Situation on front lines: Kharkiv, Donbas, Mariupol. Russia continues its offensive in eastern Ukraine. The goal is to take full control of Donetsk and Luhansk regions and establish a land corridor to Crimea, General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in an evening report on May 3.
On the Slobozhanskyi axis, Russian forces continue to conduct air and artillery strikes on Kharkiv. They conduct an offensive toward Izyum-Barvinkove and take losses. Russia moved a battery of 240-mm self-propelled mortars Tyulpan and a unit with multiple launch rocket systems Smerch to Izyum.
On Donetsk and Tavriya axes, Russia advances toward Lyman, Severodonetsk, Popasna, Avdiivka, and Kurakhove. Russian forces aim to take control of Rubizhne and Popasna, and advance further toward Lyman, Siversk, and Slovyansk. They form a second line of defense in some areas. In Mariupol, the Russian forces continue to block the Ukrainian troops near Azovstal. They fire at the steelworks from artillery and tanks.
Power substations damaged in Lviv region as explosions go off around Ukraine. On the evening of May 3, an air raid alert was declared for all of Ukraine’s regions. Explosions were reported in the city of Lviv, in Kirovohrad, Vinnytsia, and Kyiv regions.
Russia conducted missile strikes on Lviv region, head of the Lviv regional military administration Maksym Kozytskyi said. The strikes caused power outages in parts of Lviv, and damaged two electrical substations, mayor Andriy Sadovyi said. A missile struck a site in a mountain area of Zakarpattya, head of the regional military administration Viktor Mykyta said. “Emergency services are on site. We collect damage and casualty data,” he added.
The air defense system shot down the missiles targeting Vinnytsia and Kyiv regions.
Russia readies to evacuate families of Russian military from Transnistria. Russia prepares to evacuate families of Russian officers from unrecognized Transnistria, General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said.
Amid a tense situation in Transnistria, operational units of the Russian troops remain on full combat alert.
Last week, the so-called “Ministry of Interior” of unrecognized Transnistria said it allegedly detected a Ukrainian drone with explosives and prevented “an attempted terrorist act”.
On April 22, a Russian commander said that in the “second phase of the special operation” Russia aims to take full control of Ukraine’s Donbas and south, and create a passage to Transnistria. A series of terrorist acts followed. There were no casualties.
NATO expects further provocations in unrecognized Transnistria. The provocations aim to create problems for Ukraine and carry no threat to Moldova.
Ukraine in Flames #54: How war destroyed the most flourishing city in the east of Ukraine
95 percent of Mariupol, a real Ukrainian hero city, was destroyed. Mariupol, which before the start of the large-scale invasion was ranked 6th on the list of Ukrainian cities for quality of life, has been turned into ruins today. The 400,000-strong industrial leader of Donetsk region is now in a state of humanitarian catastrophe. Tens of thousands of people are trapped, and, tragically, not everyone will manage to escape. Azovstal has become a real fortress where the Ukrainian military is desperately defending itself. Hundreds of civilians are hiding in the basements of this plant.
Russia and its henchmen from the so-called LDNR consider Mariupol part of the unrecognized “Donetsk People’s Republic” and are trying to capture the city in any way. The shelling continues.
The battles for the city, which have been going on for more than 2 months, have not stopped. The city does not have any communications, the infrastructure is completely destroyed. Earlier, the UN said that at least one hundred thousand residents of the besieged and blocked by the Russian occupiers of Mariupol are dying from lack of food and water.
How did Russia turn the water gates of Donetsk region into ruins? What should the world do in response to these atrocities? How can one help Mariupol right now? We offer a position on this in Ukraine in Flames #54.