
On the western flank of the Toretsk front, Russian forces captured Kalynove, raising a flag there. They also took Sukhaya Balka and are attempting to eliminate the Ukrainian-held “pocket” between Niu-York and Zelenе Pole and break through toward the Kostyantynivka highway. Russia’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) reported the capture of Valentynivka. Simultaneously, Ukraine’s Azov 12th National Guard Brigade reported repelling a Russian assault using civilian vehicles near Leonidivka and Novospaske. Fighting continues on the outskirts of Toretsk, including near the St. Matrona mine.
Also in the Toretsk sector, Russian forces captured Yelyzavetivka on the eastern flank and Preobrazhenka on the western flank. Ukrainian forces launched counterattacks near Kotlin on the western side, near Vidrodzhennia south of Pokrovsk, and around Vodyane Druhe on the eastern edge.
A Ukrainian service member and author of the Officer ✙ Telegram channel reported mechanized assaults along the Sribne–Andriivka line, with Russian forces losing four armored vehicles in one such attack. He also described the launch of the so-called “motocross season,” noting a rise in motorcycle-based Russian attacks. Perhaps the most massive of these assaults in the war so far — using around 100 motorcycles — was repelled near Yelyzavetivka, east of Myrnohrad. However, according to Russian estimates, the assault allowed Russian forces to break into the outskirts of Myrolyubivka.
Mutual strikes and sabotage
Over the course of the week, the Ukrainian Air Force reported (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) shooting down 270 Shahed-type and other unidentified drones out of 466 launched toward Ukraine, while another 140 UAVs were “radar-lost.” There were also reports of 12 missile launches, with three successfully intercepted.
The UA War Infographics project calculated that between Jan. 1 and April 10, 2025, a total of 11,367 drones were launched over Ukrainian territory — eight times more than in the same period last year (1,418). An analysis by Texty.org.ua indicates that since Donald Trump’s inauguration and the launch of his peace talks initiative, there has been a notable surge in the number of Russian missile and drone strikes targeting Ukrainian territory. In some areas, such as the Odesa Region, the number of attacks has risen tenfold; overall, strikes across 12 Ukrainian regions have more than doubled.
On April 13, the city of Sumy was hit by a missile strike. According to Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, 35 people were killed (including two children), and 129 were injured (17 of them children). Russia’s MoD claimed the strike was carried out with Iskander-M ballistic missiles that were targeting a command meeting of Ukraine’s “Siversk” operational-tactical group. This has not been confirmed, though Ukrainian sources mentioned a military awards ceremony taking place near the location of the strike. President Zelensky subsequently dismissed the head of the Sumy Regional Military Administration, Volodymyr Artiukh, who had been accused of organizing the awards ceremony.
Ukrainian service members who took part in the event were reportedly unharmed, although the death of Colonel Yuriy Yula, commander of the AFU’s 27th Rocket Artillery Brigade based in Sumy, was confirmed. Nonetheless, military experts (1, 2) still labeled the Russian strike as a war crime due to its use of indiscriminate munitions — specifically shrapnel warhead-equipped missiles. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) blamed Russia’s 448th and 112th missile brigades for the attack.
Russia’s MoD, in turn, reported the downing of 413 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones over Russian territory and the occupied Crimean Peninsula. Notably, on April 16-17, Ukrainian forces targeted the permanent base of Russia’s 112th Missile Brigade (accused in the Sumy strike), located in the town of Shuya in the Ivanovo Region.
According to data put together by volunteers at the open source intelligence (OSINT) project Conflict Intelligence Team (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6), at least 91 civilians were killed and 422 injured due to shelling of civilian infrastructure on both sides of the front between 8:00 p.m. on April 10 and 8:00 p.m. on April 17.
Losses
The Ukrainian Air Force has lost its second F-16 fighter jet (the first was lost in August 2024). Both Russian and Ukrainian sources (1, 2) write that the aircraft was downed by Russian air defense systems — a claim also echoed by Russia’s MoD.
BBC News Russian and the independent outlet Mediazona, together with a team of volunteers, have updated their count of Russian military fatalities based on open-source obituaries and reports. The list of verified names now includes 103,275 Russian servicemen. The publications noted that over the past 2.5 months — during which Russia has been engaged in negotiations with the U.S. over a possible peace settlement — the frequency of published obituaries (which is not directly equivalent to confirmed deaths) has actually increased.
Analyst Janis Kluge estimates that Russia is recruiting 1,000 contract soldiers per day. He attributes these high numbers to substantial one-time sign-on bonuses and widespread public belief that the war may soon end. Kluge’s conclusion is based on publicly available data regarding contract signing payments across 37 Russian regions.
Weapons and military vehicles
European Union member states have allocated €23 billion in aid to Ukraine for this year — 15% more than in 2024. As for Russia, a report by the UK-based Open Source Centre revealed that North Korea is now supplying up to half of the Russian Armed Forces’ artillery munitions needs.
Meanwhile, the Russian domestic defense industry continues to send tanks equipped with hopelessly outdated electronic warfare systems to the front. Russia’s front-line tinkerers have responded by engineering a range of improvised assault vehicles (1, 2, 3), including one constructed on the chassis of the Soviet-era Oka compact car.