Ukraine: Russia is getting ready to launch a new major attack

The Russian forces are preparing to launch a new military attack in the coming weeks in order to increase pressure on Ukraine and strengthen the Kremlin’s negotiating position in talks on ceasefire, Ukrainian government officials said.

This move, according to Ukrainian officials, could give Russian President Vladimir Putin every reason to delay discussions about cessation of hostilities, preferring to seek more territorial profits.

The Kremlin plans a multifaceted attack along the 1,000 -kilometer front line, according to analysts and military commanders.

Citing information reports, Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski said Russia is preparing for new attacks in the north, Sumi, Harkov and Zaporizia.

“They are pulling the negotiations and are trying to trap the US into endless and unnecessary discussions about alleged ‘terms’, just to save time and then try to occupy more land,” Zelenski told Thursday.

Two G7 diplomats in Kyiv agreed with this assessment, the Associated Press reports.

Russia has essentially rejected the US proposal for immediate and complete cessation of hostilities for 30 days, and its intention for partial ceasefire on the Black Sea is questioned after the imposition of extensive terms by Kremlin negotiators.

Four people were killed and 24 were injured on Friday night when Russian drones hit the city of Dnipro in eastern Ukraine, according to regional governor Sechi Lysak and Ukraine’s emergency service. At least eight more people were injured when a Russian ballistic rocket struck the nearby town of Krybi Rich, the city of origin of Zelenski, according to Governor Lysak.

Success on the battlefield is clearly Putin’s strategy.

“Throughout the front, the strategic initiative is entirely in the hands of the Russian Armed Forces,” Putin said on Thursday in a forum in the Arctic Port of Mourmank. “Our soldiers, our children, go and liberate one area after another, one settlement after another, every day.”

Russian forces continue the pressure

Ukrainian military commanders said Russia has recently reinforced its attacks to improve its regular positions in view of the expected wider attack.

“It takes time until May, that’s all,” said Ukrainian military analyst Pavlos Narozni, who works with soldiers.

To the north, the Russians and the North Korean soldiers have almost deprived Kiev a major negotiating paper, recovering most areas of the Russian region of Kursk, where Ukrainian soldiers made a surprise raid last year. The battles have also intensified along the Eastern Front in Donetsk and Zaporizia.

One of the concerns of some commanders is whether Russia is going to distract experienced forces from Kursk to transport them to other parts of the East.

“It will be difficult. The forces from Kursk will have a high morale from their victories there, “said a Ukrainian commander in the Donetsk region.

“They are preparing offensive actions on the front that will last from six to nine months, almost all 2025,” said Ukrainian military analyst Olpan Hitman, who has contacts with the General Staff of the Armed Forces.

Intensified the battles on the fronts

Russia has entered the negotiations with a clear advantage in the war. Now, after recapturing 80% of its territory in the Kursk area before the negotiations, its forces have intensified the battles in other parts of the first line.

“The number of conflicts in the front line does not diminish,” Hitman said. “If they wanted to stop the war, their actions certainly don’t show it.”

Russia has reinforced recognition missions to identify and destroy artillery positions and drones systems that could prevent a future attack, two Ukrainian commanders said.

“All of this can be signs that he is preparing for attack in the near future,” Hetman said.

The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Saturday that its troops occupied a village in the Sumi area of ​​Ukraine, opposite the border with Kursk. Zelenski had earlier mentioned the province as one of the goals for the Russian spring attack.

The battles also intensified in the eastern city of Pokrovsk, one of Ukraine’s main defensive forts and an important supply center in the Donetsk area. Its occupation would bring Russia closer to its goal of occupying the whole region.

“The Russians have been exhausted in the last two months. During the 10 days of March, they made a kind of pause, “said Major General Victor Trachubov’s military spokesman for the situation in Pokrovsk. In mid -March, the attack continued. “This means that the Russians had recovered.”

Russia reinforces recognition missions

The Ukrainian soldier under the pseudonym “Italian” said that Russia was making intensive recognition in its area of ​​responsibility in the Pokrovsk area. Radio trademarks and information shows a gathering of forces around Selindove, a city in the Pokrovsk area, and the creation of ammunition reserves, he said.

The concentration includes large armored vehicles, and the many new nicknames heard in radio broadcasts suggest that new forces are coming, he said.

Further south, a military blog managed by Michael Zvinsuk, a former Russian defense ministry official, reported last week that Russian forces launched a new attack west of Orichiv in the area of ​​Zaporizia.

Russian analysts are optimistic about the success of a future attack.

“Both sides are actively preparing for spring and summer campaigns,” wrote Sergeki Politaev, a Moscow -based military analyst, in a recent comment. “There is a growing feeling that Ukrainian forces may find it difficult to prepare sufficiently for it.”

Small progress on the negotiating table

In the meantime, at the negotiating table, Russian demands have limited the results of the US negotiations.

Earlier this month, after Russia’s substantial rejection of the US proposal for a complete, monthly cessation of hostilities, Moscow temporarily agreed to a partial ceasefire for the Black Sea maritime routes.

However, this agreement was quickly challenged by Russia’s insistence on setting extensive terms, such as the reconnection of its state bank with the international SWIFT payment system, which was categorically rejected by Kiev and the EU.